Juan García Esquivel
Encyclopedia
Juan García Esquivel often simply known as Esquivel!, was a Mexican
band leader, pianist
, and composer for television and films. He is recognized today as one of the foremost exponents of a sophisticated style of largely instrumental music that combines elements of lounge music
and jazz
with Latin flavors. Esquivel is sometimes called "The King of Space Age Pop
" and "The Busby Berkeley
of Cocktail Music." Esquivel is considered one of the foremost exponents of a style of late 1950s-early 1960s quirky instrumental pop that became known (in retrospect) as "Space Age Bachelor Pad Music".
He was born in Tampico
, Tamaulipas
, and his family moved to Mexico City
in 1928 where he studied at the UNAM
.
. Esquivel's musical style was highly idiosyncratic, and although elements sound like his contemporaries, many stylistic traits distinguished his music and made it instantly recognizable, including exotic percussion, wordless vocals, virtuoso piano runs, and exaggerated dynamic shifts. He used many jazz
-like elements; however, other than his piano solos, there is no improvisation, and the works are tightly, meticulously arranged by Esquivel himself, who considered himself a perfectionist as a composer, performer, and recording artist.
His orchestration tended toward the very lush, employing novel instrumental combinations, such as Chinese bells, mariachi bands, whistling, and numerous percussion instruments, blended with orchestra, mixed chorus, and his own heavily-ornamented piano style. The chorus was often called upon to sing only nonsense syllables, most famously "zu-zu" and "pow!" A survey of Esquivel's recordings reveals a fondness for glissandi, sometimes on a half-valved trumpet, sometimes on a kettle drum, but most frequently on pitched percussion instrument
s and slide guitar
s.
Esquivel's use of stereo
recording was legendary, occasionally featuring two bands recording simultaneously in separate studios, such as on his album Latin-Esque (1962). The song "Mucha Muchacha" makes particularly mind-bending use of the separation, with the chorus and brass rapidly alternating stereo sides.
He arranged many traditional Mexican
songs like "Bésame Mucho
", "La Bamba
", "El Manisero" (Cuban/Mexican) and "La Bikina"; also Brazilian songs like "Aquarela do Brasil
" (also known simply as "Brazil"), "Surfboard
" and "Agua de Beber", and composed spicy lounge-like novelties such as "Mini Skirt" (which is used as the themesong for the television series Sex and the City
) , "Yeyo", "Latin-Esque", "Mucha Muchacha" and "Whatchamacallit". He was commissioned to compose the music of a Mexican children's TV show Odisea Burbujas.
His concerts also featured elaborate light shows years before effects like that became popular in live music. He performed in Las Vegas
on several occasions, often as the opening act for Frank Sinatra
.
Several compilations of Esquivel's music were issued starting with Space Age Bachelor Pad Music in 1994. The apparent success of these releases led to reissues of several of Esquivel's albums. The first reissues were compiled by Irwin Chusid
, who also produced the first CD reissues of Raymond Scott
and The Langley Schools Music Project
.
The last recording on which Esquivel worked was Merry Christmas from the Space-Age Bachelor Pad in 1996, for which he did a voiceover on a track by the band Combustible Edison
. This album also included several obscure tracks from his past sessions. The last CD released during his lifetime, See It In Sound, was actually recorded in 1960, but was not released at the time because the record company believed it would not be commercially successful. When finally released in 1998, it exhibited very unusual and introspective stylings absent from his other works, including a version of "Brazil", played as a musical soundscape of a man bar-hopping where the band plays different renditions of "Brazil" at each bar.
recorded a string quartet
arrangement of Esquivel's song "Mini Skirt" for their album Nuevo.
(CD releases)
(Related releases featuring Esquivel's music)
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
band leader, pianist
Pianist
A pianist is a musician who plays the piano. A professional pianist can perform solo pieces, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers, solo instrumentalists, or other performers.-Choice of genres:...
