Jesús Valdés Rodríguez, better known as Chucho Valdés (born October 9, 1941), is a Cuban pianist, bandleader, composer and arranger whose career spans over 50 years. An original member of the Orquesta Cubana de Música Moderna, in 1973 he founded the group Irakere, one of Cuba's best-known

Latin jazz Latin jazz is a genre of jazz with Latin American rhythms. The two main categories are Afro-Cuban jazz, rhythmically based on Cuban popular dance music, with a rhythm section employing ostinato patterns or a clave, and Afro-Brazilian jazz, which ...

bands. Both his father,

Bebo Valdés Dionisio Ramón Emilio Valdés Amaro (October 9, 1918 – March 22, 2013), better known as Bebo Valdés, was a Cuban pianist, bandleader, composer and arranger. He was a central figure in the golden age of Cuban music, especially due to his big b ...

, and his son, Chuchito, are pianists as well. Married to Lorena Salcedo since 2009. As a solo artist, he has won seven

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pr ...

s and four Latin Grammy Awards.

Career

Chucho Valdés's first recorded sessions as a leader took place in late January 1964 in the Areíto Studios of Havana (former

Panart Panart was one of the first and most successful independent record labels in Cuba, founded in 1944 by engineer Ramón Sabat. In 1961, its studios were seized by Fidel Castro's communist regime and the label was nationalized, becoming "Panart Nacio ...

studios) owned by the newly formed

EGREM EGREM (Empresa de Grabaciones y Ediciones Musicales, Spanish for ''Enterprise of Recordings and Musical Editions'') is the national record label of Cuba. It is headquartered in Centro Habana, where its main record studios (''Estudios Areito'' 101 & ...

. These early sessions included Paquito D'Rivera on alto saxophone and clarinet, Alberto Giral on trombone, Julio Vento on flute, Carlos Emilio Morales on guitar, Kike Hernández on double bass, Emilio del Monte on drums and Óscar Valdés Jr. on congas. Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, these would be the members of his jazz combo, whose lineup would often change, sometimes including bassists Cachaíto and later Carlos del Puerto, and drummers

Guillermo Barreto Guillermo Barreto (August 11, 1929 – December 14, 1991) was a Cuban drummer and ''timbalero''. He was a major figure in the Cuban music scene for more than fifty years and one of the first drummers in Cuba to play Afro-Cuban jazz. Nicknames ...

and later Enrique Plá.Dalmace, Patrick
Discography & Sessionography
''Montuno Cubano''. In 1967, Chucho and his bandmates became founding members of Orquesta Cubana de Música Moderna, together with many other well-known Cuban musicians. This all-star

big band A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually consists of ten or more musicians with four sections: saxophones, trumpets, trombones, and a rhythm section. Big bands originated during the early 1910s ...

would back singers such as

Elena Burke Elena Burke (born Romana Elena Burgues Gonzalez on February 28, 1928, in Havana, Cuba – June 9, 2002 in Havana, Cuba) was a revered and popular Cuban singer of boleros and romantic ballads. Biography She started her career by working in rad ...

and Omara Portuondo. In 1973, Chucho along with other members of the Orquesta Cubana de Música Moderna founded Irakere, an ensemble that bridged

songo Songo may refer to: * Songo music, a type of contemporary Cuban music originating in Havana * Songo people, of northern Angola * Songo-salsa, a style of music that blends Spanish rapping and hip hop beats with salsa music and songo * Songo.mn, an ...

and

Afro-Cuban jazz Afro-Cuban jazz is the earliest form of Latin jazz. It mixes Afro-Cuban clave-based rhythms with jazz harmonies and techniques of improvisation. Afro-Cuban music has deep roots in African ritual and rhythm.{{cite web, Cuba: Son and Afro-Cuban ...

. He would simultaneously continue his solo career, eventually signing with

Blue Note Records Blue Note Records is an American jazz record label owned by Universal Music Group and operated under Capitol Music Group. Established in 1939 by Alfred Lion and Max Margulis, it derived its name from the blue notes of jazz and the blues. ...

, which allowed him to get international exposure. As a result, Chucho's work has received universal critical acclaim from the media, winning seven Grammy awards. Chucho's father, Bebo, who attained a legendary status as the pianist and director of the Tropicana Club orchestra and Orquesta Sabor de Cuba, fled Cuba in 1960, and did not record music again until the 1990s. In the late 1990s, Chucho decided to focus on his solo career, and his son Chuchito replaced him as the pianist/director of Irakere. Chucho and Bebo occasionally played together until the latter's death in 2013. Since 2010, Chucho performs with a backing band known as the Afro-Cuban Messengers. Chucho has spent much of his time teaching younger generations, either in his homeland of Cuba at the Havana National school (with many famous musicians such as Herbie Hancock), or elsewhere. Chucho is the father of six children: Chuchito Valdés Cortes, Emilio Valdés Cortes, Yousi Valdés Torres, Leyanis Valdés Reyes, Jessie Valdés Reyes, and Julian Valdés Salcedo.

