By Miguel Gallardo
Lehman College’s Lovinger Theatre was the venue for the 2013 Pacheco Jazz Festival from November 20-22. Performers included the Celia Cruz High School Latin/Jazz Ensemble, Annette Aguilar and StringBeans, University of Rhode Island Jazz Band, Lehman College Jazz Ensemble and the Bronx Conexion Latin-Jazz Band.
“It’s really about experience, and it’s about intuition,” said Cascadu, an instrumentalist in the Bronx Conexion Latin-Jazz Band. The band, directed by Victor Rendon, played an hour of original songs and covers including: “La Buena Gente,” “Macho,” “Havana Blues,” “So It Goes,” and “Soul Walk.”
“We started as a rehearsal band at Lehman College in the Fall of 2012,” said Victor Rendon. The band now plays at venues around the world and features a variety of professional musicians playing drums, saxophones, trombones, flutes, trumpets, piano and more.
Not only is there a blend in instrumentals, but also in ethnicity among the band members. This peculiar Latin sounding jazz is played by musicians of Latin, African, Caribbean, and European descent. Cascadu explained that knowing what sounds to play is part of a “universal, galactic consciousness.”
A couple of Victor Rendon’s musical influences are “Tito Puentes or any bee-bop Jazz drummer from the 50’s and 60’s,” he says. “Musicians like Billy Joel Jones were big influences in my music.” Not only was Rendon influenced by the greats, for years he has been an influence in schools across the country, holding classes for bands, drums and more.
Rendon has taught in locations all over New York City, Connecticut, Texas, and even Bermuda. Since 2003, Rendon has directed along with long-time friend, Armando Rodriguez at Lehman College.
The performance filled the Lovinger Theatre with a great energy that left the audience watching, dancing, and smiling. “It’s all about nature, all about creating the mood,” said Cascadu. It’s about being reflective, and being sensitive to the music and trying to impart a sentiment in sounds to the audience.”
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