Europe

La Candela Salsa Orchestra

La Candela Salsa Orchestra, the band is made up of eight musicians settled in Tenerife Canary Islands

La Candela is a small independent orchestra that in recent years has made a place for itself among the preferences of salsa dancers.

Her proposal is aimed at “hooking” the dancer with the original rhythms of salsa such as son montuno, guaguancó, mambo or chachachá, recovering the sound of the era in which what is known today as Salsa was forged.

The band is made up of eight musicians based in Tenerife (Canary Islands).

Its target audience is the salsa dancer on1 & on2, a great consumer of this type of music.

However, they have also conquered the hearts of the salsa music lovers who are staunch consumers of hard sauce.

The live La Candela show is a roller coaster of sensations that aims to spread joy and good vibes with a varied repertoire in terms of the danceable rhythms that are included within the salsa genre.

With him they have been presented in Spain and in other European countries such as Germany or Switzerland throughout these five years of activity.

La Candela’s style is inspired by the repertoire and execution style of the master Joe Cuba and his Sextet.

They have brought back to life some of their best classic songs that are still a reference for the dancer today.

With this spirit, her first musical project was born: On Fire, which was released in November 2015 and was a very good business card.

The album includes some classic songs by maestro Joe Cuba, such as “La Palomilla”, “Clave Mambo” or “El Ritmo de Joe Cuba”, along with self-written songs such as our first two singles, entitled “Es Guaguancó” and “For her”.

In 2017 and thanks to the executive production of Batlei Productions, a new project by La Candela was born with a closer sound and with many new features, without leaving behind our essence, headed by the first single titled “Se Prentó”, On Time moves between the primitive and the new, rescuing jewels and offering deserved tributes to some of the great pioneers of Afro-Cuban danceable music, like Tito Rodríguez or Frank Grillo “Machito”.

They are currently preparing what will be their third studio album with a new line-up of Musicians

We are also in the process of reserving the album “On Time” with a crowdfounding project, in which 300 LPs of this production have been put on sale in a limited edition: https://qrates.com/projects/20837- on-time In addition, we have launched a merchandising store where you can find all kinds of products with the unmistakable seal of La Candela Salsa Orchestra: https://lacandelasalsa.threadless.com/

Video clip of “Sin Ti”: https://youtu.be/WkV2hvCeXhE
Video resumen Suiza: https://youtu.be/whUDfAx0Fwc
Video resumen Benidorm: https://youtu.be/j3puMxehsQk
Website: http://lacandelasalsa.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lacandelasalsa
Instagram: http://instagram.com/lacandelasalsa

Influence of Latin Music in Europe and Vice Versa

European union

When we refer to any Latin element that has been influential at the European continent or vice versa, it is almost inevitable that we think back to the Discovery of the Americas on the part of Christopher Columbus.

It was about this time when various instruments present in cumbia and salsa started to be used. No wonder we attach so much importance to this event, as this is how Spanish and the Portuguese arrived in the so-called New World. It is no coincidence that these languages are the protagonists of these rhythms at this time.

While it is true that Europe gave its languages to Latin music, we cannot fail to mention that the African slave trade played a major role in this context. Its beats and drums closely tied to religious ceremonies were inspirational for salsa, bachata and samba and African-American music, in which the famous Jazz may be included.

Neither can we leave out the fact that many pre-Colombian civilizations created many types of percussion music instruments, which are very present in Andean music and its very traditional flute-like sounds.

What has led Latin American music to become so popular in recent times?

There is no denying that Latin music has achieved a tremendous global reach in recent years, but things were not always like this. In the past, it was ballads of love with heartbreaking lyrics that dominated this market and its primary target audience was female.

With the passing of years, this reality radically changed. We can see it in the emergence of an encouraging number of commercial songs and very simple to dance like La Macarena by Los Del Rio, Livin La Vida Loca by Ricky Martin, A Dios Le Pido by Juanes, among others. These pieces of theme music were the ones that broke the barrier of traditional radio in due course.

Later, hip hop and R&B gave origin to other urban rhythms that took hold of everyone’s attention

Latin music for some time now

That mode of nightclubs of Latin origin that have been inaugurated the length and breadth of the old continent is nothing new. What is new though is the type of attendees received in these places in recent years. There’s a very large audience of all ages who show real interest in rhythms whose language they don’t even know, but they do not seem to care at all. In fact, this peculiarity seems to give an extra touch of excitement to the point. They see Latin music as an array of sounds and rhythms that may not understand, but that simply cannot stop dancing them.

