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Founder of Yambu Productions and host of ”Alma Del Barrio” Guido Herrera-Yance
Singers, dancers, musicians and artists in general are usually the first thing the public sees during any type of event, but very little is spoken about the companies, producers and promoters that are in charge of managing all the logistics behind these shows, so we wanted to talk to Guido Herrera-Yence, founder of Yambu Productions, which is an important music production company based in Los Angeles, so he could tell us a little about all these subjects.
How Guido Herrera-Yance started in the world of music as a radio host
Many years before Guido even thought about the idea of forming a company, he began to establish himself as a radio host on the popular public radio station KXLU 88.9 FM, specifically on the show ”Alma Del Barrio”, which is about to turn 51 years on the air in October. In Guido’s case, he has been hosting the show for more than 30 years, bringing the best Latin music and artistic news to all his listeners.
The also producer confesses that he did not really like locution and that he was simply in the right place at the right time, resulting in the career he has built in this type of media. What it does say is that he was a frequent listener of several radio shows and a voracious music collector, which led him to meet certain personalities who saw potential in him to belong to ”Alma Del Barrio”. When a show was opened, he was the leading candidate for the job and accepted immediately.
Guido did not have any kind of experience in radio, but his employers trained him and taught him everything he needed to know to carry out his tasks properly. 30 years later, Guido is still one of the main hosts of the show and a reference in terms of Latin music radio.
From radio to event production
In 1995, one year after having joined ”Alma Del Barrio”, a friend told him that Chucho Valdés was going to the United States after many years and proposed him to make a show together with the artist as the main attraction. When Guido accepted, they began to look for artists to accompany the Cuban that night and some of them were Alex Acuña, Justo Almario, Luis Conte, among others.
The results were so good that Guido was left with the desire to keep experimenting with this field of the industry, so he continued to produce events of all kinds on a small and large scale since that year.
As the years went on, he realized that he would need a bigger and more elaborate structure if he wanted to continue to work on this, so the idea of founding a music production company began to take shape in his mind.
How Guido created Yambu Productions
On the creation of Yambu Productions, something that Guido highlighted is that, in the United States, ”everything must be done very formally”. In light of the obligation to declare the income from his musical activities, Guido saw the need to create a company that would facilitate the procedures related to taxes and issues of this sort in order to cover his back.
Regarding the name ”yambu”, the businessman was inspired by a song by the Cuban popular music singer Carlos Embale, who was one of his favorite artists, so he wanted to honor him in that way. Taking this detail into account, it is not surprising that Cuban music and its exponents play a fundamental role in the events and groups that Yambu Productions seeks to promote, but it is not limited to nationalities or genres.
The company has set up events for Los Papines, El Conjunto Folklórico Nacional de Cuba, Chucho Valdés, Los Van Van, El Gran Combo de Puerto Rico, Tito Nieves, José Alberto ”El Canario” and the list goes on. Guido is very proud that Yambu Productions was the one that produced the only concert given by Los Van Van Van and El Gran Combo in the United States, which was in the year 2029. He says he is a fan of both groups, so this was a dream come true for him.
Upcoming Yambu Productions Events
This year, Yambu Productions was about to hold the Cuban American Music Festival on 2 June this year, but it has been suspended due to multiple factors, but the main one is that Guido feels that many things have changed in the entertainment industry after the pandemic such as demographics and the public tastes. This has caused the producer to rethink many things, as he is not quite clear what will be the path to follow by the company, so he prefers to wait.
In addition to the above, Guido is focused on his own restaurant that opened just six months ago and needs to dedicate all his time and effort to this new project, so it is very possible that the previously festival will be back better than ever for the year 2025, when he will be clearer about what he wants to do with this event.
