Michel Camilo and Tomatito Will Present Their New CD in Rare US appearance

Michel Camilo (piano) and Tomatito (flamenco guitar) will be in the United States at The Blue Note (New York City) on September 25 – 27. The club is located at 131 West 3rd St. in Greenwich Village. Tickets are $45.00 at a table, $30.00 at the bar. Concerts are at 8:00pm & 10:30pm

By themselves, pianist Michel Camilo and guitarist Tomatito represent the best of their instruments, combining unmatched technical ability with natural musical sensibility. As a duo, they create music that blends jazz-infused sounds of the Caribbean with the flamenco music of Spain.

Though the duo has been performing together for almost a decade, their musical backgrounds make for an unlikely pairing. Camilo was born in the Dominican Republic in 1954 and was immediately recognized as a child prodigy, joining the National Symphony Orchestra at 16.

Beyond his musical ability, Camilo’s strength is his versatility. After moving to New York in 1979, Camilo became internationally recognized from Grammy awards and nominations as both a composer and pianist. Since then he has recorded numerous albums as a jazz pianist, most notably Live at the Blue Note which won a Grammy award in 2003. In addition, he has had great success as a classical composer, orchestral conductor, and as a concert pianist.

Tomatito, born in Almería, Spain in 1958, came from a musical Gypsy family. As a teen, he played in flamenco nightclubs, and it was at the famous Taberna gitana where Tomatito met two flamenco legends, guitarist Paco de Lucía and singer Camarón de la Isla. Soon, he was touring with both, and he remained Camarón’s accompaniment until the singer’s death in 1992. Tomatito decided to develop his career as a soloist and has since become one of the most popular flamenco artists in all of Spain.

Their first meeting was at a recording session in the early 1990s. In 1998, the Barcelona Jazz Festival asked the duo to perform a duet tribute to the late Spanish hard bop pianist Teté Montoliu. By the end of 1999, they had played over forty concerts together, and soon a studio album was made. The album, Spain, received much critical acclaim, and was followed up last year by the successful Spain Again (recently released in the United States).

For reservations and more information, call (212) 475-8592 or visit bluenotejazz.com.