JAZZ REVIEW : Santamaria Has the Beat

Mongo Santamaria has his guru image perfectly worked out. The master conga player, appearing at the Vine St. Bar & Grill with an eight-piece band, has become--in his later years--a sheer musical presence.

Seated behind his trio of drums Tuesday night, his eyes flashing out at the audience, Santamaria was the virtual image of a calm, smiling Buddha. In contrast to his otherwise serene placidity, his hands and fingers had virtual lives of their own, moving nonstop, twisting, turning, sacrificing themselves to the rhythm in endlessly powerful impacts on his congas.

Santamaria’s musicians surrounded him on three sides, taking their cues from a nod of the head, a word or two, but most of all from an almost intuitive responsiveness to his desires.

Alto saxophonist Bobby Porcelli and trumpeter Ray Vega made the most of their extensive solos. On pieces like “You’re All I Have” (by pianist Eddie Martinez), Porcelli managed to mix a lyrical melody line with a surging rhythmic drive. Vega--especially on his original, “Ponce”--played with tremendous momentum, as well as an eccentric bent which often led him into wild, avant-garde-like note flurries. Tenor saxophonist Mitch Frohman, pianist Martinez and bassist Bernie Minoso were limited, for the most part, to strong supporting roles.

The real essence of the evening, however, emerged from the interaction between Santamaria and percussionists Johnny Almendra and Eddie Rodriguez. If there were a flaw in an otherwise appealing program, in fact, it was the absence of more pieces like “Afro-Blue,” in which the three musicians worked together with a visceral intensity that threatened to set the room into feverish motion.

* Santamaria continues at the Vine St. through Saturday night.