Caliente!

“Artist, publisher, composer Christopher Caliendo teams up with virtuoso classical flute player Laurel Zucker for this powerful and exciting CD of world music.

Through all thirteen tracks we have complex guitar rhythms and passionately graceful flute playing, opening with ‘Sincerita,’ a flashing flute to a Flamenco style. ‘Caliente!’ is a samba with attitude and ‘Amor Perdido’ sad and pure, Laurel’s flute cutting the still air with a deep-felt emotion to the very last note.

‘Risorgimento’ is a fandango with more passion, and ‘Coraggio’ a tango with complex guitar rhythms that hold all the forbidden qualities of the dance-loving, sharp, dark and moody.

‘Rinascimento’ is a perfect example of world music, incorporating just about a segment of everything: Spanish folk, American Jazz, South American classical, Argentine milonga, and Tin Pan Alley.

‘Remembranza’ has a furiously complex guitar rhythm coupled to a dashing flute. ‘Contigo’ offers a bolero with a dark and haunting melodic line. The final track is ‘Meditazione,’ a love song that is lilting, sweet, and classical.

Caliendo composes with flare, and Zucker rises to it. There is a powerful life force in their playing; it is transporting, soaring and open. If you have a love for the guitar and flute, this is irresistible.”

“It all provides for the complete entertainment experience – listening, relaxation and literary, indeed three factors that can be most gratifying when you are trying to wind down and forget the stresses of everyday life.”

[Rated 10/10] 2004.

“…highly original ‘Caliendo’ feel – the soulful, passionate, energetic expression of a composer with a special appreciation for this combination of flute and guitar. These works evoke nostalgia, hypnotic dervish dances, and the spirit of the dance.”

“Caliente! – Laurel Zucker and Christopher Caliendo – World Music for Flute and Guitar” is everything it advertises to be. Laurel Zucker is an amazing flutist that has made a beautiful transition to an entirely unknown realm…”