Paquito Hechavarría (21 February 1939 – 27 September 2012) was a Cuban pianist. Hechavarría built his career in Cuba by playing in some of the most popular orchestras, including Conjunto Casino, Orquesta Riverside and Los Armónicos. However, he is primarily known for his later work with

Miami Sound Machine Miami Sound Machine was an American Latin pop band of Latin-influenced music that featured the vocals of Cuban-born recording artist Gloria Estefan (née Fajardo). Established in 1975 by Emilio Estefan, the band was originally known as the Mia ...

, the band that catapulted

Gloria Estefan Gloria María Milagrosa Estefan (; ; born September 1, 1957) is an American singer, actress, and businesswoman. Estefan is an eight-time Grammy Awards, Grammy Award winner, a Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient, and has been named one of t ...

to international stardom. He has collaborated with popular artists such as

David Byrne David Byrne (; born May 14, 1952) is an American musician, writer, visual artist, and filmmaker. He was a founding member, principal songwriter, lead singer, and guitarist of the American New wave music, new wave band Talking Heads. Byrne has ...

Santana Santana may refer to: Transportation * Volkswagen Santana, an automobile * Santana Cycles, manufacturer of tandem bicycles * Santana Motors, a former Spanish automobile manufacturer * Sailboat designs by W. D. Schock Corp ** Santana 20 ** Santan ...

and

Christina Aguilera Christina María Aguilera ( , ; born December 18, 1980) is an American singer-songwriter, actress and television personality. Recognized as Cultural impact of Christina Aguilera, an influential figure in music and having received Public imag ...

Career

Paquito Hechavarría was born on 21 February 1939, in Cárdenas,

Matanzas Matanzas (Cuban ; ) is the capital of the Cuban province of Matanzas Province, Matanzas. Known for its poets, culture, and Afro-American religions, Afro-Cuban folklore, it is located on the northern shore of the island of Cuba, on the Bay of Mat ...

, Cuba. He moved to

Havana Havana (; ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.Orquesta Riverside, Conjunto Casino and Felipe Dulzaides y Los Armónicos. In 1960, he performed in

Mongo Santamaría Ramón "Mongo" Santamaría Rodríguez (April 7, 1917 – February 1, 2003) was a Cuban percussionist and bandleader who spent most of his career in the United States. Primarily a conga drummer, Santamaría was a leading figure in the pachanga an ...

's ''Our Man in Havana'' and

Walfredo de los Reyes Walfredo de los Reyes Sr. (Born June 16, 1933) 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 ...

' ''Cuban Jazz''. In 1962, Hechavarría moved to Miami. Two years later, he recorded a jazz album with percussionist Nelson "Flaco" Padrón, who was also a member of Los Armónicos and had moved to Miami as well. His first solo album, ''Piano sentimental'' came in 1965. In the 1970s, he was a member of Fly Out Band, recording the theme for

¿Qué Pasa, USA? ''¿Qué Pasa, USA?'' () is America's first bilingual situation comedy, and the first sitcom to be produced for PBS. It was produced and taped from 1977 to 1980 in front of a live studio audience at PBS member station WPBT in Miami, Florida and a ...

. In 1978, he played the synthesizer on ''Ecué: Ritmos cubanos'', an album by

Louie Bellson Louie Bellson (born Luigi Paolino Alfredo Francesco Antonio Balassoni, July 6, 1924 – February 14, 2009), often seen in sources as Louis Bellson, although he himself preferred the spelling Louie, was an American jazz drummer. He was a composer ...

and Walfredo de los Reyes. He recorded a solo LP, ''Piano alegre'' in 1980. In 1981, he formed a

descarga A descarga (literally ''discharge'' in Spanish) is an improvised jam session consisting of variations on Cuban music themes, primarily son montuno, but also guajira, bolero, guaracha and rumba. The genre is strongly influenced by jazz and it w ...

ensemble called Walpataca with Walfredo de los Reyes,

Cachao Israel López Valdés (September 14, 1918 – March 22, 2008), better known as Cachao ( ), was a Cuban double bassist and composer. Cachao is widely known as the co-creator of the mambo (music), mambo and a master of the descarga (improvised ...

, and Tany Gil. He continued playing alongside Cachao, and he later played with

, recording the smash hit "

Conga The conga, also known as tumbadora, is a tall, narrow, single-headed drum from Cuba. Congas are staved like barrels and classified into three types: quinto (lead drum, highest), tres dos or tres golpes (middle), and tumba or salidor (lowest ...

". He continued working with

, appearing in albums such as ''

Mi Tierra ''Mi Tierra'' (''My Homeland'') is the third studio album by Cuban-American recording artist Gloria Estefan, released on June 22, 1993, by Epic Records. Produced by husband Emilio Estefan, it is a Spanish-language album and pays homage to her Cu ...

'', ''

Alma Caribeña ''Alma Caribeña – Caribbean Soul'' is the ninth studio solo album and third Spanish album recorded by Cuban-American singer-songwriter Gloria Estefan. It was first released by Epic Records in France on May 9, 2000, and in North America on May ...

'' and '' 90 Millas''. In 1995, he collaborated with fellow Cuban singer

Rey Ruiz Rey Ruiz (Reinerio Ruiz born June 21, 1966 in La Lisa, Havana, Cuba) is a salsa singer from Cuba. Ruiz reached international fame across Latin America, Europe and among Hispanic music fans in the United States. Biography Rey Ruiz demonstrated a ...

on the song "

Piano A piano is a keyboard instrument that produces sound when its keys are depressed, activating an Action (music), action mechanism where hammers strike String (music), strings. Modern pianos have a row of 88 black and white keys, tuned to a c ...

" from his album of the same name which topped the ''Billboard'' Tropical Airplay chart. He recorded his last solo album, ''Frankly'', in 2009. Paquito Hechavarría died on 27 September 2012, in his Miami Beach apartment.

Discography

As leader

*''Sentimental Piano'' (Bluebell, 1965) *''Piano alegre'' (Discolor, 1980) *''Paquito y su Tumbao: Latin Jazz'' (Bongo Latino/Kubaney, 1994) *''Piano'' (Sony, 1995) *''Frankly'' (Calle 54, 2009)

As sideman

With Louis Bellson and Walfredo de los Reyes *''Ecué: Ritmos Cubanos'' (Pablo, 1978) With Jorge Cabrera y su Conjunto Yumurí *''La paella'' (Caney, 1980) *''Homenaje a Arsenio Rodríguez'' (Kubaney, 1981) With Cachao *''Walpataca'' (Tania, 1981) *''Maestro de Maestros'' (Tania, 1986) With Miami Sound Machine and Gloria Estefan *''

Primitive Love ''Primitive Love'' is the ninth studio album and second English-language record by the Miami Sound Machine, released in August 1985, by Epic Records. The album has sold over 6 million copies worldwide. The album includes the top 10 ''Billboar ...

'' (Epic, 1985) *'' Let It Loose'' (Epic, 1987) *''

Cuts Both Ways ''Cuts Both Ways'' (also released as ''Doblemente Herida'') is the debut solo album by American recording artist Gloria Estefan. Though the release marked the first time Estefan was billed as a solo artist, Miami Sound Machine still performed ...

'' (Epic, 1989) *''

'' (Epic, 1993) *''

'' (Epic, 2000) *'' 90 Millas'' (Sony, 2007)

References

External links

Paquito Hechavarría

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

. * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hechavarria, Paquito Cuban pianists Latin jazz pianists 1939 births 2012 deaths 20th-century pianists Orquesta Riverside members