Tico! Tico! (1989)

"from the melodic flourishes and virtuoso vivisection of the Cuban Danza and the Venezuelan waltz to the Brasilian forr?and chorinho, and even a breathtaking take,on a Bach partita. From the dazzling beauty of ?Danza Caracter?tica? to an idiom that Paquito D?Rivera seems to have favored all through his career ? Brasilian music. ?To Brenda with Love? is one of those extraordinary sambas, that magically transforms (with some classic counterpoint) into a Bach partita, which came to be part of this song as a result of a rehearsal item by the ingenious pianist, Danilo P?ez. David Chesky?s ?Chorinho #3 ?Sheep Meadow? is another Brasilian piece and making up the series of three pieces is the remarkable ?Recife?s Blues?. My personal favourite, if I may be allowed the luxury of nominating any one piece from the album are the ?Three Venezuelan Waltzes? The listener will have rarely heard such zesty cascades of notes and one thorny virtuoso gesture after another.(Raul da Gama)|