Wonderful as the "Buena Vista Social Club" is, chances are you will see it
only as a movie, not the real thing.

Tonight, Berkeley had a thrilling opportunity to witness the "real thing"
with the appearance of the Afro-Cuban All Stars in Zellerbach Hall.  It
is a a band intertwined with the personnel and spirit of Buena Vista.

It was a superb evening of music, as far from the expected overamplified
din of pop sameness as anything can be.  This band of 17 wins the
admiration and heart of musical audiences of any genre.  A generous program
performed at fever pitch offered artistry, passion, commitment, and great
variety -- from pulsating salsa to the coolest, most contemplative jazz you
can imagine.

The crowning glory of the concert, indeed of the group is the brass
section:  three trumpets and two trombones who played with overwhelming
power, total accuracy, and -- when the music calls for it -- surpassing
elegance.

Screw the imbecilic, lawless mayor of Miami:  Elian should study with
Daniel Ramos Alayo, Julio Padron, Yanko Pisaco Pichardo (trumpets), Alberto
Munoz Martinez and Antonio Leal Rodriguez (trombones), not the brass
sections of the Chicago Symphony or the New York Philharmonic...  because
they are better.  Notwithstanding their commie training in Havana and/or at
Moscow' s Tchaikovsky Conservatory (or because of it), these Cubans blow no
ill wind:  I could have listened just to them all night long.

(A propos Elian, the evening's only non-musical note, a very low-key one
at that, came from the band's magnificent leader, Juan De Marco Gonzalez,
who introduced his work called "Reconciliation" by telling the audience:
"There is too much politics.  Let's stop this chit.  We are all Cubans.")

The "Afro" part is perhaps a reference to the musical roots; as far as the
musicians are concerned, they come in every hue of the rainbow, including
a funky drummer who may well be an 80-year-old Jewish guy.  The age of
Manuel "Puntillita" Licea, the "Cuban Maurice Chevalier" (my designation),
was announced:  he is 76, with a young, fresh voice.

Every member of the band is a notable soloist, and when they play together,
they fuse into a single unit.  Each musician is a "character," with simple,
unforced, endearing characteristics, and they revel in their shared work.
The spirit of "Buena Vista Social Club" lives, right in front of the
audience.  If they don't come to your neighborhood, get their new CD:
"Distinto, diferente." It's the very essence of the Afro-Cuban All Stars.

Janos Gereben/SF
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