Elegance Embedded in the Danzon
The transfixingly understated early recordings of the legendary Cuban pianist Frank Emilio Flynn
If I taught creative writing at the high school level (pity those poor kids!), I would use early recordings by the Cuban pianist Frank Emilio Flynn as a writing prompt: What’s going on in the room while this music is playing?
Are people bowing with reverence as they dance politely? Are they ignoring the music? Or are they enthralled by the blind pianist who is ever so gently modernizing the waltzes, minuets and other classical dance styles brought to Cuba from France in the 19th century?
The recordings Flynn made in 1959 for the Sonotone label, along with later, equally intimate performances captured in the ‘60s and ‘70s and issued by Yemaya (cover pictured above, music via YouTube below) in 2007, are exquisitely visual. The pianist imparts the sway and lilt of Afro-Cuban rhythm, without flowery embellishment or exaggeration. He’s literally never showy, instead, he renders the romantic (and sometimes schmaltzy) melodies of Manuel Saumell and Ernesto Lecuona with a crisp detachment that magnifies their beauty.
He played these tunes throughout his career, and later on (on record, and when I heard him in Havana in like 1994 or 95) he was more into stretching them. He'd follow the form of the danzon but go into pedal-style detours etc. These recordings are from relatively early....I'll look for a good later example.
Yes there does seem to be a kind of detachment. It’s very interesting. The emphasis seems to be on the fusing of the styles. It is very visual, I agree. It’s like a snapshot of different rhythmic styles being juxtaposed next to each other, pushing and pulling in time.