Andrea Brachfeld : Flute

Website : Phoenixrisingmusic.com


Biography

I was brought up in a household where it was mandatory to take the piano. I studied it for 4 years starting at age 6 until I found out that you could take the flute in school and get out of class, so the flute it was! I have studied the flute since age 10. I entered the High School of Music and Art in 1969, majoring on the flute. There I met and played with Noel Pointer, Nat Adderly Jr., Dave Valentin, Buddy Williams, among other fantastic musicians. Noel was instrumental (no pun intended) in teaching me how to write music down. I had a term paper I had to do for a Bible class and I waited until the last minute to do it. Finally I chose an excerpt from the Rose of Sharon and wrote music to the spoken word. Noel played the violin, I played the flute and Michael Klein played the piano. The teacher liked it so much that we performed it on TV as a plug to save the funding for Music and Art as they wanted to do away with the program and the school.

My first Jazz gig was at age 16 when I got a Jazz quartet together, wrote my own music, and played at the All Night Soul at St. Peter’s Church, thanks to Reverend Gensel. From that point on improvisation became a way of life for me. At that time Jazzmobile had workshops every Saturday morning where Jazz greats Jimmy Heath, Billy Taylor, among many others, gave their time to teach young people how to play Jazz. I was blessed to have Jimmy Heath as the flute teacher. He was not only a teacher of music but also taught me many things about life. I also went to the Jazz Interactions workshop , an organization run by Joe Newman and Rigmor at the time. There I met Yusef Lateef and Barry Harris. Barry always said that if you can’t carry your instrument you shouldn’t be playing it. Yusef was the flute teacher and he turned us on to different types of music including Eastern music.

In 1974, I was awarded the Louis Armstrong Award for outstanding Jazz student from Jazz Interactions.It came as a complete surprise! Along with the award came a $500 scholarship to the college of my choice, and $1000 if I attended the Berklee School of Music. I chose to go to the Manhattan School of Music as I wanted to learn how to play the flute well before I learned a specific style of music and at the time there were no flute teachers at Berklee. So, in 1973 I went to the Manhattan School of Music. There I studied with Harold Bennett and Andrew Loyla. I also took lessons from Hubert Laws , Sam Baron, Eddie Daniels, and George Coleman. Manhattan didn’t have an extensive Jazz program at the time, but there were two ensembles. The first was led by Dave Friedman and the second by Valerie Capers. Dave’s class was really laid back and I learned a lot. Valerie’s class was great too. She is a phenomenal teacher. Other people who were at Manhattan at the time included Kenny Kirkland, Fred Hersch, Angie Bofill, Noel Pointer, and Rodney Jones among many others.
At some point or another we all played with each other. It was an incredible time to be in New York. During my stay at Manhattan I got involved in playing Charanga music. I was at a club called the Tin Palace down on the Bowery and my friend Lloyd McNeil was playing there with his band. I sat in and Mauricio Smith was in the audience. He came up to me afterwards and asked if I wanted to play in a Charanga band. Work was work so I said sure. That was the beginning of my Afro-Cuban musical influences. I played with Tipica New York, The Benito Sextet, Charanga ‘76, Tipica Ideal, Charanga America, Joe Quijano, and many other bands. I also sat in with Tito Puente, Ray Barretto, Machito, and others. There was so much music happening in those days. Each club would hire at least 3 bands a night and we were able to check each other out. It was great! While I was playing the Charanga gigs I also pursued my interest in Jazz.

I always managed to put together groups for gigs. I have had Frank and Jay Clayton, Charles Eubanks, Adam Nusbaum, Peter Fish, Jeff Andrews, Rob Schneiderman, Kenwood Dennard, Mark Helias, Frank Stagnitto, Tom Whaley, among others as sidemen in my groups. After graduating Manhattan I continued playing wherever I could. One day I got a call from this guy who spoke to me in Spanish. At the time I didn’t understand a lot or speak it so I wasn’t sure what he was saying. It ends up that he was offering me a gig to go to Venezuela. I thought that was ok so I said yes. Little did I know a 4 week gig was to turn into a 2 1/2 year one! I signed a contract with him to play in a popular typical Venezuelan band for a year. After that I got a gig in a club in Caracas playing Jazz six nights a week. One thing led to another and eventually I was doing jingles. Then I formed a Latin Jazz band. During this whole time I had been writing music but I didn’t view myself as a composer. The band opened for a number of people including Gary Burton, Paco Lucia and lastly Chick Corea. By the last gig I was married and pregnant and ready to return home, which I did.

