Formed in Cuba in the early 1970s by pianist Chucho Valdés, saxophonist Paquito
D'Rivera, trumpeter Jorge Varona, guitarist Carlos Emilio Morales, bassist
Carlos del Puerto, drummer Bernardo Garcia and percussionist Oscar Valdés II,
Irakere has had many different line-ups over the years. Valdés took an
aggregation of young Cuban musicians on a tour of America to mark the band's
40th anniversary in 2015 and released a new album, 'Chucho Valdés: Tribute to
Irakere (Live in Marciac)' that was recorded in France.
The band grew originally out of the Orquesta Cubana de Música Modern...