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Where Will The “German Salseros” Celebrate In December?

Marathon, Festival, and current Salsa clubs we bring you for this season

Germany has become one of the most hospitable countries for Latin American immigrants. In recent years, the number of people from Latin America has been on the rise, and this is due to the fact that this country located in the center of Europe offers a large number of job and educational opportunities, as well as a high quality of life.

Therefore, it is not surprising that many immigrants from the Caribbean and South America decide to celebrate their festivals and traditions in this region. In particular, the German Salseros (Latin American immigrants residing in Germany) are usually very active during the month of December, and this is because the Salsa events take place during this time of the year. So join us and discover all the Latin parties that Germany has prepared for you this month.

One of the most important social dance events in this country that borders nine nations is the 18th Stuttgart Latino Festival. This festival begins on the second day of December and will offer 36 hours of Workshops (Salsa On1, Salsa On2, Mambo, Pachanga, Bachata, Fusion Styles, and Body Movements), a lineup of more than 20 world stars of Salsa, Mambo, and Bachata, numerous national and foreign participants, and incredible international DJs mixing the best songs (DJ Rumbero – Salsa and DJ Milad – BACHATA) on three dance floors. The Stuttgart Latino Festival https://www.facebook.com/groups/latinfestival culminates on Sunday, December 4^th, and will take place at the Sängerhalle Untertürkheim (Lindenschulstraße 29, 70327 Stuttgart). Tickets can be purchased at €179.

Another event I present to you this month is Hamburg Salsa Marathon 2022 – NYE Edition. Hamburg Salsa Marathon 2022 – NYE Edition. This gender-balanced, high-level dance family Salsa-marathon will take place from Wednesday, December 28th (9 PM) to Sunday, January 1st, 2023 (8 PM) at Beerenweg 1D, Hamburg, 22761, De.

“The Marathon Pass NYE Edition https://hamburgsalsamarathon.com/nye-edition?fbclid=IwAR2QJVxpxsQdQR9IRNZT-l5OI1TNrB3uXJMHx9buozmK13cqevAi0RuS8IY costs €190 (€180 couples pass) and includes 4 days and 4 nights of social dance practice. It also includes unlimited free drinks like coffee, tea, and water, some afternoon snacks, brunch on Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, plus NYE dinner on Saturday.”

And if you are wondering why they carry it out during these dates. Here, I give you the answer. The principal mission of its organizers is to be the perfect host so that you feel in a cozy atmosphere while you continue with your unstoppable passion for learning a social dance. In this way, they make sure to collaborate with the opportunity to spend the last days of the old year, where there were adventures and challenges, with friends.

Finally, I remind you that you don’t forget to stop by the Havanna club https://www.havanna-berlin.de/ located at Hauptstr.30 10827 Berlin, where you can enjoy Salsa, Merengue, Bachata, and other rhythms on four tracks dance with resident DJs. You can also try the mojitos in one of the seven bars, and as a prelude, you can take Salsa classes with qualified instructors at both advanced and amateur levels.

Ah! Here, I leave you this list of clubs where you will also find the “German Salseros” during December: Mint Club https://www.facebook.com/mintclubmunchen/?ref=page_internal (Munich), Buena Vista http://www.buena-vista-bar.de/ (Munich), Tank Bar https://tankbar-leipzig.de/ (Leipzig), Latin Palace Changó http://www.latinpalace-chango.de/ (Frankfurt), and Clärchens Ballhaus https://claerchensball.haus/ (Berlin).

Know The Best Latin Music Events In Spain During December

This month of vacation, you will have the opportunity to experience incredible concerts and festivals

In December, great festivals are celebrated in Spain that last from the beginning of Advent until New Year’s Day. Moderate, non-intrusive décor is ever-present in public spaces and homes during this exciting time of year. A wide range of music that goes from the traditional Spanish melody to Latin music (Salsa, Bachata, and Reggaeton) popular among the youngest will disperse throughout the Iberian country, and here I have summarized everything for you.

Salsa singer Yiyo Sarante will offer a concert in Girona for the first time at the Euphoria nightclub

In Girona (a province located in the northeast of the autonomous community of Catalonia), the Dominican singer Yiyo Sarante will make his first appearance on December 2^nd in the spaces of the Latin disco Euphoria https://www.facebook.com/EUPHORIALATINAGIRONA/?ref=page_internal (Sala Univers, Girona, Carrer del camp de les lloses, 8) at midnight to present his most recent singles Quiero Perderme Contigo, Llorarás, Eres Pasado, Demonio y Prohíbeme Verte as well as his greats classics Pirata, Maldita Primavera, Tierra Mala, Nos engañó a Los Dos y Tres Semanas. Tickets are already available and range from €30 (online) to €40 (box office). The minimum age to access this event is 18 years.

