Juan Garcia Esquivel

Juan Garcia Esquivel (January 20 1918 – January 3 2002) often known as simply Esquivel, was a Mexican band leader, pianist, and film composer.

Music

Esquivel's musical style is difficult to pin down precisely, as so little else sounds like him. There are many jazz-like elements, but no improvisation. His orchestration tends toward the very lush; he combines an orchestra, his own heavily-ornamented piano stylings, a mixed chorus, and a long list of novel instruments. The chorus was often called upon to sing only nonsense syllables, most famously "zu-zu" and "pow!" A survey of Esquivel's recordings reveals a fondness for glissandos, sometimes on a half-valved trumpet, sometimes on a kettle drum, but most frequently on pitched percussion instruments and slide guitars.

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Esquivel's use of stereo recording is legendary, occasionally using two bands to recording simultaneously in separate studios. The song "Mucha Muchacha" makes particularly mind-bending use of the separation, with the chorus and brass rapidly alternating sides.

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Several compilation albums of Esquivel's music were issued starting with Space Age Bachelor Pad Music in 1994. The apparent success of these releases led to reissues of several of Esquivel's albums.

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Kronos Quartet recorded a string quartet arrangement of Esquivel's song "Mini Skirt" for their album Nuevo.

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