Cuarteto Chanchullo was formed in Hamburg, Germany in spring 2000 by four accomplished Cuban musicians who previously toured Europe with various bands. Their highly professional repertoire ranges from Cuban classics to instrumental dance themes that cover numerous afro-Cuban styles. Band members Leandro Saint-Hill saxophones, flute and vocals from Camagüey, Ricardo Alvarez piano from Havana, Omar Rodríguez Calvo acoustic bass from Matanzas and Silvano Mustelier congas, timbales, bongos from Santiago de Cuba supply the quartet with various musical influences and trends, which are routed in Cuba, but with a very modern touch. The majority of the songs are expertly arranged by bandleader Ricardo Alvarez. These include Cuban descargas themes Peruchín, Frank Emilio, etc as well as Cuban dance classics. Furthermore the quartet performs original material written by Saint-Hill and Alvarez. The styles included in the programm are Cuban classics such as mambo, chachachá, son montuno, danzón and rumba. The instant success of this band has led to the production of its first CD Zambumbia” on the Alvarez Music label. Within a few weeks of this CD´s release they had a club hit in Europe with “La Gente Se Quema” and a smash radio hit in Cuba with “Huérfano De Swing”. The musicians of Cuarteto Chanchullo are young talents coming from the new generation of Cuban artists who are educated and experienced within a wide cultural and artistic spectrum. It is this musical maturity that one can hear throughout the various sytles. There is a conceptual unity, which, like a fine thread, links the songs together into a coherent whole. Cuarteto Chanchullo sprang from the artistic need to create a very intimate sound with ingredients from afro-Cuban jazz and Cuban traditional music. At the same time it embraces almost all the Cuban dance genres. Thanks to the enormous talent and enthusiasm of its musicians, Cuarteto Chanchullo has been endowed with originality since its inception.
