Progressions in Eb — Cuban Tres

Eb major harmonises to Eb – Fm – Gm – Ab – Bb – Cm – D°; D# minor to D#m – E#° – F# – G#m – A#m – B – C#. Each chord links to its Cuban Tres voicings, so a vamp in Eb 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.