Dave Valentin
Encyclopedia
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
flutist.
He learned latin percussion
Latin percussion
The term Latin percussion refers to any number of a large family of musical percussion instruments used in Latin music, which in turn is a very loosely related group of musical styles, mainly from the Latin American region, and ultimately having roots or influences in African tribal...
first when he was a teenager, and then switched to flute
Flute
The flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is an aerophone or reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening...
. Valentin's teacher, Hubert Laws
Hubert Laws
Hubert Laws is an American flutist and saxophonist with a 40+ year career in jazz, classical, and other music genres. Alongside Herbie Mann, Laws is probably the most recognized and respected jazz flutist...
, suggested that he not double on saxophone
Saxophone
The saxophone is a conical-bore transposing musical instrument that is a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax in 1846...
because of his attractive sound on the flute. He studied at the Bronx Community College
Bronx Community College
The Bronx Community College of The City University of New York is a community college in the City University of New York system located in the University Heights neighborhood of The Bronx.- History :...
. He is of Puerto Rican
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
descent.
In 1977, he made his recording debut with Ricardo Marrero's group and he appeared also on a Noel Pointer
Noel Pointer
Noel Pointer was an American jazz violinist and record producer.He was nominated for a Grammy award in 1981. Pointer's reputation as an outstanding jazz musician and literary advocate garnered him honorary citizenship in cities across the United States...
album. Discovered by Dave Grusin
Dave Grusin
David Grusin is an American composer, arranger and pianist. Grusin has composed many scores for feature films and television, and has won numerous awards for his soundtrack and record work, including an Academy award and 12 Grammys...
and Larry Rosen
Larry Rosen (producer)
Larry Rosen is an American entrepreneur, producer, musician, and recording engineer.Rosen was born in The Bronx, New York . Rosen began his musical career as a drummer with the Newport Youth Band and met future partner Dave Grusin while working with singer Andy Williams and attending the Manhattan...
, Valentin was the first artist signed to GRP and he has been a popular attraction ever since. Valentin has recorded over 15 albums, combining the influence of pop
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
, R&B, and Brazilian music with Latin
Latin jazz
Latin jazz is the general term given to jazz with Latin American rhythms.The three main categories of Latin Jazz are Brazilian, Cuban and Puerto Rican:# Brazilian Latin Jazz includes bossa nova...
and smooth jazz
Smooth jazz
Smooth jazz is a genre of music that grew out of jazz fusion and is influenced by R&B, funk, rock, and pop music styles ....
to create a slick and accessible form of crossover jazz
Crossover jazz
In the wake of fusion's decline in the mid-1970s, jazz artists who continued to seek wider audiences began incorporating a variety of popular sounds into their music, forming a group of accessible styles that became known as crossover jazz. Influential saxophonist Grover Washington, Jr...
. In 2000, he appeared in the documentary film, Calle 54
Calle 54
Calle 54 is a 2000 documentary film about Latin jazz by Spanish director Fernando Trueba. With only minimal introductory voiceovers, the film consists of studio performances by a wide array of Latin Jazz musicians. Artists featured include Chucho Valdés, Bebo Valdés, Cachao, Eliane Elias, Gato...
, performing with Tito Puente
Tito Puente
Tito Puente, , born Ernesto Antonio Puente, was a Latin jazz and Salsa musician. The son of native Puerto Ricans Ernest and Ercilia Puente, of Spanish Harlem in New York City, Puente is often credited as "El Rey de los Timbales" and "The King of Latin Music"...
. He toured with El Negro
El Negro
El Negro is the nickname of:*Fernando Chamorro, Nicaraguan rebel*Horacio Hernandez, Cuban drummer*Roberto Fontanarrosa, Argentine cartoonist...
and MioSotis
MioSotis (singer)
MioSotis is an award-winning American Latin singer, dancer, songwriter, actress, choreographer, television personality, producer, and model. Her career began as a teenager, singing merengue for nearly two years with popular Dominican singer Wilfrido Vargas and five years with The New York Band...
. Since the mid-2000s, Valentin has been signed to Highnote Records
HighNote Records
HighNote Records is an American record label based in New York City, specializing in jazz music.HighNote was founded by Joe Fields, who worked for Prestige Records as an executive in the 1960s and founded Muse Records in the 1970s. He co-founded HighNote and its sister label, Savant Records, in...
releasing World On A String (2005) and Come Fly With Me (2006). He has done several collaborations with pianist Bill O'Connell
Bill O'Connell
Bill O'Connell is a jazz pianist and bandleader. He is most associated with Latin jazz and also hard bop. He studied piano at the Oberlin Conservatory of Music, but has mostly lived in NYC or Long Island. He worked for Chet Baker and Sonny Rollins at early stages in his career...
and was a nominee for the Latin Grammy Awards of 2006
Latin Grammy Awards of 2006
The 7th Annual Latin Grammy Awards were held for the first time in New York City, NY. The awards show was held at Madison Square Garden on Thursday, November 2, 2006. Shakira was the big winner winning Album of the Year, one of four awards that she won...
.