However, he said he does not want to be away from live music, to which he attaches a great deal of importance in his work, so with the support of one of the most important jazz clubs in California, Catalina Jazz Club, he rolled up his sleeves and organized the Salsa Meets Jazz Concert Series for 26 April this year (at the time of publishing this article, the concert must have taken place). In this way, Guido wants to recreate that golden era of Latin jazz and salsa in New York, but in his own way.
The Salsa Meets Jazz Concert Series is expected to pay tribute to a different artist who has contributed to these genres each edition and this year it was the torn for Tito Puente. In addition, Catalina Jazz Club proposed Guido to hold events of this type several times a year, so tribute concerts to Ray Barreto and Andy Gonzalez are also scheduled before 2024 is up. He maintained a close friendship with both musicians, especially with Gonzalez.
How are the logistics behind a Yambu Productions event?
When Guido plans to hold an event, the first thing he should do is to find a venue that complies with the requirements for the type of show he plans, analyze the costs involved, find the best talent for the show, hire sound engineers, recruit the people who will be in charge of the logistics part, among other things. It is an arduous work of at least six months before the event takes place.
An example of the above is the Cuban American Music Festival, which has always been held in May, so he should start organizing and planning for it since November or December of the previous year. This in order to have every detail ready on the day of the festival and to avoid any unforeseen problems that could put those involved down.
On this subject, Guido said he feels lucky to be able to have so many friends in the world of music, to stay on ”Alma Del Barrio” for so many years and to know people like Nelson González, Johnny ”Dandy” Rodríguez, Genaro Rivera and many others who are always ready to come to Yambu Productions events without even asking about payment, since they know that Guido and his company are very responsible about these issues.
How talent is selected for events
”Everything falls on me. I believe that I have the capacity, knowledge and experience to know what the public wants. It is for the very reason that we will not be making the Cuban American Music Festival this year, since the pandemic changed everything in the industry and I have to accept that what sold yesterday is not the same as what sells today” said Guido when asked how he chooses the talent he wants for his shows. He also added that ”I’m still debating with myself on which way to go with the company after quarantine”.
What Guido will never do is let go of live music because, in his words, ”it feeds his spirit”. As long as he is dedicated to music production and Yambu Productions is still operating, live events will always have a highly important place in the activities carried out by the company.
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Roberto Roena and Apollo Sound will celebrate 50 anniversaries at the Puerto Rico Fine Arts Center
Latin America / Puerto Rico / San Juan
Roberto Roena: Staying active in any profession for 50 (fifty) years is not an easy task for anyone. But if it is a musical orchestra that half a century later continues to bring tropical music to all corners of the planet, more than a musical group, it becomes an institution.
That is the reality of the Apollo Sound orchestra and its founder, the percussionist and dancer Roberto Roena, who this summer celebrate five decades making the world dance and will celebrate it with a great concert to commemorate his career.
“We are going to do something big to celebrate 50 years. It will be in the month of June at the Center for Fine Arts, “said Roena in conversation with this medium.
“It’s going to be something really cool. We are going to sing the hits of the orchestra, we will have guests and a little bit of everything”, added the musician, who indicated that the exact date will be confirmed in the coming weeks.
The Apollo Sound Orchestra was founded in July 1969 and its name derives from the launch that same month of the Apollo 11 space mission, which aimed to carry the first human being to walk on the surface of the moon.
His record catalog includes more than 20 productions and among his most notorious hits are “Tú loco loco y yo tranquil”, “El Escapulario”, “Marejada Feliz” and “El Progreso”, among many others. In the case of Rohena, the renowned 79-year-old musician from Mayagüez began his musical career much earlier, at age 16, with the distinguished group of Rafael Cortijo y su Combo.
He was also part of Rafael Ithier’s Gran Combo and appeared in the star catalog of the famous Fania record company and its All Stars, among other collaborations.
It was in the Mayagüez neighborhood of Dulces Labios where he was born, raised and took his first steps as a dancer. “Sweet Lips is my neighborhood. I have many memories of my childhood days.
