Progressions in Ab — Cuban Tres

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