, and composer for television and films. He is recognized today as one of the foremost exponents of a sophisticated style of largely instrumental music that combines elements of lounge music
Lounge music
Lounge music is a retrospective description of music popular in the 1950s and 1960s. It is a type of mood music meant to evoke in the listeners the feeling of being in a place — a jungle, an island paradise, outer space, et cetera — other than where they are listening to it...
and jazz
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...
with Latin flavors. Esquivel is sometimes called "The King of Space Age Pop
Space age pop
Space age pop is a general and loosely based term for a music genre associated with certain Mexican and American composers and songwriters in the Space Age of the 1950s and 1960s. It is also called bachelor pad music or lounge music...
" and "The Busby Berkeley
Busby Berkeley
Busby Berkeley was a highly influential Hollywood movie director and musical choreographer. Berkeley was famous for his elaborate musical production numbers that often involved complex geometric patterns...
of Cocktail Music." Esquivel is considered one of the foremost exponents of a style of late 1950s-early 1960s quirky instrumental pop that became known (in retrospect) as "Space Age Bachelor Pad Music".
He was born in Tampico
Tampico
Tampico is a city and port in the state of Tamaulipas, in the country of Mexico. It is located in the southeastern part of the state, directly north across the border from Veracruz. Tampico is the third largest city in Tamaulipas, and counts with a population of 309,003. The Metropolitan area of...
, Tamaulipas
Tamaulipas
Tamaulipas officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Tamaulipas is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 43 municipalities and its capital city is Ciudad Victoria. The capital city was named after Guadalupe Victoria, the...
, and his family moved to Mexico City
Mexico City
Mexico City is the Federal District , capital of Mexico and seat of the federal powers of the Mexican Union. It is a federal entity within Mexico which is not part of any one of the 31 Mexican states but belongs to the federation as a whole...
in 1928 where he studied at the UNAM
National Autonomous University of Mexico
The Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México is a university in Mexico. UNAM was founded on 22 September 1910 by Justo Sierra as a liberal alternative to the Roman Catholic-sponsored Royal and Pontifical University of Mexico The Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM) (National Autonomous...
.
Music
Esquivel is considered the king of a style of late 1950s-early 1960s quirky instrumental pop known today as lounge musicLounge music
Lounge music is a retrospective description of music popular in the 1950s and 1960s. It is a type of mood music meant to evoke in the listeners the feeling of being in a place — a jungle, an island paradise, outer space, et cetera — other than where they are listening to it...
. Esquivel's musical style was highly idiosyncratic, and although elements sound like his contemporaries, many stylistic traits distinguished his music and made it instantly recognizable, including exotic percussion, wordless vocals, virtuoso piano runs, and exaggerated dynamic shifts. He used many jazz
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...
-like elements; however, other than his piano solos, there is no improvisation, and the works are tightly, meticulously arranged by Esquivel himself, who considered himself a perfectionist as a composer, performer, and recording artist.
His orchestration tended toward the very lush, employing novel instrumental combinations, such as Chinese bells, mariachi bands, whistling, and numerous percussion instruments, blended with orchestra, mixed chorus, and his own heavily-ornamented piano style. The chorus was often called upon to sing only nonsense syllables, most famously "zu-zu" and "pow!" A survey of Esquivel's recordings reveals a fondness for glissandi, sometimes on a half-valved trumpet, sometimes on a kettle drum, but most frequently on pitched percussion instrument
Percussion instrument
A percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound when hit with an implement or when it is shaken, rubbed, scraped, or otherwise acted upon in a way that sets the object into vibration...
s and slide guitar
Slide guitar
Slide guitar or bottleneck guitar is a particular method or technique for playing the guitar. The term slide refers to the motion of the slide against the strings, while bottleneck refers to the original material of choice for such slides: the necks of glass bottles...
s.
