Amadito Valdés (born February 14, 1946) is a

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

timbalero Timbales () or pailas are shallow single-headed drums with metal casing. They are shallower than single-headed tom-toms and usually tuned much higher, especially for their size.Orovio, Helio 1981. ''Diccionario de la música cubana: biográfic ...

, best known for his work with Cuarteto Las d'Aida and

Buena Vista Social Club Buena Vista Social Club is an ensemble of Cuban musicians established in 1996. The project was organized by World Circuit executive Nick Gold, produced by American guitarist Ry Cooder and directed by Juan de Marcos González. They named the g ...

Career

Valdés was born in

Havana Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.

in 1946. Early on, he studied music with his father, Amadito Valdés Sr., who was a well-known Cuban

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

saxophonist, and in 1961 he took up drumming under the supervision of

Walfredo de los Reyes Walfredo de los Reyes Sr. is a Cuban percussionist, timbalero, and educator, in the fields of session recording, live performance, and clinics. He is the father of famed percussionists Walfredo Reyes Jr. and Daniel de los Reyes and of actor Kamar ...

. When Reyes left Cuba, Valdés joined Havana's "Alejandro García Caturla" Conservatory and it was there that he began to develop his improvisational style on the

timbales Timbales () or pailas are shallow single-headed drums with metal casing. They are shallower than single-headed tom-toms and usually tuned much higher, especially for their size.Orovio, Helio 1981. ''Diccionario de la música cubana: biográfico ...

, mixing Afro rhythms in 6/8 time with the Cuban son syncopated rhythms in 2/4 time. In the 1960s, Valdés became the timbalero for the popular Cuban vocal quartet Las d'Aida.Amadito Valdés
''EcuRed''. In 1996, Valdés joined American guitarist

Ry Cooder Ryland Peter "Ry" Cooder (born March 15, 1947) is an American musician, songwriter, film score composer, record producer, and writer. He is a multi-instrumentalist but is best known for his slide guitar work, his interest in traditional music, an ...

for the

collaboration, playing timbales on both records and performances for the group and featuring in the 1999 movie also titled ''

''.Buena Vista Social Club : Musicians
''

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcasting, public broadcaster and Non-commercial activity, non-commercial, Terrestrial television, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly fu ...

''. Ever since, he has also worked with

Juan de Marcos González Juan de Marcos González (born Juan de Marcos González-Cárdenas; January 29, 1954) is a Cuban bandleader, musician and actor, best known for his work with the Buena Vista Social Club and in the 2021 Sony Pictures Animation film '' Vivo'' as the ...

Afro-Cuban All Stars Afro-Cuban All Stars is a Cuban band led by Juan de Marcos González (formerly Tres (instrument), tres player for Sierra Maestra (band), Sierra Maestra). Their music is a mix of all the styles of music of Cuba, Cuban music, including bolero, chac ...

and with Ruben González. On July 7, 2007 he performed at

Live Earth Live Earth was an event developed to increase environmental awareness through entertainment. Background Founded by Emmy-winning producer Kevin Wall, in partnership with former U.S. Vice President Al Gore, ''Live Earth'' was built upon the beli ...

in Hamburg, Germany.

Career

References

See also