Awards and honors

Chucho has won four

s as a solo artist: * Best Latin Jazz Album in 2001 for his album '' Live at the Village Vanguard'' * Best Latin Jazz Album in 2010 for '' Juntos Para Siempre'', with his father Bebo Valdés * Best Latin Jazz Album in 2011 for '' Chucho's Steps'', with the Afro-Cuban Messengers * Best Latin Jazz Album in 2017 for ''Tribute to Irakere: Live in Marciac''. Other albums of his nominated for a Latin Jazz Album Grammy include '' Bele Bele en la Habana'' (1999), ''Briyumba Palo Congo – Religion of the Congo'' (2000) and ''New Conceptions'' (2004). He has also been part of two ensembles who have won Grammy Awards: * Best Latin Recording in 1980 for the album ''Irakere'' by Irakere * Best Latin Jazz Performance in 1998 for the album ''

Habana Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.

'', by

Roy Hargrove Roy Anthony Hargrove (October 16, 1969 – November 2, 2018) was an American jazz musician and composer whose principal instruments were the trumpet and flugelhorn. He achieved worldwide acclaim after winning two Grammy Awards for differing style ...

's Crisol He has won the following

Latin Grammy Award The Latin Grammy Awards are an award by The Latin Recording Academy to recognize outstanding achievement in the Latin music industry. The Latin Grammy honors works recorded in Spanish or Portuguese from anywhere around the world that has been ...

s: * Best Latin Jazz/Jazz Album in 2004 for ''New Conceptions'' * Best Latin Jazz/Jazz Album in 2009 for ''Juntos Para Siempre'' * Best Latin Jazz/Jazz Album in 2019 for ''Jazz Batá 2'' On October 16, 2006, Chucho Valdés was nominated

Goodwill Ambassador Goodwill ambassador is a post-nominal honorific title, a professional occupation and/or authoritative designation that is assigned to a person who advocates for a specific cause or global issue on the basis of their notability such as a publ ...

of the

Food and Agriculture Organization The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)french: link=no, Organisation des Nations unies pour l'alimentation et l'agriculture; it, Organizzazione delle Nazioni Unite per l'Alimentazione e l'Agricoltura is an intern ...

of the United Nations (FAO). In May 2011, Chucho Valdés was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Music from

Berklee College of Music Berklee College of Music is a private music college in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known for the study of jazz and modern American music, it also offers college-level cours ...

In Abril 2022, Chucho Valdés was awarded Best Latin Jazz Album Mirror Mirror with Eliane Elias & Chick Corea @grammyaward2022 Best Latin Jazz

Solo discography

Albums

* 1964: ''Jazz nocturno'' (Areito) * 1964: ''Guapachá en La Habana'' (Areito) – with Guapachá * 1970: ''Chucho Valdés'' (Areito) * 1972: ''Jazz batá'' (Areito) * 1976: ''Piano I'' (Areito) * 1981: ''Tema de Chaka'' (Areito) * 1986: ''Invitación'' (Areito) * 1988: ''Lucumi'' (Messidor) * 1988: ''Straight Ahead'' (Jazz House) – with

Arturo Sandoval Arturo Sandoval is a Cuban-American jazz trumpeter, pianist, and composer. While living in his native Cuba, Sandoval was influenced by jazz musicians Charlie Parker, Clifford Brown, and Dizzy Gillespie. In 1977 he met Gillespie, who became his f ...

* 1991: ''Solo Piano'' (Blue Note) * 1998: '' Bele Bele en la Habana'' (Blue Note) * 1999: ''Briyumba Palo Congo'' (Blue Note) * 1999: ''Live'' (RMM) -- with Hilton Ruiz * 2000: '' Live at the Village Vanguard'' (Blue Note) * 2001: ''Solo: Live in New York'' (Blue Note) * 2002: ''Canciones inéditas'' (EGREM) * 2002: ''Fantasía Cubana: Variations on Classical Themes'' (Blue Note) * 2003: ''New Conceptions'' (Blue Note) * 2005: ''Cancionero cubano'' (EGREM) * 2008: ''Canto a Dios'' (Comanche) * 2008: ''Tumi Sessions'' (Tumi) * 2008: '' Juntos para siempre'' (Sony) – with Bebo Valdés * 2010: '' Chucho's Steps'' (Four-Quarters) * 2013: ''Border-Free'' (Comanche) * 2016: ''Tribute to Irakere: Live in Marciac (Live)'' (Comanche)

EPs

* 1964: ''Por la libre'' (Areito) * 1964: ''No me digan na'' (Areito) – with Guapachá

References

Havana Times ''Havana Times'' is an independent Cuban blog and online magazine founded in 2008. The online publication is edited in Nicaragua. Most of its contributors live in Havana, Santiago de Cuba and Guantánamo. There are also Cuban contributors in Venez ...

'', February 14, 2009
To Havana on a String
''

Irish Times ''The Irish Times'' is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper and online digital publication. It launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Ruadhán Mac Cormaic. It is published every day except Sundays. ''The Irish Times'' is considered a newspaper ...

'', July 8, 2009 {{DEFAULTSORT:Valdes, Chucho 1941 births Living people People from Quivicán Afro-Cuban jazz pianists Latin jazz pianists Cuban jazz pianists Grammy Award winners Latin Grammy Award winners Cuban composers Male composers Latin music composers Latin Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award winners 21st-century pianists Irakere members Motéma Music artists Blue Note Records artists Cuban male musicians

Career

Awards and honors

Solo discography

Albums

EPs

References

Further reading

External links