Feb 3, 2025 10:49 PM
The Essence of Emily
In the April 1982 issue of People magazine, under the heading “Lookout: A Guide To The Up and Coming,” jazz…
Alfredo Rodríguez is among the 25 artists DownBeat thinks will help shape jazz in the decades to come.
(Photo: Anna Webber)On March 11, when the U.S. State Department advised Americans to “reconsider” international travel in response to the emergent COVID-19 crisis, Alfredo Rodríguez was in Istanbul for a concert, midway through an extensive tour with bassist Richard Bona and percussionist Pedrito Martinez. The trio canceled its remaining engagements and the musicians headed for their respective homes. For Havana-born Rodríguez, this entailed flying to Madrid to join his girlfriend and their infant daughter, Aria. In July, the family relocated to Miami.
Rodríguez—who moved from Cuba to the States in 2009 and landed a contract with Quincy Jones’ management company—has adjusted psychologically. “I feel we should try to adapt to situations and take advantage of the opportunities they offer,” he said. “I was scheduled to be on the road and missing a lot of Aria’s growth. So, despite the economics and not playing for people, being able to be with her is a blessing.”
In addition to teaching online for multiple universities, composing music for films and his various duos, Rodríguez also is focusing on two prospective recording projects. One involves the videos he’s recently posted on social media with his working trio, which plays on the 2018 release, The Little Dream (Mack Avenue). “We’re transforming covers, music that people know, into timba, the popular music of Cuba,” he said.
He developed intimacy with the Cuban canon during formative years. The son of an eminent singer who hosted a popular TV variety show, Rodríguez was a child prodigy who also focused on the Euroclassical canon.
During his teens, he heard Keith Jarrett’s The Köln Concert, spurring an ongoing passion for deploying abundant technique toward tabula rasa expression. Early on, he also developed studio discipline, playing piano and serving as music director for his father’s TV show, collaborating with numerous world-class Cuban stars.
Rodríguez is adamant that his admixture of high precision and intuition will continue to infuse his music. “I’ve looked to be global for a long time,” he explained. “I like music that is involved with all regions. Even though I can’t travel, technology gives me the tools to go online and listen to music from everywhere. You can observe culture, and incorporate so many good things into your life.” DB
This story originally was published in the November 2020 issue of DownBeat. Subscribe here.
“She said, ‘A lot of people are going to try and stop you,’” Sheryl Bailey recalls of the advice she received from jazz guitarist Emily Remler (1957–’90). “‘They’re going to say you slept with somebody, you’re a dyke, you’re this and that and the other. Don’t listen to them, and just keep playing.’”
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