On a Thursday in early June, under the bright lights of Hollywood's famous Blue Note jazz club, legendary trumpeter and composer Arturo Sandoval took center stage with a microphone in hand and, for good measure, shaking his hips. Wearing a bejeweled silk shirt and backed by his incredibly agile band, the Cuban-born virtuoso kicked off his four-night residency at the club with sizzling banter and panache.
“I had to be careful about what I said in Cuba,” he told the audience. “I live in the United States of America now, man, I say whatever I want. Do you like it? Well, if you don't like it, I don't care!”
Sandoval, now 77, feels liberated by the power of jazz. Released in May, his dynamic new album, “Sangú” (Spanglish for “sounds good!”) – is packed with the free-spirited energy he has cultivated in the decades since arriving in the United States from Cuba. Sandoval maintains a passionate rhythm throughout the album, mastering not only the trumpet, but also the timpani and piano. (He even recorded his own scat singing for the appropriately titled song, “Scat.”)
Once derided by the revolutionary government as “Yankee imperialism,” jazz music became a staple of Sandoval's daily diet. As a young trumpet player in Cuba's national band, he sought refuge in the sounds of Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie by tuning into Voice of America: a radio program broadcast covertly from the United States. Sandoval finally served three and a half months in prison in the 1970s when he was caught listening to the program, but with the famous pianist and conductor. Chucho ValdesSandoval would pioneer a distinctly Afro-Cuban jazz fusion with the Orquesta Cubana de Música Moderna, which was renamed Irakere and won a Grammy for best Latin recording in 1980.
It was in 1990, while touring Europe with his hero Gillespie, that Sandoval finally defected from Cuba with his wife and son, and He found the refuge he had been looking for in the US.
“Jazz is synonymous with freedom,” he said. “And I have always said that the most important word in any dictionary in the world is the word 'freedom'.”
Inside his Tuscan-style home in the Valley, Sandoval's shelves are filled with countless awards he has collected since coming to the United States: an Emmy Award for the score to the 2000 film based on his own life, “For Love or Country,” starring Cuban-American actor Andy Garcia; 10 Grammy statuettes and the Presidential Medal of Freedom, presented to him by President Obama in 2013.
Last month, Sandoval also received a knighthood from the King of Spain. “Does that make me Don Arturo Sandoval?” he audibly asked the ChatGPT app on his phone; in fact, it does. (“My wife gets a little jealous of ChatGPT,” he added, laughing.)
On July 4, Sandoval will perform at the America250 concert in Washington DC, which is a bipartisan celebration of the United States' 250th birthday. Co-chairs of the event include former President George W. Bush, former First Lady Laura Bush, former President Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama. Sitting next to his Bösendorfer grand piano, Sandoval spoke to The Times during a break from his world tour to talk about the new album, his collaborations with Karol G and Ariana Grande, as well as his weakness for a good cigar.
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
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What keeps you playing the trumpet after all these years?
I have no choice. The piano is not that complicated, but the trumpet is a pain in the ass. The trumpet is merciless. You have to practice every day, otherwise it will take a toll on you.
How do you smoke cigars and stay healthy enough to play the trumpet?
I have been a big cigar smoker since I was 14 years old. I never miss a day. I already had a good one. Every year I had an MRI to check my lungs. And the doctor always says: “Man, you have lungs like someone who has never smoked.” A cigar is completely different from cigarettes. [With] A cigarette that is not inhaled to the bottom of the lung, you know, is from here. [taps his throat]. That's the art.
You have been knighted by the king from Spain! How does that feel?
Excellent! Tonight we will invite 30 people. My wife cooks for everyone. the consul [from Spain] He called me three or four days ago. [and] He said: “Arturo, I have a surprise for you, I just received a package from the king at my house, ready to give it to you.” And I said, “What kind of joke is that?” My four grandparents came from Spain to Cuba, on my mother's side they were from Tenerife, Canary Island. On my father's side they were Galicians from Galicia. Even if I wasn't related to my family in Spain, whatever: I love Spain!
Given how restricted music and expression were in Cuba, how did you find your way into the international jazz community?
