Fernando Otero

FERNANDO OTERO
The Argentine composer, vocalist and pianist Fernando Otero found his voice as writer, musician and bandleader when, at the urging of one of his music teachers, he began to incorporate the indigenous sounds of his native Buenos Aires into his work. …"A unique and provocative style developed, which combined the improvisatory thrill of jazz with a contemporary classical structure in compositions that were often fast–paced and intense, full of dramatic stops and starts" BBC London 2007
Otero first gained prominence in 2000 with his debut and eponymous album, a collection of pieces recorded in Buenos Aires in the early 90's, before moving his residence to New York. Afterwards he released "Chamber Music", "Siderata", "Plan", "Revision", "Expansion" and in 2008 his acclaimed debut album on Nonesuch Records: "Pagina de Buenos Aires" .
After the release of "Material" in 2009 by Warner Music, his new album entitled "Vital" (World Village) won the Latin Grammy for Best Classical album in 2010.
In 2012 he recorded "Romance", a chamber music work which offers a collection of original compositions that draw from traditional elements of Argentine music , but are decidedly cosmopolitan. While meticulously constructed, they also at times involve the freedom of improvisation. The new album was released on February 2013 by Soundbrush Records.
He has written music for orchestra, chamber ensembles, string quartet, choir, and solo instruments as piano, violin and cello, being many of his compositions commissioned and premiered by performers like the Kronos Quartet
-like "The Cherry Tree". premiered in Carnegie Hall in February 2008- and the Imani Winds ensemble. Among his recent works he wrote a Solo Violin sonata for Nick Danielson, Solo Piano Works for Krisztina Wajsza, a Cello Concerto for Inbal Segev, piano trios for the Ahn Trio, and an album for two pianos performed by himself and Yana Reznik.
Due to the nature of his compositions and performance, he was embraced by both New York classical and jazz scenes. He has performed with legendary bassist Eddie Gomez (who introduced Otero as one of the pianists of the new generation) , flautist Dave Valentin, the Arturo O’Farrill Afro-Cuban Jazz Orchestra, and was featured in the Grammy Award-winning album Funk Tango by reed maestro Paquito D’Rivera, with whom he has also performed at Birdland, Blue Note, and the Caramoor Classical Music Festival. Fernando Otero has written and produced soundtracks for movies and recorded in more than 40 albums.
Reviewing Fernando Otero's performance at New York's Symphony Space in February 2012, Steve Smith wrote in The New York Times: "Mr. Otero's writing vibrantly summoned tango ancestors while also acknowledging Bartok and Prokofiev. His brilliant playing bore traces of jazz pianists like Bill Evans and Don Pullen. The resulting synthesis proposed bold new directions for a venerable tradition.
"Mr. Otero, a resourceful pianist and composer from Buenos Aires, recently released a darkly ravishing album with the plain but connotative title of “Romance” (Soundbrush). This concert will feature that material, a sensuous blend of tango and classical and chamber jazz, with a cohort that includes the vocalist Kristin Norderval, the bandonéon player Juan Pablo Jofre Romarion, the clarinetist Ivan Barenboim and a string quartet headed by the violinist Nick Danielson." Nate Chinen, New York Times,March 2013.
Mr. Otero hails from Argentina, where romance has often been cast as a kinetic pursuit. The expressive drama of tango generally animates his compositions, which also involve aspects of classical chamber music and jazz improvisation."Beginning with "El Circulo Rojo," which appears on both recent albums, Mr. Danielson and Mr. Otero locked in tightly, playing a compact melody in sync and then spiraling outward to set up some counterpoint. During one passage in the piece, and on a brisk subsequent composition, there was a faint echo of the dynamic that existed between the pianist Chick Corea and the violinist Jean-Luc Ponty some 30 years ago…"
Nate Chinen, New York Times, February 2008
"Otero is a seriously talented pianist, and his orchestrations are equal parts Bernard Hermann and Charlie Parker. That is, they alternate between jagged suspenseful crescendos and long, sinuous melodies. This music bounds out of the speakers and leaps into every corner of the room at once, exhilarating but also bewildering -
Phil Freeman.
Jazziz Magazine, March 2008,
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