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Search Results for: Festival

Azúcar Club Cubano – Brazil

Meet the “ Azúcar Club Cubano ” of Sao Paulo, Brazil:

Since the Salsa boom in the sixties, “60” invaded the ears of many Latinos and North Americans, later Europeans, Africans and Asians in restaurants, Academies, clubs, parties and events since they were the novelty of the moment and they had something that made his guests dance with seasoning and fun and for future talents (artists) a new style and / or musical genre.

Brazil is the largest country in South America and is one of the countries with the most energy and positivity. The good humor of its people and its constant party atmosphere make this Brazilian culture one of the pillars of world dance. Among the dances that exist in Brazil, the “Samba” stands out, which is danced during festivals and popular celebrations such as the Carnival, some of the most popular versions include “carioca”, “a baion”, “conga”, “mesemba”, “a batucado” and “carnivale”.

Outside of the carnival there is the Carimbó, Capoeira, Lundu, Baião and “Xote” (typical type of lining dance that is incredibly versatile and has several variations throughout the country, it is a dance that has a mixture of European and African influences, it also incorporates elements of salsa, mambo and rumba, depending on the region of Brazil).

Night Club
Azucar Club Cubano is open

Despite everything in Brazil other musical rhythms are also danced but in less quantity such as salsa and bachata in nightclubs and in Brazil there are a great variety of Latin academies, restaurants and clubs where you can enjoy pleasant music and if what You want to dance Merengue, Salsa and Cumbia, you can go visit the “Azúcar Club Cubano” which is a disco and nightclub that is located at Rua Dr. Mário Ferraz, 423 Itaim – Bibi, São Paulo, Brazil.

Which was inaugurated in August 2000; being the first Latin house in Sao Paulo at that time thanks to the Latin inspiration with its flirty and great Caribbean music. Currently it is recognized for being very cheerful and with excellent service where it had great successes and that until today it opens its doors to all people who like Latin rhythms, both music played by DJs and live music are also performed. events, concerts, festivities (birthdays, anniversaries, celebrations, among others).

Azucar Club Cubano working
In the Azucar Club Cubano

They also have a bar where the most requested alcoholic beverages are Rum and Tequila and among their cocktails are ” El Margarita “, ” El margarita con Tequila ” and ” Mojito “, the latter known as the best in all of Sao Paulo, Brazil; They also have a varied menu so that people can taste good food and the music that they are playing at that time.

The Club opens its doors to the public from Tuesday to Friday from 7:00 p.m. (7:00 p.m.) and on Saturdays from 8:00 p.m. (8:00 p.m.) and there one can pay with any credit card or debit.

Cocktails
cocktails are “El Margarita”, “El margarita con Tequila” and “Mojito”,

For more information you can search through:

WebSite:

Facebook: @ azucarclubcubano

Instagram: @ azucarclubcubano

Correo: azucar@ azucar.com.br

Teléfono: +55  11 3074 3737

Tripadvisor:

 

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Orestes Vilató is one of the most influential figures in the world of Latin percussion

The Cuban multi-percussionist, Orestes Vilato, is undoubtedly one of the greatest figures in the history of Cuban drums known as timbales.

He is one of the most influential figures in the world of Latin percussion.

He was born on May 4, 1944 in Camagüey, Cuba, and currently resides in San Francisco, California in the United States.

He has worked with many of the best exponents of Cuban popular dance music and Latin jazz, from José Antonio Fajardo and Israel López (Cachao) to Rubén Blades and Carlos Santana.

He is one of the most influential figures in the world of Latin percussion. He was born on May 12, 1944 in Camagüey, Cuba, currently resides in San Francisco, California in the United States
Orestes Vilato is one of the most influential figures in the world of Latin percussion

During the 1950s, the Vilato family moved to New York, the world capital of salsa, where the young Orestes would rise to fame as an innovator of his beloved traditional instrument, “Los Timbales.

While living in New York City for 25 years, Orestes was intimately involved with many musical organizations that played key roles in shaping the course of Latin music around the world.