From there came great musicians, such as Santitos Colón and Mon Rivera”, he pointed out.
When she was nine years old, her family moved to Santurce and when she was barely a teenager, she was already appearing on television.
He was discovered by Cortijo in one of his dance performances on the La Taberna India program and from there he became a percussionist for the renowned group. Since then, he has not stopped delighting his followers with his music.
“In these 50 years, there is no greater satisfaction than being able to continue playing,” said Roena, who last Saturday began the celebration of his 50 years in a concert at the Lehman Center of Performing Arts in New York, where he brought together several of the singers who accompanied the group in its beginnings, such as Sammy González, Tito Cruz and Carlos Santos, among others. In addition to the concert, Roena does not rule out going back to the studio to continue shaping her music for posterity.
“This does not mean the end of Roberto Roena and the Apolo Sound. We are going to continue as long as God wants”, he sentenced.
RELATED ITEMS: 50TH ANNIVERSARY, CENTER OF FINE ARTS P.R., INTERNATIONALS, ROBERTO ROENA AND HIS APOLLO SOUND
Luis “Perico” Ortiz: six decades of impeccable musical trajectory
The lobby of the Centro de Bellas Artes in Caguas served as a prelude to the concert, entitled Tocando y contando historias (Playing and telling stories), for which we came to enjoy “Perico” and his guests. Mario Ortiz, Jr. brought together a dozen trumpet players (Luis Figueroa, Richie Segarra, Roby Texeira, Rafael Lebrón, Kevin Ibáñez, Ricardo Marrero, Kenneth Torres, Rubén Días, Ricky Zayas and Simón Rivera) to pay tribute to Luis “Perico” Ortiz by performing his most emblematic solo: ‘Coro Miyare’.
Once in the concert hall, the child trumpeter Daniel Torres (whom Perico predicted would be his successor) and Luis “Perico” Ortiz kicked off the concert with a fun trumpet correspondence. The musicians, turned into actors, shared with us the scene in which we saw Luis “Luisín” Ortiz as a child, playing ‘Quítate de la vía Perico’ with his trumpet; introduction that gave way to the custodian of Ismael Rivera’s legacy (“Moncho” Rivera) to sing the emblematic theme to which “Perico” owes his nickname, while the audience enjoyed images of “Maelo” on a giant screen. The short film defined how “El Sonero Mayor”, personified by “Moncho” told “Luisín”, that from that moment on he would be called “Perico”.
Moncho also interpreted ‘Bilongo’, a song in which Richard Carrasco stood out on the bongo after the saxophones made themselves felt with forcefulness. “Perico” also claimed his turn with the trumpet solo that preceded a resounding “Buenas noches” in the voice of the virtuoso trumpet player.
The orchestra was integrated by: Luis “Perico” Ortiz on musical direction; Yturvides Vilchez, Jan Duclerc and Rolando Alejandro Lora on trumpets; Rafy Torres, Jorge Díaz, Randy A. Román, Mario Alonso Ángel Marulanda on trombones; Roberto Calderón on baritone saxophone, Luis Daniel Valentín Muñiz on tenor saxophone; Antonio Luis Orta and Luis Fernando Hernández on alto saxophones; David Marcano on timbales; Gadwin Vargas Vélez on congas; Richard Carrasco Ayala on bongo; Juan Manuel Rivera Colón on piano; Carlos Luis Martínez Peña on bass; Henry Santiago and David Carrero on backing vocals.
Then, Henry Santiago received the microphone to sing ‘Tres grandes amigos’. For the song, which refers to Tito Rodríguez, Tito Puente, and Machito; “Perico” introduced “Manolito” Rodríguez and Arianelys Ortiz Cruz, a blind autistic timbalera player.
