'CHUCHO' BRINGS US CUBA.

Byline: Evan Pondel Staff Writer

HAVANA, CUBA - As Jesus ``Chucho'' Valdes enters the Casa del Musica club in Miramar, a section of outer Havana where Cuba's nouveau riche intermingle with foreign dignitaries. It's late December, and the Havana International Jazz Festival has just ended.

As the acclaimed pianist strolls into the club, a few people sitting at the bar simply wave their hands or call, ``Hola Chucho.'' For a jazz musician who is revered as a national treasure, this Duke Ellington-esque Cubano doesn't roll with an entourage of bodyguards. Call it a function of socialismo, Valdes is like any other Cuban citizen who decided to go out on a Friday night.

He doesn't ride in limousines. He prefers government-owned taxis. And instead of autographs, chummy pats on the back are more acceptable to the Cubano, who will play Friday night at USC's Bovard Auditorium.

Clutching a gold necklace, Valdes makes his way passed bouncers at the club and is immediately seated amid several other small round tables. He orders a drink, the waiter's eyes transfixed by the charms dangling from a small loop forming at the base of his necklace. Valdes adjusts the chain so the charms lay evenly against his chest and then begins to explain their significance.

``This represents my family, and now we have religion, and this one ... ah, yes, this is obviously where my soul resides,'' says Valdes, 61, fingering a gold piano no bigger than his thumbnail.

The last year has been exhausting for Valdes. He was among 22 Cuban musicians unable to attend the Latin Grammy Awards in Los Angeles because they didn't receive their visas in time. A new federal law enacted after 9-11 has intensified the screening process for those seeking U.S. visas.

The regulations meant Valdes wouldn't be able to accept his Grammy for top Latin jazz album in person after decades of work. But Cubans are all too familiar with not being able to leave their island, and it's difficult to perceive any inkling of disappointment in Valdes' eyes.

``Some things you just can't anticipate,'' he says.

Like the inconsistency of a Havana jazz festival. Call it Cuba time, where punctuality means an hour and a half after something is scheduled to begin. It's no wonder that watches are a rarity here.

But time is important to Valdes tonight, because he's recording at a studio on the border between Old Havana and Vedado - a world where Soviet-era industrialism collides with Spanish-colonial exuberance. The musician must walk cobblestone streets where middle-age foreigners woo adolescent prostitutes. It's almost midnight in middle-class Havana, a city where capitalism suckles on sex and musicians often gig for free.

Sitting across the table is Valdes' drummer, Ramses Manuel Rodriguez. Still in his 20s, Rodriguez finds life quite different than do his Cuban contemporaries. He's been to Europe, Canada and the United States. He's been able to live in a nice house and provide ample food for his family. He's drinking Heineken, a beverage that's isn't easily attainable in Cuba. Most of the locals drink the government's brew, Crystal and Bucanero.

``I don't like those other alcoholic drinks. I like beer. And if we're drinking Heineken, well then ...'' says Rodriguez, teasing his neatly shorn afro.

Playing the drums in Cuba is a coveted job. The root or ``son,'' of Cuban folk music, is the clave. Producing a syncopated two-bar musical pattern - maintaining the clave - is a drummer's primary responsibility.

Rodriguez's foot is constantly thumping to the sound of the clave. His ability to retain a solid beat eventually led to his success as a drummer. Though able to defect, Rodriguez says he prefers to live in Cuba.

``This is where my family is,'' he says. ''I can travel the world through music, but why should my home be anywhere else?''

In this case, Rodriguez doesn't have to travel to find international flavor. The festival has brought musicians from around the word to Cuba. One of them is American Joe Lovano, who plays with Valdes Friday night. For the saxophonist - who has recorded 13 albums on Blue Note - this is his second trip to Cuba, and it's a reminder of the differences between musicians from this country and the United States.

``You see, in the States you play music to live, in Cuba you live to play,'' Lovano says, a bear of a man as you watch him wielding his sax on stage.

Most of the foreign musicians aren't paid to perform at the jazz festival, but Lovano is indifferent. He came to play with Valdes and sample the music on the street. For many American musicians, playing in Cuba is a rare opportunity to gain perspective. Lovano says watching someone play a musical instrument in Cuba is a reminder of where his passion lies.

``It's the epitome of what you strive for. This is the essence of play,'' Lovano says.

Rodriguez agrees.

``That's what the jazz festival is like. You're able to see friends you haven't seen for a long time and play with legends seemingly unbound by any social policies or government,'' he said. ``And the tourists that come here for the festival also have an opportunity to see our country. They get to see the people in the streets, who are the same people that play in the festival.

By 12:30 a.m., a waiter appears, and Valdes orders a glass of brandy.

The pianist touches his lips to the brandy and then begins to sing. He's following the lead of a woman's voice that can be heard from the speakers overhead.

``That's my sister (Mayra Caridad). She's younger than me, you know,'' he says.

Valdes and Caridad have collaborated on myriad records. Though she hasn't achieved the same musical stature as her brother, Mayra's talents have been compared with Ella Fitzgerald, and he's obviously proud of her.

So it all fits now - the necklace, that is - one charm for family, another for music.

JESUS ``CHUCHO'' VALDES with JOE LOVANO

Where: Bovard Auditorium, USC campus, 3551 Trousdale Parkway, Los Angeles.

When: 7 p.m. Friday.

Tickets: $17 to $30. Order online at www.usc.edu by clicking on the Arts and Events Calendar, or call [phone].

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Denied entry to the U.S. for the Latin Grammys due to visa problems, Jesus ``Chucho'' Valdes performs Friday at USC.