Nueva Timba is the sophomore Blue Note release by pianist and composer Harold López-Nussa. The first, 2023’s Timba a la Americana, marked not only his label debut, but his first recording since leaving Cuba for France in 2021. López-Nussa has been at the forefront of recontextualizing and innovating Latin jazz in the 21st century without once sacrificing tradition.
He uses most of the same band from the earlier album: harmonicist Gregoire Maret, bassist Luques Curtis, and drummer/percussionist brother Ruy Adrian López-Nussa. Their focus offers an irresistible meld of Cuban timba, post-bop, and Spanish classical music. It was recorded live in performance at studio Le Duc des Lombards in Paris. The tapes were then extensively…