He was followed by Norberto Vélez, who performed ‘Julián Del Valle’ (1978, Súper salsa) and ‘De patitas’ (1979, Luis “Perico” Ortiz, One of a kind) – songs of great vocal and interpretative difficulty, popularized by the unmistakable voice of Rafael De Jesús – with his usual sympathy. Nor-Bert once again demonstrated his powerful voice, and was matched by the saxophones, whose forcefulness did not diminish the power of Vélez’s voice.
“La India” arrived with her usual energy to interpret ‘Químbara’ and “Manolito” did his part singing ‘La Reina es la rumba’, in company of “La India”, alternating on the soneos.
Coro Miyare” made use of Richard Carrasco’s unbeatable performance in the bongo solo with drumsticks -which had been popularized by Roberto Roena-, followed by the crushing solo by “Perico”, the piano solo by Juan Rivera, the conga solo by Gadwin Vargas and the timbales solo by David Marcano.
The highlight of the concert was Gilberto Santa Rosa’s brilliant renditions of ‘Atrevida’ and ‘Planté bandera’; recorded and immortalized by Tommy Olivencia’s La Primerísima, to which Santa Rosa briefly belonged.
After the intermission, as a tribute to the “Niño bonito de la salsa”, “Perico” invited Tony Vega to the stage to perform ‘Así se compone un son’ and ‘Borinquen tiene montuno’, the latter adorned with an elaborate trumpet solo by “Perico”.
“Perico” brought Gerardo Rivas to the stage to perform ‘Río abajo va’ (1985, La vida en broma), popularized in the voice of Domingo Quiñones. Gerardo explained that he had accepted the invitation to participate in the concert without knowing which song he was going to sing, in a clear allusion to the vocal difficulty of reaching Domingo’s vocal register. Gadwin Vargas sprinkled the theme with a conga solo with a mozambique beat, very well achieved. Gerardo’s second song, ‘Perico lo tiene’, brought to the stage the cacique of the Rivas dynasty (“Jerry” Rivas, singer of El Gran Combo de Puerto Rico) on the tres and Richie Bastar (bongos player of La Universidad de la Salsa). While Bastar took over on the bongo and the bell, Richard Carrasco took over the güiro. At the end of the intervention, “Jerry” asked for a round of applause for the mulato mayor, Don Rafael Ithier, who was enjoying the concert with all of us who were there.
Then, “Perico” dedicated ‘Perfume de gardenias’ to his mother; a speech that was enjoyed with an instrumental prelude performed by “Perico” and a great vocalization by “El Caballero de la Salsa”.
Next up was Rubén “Panamá” Blades, who received a standing ovation from the audience. This made visibility difficult, although it did not affect our enjoyment of the audio. Blades was in charge of the big hits ‘Plástico’ and ‘Pedro Navaja’ (1978, Siembra). During ‘Pedro Navaja’ Gadwin Vargas replicated the conga sound that Eddie Montalvo immortalized on the recording.
The stage was full when all the guests arrived to perform ‘Como vivo yo’, after Perico announced with a trumpet solo the song that would end the show.
As Luis “Perico” Ortiz said, the vote of love and confidence that we witnessed there will be remembered as an unrepeatable evening, which detailed what has been six decades of impeccable career that the trumpeter, composer, arranger and music producer has achieved.
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Gilberto Santa Rosa is a Puerto Rican singer, songwriter and sonero better known as “El Caballero de la Salsa” (The Gentleman of Salsa)
Gilberto Santa Rosa (born August 21, 1962) is a Puerto Rican singer, songwriter and also known as “El Caballero de la Salsa” from Carolina, Puerto Rico.
Growing up on the salsa music of the 50’s and 60’s, Rosa became interested in pursuing music during school, participating in her first concert in 1976 while still a tender teenager. After performing with the Mario Ortiz Orchestra.
Santa Rosa was recruited by La Grande Orchestra where she stayed for two years and met Elías López.
The 1980s brought a series of recordings for the singer with Orquesta Tommy Olivencia, El Gran Combo and the tribute album “Homenaje a Eddie Palmieri” with the Puerto Rican All Stars.
