Eliel Lazo

Last updated
Eliel Lazo
Eliel Lazo Live at Arhus Festival.jpeg
Background information
Born (1983-11-01) November 1, 1983 (age 41)
Marianao, Havana, Cuba
Genres
Occupations
  • Percussionist
  • singer-songwriter
  • producer
  • composer
Instruments
  • Percussion
  • vocals
Labels
Website https://www.eliellazo.com
Eliel Lazo at Aarhus Jazz Festival, Denmark 2011 Eliel-lazo DSC04968.jpg
Eliel Lazo at Aarhus Jazz Festival, Denmark 2011

Eliel Williams Lazo Linares (known as Eliel Lazo or Gods Hands) (born 1 November 1983 in Havana) is a Cuban percussionist, songwriter, composer, producer, jazz, rock, Latin and pop musician living in Denmark. Eliel is one of the most unique percussionists in recent times. In 2011, he received the Danish Music Awards (DMA World) for his album "El Conguero" (Stunt Records). [1] [2] He won also the "International Percussion Percuba Prize". [3] During his career, he collaborated with musicians such as Oscar Valdes, Chucho Valdes, Herbie Hancock, Bob Mintzer, Wayne Shorter, Michel Camilo and more, and bands such as Diakara, Habana Ensemble, DR Big Band, WDR Big Band, BBC Big Band, The Savage Rose, The Antonelli Orchestra, Mikkel Nordsø Band and others. [4] In 2008, the newspaper Havana Times labelled him "one of Cuba's top percussionists". [5]

Contents

Career

Eliel Lazo began playing at an early age, egged on by his family. He studied at Oscar Valdes’ school of percussion (former singer and percussionist, of Irakere). In 2003, at the age of 19, Eliel won the PERCUBA International Percussion Prize. Lazo first visited Denmark in 2004 on an invitation from the Danish Radio Big Band. Other invitations followed. Soon, Denmark became a base on his travels around the world, and in 2007, he made Copenhagen his home. He has played with musicians such as Michel Camilo, Chucho Valdes, Changuito, Tata Güines, Herbie Hancock, Bob Mintzer, Oscar Valdes, Carlos del Puerto, and Airto Moreira. He has also played with Cuban bands, such as Diakara, Klimax and Habana Ensemble. He has also worked with the Danish Radio Big Band, The Savage Rose, The Antonellie Orchestra, Blanco Y Negro, Mikkel Nordsø Band, Aarhus Jazz Orchestra, Tip Toe Big Band, WDR Big Band from Germany, and BBC Big Band from The UK. In 2004, Lazo recorded his first album Art Ensemble of Habana with Commodo Depots records from Japan. He then released his first recording with Stunt Records, Blanco Y Negro, which was done in Cuba. His third album El Conguero, also with Stunt Records, was awarded the Danish Music award best album of the year in the World Music category. Lazo played on Mikkel Nordsø's 7 Steps to Heaven and Diving in Space for 3 Decades - Hanne Boel's The Shining of Sings, the Danish Radio Big Band's Cuban Flavor and Spirituals, where he is featured as percussionist and vocalist. His playing is also featured on the Cubadisco CD Andante, and Cesar Lopez Y Habana Ensemble and Kylie Minogue's Kiss Me Once. He performed in the American movie Music Under the Radar. He has taught at conservatories in Cuba, Denmark, Finland, Norway, Switzerland, Germany and Sweden. Eliel's last CD is Eliel Lazo and the Cuban Funk Machine featuring American tenor saxophonist Bob Mintzer and a lineup of Cuban, Danish and Swedish musicians. This CD is a tribute to 70s funk and Cuban songo. His inspiration came from bands such as Irakere, The Headhunters, The Meters and especially Los Van Van. The CD was nominated to the 2015 Cuban Grammys Cubadisco and was nominated for two Danish Grammys (Danish Music Awards) World and Jazz. The CD was dedicated to master Jose Luis Quintana, better known as Changuito (January 18th, 1948 - June 6th, 2025), and Juan Formell (August 2, 1942 - May 1, 2014).

Discography

Educator

Recordings

Endorsements

Personal life

Eliel Lazo loves practicing sports, especially baseball, basketball and boxing. He also loves watching Mixed Martial Arts (MMA).

As a kid, Eliel was a Greco-Roman wrestler from his hometown team in Marianao, Havana.

He also has a technical career degree in economies.

References

  1. ↑ Rod, Ivan (4 November 2011). "DMA World Global CPH, torsdag d. 3. november 2011" (in Danish). Gaffa . Retrieved 11 February 2012.
  2. ↑ "Tre DMA World-priser uddelt" (in Danish). musikeren.dk. 4 November 2011. Retrieved 11 February 2012.
  3. ↑ "In Puglia grandi nomi del jazz in concerto insieme per la difesa dell'ambiente" (in Italian). Libero . Retrieved 11 February 2012.
  4. ↑ Svobodová, Eliška (12 July 2011). "Eliel Lazo: El Conguero" (in Czech). Czech Radio . Retrieved 11 February 2012.
  5. ↑ "Havana Drum Festival Opens Tuesday". Havana Times. 21 October 2008. Retrieved 11 February 2012.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.