Annette A Aguilar and StringBeans
| Established. Jan 01, 2014 | AFM
Music
Press
This is a review by Travis Rogers Jr who reviews for JazzTimes - travisrogersjr.weebly.com
This is a review by Travis Rogers Jr who reviews for JazzTimes - travisrogersjr.weebly.com
Washington CITY PAPER
By Michael J WEST MAY 16th
ANNETTE AGUILAR & STRINGBEAN
Wow!
Upon introduction, Annette A. Aguilar sat behind her army of congas and began playing fiercely while the seven other members of Stringbean slowly filled in around her. The minute the stage was full, Each one took up a percussive instrument and began a polyrhythmic explosion. That was the recurring theme of Aguilar’s set: they would play two or three pieces from Brazil or Cuba, then return to a purely percussive framework . The results were spectacular, with the show’s midpoint—which Aguilar called “Bean Dip”—as the highlight.
On more melodic pieces, the results were almost as good. The combo of vocals, violin, harp, piano, bass, and drums was exotic and beautiful; Ellen Uryevick Adams’s harp and Nicki Denner’s piano meshed in unexpected ways, and Rob Thomas’s violin frequently went in unison with lead singer Sofia Rei Koutsovitis. But it was probably inevitable that these sounds would often get lost in the warehouse of percussion surrounding them, especially on the Brazilian Bahia tune “Bebe” and Ray Baretto’s salsa “Indestructible” (although Aguilar’s switch to marimbas saved the melodic line on the latter). Still, it was splendid.
- Washington City Paper, WASHINGTON.DC
Discography
First CD SPECIAL Friends,
Second NO CHEAP DATES,
The third CD The DAY WAITS for Nobody (latest recording)
Photos
Bio
Annette A. Aguilar (multi-percussionist, recording artist, producer and bandleader) was born in San Francisco into a family from Nicaragua. She began playing music at the age of eleven.
By the age of 16 she was sitting in and performing with renowned Latin artists from Santana, Cal Tjader and Pete and Sheila Escovedo (Sheila E). She earned a Bachelors in music performance from San Francisco State University, Masters from Manhattan School of Music, and Master in music education at CUNY. She has work on Grammy award winning Broadway shows and symphony orchestras (she is the principal timpanist for the Bronx Symphony). She has toured and shared the stage with Darlene Love, The Four Tops, Stevie Wonder, Tito Puente, Dave Valentine, The Grateful Dead, Mose Allison, Toshi Reagon, Casselberry-Dupree, and many TOP New York City Pop, Jazz and Latin groups.
In 1992, she formed her Latin and Brazilian jazz group, Annette A. Aguilar & StringBeans. Their debut CD is Special Friends, and the new CD is titled NO Cheap Dates. Both records are produced on her own label (Eagle seeks Salmon), which have received numerous outstanding reviews nationally, and aboard. StringBeans released their third CD The Day Waits for NOBODY in 2009 just in time for their performance at the prestigious Kennedy Center in Washington D.C
She has been selected three times as Latin Jazz Ambassadors in 2003 and 2006 for the U.S State Department, the Kennedy Center and Jazz @Lincoln Center. They toured Southern Africa and Rwanda, Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, and Madagascar (Where she performed for President Ravalomanana).
You can visit her at www.aguilarstringbeans.com
CDs are available via their website, CD BABY and iTunes.
Links
