Jose Luis Cortez “El Tosco” RIP

Jose Luis Cortes “El Tosco” , the legendary flautist, bandleader, composer, arranger of NG La Banda, the band that broke Timba, the music genre that has kept seducing Cuba and the world since the 1990’s has died at the age of 70. Cortes died due to a cerebral hemmorage on Tuesday, April 19th. Born in Villa Clara, one of the poorest areas in Cuba, Cortes was accepted as a student at the prestigious National Institute of Art. He was encouraged to play the flute by the Institute’s director who called the flute “the instrument of the Gods” as well as inspired by a daily prize of a ham and cheese sandwich for the best performance in class of the day. He often won the prize. He excelled on his instrument and left the Institute to pursue playing with Los Van Van after an introduction to Juan Formell by a fellow student who knew the group. Cortes became an original member of Los Van Van which he joined at the age of 16 and later joined Irakere where he stayed until the late 1980’s.

In 1988, he started to put together a group of young lions in Cuban music as he took what he learned with Van Van and Irakere to forge a new sound. He merged the sophisticated music and powerful horn sound of Irakere with the engaging and danceable music of Van Van which strongly resonated with the general public.

The result was a powerhouse of a band named NG La Banda that boasted a five piece horn section (including Cortes) nicknamed “Los Metalles Del Terror”, the vocal talents of Issac Delgado and Tony Cala and drummer Girardo Piloto. He created a new genre of popular Cuban dance music which was named Timba that mixed Cuban rhythms with Funk, Jazz, Rock and Hip Hop. Huge hits such as “Los Sitios Entero”, “La Expresiva”, “Necesito Un Amiga”, “Echale Limon”, “Santa Palabra” and “La Bruja” by NG La Banda connected with the youth and launched the Timba craze which is still popular in Cuba and the world. NG was also the launching pad for the careers of Issac Delgado, Tony Cala, German Velasco (who also played with Irakere), Calixto Oviedo and Girardo Piloto.

Cortes has been featured on special projects such as the Adalberto Alvarez live tribute “Son Para Un Sonero” and on Orlando “Maraca” Valle’s last recording “Esa Flauta”. I was lucky to emcee the only show that NG La Banda performed in the SF Bay Area back in 1998 at the Galeria in San Francisco. What an incredible performance! I remember being introduced to Cortes backstage. I complimented him on a great show and told him that I played his music on my radio program. As we talked for a short while, he demonstrated a strong, arrogant demeanor as he lived up to his name “El Tosco” (rough guy). But my memories about El Tosco also include the virtuosity that he and the members of the band displayed during that memorable performance. Another one of the greats leaves us to join the ancestors. Sadly enough, this is happening too often these days.