When making a comparison of the monotonous pop style with this recent wave of Latino artists that have been conquering hearts throughout the world, it is evident that things are different now and did not seem to go back to the way they were. What is true is that traditional styles have been overthrown surprisingly.

It is not a secret that singers such as Shakira or Ricky Martin became immensely popular in the late nineties and the early 200All Posts0s, but now things go much further. We are saying that there is a very important number of musicians in these genres that have drawn the attention of all audiences of all ages and countries.

Further, there is a lot of Americans who have appropriated these styles and the Spanish language to give a lot of freshness to their musical projects. A telling example is the Canadian Justin Bieber who has worked with Luis Fonsi and other artists from Latin America, giving as a result a fan base that became interested in these genres and the Spanish language.

It looks like musical lyrics no longer need to be in English to reach all corners of the globe and make everyone dance. In fact, many people look for this type of music to enjoy it, even if they understand little to nothing about it.

Orchestra Latin music playing in the roads

What can we deduce from all this?

After having analysed all these data, we can say that Latin music is a very rich and intense mix of a cluster of cultures that were linked up between them until we find the heterogeneity that we see today. Undeniably, this whole process of miscegenation between so many rhythms would not have been possible under the influence of pre-Columbian, African and European culture. However, the same can be said in the opposite case.

Yes, this also occurs in the contrary case. Europeans’s musical tastes are no longer those of a few decades ago. Nowadays, there are many adults and young people who cannot stop dancing when they listen to certain salsa or merengue songs that have gone across all possible borders.

In short, we are talking about a continuous feedback loop between both cultures that keeps going until now. No musical rhythm is completely pure and Latin rhythms are the perfect example.

Image source 1: http://nuevacaravana.blogspot.com/2010/08/bongo.html

Image source 2: https://presencia.unah.edu.hn/noticias/los-origenes-de-la-musica-y-la-identidad-en-america-latina-4-de-4/

Image source 3: https://www.correo.ca/2015/07/willie-colon-la-clave-es-la-experimentacion/

Image source 4: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QH_3h43nGf4

Itamar Doari

Europe/ Israel / Galilee

Itamar Doari, Born and raised in Galilee, grew up surrounded by a variety of musical traditions: Arabic, Sephardic, Turkish, Persian, Bedouin

Itamar Doari is an international percussion artist who has spent most of his adult life traveling around the world giving concerts, recording albums, appearing at music conferences and most importantly studying the ancient art of rhythm and drumming. He began his musical journey at the young age of six, when he played his first drum in the Israeli desert oasis of Wadi Farran.

Itamar, born and raised in Galilee, grew up surrounded by a variety of musical traditions: Arabic, Sephardic, Turkish, Persian, Bedouin and many others which had a huge influence on his musical persona. During his early years of playing, he had the privilege of learning from some of the most prestigious teachers in percussion and hand drum technique in the world, among them; Zohar Fresco, Glen Vallez, Sallem Darwish and Ahmed Taher. Doari plays a wide range of instruments, including the Darbuka, Dohola and a variety of frame drums such as Bandir, Tar, Riq, Udu, and Cajon alongside Cymbals, bells, shakers and many others.

Itamar Doari’s wide ranging techniques have led him to work with an eclectic mix of some of the world’s finest musicians. Including prominent Jazz musician Avishai Cohen, with whom Doari has performed and recorded three albums, both as a musician and as a musical producer.

He was at the forefront of the Idan Raichal Project, which gained international success due to the unique Ethiopian musical exploration.

He has a continuing musical association with mandolinist and Grammy nominee Avi Avital, with whom Doari has collaborated in several projects including the “Between Worlds” Trio and with orchestras around the world. The great Ladino singer Yasmin Levy, Israeli Rock legend Berry Sakharof, oud player Samir Mekhul,Esther Ofarim, Yoni Rechter, Eviatar Banai, Amal Murcus, Ahuva Ozeri, Shotei Hanevuah, Nitin Sawhney, Omer Faruk, Tekbilek and Radiohead guitarist and composer Johnny Greenwood.

In 2010, Itamar became one of the founding members of the band Yemen Blues along with singer & composer Ravid Kahalani, the band explores music from a variety of different cultures from Yemen to West Africa inflected with contemporary grooves of funk, Arabic Music and the deep soul of old chants. A project particularly close to Itamar’s heart is one he created entitled WadiAtma.

In 2015, he put together a band of virtuoso musicians from the Flamenco and Middle Eastern traditions which created a musical melting pot of ancient art forms.

The name of the project unites souls (Atma in Sanskrit) with the wadi (originally an Arabic word that found its way to Spain via Andalusia) in a way that describes, in the best possible way, the meeting on stage: The Valley of the Souls. His collaborations have seen him perform on some of the world’s most prestigious stages and Festivals.