Esquivel's use of stereo
STEREO
STEREO is a solar observation mission. Two nearly identical spacecraft were launched into orbits that cause them to respectively pull farther ahead of and fall gradually behind the Earth...
recording was legendary, occasionally featuring two bands recording simultaneously in separate studios, such as on his album Latin-Esque (1962). The song "Mucha Muchacha" makes particularly mind-bending use of the separation, with the chorus and brass rapidly alternating stereo sides.
He arranged many traditional Mexican
Music of Mexico
The music of Mexico is very diverse and features a wide range of different musical styles. It has been influenced by a variety of cultures, most notably indigenous Mexican and European, since the Late Middle Ages...
songs like "Bésame Mucho
Bésame Mucho
"Bésame Mucho" is a Spanish language song written in 1940 by Mexican songwriter Consuelo Velázquez.-Inspiration:According to Velázquez herself, she wrote this song even though she had never been kissed yet at the time, and kissing as she heard was considered a sin.She was inspired by the piano...
", "La Bamba
La Bamba (song)
"La Bamba" is a Mexican folk song, originally from the state of Veracruz, best known from a 1958 adaptation by Ritchie Valens, a top 40 hit in the U.S. charts and one of early rock and roll's best-known songs...
", "El Manisero" (Cuban/Mexican) and "La Bikina"; also Brazilian songs like "Aquarela do Brasil
Aquarela do Brasil
"Aquarela do Brasil" , known in the English-speaking world simply as "Brazil", is one of the most famous Brazilian songs of all time, written by Ary Barroso in 1939.-Background and composition:...
" (also known simply as "Brazil"), "Surfboard
Surfboard
A surfboard is an elongated platform used in the sport of surfing. Surfboards are relatively light, but are strong enough to support an individual standing on them while riding a breaking wave...
" and "Agua de Beber", and composed spicy lounge-like novelties such as "Mini Skirt" (which is used as the themesong for the television series Sex and the City
Sex and the City
Sex and the City is an American television comedy-drama series created by Darren Star and produced by HBO. Broadcast from 1998 until 2004, the original run of the show had a total of ninety-four episodes...
) , "Yeyo", "Latin-Esque", "Mucha Muchacha" and "Whatchamacallit". He was commissioned to compose the music of a Mexican children's TV show Odisea Burbujas.
His concerts also featured elaborate light shows years before effects like that became popular in live music. He performed in Las Vegas
Las Vegas metropolitan area
The Las Vegas Valley is the heart of the Las Vegas-Paradise, NV MSA also known as the Las Vegas–Paradise–Henderson MSA which includes all of Clark County, Nevada, and is a metropolitan area in the southern part of the U.S. state of Nevada. The Valley is defined by the Las Vegas Valley landform, a ...
on several occasions, often as the opening act for Frank Sinatra
Frank Sinatra
Francis Albert "Frank" Sinatra was an American singer and actor.Beginning his musical career in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey, Sinatra became an unprecedentedly successful solo artist in the early to mid-1940s, after being signed to Columbia Records in 1943. Being the idol of the...
.
Several compilations of Esquivel's music were issued starting with Space Age Bachelor Pad Music in 1994. The apparent success of these releases led to reissues of several of Esquivel's albums. The first reissues were compiled by Irwin Chusid
Irwin Chusid
Irwin Chusid is a journalist, music historian, radio personality and self-described "landmark preservationist." His stated mission has been to "find things on the scrapheap of history that I know don't belong there and salvage them." Those "things" have included such previously overlooked but...
, who also produced the first CD reissues of Raymond Scott
Raymond Scott
Raymond Scott was an American composer, band leader, pianist, engineer, recording studio maverick, and electronic instrument inventor....
and The Langley Schools Music Project
The Langley Schools Music Project
The Langley Schools Music Project is a collection of recordings of children's choruses singing pop hits by the likes of The Beach Boys, David Bowie, and Paul McCartney...
.
