Biography
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A press-ready biography of Wendell Rivera. |
Buffalo News
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A review of Wendell Rivera's Latin Jazz Ensemble in the Buffalo News. |
Latin Beat Magazine
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100-best Latin Jazz Albums, according to Latin Beat Magazine. |
Latin Style
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A review of Portfolio in Latin Style magazine. |
Jazziz
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A review of Portfolio in Jazziz magazine. |
More reviews:
"Not since chicken wings has Buffalo offered us such a hot-n-spicy
delight as Wendell Rivera's latest recording" Arturo Gomez, WDNA
"In Among Friends, the Latin foundations are never far below the surface. On a majority of the tracks, the band personnel is rounded out with charter members picked by Rivera when he formed his Latin Jazz band ten years ago: Dave Schiavone, saxophones; Pat Georger, keyboards; Hector Diaz, bass; and John Bacon, Jr., drums. With each contributing his instrumental voice to the band, the resulting musical colors define the group's sound. The solos of Schiavone, Georger, and Bacon, along with newcomer Hermanson and the leader, are never less than magnificent." — Dick Judelsohn WBFO 88.7
"New York-based Puerto Rican percussionist-composer-band leader Wendell Rivera is living proof that while you can take the boy out of the tropics you can't take the tropics out of the boy." — Hispanic Magazine
"Wendell puts together an ensemble of New Yorks finest instrumentalists and together they deliver some of the freshest Latin jazz grooves around." —Latin Beat Magazine
"Happy sax solos. Pianistic strings of
pearls. Latin spirit and perfectionism, jazz individuality, grooves and
percussion 'con salsa' that will get you up and dancing"
— Charlie Kiel, Author, Ethnomusicologist
"Buffalo, New York-based, Puerto
Rican-born percussionist Wendell Rivera muscles his way into the top
rank of Latin-jazz groups with his second release as a leader,
Portfolio (WPR Productions). Boasting three salsa-flavored tracks
recorded in San Juan, the session is loaded with engaging melodies,
taut jazz soloing, and stirring Afro-Caribbean rhythms. A strong shot
of tropical flavor is provided by the leader's aunt, legendary vocalist
Yolanda Rivera, whose throaty style on her self-penned Otra Vez Vuelva
a Cantar is a bracing departure from the Latin-jazz norm, as is Pa' la
Playa, with its exuberant coro vocal and sassy bomba groove. Cuatro
(Puerto Rican folk guitar) sensation Yomo Toro adds another
distinctive, salsa-rooted touch to the date. Featuring standout trumpet
soloist Jeff Jarvis and a variety of instrumental configurations, the
session covers a wide range of rhythms and idioms. Doña Dominga
is a funky cha-cha that slithers through a Horace Silver-like melody,
delivered by a tough-sounding trumpet-and-tenor front line. El Barrio
Tune, a fast-charging mambo, could easily become a genre standard.
Inventive versions of Lee Morgan's lovely Ceora, Trane's Naima, and
Toots Thieleman's Bluessette, outfitted in a churning 6/8 Afro rhythm,
all add up to a serious mainstream Latin-jazz statement."
— JAZZIZ Magazine Copyright © 2000, Milor Entertainment, Inc.