Progressions in Bb — Cuban Tres

Bb major harmonises to Bb – Cm – Dm – Eb – F – Gm – A°; Bb minor to Bbm – C° – Db – Ebm – Fm – Gb – Ab. Each chord links to its Cuban Tres voicings, so a vamp in Bb becomes a short list of stations before the first repeat.

Most of what a tres plays lives on two or three of these chords at a time — a montuno is a loop, not a journey. Choose the pair the tune leans on, set a figure over them, and let the repetition do the work the arrangement expects of it.