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Pamela's Punch
April 12, 2011
Arts & Culture
Featured People to Know
"In Tune"
“We don’t do enough to support the arts in this country,” a friend lamented to me the other night. His buddy just lost his job as a professional musician in Syracuse, as the Symphony had to be shut down due to lack of funding. My friend is a professional trumpeter by trade, but had to leave that world for other pursuits. If he could, I know he’d be playing every day, every night all over the world, just like in the good old days.
When you meet professional musicians, or when you attend live performances, you realize that their God-given talent is so awesome, but you do know it’s the hard work, dedication, and passion that makes an otherwise good artist a true star. It also takes a good marketing and public relations team (and agent, manager … you know the drill). But truly, it’s so few who actually make it to the “top”. Here is one such rising star that you will want to keep an “ear out for”:
As one of the few artists to dominate the Jazz/Latin Jazz genre, Lucho, Latin Jazz Vocalist&Composer (above) is emerging as an acclaimed performer. Since previous appearances on Pre-Grammy Awards events, when he has been showcased on the Red Carpet, Lucho has garnered an even greater following. There are several nationwide magazines that are preparing segments about Lucho’s music, slated for release in the future. Lucho regularly performs the Jazz circuit in Malibu County, and now there is demand for him throughout California, Las Vegas, and beyond. Lucho’s music may also be featured in an upcoming Latin film to premiere at the end of the year...”
-Pamela Sorensen
www.pamelaspunch.com/in-tune/
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The Hollywood Reporter
October 6, 1994
Concert Review
St. Mark's, Venice Beach
"Lucho"
"The last big vocal sensation out of Peru was Yma Sumac. Now we have Lucho, a winning young singer from Lima who made his showcase debut Tuesday in Venice Beach. He may not be as flamboyant as Sumac, but this young man is on the march.
Seated on his "cajon", a boxlike percussion instrument that can sound like maracas or congas depending on where you hit it, Lucho opened his set by igniting a fine Latin beat that never let up for the rest of the performance.
The guy soon proved, on sturdy ballad vehicles such as "Green Dolphin Street", "Black Orpheus" and "You Are Too Beautiful", that he was in command of an unassuming but resourceful baritone voice whose phrasing was utterly secure.
Putting the roller skates under him was a dandy rhythm section that had Freddie Ravel on piano, Jonathan Dresel on drums, Machito Sanchez on percussion and Paul Dourge on bass.
When Lucho needed to be grand, he was grander than Tito Guizar, the great mexican tenor. When he needed to be casual, Dean Martin could not have been cooler.
Lucho took the latter approach on an up-tempo "Cherokee" gliding along sinuously or even dreamily while the supple and reliable band busied itself with becoming a gaudy jungle of tropical delight. His scat singing was pretty much on target. Guitarist Ramon Stagnaro, a fellow Peruvian who plays with Alex Acuna, contributed a fiery Jazz-drenched solo that glittered with expertise, and there was a charming coda.
The Guizar aspect, a kind of continental, prewar feel that made you think of waxed moustaches and slim gold cigarette cases, came over Lucho when Ravel was replaced toward the end of the set by Octavio Figueroa.
A devotee of the Puerto Rican Pianist Eddie Palmieri, Figueroa supplied a deep, dark purple background on which Lucho, switching to Spanish, depicted the passions of his corazon in bright scarlets and golds.
Suddenly taller, Lucho, a music Major from the University of Nevada at Las Vegas, belted out three lurid tunes. He begged her to keep on being his even though she is in another's arms, and stuff like that. The last number had a grand climax with a wild and thrilling high note at the end. Lucho killed it. It was a great finish without an instrument being smashed - or maybe it was the beginning of a new and shining path."
-Tony Gieske
The Hollywood Reporter