The outstanding Cuban percussionist and singer Oscar Valdes Camposwho was the voice of the legendary orchestra for many years IraqisHe died this Thursday in Havana at the age of 85, the Cuban Institute of Music (ICM) said in a statement that did not specify the cause of death.
Oscar Valdés was born on November 12, 1937 in the Pogolotti district of Havana and was the heir to a family of musicians.
His father Oscar was a great drummer, while his uncles Marcelino (drums) and Alfredo and Vicentico (singers) also enriched the island’s music scene with their talent.
In 1949 he began his musical career and learned how to play the batá and how to build the abakuá drums, the batá and the checkeré from great masters. He studied timpani with teachers Guillermo Barreto and Salvador Admiral at the Alejandro García Caturla Conservatory.
After 1959 he worked in the orchestras CMQ, ICRT, Benny Moré and Orquesta Cubana de Música Moderna.
In 1972, when the Iraqere Group was founded under the leadership of Chucho ValdesHe performed as a singer and percussionist alongside talents such as Paquito D’RiveraCarlos Averhoff, Jorge Varona, among others.
In this group, he composed lyrics and “rhythmic ideas,” such as the use of batá and the folkloric part, noted the Cuban Music Institute.
With Irakere he performed at the world’s most important jazz festivalsincluding high-ranking musicians such as Herbie Hancock and Chick Corea.
In 1980, the group won the Grammy Award for Best Latin Recording.
In the 1990s, Oscar Valdés worked with his sons Diego (bassist) and Oscarito (drummer). In 2000 he founded the group Diákarawho played jazz that returned to the folkloric roots, in the same way he had previously done with Irakere, but in a deeper way.
According to the ICM, this stage allowed him to “make contemporary music with Afro-Cuban instruments,” and in this sense he created innovative arrangements of emblematic songs such as Lágrimas negra, Mamá son de la loma, A breaking the Coconut and Xiomara.
In Diákara he used Afro-Cuban instruments with three drummers, with the same musicians playing tumbadora, bongó, batá and drums and singing at the same time; In addition, the electric guitar, three brass instruments, piano and bass were integrated.
With Diákara he performed regularly in famous jazz clubs in Cuba such as La Zorra y el Cuervo and the Jazz Café.
In 2000 he taught courses at universities in France and Argentina. In 2001 he toured Spain and other European countries as well as Israel, where he performed with the group in clubs and festivals and offered courses and conferences.
His album Leyenda viva, recorded with Bis Music, fused his folk roots with Afrojazz. The album won the Cubadisco Special Award in 2010.
Facebook Capture/Lazarito Valdes & Bamboleo
After the death of Oscar Valdés Campos was announced this Thursday, musicians, professionals and artists in general immediately mourned him.
“Pogolotti and all of Cuba were present with the sound of his graves, his bata drums and all the paraphernalia from which he knew how to extract unique sounds. It will be impossible to talk about Afro-percussion and Afro-Cuban jazz without mentioning his name “the greats. “Irakere, Diákara is also him, his voice and his drums, which will always sound as a continuation of the legacy of one of the greatest and most enduring dynasties of Cuban musicians,” explained musicologist Rosa Marquetti.
Facebook Capture/Rosa Marquetti
At the end of this note, it has not yet been announced what the funeral of the prominent musician will be.