Itamar has recorded with several notable record labels, such as; Universal, EMI, Deutsche Grammophone, Sony, Helicon, Blue Note, Decca

Interesting conversation with vocal coach and YouTuber Ceci Dover

Who is Ceci Dover and what she has done

Ceci Dover is a professional vocal coach and singer of Argentinean origin residing in Spain, where she has been dedicated to voice, music and technological advances that have emerged out in this world over the past few years. All this accumulated experience has made her worthy of sharing the stage with several of the most important Spanish-speaking artists such as Coro Kennedy and Alejandro Lerner.

In her talent and knowledge, we can notice that she has received a very solid training in the issues she always touches and two very important teaching centers in her academic life were the Manuel de Falla Conservatory and the singing academy Valeria Lynch, both of which contributed greatly to make Ceci the professional voice teacher she is today. Another important detail to highlight from her route is the Still Voice Training academy in the United States in 2020, which would complete her studies as a coach and professional singer.

Currently, Ceci is dedicated to perform vocal diagnosis for those who request it and she works as a content creator through YouTube, a platform on which she offers her analysis to well-known voices in the entertainment world so that the public can know a professional opinion on their quality or the absence of it.

In view of Ceci’s great career in the world of music, we wanted to talk to her and learn a little more about her career and experience from her own mouth.

How did your interest in music and vocal technique begin?

After thanking us for the space we gave her, Ceci went on to explain that it all started when she was in high school, which she combined with singing studies at a particular level since she turned 13 years old. Once she finished school, she enrolled in a conservatory and began studying lyrical singing full time for about 12 year until she chose to specialize in folk singing in order to achieve a change of range.

Throughout this process, she discovered that she enjoyed singing and teaching, although she would be dedicated exclusively to the latter.

Major references and inspirations

Her most significant influences are Whitney Houston, Aretha Franklin, Mariah Carrey, Celine Dion, Barbra Streisand, Freddy Marcury, Michael Jackson, among others. Ceci said to belong to old school because of her tastes, but it took a few years for her to start paying more attention to music in Spanish. It was in 2020 that she started paying attention to Latin voices such as Juan Gabriel, who has gone on to become one of her favorite artists worldwide. Although she has discovered a lot of talent in music in Spanish, she has been really fascinated by Mexican culture, which has given birth to several of the songs that did not have faces during her childhood.

Italian singer Laura Pausini and Ceci Dover

One of the things that has caught her attention the most about rancheras and boleros is that they allow artists to show all their talent and vocal ability. In addition, he says that these genres come from times when singers ”sang for real, excellence was demanded of them and had to be good in order to succeed”.

The industry dies not require artists to offer quality because it only focuses on creating characters and products carefully designed to make shows,” said the professional singer on this subject.

Importance of lyrics in culture

Ceci has been highly critical of everything related to the kind of lyrics that have been used in modern genres such as reggaeton and considers that so much vulgarity is not necessary to express what is wanted. In fact, he considers that these lyrical resources are an involution and a total reversal in music. Ensures that trap and reggaeton do not bother her, but she believes that explicitness, offenses and vexations used by many of its exponents do not send any positive message to the youth.

For the artist, this issue becomes even more serious and delicate when talking about young children as well, who are the primary audience of this musical content. She comments that her own son learns these lyrics at school and comes home singing them, something that makes her very angry and leads her to do everything possible to reverse the negative effects that this may have on his upbringing.

Peruvian composer and singer Eva Ayllón with Ceci Dover

It is possible to talk about heartbreak without being vulgar and degrading. I understand that this is what many young people like nowadays, but I think it is not a generational thing, but a matter of education. I have very young students who also disagree with that way of expressing music”, she added.

In that sense, he also points out that parents should instill other musical references and listen to other music so that their children get to know other voices and styles. Few people know Freddy Mercury or Michael Jackson, but everyone knows Bizarrap, Rosalia and Quevedo. That has to change” said the performer.

Vocal diagnosis and training

When Ceci was asked if a person without natural vocal talent could develop it, her answer was yes, although with several points to consider. A person without natural singing talent can develop his full potential and educate his voice. I know singers who don’t have good voice, but they strive to make good songs, write good lyrics and convey the listening audience special things” Ceci replied.

”I encourage everyone to educate their voice, even if they weren’t born with the natural talent that can make that process a little easier. I think we all can work on our voice and offer quality singing, but within our means. You can’t promise people that they are going to sing like Celine Dion in a year if they don’t have the conditions to do that. There are borders we simply cannot cross, but we can look for the best version of ourselves” she added.

