Rob Sequin | Havana Journal

Jesus “Chuchito” Valdés and Elio Villafranca are taking time off from their 2009 World Piano Summit tour to perform on July 17 at 8pm at the Cultural Center of Cape Cod.

Jesus “Chuchito” Valdés

Jesus was born and raised in Havana Cuba is a world renowned pianist, composer and arranger who led the renowned Irakere band before taking his fiery brand of Afro-Cuban jazz on world tours that made him famous beyond the western hemisphere.

He will play music from his albums La Timba, Herencia and Keys of Latin Jazz. Valdés now makes his home in Cancun, Mexico, where he continues to lead his Afro-Cuban based Latin-Jazz ensemble.

Elio Villafranca

Elio has collaborated with leading jazz and Latin jazz artists including: Wynton Marsalis, Jon Faddis, Sonny Fortune, Dave Valentin, Lenny White, Horacio “El Negro” Hernández, Ralph Peterson, Giovanni Hidalgo, Eddie Henderson, Miguel Zenón, Cándido Camero and Johnny Pacheco, among others. His 2003 solo recording debut, Incantations/Encantaciones, was named one of that year’s top 50 jazz CDs by JazzTimes.

With the release of The Source In Between, Elio Villafranca once again demonstrates why he’s at the forefront of a generation of remarkable Cuban pianists, composers, and bandleaders. This new recording maintains a balance between the authentic Cuban pianism that distinguishes Latin jazz and the straight-ahead playing characteristic of bebop and subsequent modern styles in the U.S.

More than 80 tickets have already been sold. The venue cannot hold more than 150 so to purchase tickets for the concert call 508-394-7100. The Cultural Center of Cape Cod is located at 307 Old Main St. in South Yarmouth Massachusetts.

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