NORWICH – Grupo Greg Ribot, Latin Cumbia Quintet, presents its acclaimed show of original and traditional Latin American music at the Chenango County Council of the Arts – Martin W. Kappel Theater, 27 West Main Street in Norwich at 7 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 9. The performance will conclude a three-day residency with students of the Oxford Schools. The group’s repertoire of dance happy music includes Cumbias, Rumba, Afoxe, Brazilian, Bomba and more.

The musicians in Grupo Greg Ribot are among the best that New York City has to offer, having performed and recorded with the top names in jazz, Latin and North American popular music. Greg Ribot is the ringleader of this musical group, a truly consummate player who swings easily from playing with Sean Lennon, to doing a solo tour of Japan for Blue Note, writing for film/television, to playing for the Thalia Spanish theatre. Also featured are Argentine guitar/charango virtuoso - Francisco “Pancho” Navarro (Willie Colon, Celia Cruz, The Rolling Stones, “Mambo Kings”, “Flawless”, “Frida”), drummer - Vince Cherico (Tito Puente, Ray Baretto, Mandara, Paquito D’Rivera, Mamas and Papas), bassist - Andy Eulau (Ray Baretto, the BMI Jazz Orchestra, Bobby Sanabria, Gene Bertoncini, Syotos) and Cuban percussionist - Nydia “Liberty” Mata (Laura Nyro, Isis, Latin Fever, Dizzy Gillespie, Art Blakey).

Cumbia

Originating on the Atlantic Coast of Columbia, Cumbia’s roots dig deep into the fertile creative soil of West African, Spanish and indigenous traditions. As with any popular music, various other influences have been absorbed over time: most notably elements of Mambo and Jazz. The result is a supremely funky sound with a wide variety of colors expressed through a tasty hybrid of folkloric (siku, quena, charango) and contemporary (clarinet, trumpet, vibes) instruments, supported by a percolating percussive foundation. Grupo Greg Ribot mixes catchy, quirky melodies drawn from Andean, Argentine, Caribbean and Brazilian styles with modern musical idioms, resulting in the irresistible tunes that have won the group high praise. “…very few jazz musicians have ventured into using the cumbia as an improvisational texture. That is until now, with Greg Ribot…like a musical cruise on the Magdalena River in Colombia that cuts across the heart of the country.” – Jesse “Chuy” Varela, JazzTimes

Greg Ribot