Cuban Pulse Beats at L.A. Latin Festival

True to its name, the first Los Angeles International Latin Jazz Festival, a six-hour, rhythm-minded tribute honoring the Havana-born percussionist and bandleader Mongo Santamaria, embraced a wide geography of mostly contemporary Latin styles. But it was at its best, appropriately enough, when its attention was on Cuba.

After accepting a Robert Graham sculpture as his award for lifetime achievement, the 75-year-old Santamaria joined percussionists Armando Peraza, Francisco Aguabella and Giovani Hidalgo in a ragged, but still attractive conga jam based on his best known composition “Afro-Blue.” The nearly full-house audience at the Greek Theatre rose to its feet during Santamaria’s solo and cheered every rhythmic line.

Earlier, Peraza, Aguabella and Hidalgo, backed by bassist Al McKibbon and pianist Joe Rotondi, had shown amazingly different, deeply inventive personalities while soloing on congas, timbales and bongos, then came together in complex, Afro-Cuban chatter supported by McKibbon’s strong pulse.

Miami-based bandleader Israel Lopez Cachao and his 12-piece band (supplemented on vocals and percussion by master of ceremonies Andy Garcia) made the biggest Cuban connection while suggesting the early bands of Santamaria, Chano Pozo and others. Cachao’s own upright bass provided much of this music’s rhythmic power as he batted out beats with his bow or provided resonant accents to the horns. Again, the crowd was often on its feet dancing during Cachao’s disappointingly short set.

The less geographically focused acts proved less interesting. The rhythmic edge established by the surprisingly capable Cal Arts Latin Jazz Ensemble directed by pianist David Roitstein and percussionist Alfred Ortiz was erased when the Caribbean Jazz Project--saxophonist Paquito D’Rivera, steel pan player Andy Narell and vibraphonist Dave Samuels--followed with their smooth jazz hybrid.

Trumpeter Herb Alpert smoothed things over even more as he played past hits (“Rise”) and selections from his latest release. A medley of tunes from his Tijuana Brass days rearranged around strong Latin rhythms provided the most interest.

Closer Arturo Sandoval spent too much time scatting or playing timbales and not enough time with his trumpet. What horn playing he did varied from wildly impressive runs to self-indulgent histrionics. True to the course of the entire evening, his six-piece band sounded best when echoing the Afro-Cuban days of his mentor Dizzy Gillespie.