Among the many groups were: Fania All Starts (founding member), Ray Barretto, Tipica 73 (founding member), Los Kimbos (founder-director), Tito Puente, Johnny Pacheco, Cheo Feliciano, Ismael Rivera, Joe Cuba, Eddie Palmieri, Ruben Blades, La Lupe, Celia Cruz, Rolando La Serie, Chico O’Farril, Lionel Hampton, Los Chavales de España, Cal Tjader.

Other artists he has recorded or worked with include: Winton and Bradford Marsalis, Paco De Lucía, Whitney Houston, Linda Ronstadt, Aretha Franklin, Willie Nelson, Herbie Hancock, McCoy Tyner, Cachao, Andy García, Emilio Estefan, Gloria Estefan, Paquito de Rivera, Dave Valentín, Mongo Santamaría, Armando Peraza, John Santos, Rebeca Mauleon, Giovanni Hidalgo and Raúl Rekow.

In 1980 he moved from New York to San Francisco, California, where he worked with Armando Peraza, in the band of Chicano rocker Carlos Santana.

He later recorded with American jazzmen Bobby Hucherson and Buddy Montgomery, and with Cuban percussionist Luis Conte.

He also works with Jon Santos’ Batachanga Orchestra and Machete Ensemble.

He is one of the most influential figures in the world of Latin percussion. He was born on May 12, 1944 in Camagüey, Cuba, currently resides in San Francisco, California in the United States
Orestes Vilató Born May 12, 1944 in Camagüey, Cuba

In 1992 he recorded with Israel López (Cachao) as well as with Cuban percussionist José Luis Quintana (Changuito).

In 2009 he recorded his production entitled Orestes Vilató ?- Its About Time, with a repertoire in the style of Salsa, Latin Jazz, Descarga.

In 1981, Mr. Vilato moved to the San Francisco Bay Area, where he continues to reside with his family.   From 1980 to 1989 he recorded and toured with Carlos Santana’s renowned band.

Orestes was nominated for a Grammy in 1995 (Latin Jazz category) for his CD, Ritmo y Candela con Patato y Changuito. In 2009 his solo CD Its About Time was nominated for a Latin Grammy.

Orestes has recorded several film soundtracks including  Our Latin Thing, Mambo Kings, Carlito’s Way, Steal Big Steal Little, The Bird Cage, Dance With Me, Just A Ticket, Things To Do In Denver and The Lost City.

He has been a special guest artist at multiple jazz festivals around the country and in Puerto Rico, including the San Jose Jazz Festival.   He has performed and taught at numerous music conservatories including the Berkeley School of Music, UCLA, the University of Fresno, Stanford University, as well as many conservatories abroad.

Orestes was honored at the Yerba Buena Garden, Monterey and San Francisco Jazz Festivals.

Orestes’ style is one of the most imitated and emulated among recording artists.

Orestes Vilató It's about time
Orestes Vilató It’s about Time

Credits
Acoustic Bass – Carlitos Puerto Jr.
Backing Vocals, Handclaps – James Zavaleta
Bass – René Camacho
Bongos, Cowbell – Johnny “Dandy” Rodriguez
Co-producer, Timbales, Bongos, Lead Vocals, Cowbell, Cajón, Guiro, Maracas, Claves, Handclaps, Backing Vocals, Music Director – Orestes Vilató
Congas – Joey De León
Engineer [Assistance] – Joshua Blanchard
Engineer, Mixed By – Jimmy Branly
Executive Producer – Camerina Campillo, Ralph Campillo
Flute, Soprano Saxophone, Alto Saxophone, Tenor Saxophone – Justo Almario
Lead Vocals, Handclaps, Backing Vocals – Adonis Puentes
Mastered By – Peter Doell
Piano – Alberto Salas
Piano, Arranged By, Handclaps, Backing Vocals, Music Director – Rebeca Mauleón
Producer [Associate] – Manolo Santana
Tres, Acoustic Guitar – Ramón Stagnaro
Trumpet – Luis Eric González*, Sean Billings

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The “Caballero de la salsa” delights us with his new album

North America / United States

The story of an artist

Gilberto Santa Rosa, known as “El Caballero de la salsa”, was born in 1962 in Puerto Rico.

