Tiedematos // Palo Blanco

Tiedematos
Cuban joie de vivre meets Rhenish depth - or perhaps vice versa.
When Yaniel Matos and Gunther Tiedemann met at the New Directions Cello Festival in Ithaca (New York) in 2017, they immediately formed a personal and musical bond. This first encounter developed into an ongoing collaboration that has taken them to festivals and concert projects in Rio de Janeiro, Cologne and beyond.
In their duo, the two musicians bring their respective musical worlds together: their own compositions and newly interpreted pieces, shaped by individual biographies and shared experiences. South American timbres come together here just as naturally as influences from jazz, rock and improvised music - open, curious and without any fear of stylistic contact.

Cellist and composer Yaniel Matos, who comes from Santiago de Cuba, combines traditional Afro-Cuban roots with the formative influences of his many years of living and working in Brazil. His music thrives on the tension between his origins, European training and deep involvement with Afro-Brazilian culture - rich in rhythm, color and expression.

Gunther Tiedemann is a cellist, composer, arranger and ensemble leader with international concert activities in Europe, the USA, Brazil, West Africa and Pakistan. He has worked with renowned orchestras and ensembles as well as with musicians from a wide range of genres. In addition to his duo projects, he conducts cello orchestras and teaches at the Cologne University of Music and Dance.

Together, Yaniel Matos and Gunther Tiedemann create music that is characterized by dialogue, trust and curiosity - an encounter between two personalities who do not smooth over their differences, but rather make them sound productive.
Yaniel Matos - vocals, violoncello & piano
Gunther Tiedemann - violoncello

Palo Blanco
Legend has it that Paco de Lucía introduced the cajón to flamenco music permanently after his trip to Peru in the 1970s. Today, almost half a century later, it is hard to imagine flamenco without the characteristic sound of this instrument. In Palo Blanco, the cajón once again combines with two independent musical worlds: contemporary jazz and Afro-Peruvian music.

The Chilean percussionist and composer Pablo Sáez, known for his continuous search for musical connections between different cultures, presents a top-class ensemble: the flamenco guitarist Daniel de Alcalá, the virtuoso Peruvian flutist Daniel Manrique-Smith and the versatile bassist Tibor Szűcs ("El Tiburón"). Together, they unfold a music that draws on tradition and at the same time points openly to the present.

Palo Blanco is not an intellectual experiment, but a lively, sensual and immediate musical encounter. Sometimes it seems as if flamenco is flirting with jazz - curious, spontaneous and carried by a deep, fervent passion.
Palo Blanco is lively, sensual and honest. Sometimes it's as if flamenco is flirting with jazz - curious, spontaneous and always with this fervent passion. - Rheinische Anzeigenblätter
Daniel Manrique-Smith - flute and effects
Daniel de Alcalá - guitar
Tibor Szücs / Ursula Wienken - electric bass
Pablo Sáez - cajón, drums, composition.