Caldera -

Caldera was an American Latin jazz-rock band that released four albums between 1976 and 1980 on Capitol.

They synthesized jazz-funk with Afro-Cuban styles on their debut, Caldera (1976), then expanded their textural range on Sky Islands (1977), which features guest vocalist Dianne Reeves. The band continued to refine its complex, Latin-rooted fusion across Time and Chance (1978) and their final album, Dreamer (1979).

Members: Eduardo del Barrio (synthesizer, electric piano, piano, Moog, clavinet, percussion, vocals), Jorge Strunz (acoustic guitar, electric guitar, percussion), Steve Tavaglione (alto saxophone, tenor saxophone, soprano saxophone, alto flute, flute, bass), Carlos Vega (drums, percussion, 1976-77), Mike “Baiano” Azevedo (congas, percussion), Dean Cortez (electric bass, 1976-77), Héctor Andrade (timbales, congas, percussion, 1977-78), Gregg Lee (electric bass, 1978-79), Luis Conte (congas, timbales, bata, 1978-79), Alex Acuña (drums, bata, 1978-79)

Background

Caldera was formed in New York City by Argentine keyboardist Eduardo del Barrio and Costa Rican guitarist Jorge Strunz.

The group combined jazz, funk, and rock with diverse Latin music, including Afro-Cuban salsa, Brazilian samba, and Andean/Peruvian styles. They drew influence from jazz-rock acts like Return to Forever, Weather Report, and mid-Seventies Santana, fused with elements of soul-funk contempories like Earth, Wind & Fire.

The core lineup comprised musicians from the US and Latin America. Barrio, born in Buenos Aires in 1937, received classical training as a pianist before leading a jazz band and moving to the US in 1965. US-born members included bassist Dean Cortez and saxophonist/EWI player Steve Tavaglione. Tavaglione, a California native, taught himself saxophone and performed his first professional gig with Sly & the Family Stone. Cuban-born drummer Carlos Vega, raised in Los Angeles, co-formed his first band Karizma in 1975. Brazilian percussionist Mike “Baiano” Azevedo completed the ensemble.

The band’s distinctive musical direction secured them a contract with Capitol Records in 1976.

Caldera

Caldera released their self-titled debut album in July 1976 on Capitol.The album presents the group’s fusion of Latin, jazz, funk, and rock idioms through interlocking rhythmic layers and instrumental precision.

Barrio contributed four compositions: the sole-written track “Exaltation,” a co-write with bassist Dean Cortez (“Coastin”’), and two collaborated with guitarist Jorge Strunz on “Guanacaste” and “Out of the Blue.” Strunz also solo-wrote “Synesthesia” and co-wrote “El Juguete” with H. Hamburg.

The set moves between bright, percussive passages and atmospheric instrumentals. “Guanacaste” opens with brisk polyrhythms over shifting harmonic planes. “Exaltation” layers electric piano and synth motifs over Latin percussion, while “Synesthesia” stretches across seven minutes of angular guitar exchanges and metric variations. “Out of the Blue” introduces a lighter, syncopated flow, and “El Juguete” closes the album with a winding, modal theme.

A1. “Guanacaste” (6:31)
A2. “Coastin’” (4:42)
A3. “Exaltation” (6:52)

B1. “Synesthesia” (7:45)
B2. “Out of the Blue” (4:46)
B3. “El Juguete” (8:31)

Sessions took place at Hollywood Sound Recorders in Los Angeles with producer Wayne Henderson and engineer Rik Pekkonen.

Caldera features cover art by Mizue Hamilton with art direction by Roy Kohara and photography by Charles Bush.

Capitol promoted the album with “Out of the Blue” (b/w “Coastin’”). Caldera reached No. 33 on the Cashbox Jazz Albums chart.

Sky Islands

Caldera released their second album, Sky Islands, on August 15, 1977, on Capitol.

The album expands the group’s fusion of Latin, jazz, funk, and rock with broader textural range and a stronger production hand from keyboardist Eduardo del Barrio, guitarist Jorge Strunz, and Earth, Wind & Fire’s Larry Dunn. Core members include reedist Steve Tavaglione (soprano, alto, and tenor saxophones; flutes), bassist Dean Cortez, drummer Carlos Vega, and percussionists Mike Azevedo and Hector Andrade, augmented by Dunn (synthesizers), Dianne Reeves (vocals), and guest drummers Chester Thompson and Ralph Humphrey.

Del Barrio wrote or co-wrote five of the nine tracks, including collaborations with Strunz and lyricist Ernesto Herrera. Strunz contributed two additional pieces, while other members and associates each supplied one. “Sky Islands” was composed by Dunn, who also arranged and played on the track.

The album alternates between expansive, layered arrangements and concise transitional themes. The title track opens with bright horn voicings and overlapping percussion under Reeves’s ethereal vocal textures. “Ancient Source” follows with a slow, modulating structure built around electric piano and Moog lines, while “Pegasus” pairs Strunz’s clean-toned guitar runs with tight rhythmic interplay. “Carnavalito” incorporates Andean motifs and shifting tempos, and “Triste” stretches across six minutes of harmonic motion led by Tavaglione’s soprano sax. Shorter pieces like “It Used to Be,” “Indigo Fire,” and “Pescador” link the longer tracks in tonal sequence.

