Mario Bauzá

Musical director of Machito and his Afro-Cubans (1940/41-1976); composed 'Tangá' (1943), considered the first true Afro-Cuban jazz tune; introduced Chano...

Mario Bauzá was the Havana-trained trumpeter and arranger who carried Cuban rhythmic knowledge into American big bands. After years on New York's jazz and dance-band circuits in the 1930s, he became musical director of Machito and his Afro-Cubans in 1940 and made clave-based Afro-Cuban rhythm the foundation for jazz improvisation, achieving the breakthrough with the 1943 'Tanga' session. Dizzy Gillespie credited Bauzá with inspiring his own Cuban experiments.

Role

arranger, musical director, bandleader

Era

Mambo & Cha-Cha-Cha

Genre

Afro-Cuban jazz / Cubop (Latin jazz)

Origin

Havana, Cuba