When I got back I found that there wasn’t as much work as before and I realized that I wanted to devote more quality time to my family. So for the past 17 years I have always had some kind of musical group, but I always stayed local and low key so I could be there for my family. I returned to Graduate school where I earned my Masters and I am now certified in six different areas. Upon completion of my educational pursuits I decided to change focus and redirect all my energies toward my music which brings me up to the present. I produced my own CD in 1999 after contacting many record companies. My energy from that point on has been dedicated to marketing, promotion, composing, and playing my music. This past summer I was signed with Spirit Nectar Records, a company out in San Francisco and my current CD will be re-released in May of 2001. Upon closing I would like to add that I have discovered that no matter what you are doing in your life, you have the ability to partake in the creative process. I was able to maintain my sanity and flow of the creative process cultivating and nurturing that idea. Everyday I feel blessed to be alive and to be able to play the flute , compose my music, and continue to grow in whatever direction I am taken.


Discography:


Chembo Corniel & Andrea Brachfeld

Beyond Standards

Andrea Brachfeld - Flutes, Zampona, Piccolo, Piano
Wilson "Chembo" Corniel - Congas, Bata (Okoncolo), Bongo, Percussion
Hilton Ruiz - Piano (2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9)
Steve Turre - Trombone (2, 3, 4, 5)
Carlo De Rosa - Bass
Chris Eddleton - Drums
Vince Cherico - Drums (2 & 4)
Sam Bardfeld - Violins (5)
Pedrito Martinez - Vocals (7 & 10)
Lisa Maria Salb - Vocals (7 & 10)
Chris Theberge - Bata (Itotele) (7 & 10)
David Gomez - Bata (Iya) (7 & 10)



List of Tunes:
Flor De Zampona,
Transition,
Naima,
Conception,
Chelsea Bridge,
E.S.P.,
African Flower,
Freedom Jazz Dance,
My Little Suede Shoes,
Oddudua

Consolidated Artists Productions



"Son Charanga is easy, smooth and totally melodic. Great for showing off on the dance floor. Andrea Brachfeld has captured the true essence of what Afro-Cuban music is all about. Her flute glides effortlessly through the ten tracks... Son Charanga has the golden touch that only flutist Andrea Brachfeld can give it. Don't bother to find a place to store it. Son Charanga is guaranteed to stay in your CD player. Call the firefighters. This one is a three alarmer." Maria Von Dickersohn, Sirius Satellite Radio


SON CHARANGA

Andrea Brachfeld - Flutes, Vocals
Oscar Hernandez - Piano
Jerry Madera - Bass
Sam Bardfeld - Violin
Wilson "Chembo" Corniel - Congas
Willie Martinez - Drums, Percussion, Vocals
Ernest "Chico Alvarez - Vocals, Güiro
Juan "Papo" Pepin - Güiro
José Madera - Güiro
Alfredo De La Fé - Violin, Vocals, Coro
José Madera - Güiro
Jorge Maldonado - Vocals, Coro


List of Tunes:
Descarga Son Charanga,
La Flauta De Andrea,
Pare Cochero,
Danza Negra,
Almendra,
Tres Lindas Cubanas,
Tu No Sospechas,
Fajardo Medley
Llantico,
Rumba Chá



"In this age of fast food and quick solutions to problems, it is refreshing to experience a protracted effort to maintain musical integrity. Andrea has been a hard worker as long as I’ve known her. The results are evident in the recording “Remembered Dreams”. Her marvelous tone and technique are astonishing. Her adventurous writing equals and rival her playing here. She is definitely among those who deserves recognition not only among her peers , but the public in general." Hubert Laws


REMEMBERED DREAMS

Andrea Brachfeld - Flutes, Synthesizer, Wooden Flute
Taurey Butler - Piano
Bob Quaranta - Piano
Kip Reed - Bass
Lincoln Goines - Bass
Karl Latham - Drums
Kim Plainfield - Drums
Louis Bauzo - Congas, Percussion
Chuggy Carter - Congas, Percussion

List of Tunes:
Le Metro J,
Quatemala's Dance,
Remembered Dreams ,
Osiana,
Latin Sunset,
Afra Jade,
Oceanside,
Mojivin Sun,