Potaje

While the linguistic and cultural legacies left by Spain in Cuba may be fairly obvious, the musical one is perhaps less so. Many of the complex polyrhythms that make Cuban music so beloved by the rest of the world stem from elements imported by the Yoruba of West Africa, who were first brought there as slaves. But the musical bond linking Spain and Cuba is a strong one. It encompasses everything from the stringed instruments that evolved into the Cuban tres and others, to the similar organizational styles of flamenco and son.

Potaje, a Bay Area-based ensemble led by master flutist Chus Alonso, hardly is the first group to marry Spanish flamenco and Cuban music. Fusions of this sort have been around at least since flamenco guitarists such as Paco De Lucia began experimenting with salsa rhythms in the '70s. But the mix has never sounded as natural and inviting as it does on Potaje's breathtaking Charanga Flamenca. The beauty of Potaje (which also includes violinist Tregar Otton, guitarist Jorge Liceaga, percussionist Sage Baggot, and bassist Steve Senft-Herrera) isn't just the impressive musical facility provided by its members, though both Alonso and Liceaga in particular are capable of showstopping theatrics. Rather it's in the way the entire ensemble moves between styles with such fluidity that they make the difficult transition from flamenco to son or rumba sound like a natural progression.

The album starts off in a pure flamenco vein on "Como el Humo," a thrilling bulería that shows off the melodic blend of flute and violin to gorgeous effect. But things soon get a bit more multinational: "Tarareando" finds the group dipping into rumba rhythms with its traditional flamenco instrumentation; and "Migajas" pastes melodies from artists like De Lucia, the Orquestra Aragon, and Spanish folk tunes over rhythms that move effortlessly through son, tango, and flamenco. By the time "Tertulia" rolls around, with its seamless shift from flamenco to Afro-Cuban 6/8 rhythms and back again, the juxtaposition between musical styles seems like anything but, as the group makes the different rhythmic patterns seem like parts of the same cloth.

While Charanga Flamenca demonstrates beyond reproach the link between flamenco and Cuban music, it's not purely academic. Potaje (the name of a stew made with beans, vegetables, and meats) sounds instead like the work of a chef who uses spices from different cultures to whip up his own irresistible dish.