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Chilcano - Moche

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Led by Afro-Peruvian jazz innovator Gabriel Alegria, Chilcano has made long strides since its conception in September of 2010. Consisting of trumpet (Alegria), baritone saxophone (Wood), bass (Da Silva), keys (Prado), guitar (Fisher) and drums (Doing), Chilcano performs weekly on Saturdays at Tutuma Social Club, and has planned a concert tour in Peru this summer, 2011. Infusing Afro-Peruvian beats on the cajon with the harmonic complexities of jazz, Chilcano's expressive original music bridges cultures by bringing a modern edge to the traditional sounds of coastal Peru. The group received a generous scholarship from the Ella Fitzgerald Charitable Foundation which has made possible the recording of a full length studio album and a performance tour to Peru. Ella has asked for her money to be used to provide musical experiences for children, so the foundation will fund performances at orphanages in the New York area over the next year. Chilcano has performed with some of Lima's most respected percussionists Freddy "Huevito" Lobatón and Antonio Vílches, as well as bassist John Benitez and Saxophonist Laura Andrea Leguia. The band has performed at The Blue Note, St. Peter's "Jazz Church", and various Universities in the U.S., as well as Centro Cultural de España, Jazz Zone, and El Ukukus in Peru. Chilcano is back again for the fall of 2011 with an all new lineup, but the playing the same grooves, and at the same place. For those that forgot...at Tutuma Social Club (E 56th St. + 3rd Ave., NY) at 10:30 every Thursday. I don't own any of this tracks. The rights go to their respective owners. Our only purpose is to share, support, and educate people about Afro Peruvian Jazz. You can find us on Facebook : www.facebook.com/AfroPeruvianJazz

This piece was one of our hits in Chilcano.  We performed this jam in Peru - in Lima and Cuzco.  Then we went to Macchu Pichu!  The beat is a slow Marinera / Zamacueca.  Tono Vilchez would do his Lando Tap routine to this track (see Lando Tap video).  I originally composed this tune in 2008 and played it with a band in Madison, WI.  The intro is taken from the original bass intro played by Kevin Knapp.

 

Lando Tap

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I played every week for the better part of a year with Antonio Vilchez, a percussionist and tap dancer from Lima, Peru.  We did a tour together in Peru and I got to continue to learn lots of great things about the cajón and where it comes from.