The singer has excelled at performing romantic ballads, boleros, and salsa. His first steps in music were at a very young age. Before reaching adolescence he was already forming youth groups within the tropical genre. For about two years, he was part of the band La Grande, from the hand of greats of the genre.

Colegas is the new album of Gilberto Santa Rosa
Gilberto Santa Rosa has a new album

Elías Lopés, famous Puerto Rican trumpet player, became his teacher and tutor. At the age of 14 he traveled to New York to take his first steps in the musical field and his father entrusted him to Lopés. Santa Rosa is very pleased to have received his teachings.

“The greatest legacy for me was discipline, knowledge of the work you are doing and the challenges; He gave me musical challenges that developed the talent I had at that time, “said the salsa singer.

Gilberto participated in the “Homenaje a Eddie Palmieri” with the Puerto Rico All Star, a great opportunity for his career that was on the rise. In addition, he was in the ranks of the Willie Rosario orchestra.

First steps

In 1986, he got his first opportunity as a soloist. Combo Records allowed him to record four albums; giving it a further boost in the salsa genre. Good Vibrations (1986), Keeping Cool! (1987), De Amor y Salsa (1988) and Salsa en Movimiento (1989) were his first record works.

In 1990, he had the opportunity to change record labels. On this occasion, CBS today is known worldwide as Sony Discos. Company with which he has recorded approximately 24 albums and continues to this day.

Sony Discos trusted him and saw him succeed through the years. Punto de vista, the first production made with the label, received a gold and platinum record. The Man and His Music was quite a special production. It was held in 1995 and reflected a presentation held at Carnegie Hall in New York.

Acting is another of the roles that he has developed with great skill. In 1990, he participated in “La pareja dispareja” with Rafo Muñiz and Luis Vigoreaux, Jr.

In the 2000s he was in other theatrical pieces. He starred in the revival of “La verdadera historia de Pedro Navaja”, a musical that demanded a lot from him on a professional level; and with Cuban comedian Alexis Valdés in the play “Atrácame más”.

“Returning to the theater, this time to comedy, fills me with great enthusiasm and even more so to be able to share the stage with one of the greats of comedy in the United States and Latin America. The truth is that “Atrácame más” takes me out of my comfort zone which is music and challenges me professionally. I’m really enjoying this story and I hope people enjoy it a lot more ”, commented Gilberto Santa Rosa, about “Atrácame más”.

Gilberto Santa Rosa is one of the artists who broke paradigms in the United States and in the rest of the world. From the beginning, the Latin public did not hesitate to follow his career and, of course, attend his meetings. He also had the opportunity to travel to Japan.

He presented himself as a worthy representative of his country and surprised the audience by performing “De cara al viento” in Japanese. A feat that surprised critics due to the difficulty of the language. In addition, it was his beginning in the international market, until today he is acclaimed incessantly.

Gilberto had great acceptance and a box office record in his presentations at the First President Festival in the Dominican Republic, the Lincoln Center in New York with Andy Montañez; at the Anayansi Theater in Panama and at the Universal Studios Amphitheater in Hollywood with Olga Tañón.

The accompaniment by the Symphony Orchestra ended up catapulting him among his followers. They considered it an unprecedented presentation and brimming with talent. It was presented under this format in the United States and broke box office records at the Teresa Carreño Theater in Caracas, Venezuela.

Expresión, 1999

It was one of his most popular albums. The album marked the singer’s career as it was nominated for a Latin Grammy Award, for Best Salsa Album, in its first installment. “Que alguien me diga”, original Omar Alfanno, Panamanian composer positioned him for several weeks on the Billboard. The production featured 13 songs with a total of 55 minutes in length.

The album had great renown in the Central American market, giving it a gold record for sales. In addition, he was chosen by the National Foundation for Popular Culture among the most outstanding of the year 1999.

