Here are some customer reviews of
Introducing...Rubén González
: This is a beautiful, lyrical, enchanting album that can be listened to on many levels. For setting a relaxed, upbeat sunny weekend mood, this is a lovely choice. For deeper reflection, Gonzales' effortless phrasing and rhythmic playfullness are near awe-inspiring. I can't imagine anyone who wouldn't love this wonderful masterwork.
This is my favorite album. It is so beautiful, they music so moving. What an unbelievably gifted musician. I find myself wondering what it must have been like in 40's and 50's Cuba and if everything else there is like a time capsule - all bottled up with no exposure to the outside world. How wonderful that this album was made.
Finally an incredible "exposý" on playing and musical expression. For those that call Cuban music:"salsa"; here is an example that teaches to never "LUMP" cuban rhythms into one word. Gonzalez gives a master's clinic on each particular rhythm for us to analyze and learn, from the SON to the DANZýN it is a masterpiece....Thank you Ruben!
those of us old enough to remember the great Cuban and Afro-Cuban music ( shades of George Shearing )of the '50s will fill-up on a great dose on nostalgia. How does this elder statesman of the piano do this ? To see what appears to be a frail tiny old man sit down a piano and be transformed into a master of that instrument is live giving. Listen to the music , then see the film Buena Vista Social Club, get that CD, make yourself a rum and Coke, and your in Havana.
Ruben Gonzalez is a treasure of the music world. It's clear from his playing that music is more than a vocation or a passion for him - it's life. I have had a passion for Afro-Latin based music of the Caribbean/Colombia/Brazil/Panama/Central America zone for thirty years. During that time those in the know would invariably concede that Cuban music and Cuban musicians were the best. I had never found a way to evaluate these opinions. Now we have Ruben Gonzalez to hand us the proof.
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