The fiery music of Latin jazz pioneers Dizzy Gillespie and Chano Pozo will be celebrated Saturday when trumpeter Terence Blanchard joins the band of conga master Poncho Sanchez.
This concert will go for the spirit of those bubbling times in the mid-1940s when Gillespie first met Pozo the dynamic Cuban conguero in New York. Their musical connection was instantaneous.
Both men found in each other the inspiration to begin creating something completely different. Pozo would go on to join Gillespie for a spotlight concert at Carnegie Hall.
Last year, to commemorate that special spark of genius some 60 years ago, Sanchez and Blanchard recorded the CD "Chano Y Dizzy!" - playing several of the songs Gillespie and Pozo made so popular.
Some of those pioneering pieces will be featured in the Centennial Hall concert, which will be a complete exploration of Latin jazz, seasoned by audience favorites from the salsa and Latin soul sides of Sanchez repertoire, as well.
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"What I'm most proud of is that Latin jazz was born in America," said Sanchez, who was born in Laredo, Texas. Pozo and Gillespie created "some of the greatest music of the last 50 or 60 years. They created something that didn't exist before in this country. I grew up loving their music."
Blanchard, from his studio in New Orleans, added that "those two guys, Chano and Dizzy, had a very unique take on the music. They were the first of their kind."
Always quick with a story, Sanchez says that when the Cuban musician Mario Bauza introduced Chano to Gillespie "they couldn't talk to each other. Dizzy didn't speak any Spanish and Chano didn't know English.
"They could only communicate through their music."
Blanchard added that in this creative confluence "Dizzy wasn't trying to get Chano to play jazz and Chano wasn't wanting Dizzy to play Latin."
Quite simply, Blanchard continued, "When it came to his artistry, Chano was always a risk taker."
Pozo was also a street hustler with a bad temper. He died in a bar fight in Harlem in 1948. He was 33.
But the language those two invented exploded in the 1950s and continues to grow. Gillespie, working with inventive conga players, kept developing early Latin jazz concepts, always giving Pozo credit. Other musicians of that time also loved the new music and recorded their own versions.
"I've been a guest several times with Dizzy's band and he's been a guest several times with my band," said Sanchez. "So when my manager Ivory Daniel suggested a tribute album to Chano and Dizzy, I was ready.
"I've recorded 25 albums in my career, that includes songs by Chano and songs by Dizzy. And one album that Terence played on, 'Soul of the Conga.'"
"When Poncho asked me about doing this album, I jumped at the chance," said Blanchard. "I already knew a lot of his music, so for me personally, what I love is just the chance to play in Poncho's band."
IF YOU GO
• What: Poncho Sanchez's Latin Jazz Band with special guest Terence Blanchard.
• Presented by: UApresents.
• When: 8 p.m. Saturday.
• Where: Centennial Hall, 1020 E. University Blvd. on the University of Arizona campus.
• Tickets: $18-$38, with discounts available.
• Information/reservations: 621-3341, www.uapresents.org
Chuck Graham has written about Tucson arts for more than 36 years. Read more of his articles at "Let the Show Begin," www.tucsonstage.com
