Tolu Keeps the Beat Lively and the Music Eclectic

Tolu, which opened a three-day run Thursday at the Jazz Bakery, is a cross-cultural aggregation with a predictably diverse sound. Co-led by Colombian-born saxophonist Justo Almario and Peruvian-born drummer Alex Acuna, the group’s nine members reflect a variety of nationalities and musical traditions from across the Americas and beyond.

What gives the group its sweetly homogenized sound is its collective experience in Los Angeles, where they’ve been an on-and-off phenomenon for the last 15 years. While the accent was on Afro-Cuban and other Central and South American rhythmic forms, the band also blended R&B;, jazz and elements of Latin pop into its mix.

Tolu’s strength comes from its percussion team of Acuna, Luis Conte, Michito Sanchez and Ricardo “Tiki” Pasillas. The foursome created a detailed, shifting backdrop from which cymbal, congas or timbale accents would rise and settle. Trumpet, trombone and tenor sax combined to splash fanfares and dance figures on this canvas, or used it to frame equally rhythmic improvisations.

Beat was central as the band performed from specific traditions (Almario’s “Cumbiamba”) or shuttled between jazz-swing and mambo (Chick Corea’s “Litha”). Even during its most exotic moments, Almario kept the music grounded in Americana, quoting “Amazing Grace” during Conte’s “Rumba del Cielo,” recalling John Coltrane throughout. Trumpeter Harry Kim and trombonist Arturo Velasco combined for spirited embellishments that seemed part and parcel of the percussive wash.

While vocal choruses and call-and-response played a large role in the music, Almario and company often spent too much time coaxing the audience to join them. When the beat is this good, you don’t want it interrupted.

* Tolu appears tonight at the Jazz Bakery, 3233 Helms Avenue, Culver City; 8 and 9:30 p.m. $18. (310) 271-9039.