Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Rachel Therrien: Mi Hogar II

Rachel Therrien: Mi Hogar II

By Richard J Salvucci
March 27, 2025
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Rachel Therrien

trumpet
b.1987

" data-original-title="" title="">Rachel Therrien is a Canadian composer and trumpet player who has been around for some time, though her name may be unfamiliar. Therrien's musical journey has taken her from Rimouski, Quebec to Havana, Cuba via New York City and Colombia. Her Latin Jazz Project is nothing if not arresting, and probably merits a name like avant-garde Latin jazz, although labels inevitably just confuse matters. Listen very carefully, because if

Jerry Gonzalez

trumpet
1949 - 2018

" data-original-title="" title="">Jerry Gonzalez,

Freddie Hubbard

trumpet
1938 - 2008

" data-original-title="" title="">Freddie Hubbard and

Chicago

band / ensemble / orchestra
b.1967

" data-original-title="" title="">Chicago all seem to stroll through this recording, well, they do. If a listener is addicted to counting and rhythmic subtleties, there is, yes, a clave, at least sometimes, even if Therrien and her bandmates are not rehearsing the obvious. Therrien is an extraordinary player and musician, labels and convention notwithstanding. And Mi Hogar II is an exceptionally interesting production, one that repays the thoughtful listening it requires.

Therrien is hardly a newcomer and certainly no overnight success. She has been recording since at least 2011, having paid big-band dues with

The DIVA Jazz Orchestra

band / ensemble / orchestra
b.1992

" data-original-title="" title="">The DIVA Jazz Orchestra and braved the wilder shores of post-Fidel Cuba (Therrien has even written a tune in honor of 1959 Cuban revolutionary Hayd��e Santamar��a). Mi Hogar II opens, a bit deceptively, with a piece called "Fiestas Campesinas," apparently a 32-bar Romantic sonata for piano, only to charge off abruptly into hard-boppish territory with Therrien casually tearing off a rough-edged solo that leaves a listener momentarily stunned at both her chops and inventiveness. It must have been some party there in the campo, which sometimes happens. Therrien paints a picture worthy of Pedro P��ramo or some other novel of the magical realism literature boom in Latin America, which makes a reader wonder, "What just happened?" "Orun" proceeds at a more leisurely pace, built around a repeated figure that opens into a sumptuous broad-toned trumpet excursion, closing around the same figure. "Back Home" is a Therrien composition that she says "captures the essence of this music [Newyorican Latin jazz], while celebrating its ongoing evolution" from New Orleans and beyond. "Sue?os de Cambios" is a ballad featuring fl��gelhorn and

Elizabeth Rodriguez

violin

" data-original-title="" title="">Elizabeth Rodriguez on violin. "Mambo Chucho Influenciado" is a polyrhythmic piece with Therrien doing fiddle lines on trumpet over a montuno "blending traditional Latin rhythms with contemporary jazz elements." It is quite a tour de force, as is the vocal, "Beauty Free" which, in its chorus, proclaims "busco la libertad" (I seek freedom).

And that sums up the recording admirably: It is free from the usual constraints and clich��s of style, genre or tradition while remaining recognizably Latin jazz. The production is a treat on every level, from graphics to compositions.

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Track Listing

Fiestas Campesinas; Orun; Back Home; Sue?os de Cambio; Soucy; Mambo 'Chucho' Influenciado; Beauty Free.

Personnel

Rachel Therrien

trumpet

Michel Medrano Brindis

drums

Manuel Valera

piano

Danae Olano

piano

John Benitez

bass

Roberto Riveron

bass

Alex Bellegarde

bass, acoustic

Keisel Jimenez

congas

Magdelys Savigne

percussion

Diomer Gonz��lez

congas

Elizabeth Rodriguez

violin

Ivan Renta

saxophone

Rafi Malkiel

trombone

Nestor Rodriguez

saxophone

Willy Soto Barreto

piano

Andy Rubal

piano

Luis Izquierdo

bass

Carlos Maldonado

percussion

Lazaro Martinez

congas

Arturo Zegarra

bongos

Album information

Title: Mi Hogar II | Year Released: 2025 | Record Label: Self Produced

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