Ramón Valle is a Cuban jazz pianist who came to live in the Netherlands in 1997, after having traveled the globe for twelve years as a soloist and combo leader. Everywhere he goes, Valle demonstrates that jazz historians will have to write a separate chapter especially for him. He has performed at the North Sea Jazz Festival before: in 2001 he was one of the big surprises of the festival and two years later he surprised the audience even more by inviting Roy Hargrove on to the stage with him. Hargrove praises his musicality and his wealth of ideas. This year, Valle will perform his latest album, his eighth already, Playground, together with Cuban bassist Omar Rodriguez Calvo and the American drummer Owen Hart Jr. They have been playing together for four years now. It's as if three rhythm levels and melody lines are meeting each other along the way: exciting!