The last recording on which Esquivel worked was Merry Christmas from the Space-Age Bachelor Pad in 1996, for which he did a voiceover on a track by the band Combustible Edison
Combustible Edison
Combustible Edison was a group founded in the early 1990s in Providence, Rhode Island, and was one of several lounge music acts that led a brief resurgence of interest in the genre during the mid-1990s...
. This album also included several obscure tracks from his past sessions. The last CD released during his lifetime, See It In Sound, was actually recorded in 1960, but was not released at the time because the record company believed it would not be commercially successful. When finally released in 1998, it exhibited very unusual and introspective stylings absent from his other works, including a version of "Brazil", played as a musical soundscape of a man bar-hopping where the band plays different renditions of "Brazil" at each bar.
Tribute performances (current)
- Jan 14, 2011 Boston - Mr. Ho's Orchestrotica - CD Release for "The Unforgettable Sounds of Esquivel"
- Mar 18, 2011 New York City - Mr. Ho's Orchestrotica - CD Release for "The Unforgettable Sounds of Esquivel" (first-ever live performance of Esquivel's big band studio orchestra music in NYC)
Influences
Kronos QuartetKronos Quartet
Kronos Quartet is a string quartet founded by violinist David Harrington in 1973 in Seattle, Washington. Since 1978, the quartet has been based in San Francisco, California. The longest-running combination of performers had Harrington and John Sherba on violin, Hank Dutt on viola, and Joan...
recorded a string quartet
String quartet
A string quartet is a musical ensemble of four string players – usually two violin players, a violist and a cellist – or a piece written to be performed by such a group...
arrangement of Esquivel's song "Mini Skirt" for their album Nuevo.
Discography
(12" LP releases, US and Mexico)- Las Tandas de Juan Garcia Esquivel (1957, RCA Victor Mexico)
- To Love Again (1957, RCA Victor)
- Cabaret Tragico (April 1958, RCA Victor Mexico)
- Other Worlds Other Sounds (October 1958, RCA Victor)
- Four Corners of the World (December 1958, RCA Victor)
- Exploring New Sounds in Hi-Fi/Stereo (May 1959, RCA Victor)
- The Ames Brothers: Hello Amigos (1959, RCA Victor)
- Strings Aflame (August 1959, RCA Victor)
- The Merriest of Christmas Pops (1959, RCA Victor)
- Infinity in Sound, Vol. 1 (August 1960, RCA Victor)
- Infinity in Sound, Vol. 2 (April 1961, RCA Victor)
- Latin-Esque (1962, RCA Victor)
- More of Other Worlds Other Sounds (1962, Reprise Records)
- The Living Strings: In a Mellow Mood (1962, RCA Camden)
- The Genius of Esquivel (1967, RCA Victor)
- 1968 Esquivel!! (1968, RCA Mexico)
- BurbujasBurbujasBurbujas was a Mexican album for kids released in 1979. Juan García Esquivel was commissioned to compose the music of a Mexican children's TV show called Odisea Burbujas, which later landed on this album.-Track listing:# "Burbujas"# "Patas Verdes"...
(1979) - Odisea Burbujas (1980)
- Vamos al Circo (1981)
(CD releases)
- Space-Age Bachelor Pad Music (1994, Bar/None Records)
- Music From a Sparkling Planet (1995, Bar/None Records)
- Cabaret Mañana (1996, BMG Entertainment)
- Merry Christmas from the Space-Age Bachelor Pad (1996, Bar/None Records)
- See It in Sound (1998, House of Hits Records), recorded 1960, previously unreleased
- The Sights and Sounds of Esquivel (2005, Bar/None Records)
- Esquivel! Remixed (2006, SonyBMG Mexico)
(Related releases featuring Esquivel's music)
External links
- http://www.bar-none.com/bios/esquibio_space.html
- SpaceAgePop.com on Esquivel
- Weirdomusic.com on Esquivel
- Mr. Ho's Orchestrotica is a 21-piece big band performing transcriptions of Esquivel's lost manuscripts
- Space Age Bachlor Pad Music on Esquivel