A1. “Sky Islands” (6:17) Dunn
A2. “Ancient Source” (4:50) Barrio/Herrera
A3. “It Used to Be” (1:13) Barrio
A4. “Pegasus” (4:59) Barrio/Strunz

B1. “Carnavalito” (4:51) Barrio
B2. “Seraphim (Angel)” (4:46) Dunn
B3. “Indigo Fire” (1:06) Strunz
B4. “Triste” (6:50) George del Barrio
B5. “Pescador (Fisherman)” (1:17) Azevedo

Sessions occurred at Indigo Ranch, Village Recorder, and Capitol Studios in Los Angeles with producers Del Barrio, Strunz, Dunn, and executive producer Larkin Arnold. Chris Brunt engineered and mixed the recordings.

Sky Islands features cover art by Japanese illustrator Shusei Nagaoka, whose image shows an active volcano above a tornado.

Capitol promoted the album with the title track (b/w “Carnavalito”). Sky Islands reached No. 18 on the Cashbox Jazz Albums chart. After this album, Cortez departed for Hiroshima.

“Sky Islands” was later covered by Dianne Reeves on her 1987 self-titled album and by Ramsey Lewis on his 1993 LP Sky Islands. Herb Alpert reworked “Ancient Source” with Del Barrio for his 1988 album Under a Spanish Moon.

Time and Chance

Caldera released their third album, Time and Chance, in September 1978 on Capitol.

The album presents Caldera’s Latin-rooted take on jazz fusion with expanded rhythmic textures and layered keyboards. Guitarist Jorge Strunz, keyboardist Eduardo del Barrio, saxophonist–flutist Steve Tavaglione, bassist Greg Lee, percussionists Mike Azeredo and Hector Andrade, and drummer Alex Acuña form the main lineup, with guest turns by Earth, Wind & Fire keyboardist Larry Dunn, vocalist Dianne Reeves, and percussionist Luis Conte.

Del Barrio wrote four songs, including the opening prelude “The Arousing” and the extended “Reviviscence.” Strunz composed two, including the finale “Horizon’s End,” and co-wrote “Mosaico” with del Barrio. George del Barrio contributed “Magewind” and “Crosscountry,” while Dunn supplied “Shanti,” which features his keyboards and production.

The album opens with the gradual fade-in of “The Arousing,” which segues into the brisk, lyrical “Reviviscence,” where Tavaglione’s sax interplay heightens del Barrio’s harmonic layers. “Mosaico” merges flamenco guitar and Brazilian rhythmic figures, while “Crosscountry” and “Passages” emphasize intricate percussion passages and shifting dynamics. “Dreamborne,” a solo acoustic vignette by Strunz, leads into “Shanti,” an EWF-style fusion track distinguished by female backing vocals and syncopated rhythm. “Horizon’s End” closes the album with an extended ensemble display driven by complex interplay between Strunz, Tavaglione, and Acuña.

A1. “The Arousing” (2:50)
A2. “Reviviscence” (7:00)
A3. “Mosaico” (7:00)
A4. “Magewind” (1:34)
A5. “Crosscountry” (5:24)

B1. “Passages” (7:30)
B2. “Dreamborne” (1:40)
B3. “Shanti” (4:00)
B4. “Horizon’s End” (8:18)

Sessions occurred between December 1977 and January 1978 at Capitol Studios and Indigo Ranch in Los Angeles with production by Eduardo del Barrio, Jorge Strunz, and Larry Dunn. Chris Brunt engineered and mixed the album at Capitol, Indigo Ranch, and Westlake Studios, and Ken Perry mastered it at Capitol Mastering.

Time and Chance features cover illustration by Shusei Nagaoka, whose image depicts an ecliptic lighthouse perched on a mossy spire; an earthy counterpart to his cosmic-style imagery on contemporary sleeves for Earth, Wind & Fire (I Am) and Electric Light Orchestra (Out of the Blue).

Dreamer

Caldera released their fourth album, Dreamer, in June 1979 on Capitol.

The album finds the Latin fusion sextet refining their jazz–rock synthesis with a heightened sense of rhythmic interplay and cross-cultural color. Guitarist Jorge Strunz and keyboardist Eduardo del Barrio lead the sessions alongside reedist Steve Tavaglione (alto and soprano saxophones, bamboo flute), bassist Greg Lee, drummer Alex Acuña, and percussionists Mike Azeredo and Luis Conte.

Del Barrio wrote three of the album’s seven pieces and co-wrote one with Strunz, who contributed two further titles; George del Barrio composed one track. The material expands Caldera’s fusion palette to include flamenco, Afro-Cuban, samba, and Andean elements.

“Rain Forest” and “Himalaya” extend Strunz’s guitar improvisations over layered percussion and harmonic modulations, while “Reflections on Don Quixote” and “Dream Child” showcase del Barrio’s contoured keyboard voicings. “Brujerías,” their joint composition, fuses flamenco handclaps (palmas) with syncopated Latin jazz phrasing, and “To Capture the Moon” opens the album with a sharp, Santana-like ascent. “Celebration,” George del Barrio’s contribution, injects bright samba momentum midway through the set.

A1. “To Capture the Moon” (4:57)
A2. “Rain Forest” (6:02)
A3. “Dream Child” (5:08)
A4. “Celebration” (4:28)

B1. “Reflections on Don Quixote” (7:06)
B2. “Brujerías (Witcheries)” (6:00) — features flamenco guitar by Gino D’Auri and palmas by Antonio Sanchez, Ernesto Herrera, and Eduardo del Barrio.
B3. “Himalaya” (6:56) — includes Celtic harp by Kathlyn Powell and chanted vocals by Strunz, del Barrio, and Conte.

Sessions occurred at Capitol Studios in Hollywood with producers Eduardo del Barrio and Jorge Strunz, assisted by engineer David Cole. John Palladino served as executive producer. Roy Kohara handled art direction with a cover illustration by Nick Fasciano and photography by Neil Zlozower and Ralph Chandler.

Discography: