My initial introduction to Maraca came through the 2000 album Descarga Total. That first track hit me like a freight train and I was hooked - there was no turning back, I was a dedicated Maraca fan. I listened to that album over and over until 2002’s Tremenda Rumba, which shocked me when I first heard it. I found it totally unbelievable that this album was better than Descarga Total. This inspired me to go back to old Irakere recordings and check out Maraca with Chucho Valdes; this too was exciting music full of enthusiasm and passion. I was totally salivating when 2005 rolled around and Maraca released Soy Yo. I felt like this album was a bit of a letdown, seemed a bit stiff and produced. Yet, this was in comparison to this massively high standard that I had set for Maraca by now. The reality is that Soy Yo is a good album with lots of great playing. I’ve certainly spent a lot of time with all of these albums.

Recently, I ran across Orlando “Maraca” Valle’s first recording as a leader, Fórmula Uno. As much as I’ve enjoyed Maraca’s playing in the past, I’d strangely enough never quite gone back that far into his discography. This album was recorded in 1995, not too long after Maraca had left Irakere. He was in the process of establishing himself as a solo artist, so his band Otra Visión was still yet to be formed. The personnel on this album is an amalgam of musicians, many of them from Irakere. Chucho Valdes appears on piano, Enrique Pla plays drums, Carlos Del Puerto shares the bass duties with his son Carlitos, and Angá plays congas. In reality, this album was Maraca trying to find his voice as a solo artist - making the transition from what he had done in the past into what he would do in the future.

In all possible ways, this is definitely a latin jazz album, as opposed to the emphasis on dance music with a latin jazz edge that fills Maraca’s later albums. A variety of moving chord changes are the basis of this album, not I-IV-V vamps or one chord jams. Flute solos fill every song - and in many cases, extended flute solos that allow Maraca to stretch his unbelievable chops. There is a minimal amount of singing here - in fact, there is only one song with vocals; a coro repeated a few times behind a flute solo. In some cases the rhythms are less obviously danceable - many songs replace timbales with drum kit opening up the possibility for excursions into swing and fusion type grooves. Without a doubt, Maraca was taking his high profile spot in Irakere and focusing on the image of himself as a virtuosic jazz soloist, with very good results.

The repertoire reflects Maraca’s high caliber writing and the influence that he garnered from Chucho Valdes and Irakere. The high intensity rumba and harmonized flutes of “Párraga” set the tone for the album, followed by the up-tempo montuno of “Otra Visión”. These pieces showcase Maraca’s ability to write virtuosic melody lines and never sacrifice groove, musicality, or style. Maraca recognizes the role of the flute in Cuban music with two dips into the Danzón and the Charanga instrumentation. The first is the one cover tune of the album - the Cuban standard “Almendra”, while the other is an original jazz influenced Danzón - “Danzón Para Celine”. The distinctly different directions taken on these two pieces show Maraca’s love for and immense knowledge of the style, while his string arranging set these two pieces apart as highlights of the album. The most basic arrangement of the album is one that works the best for me - “Sangre Negra”. The musicians set up a 6/8 groove, play a basic melody, and then blow over it. It’s a nice contrast to the rest of the pieces on the album that includes frenetic melody lines. Another nice contrast exists in “Maraca’s Cha Cha Cha”, a light Cha Cha Cha that moves over a series of jazz chord changes. Overall, the album has a lot of diversity and strong composition that creates complementary flooring for the incredible players on this album.

On the improvisational side of things, Maraca and the rhythm section cover the majority of the solo spots throughout the album. This album is really a flautist’s dream come true - there is more flute on this album - not to mention more massive chops and musicality - than I think I’ve ever heard on a jazz album. Maraca plays with melodic invention, a thoughtful sense of spontaneous composition, and plain virtuosity. He’s an original improviser and it’s a pleasure to hear so much of him here. Still, the flute is pretty much the soloist as a wind instrument on this album. There are two short saxophone solos, but the rest of it is all flute. There are lots of rhythm section solos throughout the album - including some memorable bits from Chucho Valdes himself. One of my favorite improvisations is the Carlos Del Puerto bass solo on “Sangre Negra” - a fine piece of musicianship. In fact, the majority of the solos on the album are truly study-worthy.

It’s a bit strange to hear this album after spending so much time with Maraca’s later work. At first, I found myself looking for those dance grooves that pulsated through Descarga Total, Tremenda Rumba, and Soy Yo. On later listens to Fórmula Uno, I realized that this album was a true treasure; one that I am thrilled I found. With today’s emphasis on production and marketability, it would be rare to hear an album like this with so many masters just playing full throttle. It gives a deep insight into the other side of Maraca’s musicianship, one previously only heard by me in bits and pieces on Irakere recordings. This is a side of Maraca that holds weight and substance - I’ve listened to this album countless times over the past couple of weeks and I’m still finding new things to admire. In short, this is an essential piece of any Maraca collection; a required piece of history necessary to give the total picture on this incredible musician.

Stumble it!