Harold López-Nussa – “Hope”

August 4, 2023: Today pianist and composer Harold López-Nussa released his new single “Hope,” taken from his Blue Note Records debut album Timba a la Americana, out August 25th. The vibrant full-length is teeming with joy and pathos that was inspired by the pianist’s recent decision to leave his Cuban homeland and begin a new life in France. Produced by Michael League (Snarky Puppy), Timba a la Americana presents 10 dynamic new original compositions performed by a tight-knit band featuring harmonica virtuoso Grégoire Maret, Luques Curtis on bass, Bárbaro “Machito” Crespo on congas, and Harold’s brother Ruy Adrián López-Nussa on drums.

Listen to “Hope”

“I composed this track in Havana while I was still living in Cuba, during the lockdown from Covid,” says Harold. “The lockdown in Cuba was really long, almost 1 year, and I was getting depressed without live music. I found this hope playing this groove over and over, and I later created the melody on top, just having fun with the section. Playing this tune always brings me some happiness and I really hope that other people can feel the same way.”

López-Nussa has been building a global following over the past two decades since winning the prestigious Montreux Jazz Piano Competition in 2005. He has captivated audiences across the world with his thrilling performances, released nine acclaimed albums as a leader, and was featured as part of the 2011 all-star project Ninety Miles with Stefon Harris, David Sanchez, and Christian Scott. Born into a musical family in Havana, his music reflects the full range and richness of the Cuban musical tradition with its distinctive combination of folkloric, popular, and classical elements, as well as its embrace of improvisation.

On Timba a la Americana, López-Nussa felt a strong urge to escape the conventional thinking about song form and structure that’s defined Latin jazz since the 1950s. In collaboration with League, the bassist and founder of Snarky Puppy, the two sought new settings for the clave patterns that are the heartbeat of Cuban music. They grabbed elements of danzon, the foundational dance that began in Matanzas in the late 1800s, and the stately son tumbao riffs that frame the songs of Beny More and so many others. They worked with ancient bata drum rhythms used to summon the deities, then incorporated them into the choppy polyrhythmic agitations of modern improvising collectives. They linked the catcalling mambos of Dizzy Gillespie and Machito to modern ideas about song structure.

The result is López-Nussa’s most expansive and ambitious work to date, a provocative, lavishly colorful song cycle that amounts to a top-to-bottom modernization of Latin jazz. Cuba provides the anchoring point of origin; from there López-Nussa and his band volley ideas in a spirit of cosmopolitan modernity that transcends regions and genres and eras.

2023 Tour Dates:
AUG 5 – North Truro, MA – Payomet Performing Arts Center
AUG 11 – Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic – Piaristické námestí
AUG 28 – Warsaw, Poland – Old Town Festival
SEP 2 – Nantes, France – Rendez-Vous de l’Erdre
SEP 6 – Mannheim, Germany – Alte Feuerwache-Halle
SEP 7 – Paris, France – Philharmonie de Paris
SEP 8 – Rotterdam, Netherlands – LantarenVenster
SEP 10 – St-Luc, Switzerland – Jazz sous les étoiles
SEP 28-29 – Minato, Japan – Blue Note Tokyo
OCT 19 – Madrid, Spain – Sala Villanos Club
OCT 21 – Harelbeke, Belgium – Jazzontspooring
NOV 4 – Boston, MA – City Winery Boston
NOV 5 – Rockport, MA – Shalin Liu Performance Center
NOV 6 – New York, NY – Blue Note Jazz Club
NOV 9 – Bethesda, MD – AMP by Strathmore
NOV 10 – Philadelphia, PA – Chris’ Jazz Cafe
NOV 11 – Cape May, NJ – Exit Zero Jazz Festival
NOV 15 – Minneapolis, MN – The Cultural Center
NOV 18 – Denver, CO – Dazzle @ The Arts Complex
NOV 29 – Berkeley, CA – Freight & Salvage
NOV 30 – Santa Cruz, CA – Kuumbwa Jazz Center
DEC 1 – Portland, OR – The Jack London Revue