We put together a big band called the Cuban Modern Music Orchestra. [later called Irakere]. I met a journalist who played the saxophone and he said, “Man, have you ever listened to jazz music?” He played me a compilation of Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie Parker recordings. That was in '67 or '68. Ten years later, I got a phone call from a guy: there was a jazz cruise in the Caribbean and [were in Havana] for 48 hours. I said, “Pretend we never had this conversation!” But I went to the port. When the ship arrived, I saw Master Gillespie coming down the stairs. I didn't know how to say a word in English. But God has always been good to me.
A boy behind him started talking to me in perfect Spanish. He was a percussionist who played with the great Stan Getz…there was a group of good musicians there. Dizzy started asking me questions through him. They said, “Do you have a car?” I had a 1951 Primo, but it was falling apart. He said, “Okay, show me Havana.” That night he stayed for a jam session with Irakere. Gillespie returned to New York and told everyone about the musicians he heard in Cuba. Then one day, a guy came to Irakere's rehearsal and introduced himself with a translator: he was the president of CBS Records. A few months later, he put us on the plane. [to New York] and took us in a small bus directly to [perform at] Carnegie Hall. CBS made a recording of that, [which gave us] our first Grammy.
Many years later, in 2013, he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom. What is something special that you remember from that night?
There was my granddaughter Lola, who was 6 years old. It is customary to take a photo with the president and first lady. And we did it, the whole family. When we met for the photo, Lola started tugging at Obama's jacket. He looked at her and said, “Can I help you?” She said, “Mr. President, I missed school today. I need a note from you.”
I said, “Oh Lord.” But Obama smiled and said, “Of course.” Then he got a document with the White House. [logo] at the top and wrote: “Please excuse Lola from school today… [Signed,] “Barack Obama.”
Legendary jazz trumpeter Arturo Sandoval, performing at the Dorothy Chandler Pavillion in Los Angeles in 2016.
(Courtesy of Timothy Norris)
Your new album is very cinematic. What is the story behind this?
One day my son and his wife, who is my manager, came up to me and said, “Dad, you're getting old. You have to change your repertoire.” I told my son, “I've been feeding you for 50 years and then you come and tell me what to do? Give me a break!” But to be honest, when the pandemic happened, I was locked down. [inside] here. I used to travel a lot and I was very frustrated and sad. So for two and a half years I started writing two or three new songs a day and recorded a few hundred on my own. They chose 100 of them; I said, “[Now] choose 12”.
When I joined the band, when someone told me what to play (a little faster, a little slower), I was like, “What the hell, man?” But I did it. And they were right. I am very happy, blessed and grateful because they are incredible musicians. Nobody is weird. No drugs, no alcohol, strictly within the music.
You joined Karol G's band at Coachella this year. How did that happen?
As a senior, it's not every day you get the opportunity to play Coachella. She called me last year to play a song from her latest album, “Ivonny Bonita.” So when they invited her to Coachella, she said, “Arturo, we would like to play there with you.” He has great charisma and knows how to put on a show. to play [more than] 150,000 people every night? That's not my day job. I was nervous, but grateful for the opportunity. And when I checked my followers on Instagram, I got like 5,000 people in a few days, that never happens to me!
Let's talk about Instagram!
Oh, that's a funny story. [In 2018] I did an album of duets with Stevie Wonder, Pharrell Williams, Ariana Grande… important people. When Pharrell wrote a song for our duo, we were in the studio, recording the song. He said, “Arturo, I'm producing for Ariana Grande in a studio across the hall. Do you want me to call her?” I said, “Of course, man.” They sang together, Pharrell and Ariana. And at the end, I grabbed my phone and said, “Ariana, can we take a picture with Pharrell?” She took my phone from my hand to take it. [a selfie] and he said, “Put it on Instagram.” I didn't know what that was. She said, “Don't you know what Instagram is?” Sorry, I'm old! But I put it on Instagram, thanks to Ariana Grande. She's so talented, man.
How are you still dedicated to music after all this time?
People talk a lot about the word “talent.” What's that? Many people supposedly have great talent, but they don't have the passion, the discipline, the commitment. Do you see those roses in my garden? If someone gave you a seed, you put it in a vase with fresh soil. Add some vitamins and water and if you're lucky, you'll have a rose. But if you gave someone the exact same seed and left it on some table, that rose will die! I am 77 years old and I still practice every day. Nothing goes to my head. All those awards would mean nothing if I didn't take care of what I had.
