There are bonds that cannot be broken. Brotherhood and musical understanding are two such bonds. Pianist Chano Dominguez and bassist Javier Colina grew up together exploring musical genres that moved them like no other, namely jazz and flamenco (a music that is inherently tied to their Spanish identities and heritage). Their new recording, Chano & Colina, reunites the two after 15 years of pursuing differing musical courses. The recording Chano & Colina was culled from the duo’s live performance at Sala de Camara del Auditorio Nacional de Musica in Madrid on January 19, 2017. The performance captured the musicians’ incredible musical breadth and skill, not to mention their fascinating rapport as musicians and friends. The program begins with Colina’s “Luces De La Fragua,” a festive tribute to the region where Dominguez was born . The track contains some intriguingly nuanced playing from both musicians. The Schwartz and Dietz standard “You the Night and the Music” receives a flamenco treatment with a rhythm straight from the tanguillos of C?diz. Dominguez’s lovely “Habanera De La Habanera” was originally written for the WDR Big Band but is reduced here for a hypnotic duo treatment. The Wood and Mellin standard “My One and Only Love” is performed movingly in a waltz- time signature, while Dominguez’s tribute to Chick Corea, “Para Chick,” is an aggressive rumba that the duo had honed for years. Under the aural influence of piano great Bill Evans, the duo’s take on Parker and Charles’ “We Will Meet Again” is done in a slow-flamenco rhythm that goes into double time upon each chord change. Michel Legrand’s haunting “You Must Believe In Spring” follows and fits their setting as a flamenco tango. The great guitarist and composer Paco de Lucia remains a huge influence on Dominguez and Colina. They perform the maestro’s wonderful ballad “Canci?n De Amor” to perfection and create some tremendous moments on his “Ziryab.” The program concludes with a spontaneous (and very fast) rendition of Miles Davis’s “Serpent’s Tooth.” Building on a history and style they championed for decades, Chano Dominguez and Javier Colina have reunited to create a truly stunning recording that will stand as a perfect consolidation of their craft and influence on Chano & Colina.