Gilberto, continued to count successes and praise the work of the greats in the industry. He made several tributes such as the concert “Viva Rodríguez” in tribute to Tito Rodríguez; Tribute that the Orquesta Estrellas de la Fania, to Don Tite Curet Alonso and La Guarachera, Celia Cruz, in New York.

40 … y contando, it was released in 2019. It was a live album, with which he commemorated his 40-year career. The idea was born from his concert at the Coliseo José Miguel Agrelot in San Juan, Puerto Rico. 40… y contando it ranked second in sales of Tropical Albums in the United States and first in sales in Puerto Rico.

The Puerto Rican celebrated his 2020 birthday with the launch of a new collectible album.

Colegas, 2020

Gilberto Santa Rosa - New album cover
The album cover was designed for the Venezuelan artist Gilberto Santa Rosa

In this work, he had sixteen collaborations, bringing together “colegas” known to the audience. The first single is “La Familia”, a duet with the singer Tito Nieves, a Puerto Rican recognized within the genre as well as: Tito Rojas, Luisito Carrion, Pirulo, Nino Segarra, Choco Orta, Jose Alberto “El Canario”, Isaac Delgado and Juan Jose Hernandez.

The arrangements are attributed to Ocana Sordi, (El Guateque De Chombo), James Hernandez (La Fonda De Bienvenido), Jose Madera (Bailadores), Rene Gonzalez (Estoy como nunca), Dino Nugent (Apaga la luz), Ricky Gonzalez (Vamos A Bailar El Son, Eque Tumba), Manolito Rodriguez (Medley Boleros), Marty Sheller (Ban Ban Quere, Caminalo), Ramon Sanchez (Que se sepa), Javier Fernández (Masacote, Tremendo Coco), Louis García (Por la Calle Del Medio , Isidro Infante (El Mejor Sonero, Mario Ague, Sonerito),

Singing with Tito Nieves was a pleasure for him because they share a friendship relationship:

“Tito and I have a friendship that transcends the stage and the day to day. He is my dear brother. His sense of humor is incredible. With him everything is very easy. In fact, it only took 45 minutes for us to have the song ready”, said the salsa singer.

Santa Rosa wanted this album to be a very special tribute to his companions of so many years. He looked for the numbers to fit in some way with the relationship with each colleague.

The 58-year-old singer is a winner of a Grammy and five Latin Grammys. He is in his best moment and it appeared that “Colegas” could have a continuation.

“These things excite me and motivate me to do a second part, because other “colegas” were left out,” he said.

Will it be the beginning of your new musical project? We’ll see!

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What semba is and how it arises

How semba arises

Lately, many African rhythms have become very famous in Europe, which has motivated many African descendants and artists from African countries to organize all kinds of activities related to their culture, especially with music.  

One of the most present African genres in events with this type of music is semba. This lively musical style also known as the belly dance is an Angolan rhythm that originated during the colonial era when African slaves came to America. One of the receiving countries was Bolivia, a place in which it began to be widely danced by the local tribes of that territory. What is even more, this country hosts many festivities where this rhythm is very present despite the time elapsed.  

Over the years, semba slowly merged with other local styles, resulting in a set of mixes that have spread throughout the world. Indeed, it was a process much like that of kizomba and zouk, which also changed a lot after so many transformations and mergers.  

Currently, this African genre is very present in many musical events carried out in Europe. It is impressive to see how the locals have been interested in learning how to dance such a diverse set of sounds. 

What semba is 

semba and its presence in Bolivia
Two people dancing semba

Semba is a traditional dance that is very present in family celebrations and has gained tremendous traction in the European continent after being made known to the locals. Many know this genre as the kizomba’s father, as this style was inspired by semba, although the differences between both genres are more than noticeable. 

To begin with, this genre was the preferred dance for livening up public and family feasts, so there are many real stories about this rich set of sounds and the enthusiasm it aroused in people who danced it. Nowadays, this dance has an incredible presence in a large number of festivals, in which the curious can quench the desire to know much more about African culture. 

