A blog dedicated to Cal Tjader and the vibraphone. There's also drums, bongos, congas, timpani and other exotic instrumentation.
A vibraphone (sometimes called the vibraharp or simply the vibes).
A vibraphone is "a percussion instrument resembling the xylophone but having metal bars and motor-driven resonators for sustaining the tone and producing a vibrato" (source: Webster's Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary).
The vibraphone is played by striking the metal bars with mallets of varying hardnesses. The player also can depress a sustain pedal, which allows the notes to ring until the pedal is lifted again.
The vibraphone was invented in the early years of the 20th century and was played by great jazz musicians such as Lionel Hampton and Milt Jackson.
CAL TJADERCallen Radcliffe Tjader, Jr. a.k.a. Cal Tjader (July 16, 1925–May 5, 1982) was a Latin jazz musician, though he also explored various other jazz idioms. Unlike other American jazz musicians who experimented with the music from Cuba, the Caribbean, and Latin America, he never abandoned it, performing it until his death.
Tjader primarily played the vibraphone. He was also accomplished on the drums, bongos, congas, timpani, and the piano. He worked with numerous musicians from several cultures. He is often linked to the development of Latin rock and acid jazz. Although fusing jazz with Latin music is often categorized as "Latin jazz" (or, earlier, "Afro-Cuban jazz"), Tjader's output swung freely between both styles.
He won a Grammy in 1980 for his album La Onda Va Bien, capping off a career that spanned over forty years. (Wikipedia)
