Bauza, Mario

Bauza, Mario, jazz trumpeter, saxophonist, arranger; b. Havana, Cuba, April 28, 1911; d. N.Y., July 11, 1993. Mario Bauza was involved in two of the major jazz and Latin trends of the 1930s and 1940s. He was responsible for introducing Dizzy Gillespie to conga legend Chano Pozo and for bringing the standard Cuban rhythm section into line with the big band sound of Cab Calloway and Chick Webb. The meeting of Gillespie and Pozo was influential in the development of a hybrid known as Cubop which included among its proponents Stan Getz and Charlie Parker. The blending of big band arrangements with Cuban rhythms made Bauzá’s brother-in-law, Machito (Frank Grillo), the leader of what was arguably the most influential Latin-flavored band in the first half of this century.

Bauzá’s first instruments were the clarinet and the bass clarinet, which he played in the Havana Philharmonic. In 1930, shortly after arriving in the United States, Bauza got a job with Cuarteto Machin playing trumpet, an instrument he learned to play in the two weeks preceding his first job with the band. His first major jazz gig was with Chick Webb in 1933 and from there Bauza worked briefly with bands led by Don Redman and Fletcher Henderson before joining Cab Calloway’s outfit in 1939. In 1940 Bauza made the move to Machito’s newly formed band as the musical director, and there he stayed until 1976. During the late 1970s and early 1980s Bauza and Graciela (his sister-in-law and former vocalist with Machito) recorded a couple albums for small labels which have since turned into prized collector’s items. It was in 1992 that he made a recording featuring Chico Farrürs arrangement of ’Tanga, ’ a tune originally written by Bauza back in 1943, and this led to a resurgence in his career.

Discography

Tanga (1992); My Time Is Now (1993); 944 Columbus (1994).

—Garaud Mac Taggart