Gilberto Santa Rosa became a unique salsa improviser, walking the line between tropical and romantic styles of music, which contributed to his appreciation and popularity.
In 1986 Rosa signed with Combo Records and among others released the successful albums “Good Vibrations” featuring arrangements by Mario Ortiz, Ramon Sanchez and Tommy Villariny, “Keeping Cool! “and “De Amor y Salso”.
Due to the success of her fourth album entitled “Sala en Movimiento” released in 1989, Rosa signed with CBS Discos who could distribute her music internationally.
Teaming up with the young composer Omar Alfanno on the album “Punto de Vista” Rosa achieved consistent success with a series of hits including “Vivr sin Ella”, Perdoname” and De Cualquier”. The successor album “Perspectiva” released in 1991 was the Salsero’s biggest hit to date and included many of the same collaborators as its predecessor.
In 1990 Rosa was awarded the Billboard Lo Nuestro Award for Best Male Singer, recorded a live album at Carnegie Hall Theatre in New York, USA, the first tropical salsa artist to do so, and acted as Puerto Rican goodwill ambassador to Japan where he sang “De Cara al Viento” in Japanese.
The singer generated a string of hits throughout the 1990s, always altering his particular sound and diversifying his music. From the orchestral “De Cara al Viento” (1994) and the energized “Esencia” (1996) to “De Corazón (1997) and “Expresión (1999).
At this point Rosa’s popularity and success had increased and the singer seemingly could do no wrong, with Rosa’s subsequent albums achieving both critical and commercial success, including 2002’s “Viceversa” which produced the hits “Por Más Que Intento” and “Un Montón de Estrellas”.
Santa Rosa ha sido honrada por Union City, New Jersey, USA con una llave de la ciudad y una estrella en su Paseo de la Fama, tiene el record de la mayor cantidad de álbumes número uno en la lista Billboard Tropical Albums, así como la mayor cantidad de nominaciones al Grammy por Mejor Salsa.
Canto y grabo varias producciones con el Maestro Mister “AFINQUE” Don Willie Rosario y ese fue el puente para grabar como solista.
En 1981, Gilberto Santa Rosa se unió a la banda Willie Rosario y su Orquesta, con la que grabó seis discos de larga duración. Su primera grabación se presentó en el álbum The Portrait Of a Salsa Man, en el sello Top Hits.
Canciones como “El Antifaz”, “La Mitad” y “El Condenado” se escuchan en la voz de Gilberto Santa Rosa, quien compartió la parte vocal con Tony Vega y Bobby Concepción en dicho álbum.
1982: Willie Rosario y su Orquesta graban el álbum Atízame el fogón para el sello Top Hits. Bobby Concepción, Tony Vega y Gilberto Santa Rosa participan como cantantes en este LP.
1983: El cantante santurcino participa en el álbum de Willie Rosario y su Orquesta, The Salsa Machine, en el sello Top Hits, de este álbum, canciones como “Amigo” y “Cuando Se Canta Bonito” son vocalizadas por Gilberto Santa Rosa.
1984: Gilberto Santa Rosa comparte voz con Tony Vega en el álbum de Willie Rosario y su Orquesta llamado Nuevos Horizontes, publicado por Bronco Records, en ese álbum se grabó el tema “Lluvia”, uno de los primeros éxitos de nuestro caballero de la salsa. .
Willie Rosario celebrará 100 años de vida con un gran concierto en el Coliseo de Puerto Rico.
Para la celebración musical estará acompañado por sus amigos y colegas, Gilberto Santarosa y Tony Vega,
El legendario músico puertorriqueño Willie Rosario celebrará sus 100 años de vida en 2024 con un gran concierto en su tierra natal el próximo 27 de abril, junto a dos de los ilustres intérpretes que integraron su orquesta, Gilberto Santa Rosa y Tony Vega.
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