Scenography and details unrelated to voice

Just as voice is a very important part of the analysis, there are other aspects that can distract Ceci from her analysis, such as lyrics, costumes and choreography. In that sense, she mentions the recent case of Shakira, whose story of heartbreak attracts much more attention than the technical details involved.

He also mentioned the case of K-Pop groups, whose choreographies, pirouettes and costumes stand out much more than their members’ voices. ”Before, the technical aspects related to voice were what stood out on stage, but now the visual part of the show is much more important than before,” said the artist. ”I was very much against backing tracks, but I have realized that K-Pop groups cannot achieve a perfect voice with such demanding dances and aerobics,” she concluded on this issue.

Salsa exponents

Although Ceci has focused on analyzing rancheras, boleros, pop and reggaeton, she thinks it is time to dedicate some of her material to analyze other more tropical genres such as salsa or merengue. In this part of the conversation, she expressed her admiration for stars such as Juan Luis Guerra, Marc Anthony, Celia Cruz and many more. There have been many followers who have asked her to react to voices of this genre, so she is considering making an exclusive special for tropical rhythms such as these and thereby appeasing the part of her audience that enjoys these styles.

Historical events that gave birth to kizomba

History of kizomba

There are many musical genres and rhythms that we love and make us want to dance just by listening to them, but in most cases, we do not know their origin or how they became what they are today. Such is the case of kizomba, whose origins are both particular and fascinating, so we want to explore a bit about this interesting story for the knowledge of all those readers who still do not know it.

This dance modality that has become well known in Latin America and the United States in recent years has its origins in Angola in the 1960s as a fusion of ”semba” and other African rhythms, but it was not as simple as it sounds. In fact, many things happened before kizomba became what we know, some of which have to do with historical events that led to the creation of this musical genre indirectly.

People dancing kizomba in a dance studio in Angola

Historical context

Angola was colonized by Portugal in the 16th century, fact from which the European country began to impose its culture, language, religion and political system in the occupied territory. In the same way, the colonizers took advantage of the Angolans in every possible way, but the best known was the labor exploitation to which they were subjected to obtain resources and the suppression of their national identity.

The situation became so unbearable that there has been an emergence of numerous anti-colonialist movements throughout the country such as the National Front for the Liberation of Angola, the People’s Movement for the Liberation of Angola and the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola. This resulted in the Angolan population demanding the rights they had as inhabitants from their own country and which had been forcefully taken away from them. The following years were marked by intense armed conflict, a lot of political instability and international intervention.

Finally in 1975, Angola gained independence from Portugal to become a country free from the yoke which settled down on it for decades. However, the legacy of colonization in every area of national life was so profound that it could not be swept way from one moment to another, including traditional music and dances. Both Angolan music and dance ended up mixing with European and Portuguese rhythms in general, resulting in a colorful range of sounds that have been conquering the whole world.

Angolan women dancing tradicional rhythms

Origin of kizomba and its name

Returning to semba that was mentioned at the beginning, it was its union with other African rhythms such as zouk that gave origin to kizomba as such. The word ”kizomba” comes from ”kimbundú” or ”quimbundú” which means ”party”. Kimbundú is a language spoken in some Angolan provinces and the Portuguese language incorporated some of its terms such as ”xinga” which means ”curse”.

On this subject there is much controversy, since lots of hypotheses are floated to explain the origin of kizomba and one of them states that this genre does not exist as such, but it is a version of the already existing zouk, but sung in Portuguese. There are also some studies indicating that kizomba comes from ”bèlè”, which is a dance inherited from African ancestors who came to the Island of Martinique as slaves to work in the sugarcane plantations.

By mixing bèlè and the European polka, Martinican musicians created something called ”beguine”, which was spreading in Parisian popular dances. When these rhythms were mixed with more commercial music in the 1970s, zouk originated and this term makes direct reference to the spontaneous parties in Martinique. ”Zouk” means ”party” in Creole, which is a language spoken by West Indians that emerged from the mix of French with other African languages. Coincidentally, it has the same meaning as ”kizomba” in Kimbundu.

Some contestants at the Luanda Semba Festival 2019

After zouk spread to French Guiana and Brazil, it returned to Africa, especially to Angola and Cape Verde, where it merged with semba and finally gave birth to kizomba.

What how is kizomba is today

Kizomba tended to be slow-paced and static and not required many turns, but that changed with the passage of time. Today, it includes legs tangled and recreates much more visual moves than before.

Something that characterizes the genre is the circle dance with forward and back steps, which has been very appealing to dancers from all over the world despite their origin. Besides, it is very easy, sensual, different and exotic.