How to dance semba 

 There are two ways to dance semba, so the choice is at the convenience of the dancer. There is a version of the dance in which the embrace is not so closed and there are no tricks or pirouettes. In the other version (it is a bit more modern than the previous one), the members of the couple perform all kinds of tricks to decorate the dance and the woman has a much more predominant role than in kizomba. 

Additional characteristics 

Semba and African culture
A girl dancing semba with drums in the background

One of the most important characteristics of semba is the clashing of bellies that dancers are supposed to do during the dance. In the same way, they must move their belly buttons to the beat of drums and gesticulate in a flirty way to transmit more charisma to the dance, which gives the girl a bigger role. 

And plus, dance steps are usually very fast and accurate, so both member of the couple must be very attentive to each other’s moves. In the large majority of cases, it is the girl who walks quickly while the man must keep up with her and bust out cheerful and fun steps. 

There is no right or wrong way of dancing semba, but it is always recommended that those interested in attending events that include it learn as much about the typical steps and moves. This would make the experience a little more fruitful and intense. 

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Salsa Casino with ISM part 1

Salsa Casino. A style to enjoy in a group

Dancing is an art and / or activity where they use body movement, generally with music, as a form of expression and social interaction for entertainment, artistic, reproductive and religious purposes over time; giving rise to music and dance who have been created and performed in conjunction with forms of dance / music such as Salsa, Waltz, Tango, Disco, Electronic, among others.

Salsa is a danceable musical genre that emerged from a group of Cuban son and other Caribbean music genres, with jazz and other American rhythms. The fusion that those from Africa carried out in the Caribbean when they heard European music and wanted to mix it with their drums. Those origins focus especially on the Mambo, the Danzó, the Cha Cha Chá, the Guaracha and the Son Montuno, later enriched with instruments such as the saxophone, the trumpet or the trombone. The people who gave rise to Salsa were the Cuban and Puerto Rican exiles who popularized salsa in New York back in the 1950s of the 20th century and then throughout the worl.

Salsa Casino
casino salsa dance turns

Did you know that the Salsa Casino is also known as the “Rueda de Casino”, a style of “Salsa” that is danced in Cuba, a dance for the son montuno or guaracha. It is very varied in its movements that just seeing someone execute it, our feet go away and it transmits to us as if it were something contagious and we start dancing too, a clear example is the Casino Wheels Festival.

The term “Rueda de Casino” is characterized by being a group dance where at least 2 couples are needed to form a circle where different figures would be made to the rhythm of salsa, merengue, bachata and the partner was changed in a rotation and synchronization; also by the direction of the singer or leader who is in charge of dictating the figures by name and the rest of the group must execute them at the moment and always tries to send or sing a little confusing turns, giving the feeling that it was very difficult or complicated if you see it from the outside but when we are inside the wheel it is really fun.

When dancing Cuban salsa it is made up of circular movements where the woman and the man see each other briefly and then change direction, so it is different from other styles of salsa since their movements are rather straight.

This pleasant and dynamic dance is determined that if he makes a mistake, the couple is eliminated and must leave the wheel; One of its advantages is that this dance allows everyone who practices it to do aerobic work, which apparently is not an exhausted physical exercise but improves coordination, attention and of course agility.

enjoying let Salsa Casino dance
Dancing Salsa Casino on the boat in the sea

When we travel to Cuba, it is very common that on the days of Fiesta or Carnival, salsa casino dance competitions are held where the 2 wheels face each other, and the one that makes the least mistakes and has the greatest fluidity and beauty in their dance will be the winner.

So if you want to know more about the Salsa Casino, the best way to understand it fully is to practice it in an academy or in workshops and / or workshops of salsa events where they explain its history to you in a more comprehensive and practical way, learning to develop the steps in order to enjoy this dynamic dance.

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International Salsa Magazine (ISM) is a monthly publication about Salsa activities around the world, that has been publishing since 2007. It is a world network of volunteers coordinated by ISM Magazine. We are working to strengthen all the events by working together.