Amadito Valdés (born February 14, 1946) is a

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

n timbalero, best known for his work with Cuarteto Las d'Aida and

Buena Vista Social Club Buena Vista Social Club was a musical ensemble primarily made up of Cuban musicians, formed in 1996. The project was organized by World Circuit (record label), World Circuit executive Nick Gold, produced by American guitarist Ry Cooder and dire ...

Career

Valdés was born in

Havana Havana (; ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

saxophonist, and in 1961 he took up drumming under the supervision of Walfredo de los Reyes. When Reyes left Cuba, Valdés joined Havana's "Alejandro García Caturla" Conservatory and it was there that he began to develop his improvisational style on the

timbales Timbales () or pailas are shallow single-headed drums with metal casing. They are shallower than single-headed tom-toms and usually tuned much higher, especially for their size.Orovio, Helio 1981. ''Diccionario de la música cubana: biográfic ...

, mixing Afro rhythms in time with the Cuban son syncopated rhythms in 2/4 time. In the 1960s, Valdés became the timbalero for the popular Cuban vocal quartet Las d'Aida. In 1996, Valdés joined American guitarist

Ry Cooder Ryland Peter Cooder (born March 15, 1947) is an American musician, songwriter, film score composer, record producer, and writer. He is a multi-instrumentalist but is best known for his slide guitar work, his interest in traditional music, and h ...

for the

collaboration, playing timbales on both records and performances for the group and featuring in the 1999 movie also titled ''

''.Buena Vista Social Club : Musicians
''

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

''. Ever since, he has also worked with

Juan de Marcos González Juan de Marcos González (born Juan de Marcos González-Cárdenas; January 29, 1954) is a Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of isl ...

's Afro-Cuban All Stars and with Ruben González. On July 7, 2007 he performed at

Live Earth Live Earth was an event developed to increase Environmentalism, environmental awareness through entertainment. Background Founded by producer Kevin Wall, in partnership with former U.S. Vice President Al Gore. Live Earth 2007 The 1st series ...

in Hamburg, Germany.

Career

References

See also