This same day (Friday, December 2^nd) the Sevillian exponent of Bachata Dani J will give a concert in Madrid as part of his Abraxas Dancing Tour to celebrate the season. This concert will take place at the Cervantes Complex (Highway M206 Torrejón at Km 2.6, M-206, Km 2, 600, 28890 Loeches, Madrid) at 1 AM, and its doors will open at 10:30 PM with a workshop, followed by an hour of social dance to then continue with the concert, and close with the second social dance until dawn. Tickets can be purchased from €15 by clicking here. https://complejocervantes.com/

The workshops, parties, and socials will be held at the 8 Tiempos Dance School

The third event that I bring you will take place in Zaragoza, the largest city in the autonomous community of Aragon in the northeast of Spain. The Zaragoza Dance Festival is a three-day celebration of tropical dance immersion with more than 30 Salsa, Bachata, and Kizomba workshops with great artists from Europe and Latin America in two simultaneous rooms, two nights of partying from 11 PM to 6 AM with DJ Tevez (Spain), DJ Sergio (Spain), DJ Shark (Cuba), DJ Antony Tarraxa (Italy), and DJ Enzo (Spain), as well as the concert of the world star of the song DANI J on Saturday night. The festival will take place from December 16^th to December 18^th at the facilities of the 8 Tiempos dance school located at C. de Tomás A. Edison, 9, Zaragoza. The full pass for the I Zaragoza Dance Festival which will welcome thousands of fans from different corners of the planet can be purchased through its official website. https://lasalsadelbaile.com/zaragozadancefestival

Following the same trend in festivals this season, the Winter Bachata Festival stands out. It is an annual event that is organized in Gandia city, province of Valencia. This seventh edition features local dance professionals who will help hone the skills of amateur dancers. All this by the hand of DJ Miguelón, DJ Salva, and DJ Yago who will animate with their mixes the daytime and nighttime workshops as well as the parties and social dances that will start at 11:30 PM until 3 AM. In this field dominated by Latin dance professionals, you will have the opportunity to attend and meet new friends. Winter Bachata Festival https://lasalsadelbaile.com/winterbachata will take place from December 8th to December 11th at the Hotel Gandia Palace (Carrer de la Rioja, 41), and the ticket costs €45.

Seats will be assigned in order of entry of reservations. If necessary, tables will be shared

Finally, in this list of the best Latin music events in Spain that will make you live an unforgettable experience during this beautiful time of year, I bring you the Terra show with an international cast made up of almost 50 artists who will be in charge of guiding a trip around the world very particular that will surprise and show the spectator all the artistic richness with the main performances by the New Bambú Orchestra, the Christmas carols by candlelight with the tribute to Il Divo, and the singer Ami Tapper, who will accompany the spectators during this journey with musical themes that have become universal classics. In addition, award-winning magician David Climent, comedian Titto Lester, aerial contortionist Sharyn Monni, Kimberly Lester with the number of “sand art” and circus artists Sandy, Samantha & Jastin Monteiro Vassallo will perform.

On Sunday, December 25^th (New Bambú show and tribute to Il Divo + gala dinner: €70), Saturday, December 31^st (show + gala dinner: €185) and Thursday, January 5^th (show + gala dinner: €64) are the dates to enjoy this amazing show by Terra at the Benidorm Palace concert hall www.benidormpalace.es located at Avenue Severo Ochoa 13 in the city of Benidorm, one of the most popular tourist destinations in Europe and the Second city in the world with the highest number of skyscrapers per square meter.

Europe – November 2022

Shoemaker and shoe designer Carlo Farroni

We talked with shoemaker and shoe designer Carlo Farroni

In entertainment, singers, musicians and dancers are always the ones who show their faces to the audience, so they usually take the credit that comes from the final result, but there are many other professionals who also do their part so that a stage performance can be carried out, but unfortunately they do not get the recognition they deserve from the mass media.

Carlo Farroni checking his materials for shoes

Some of those professionals are shoemakers and shoe modelists, who offer absolute comfort and elegance to artists during their shows, especially when it comes to dancers. Today, we are going to bring the story of Mr. Carlos Farroni, who kindly agreed to talk to us and told us how he began in this interesting and important occupation.

How did you start your career as a shoemaker and shoe designer? (título 3)

Carlos Farroni tells us that he started his apprenticeship at the age of 20, namely more than four decades ago. All this training took place at the shoemaking institute in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Farroni’s native country, but it was not the only place responsible for teaching this man everything he knows today. He also combined his studies with certain tasks in an artisan footwear workshop, something that would be a great support to the knowledge gained within the field of formal education.

Dancing shoes for women made by Carlo Farroni

A few years later, he enbarked on a trip to Italy, where he worked in various areas of the creation of shoes, such as design and subsequent manufacturing, which was also extremely important for the Argentinean to continue learning how to navigate the world that has made him so well known.

Asked why he dedicates himself to the creation of special shoes to dance, he replied that he was carrying out exclusive footwear for theatre plays for many years, during this time his work started to become known in many parts of the world. After the quality of his products made news in many countries, many dancers started contacting Farroni to design exclusive shoes for them. It can be said that this is how he started the famous brand we know today.

More dancing shoes for women made by Carlo Farroni

How is your working methodology? (título3)

Regarding the production process, Mr. Farroni has revealed to us that everything is hand-made, which means that the tailoring, design, choice of materials, cutting, sewing, assembly and finished are handmade. In the same way, he ensures that the materials used for his products (most of the shoes are made of leather) are of excellent quality both in tanning and in thickness. This whole process is what makes the shoes look so professional and, at the same time, so comfortable and light as to allow the wearer to move freely.

It is also important to underline that the shoes handmade by Mr. Farroni’s brand can be used to dance every kind of musical genre without an problem. Obviously, tango dancers are the ones who most often seek out and promote these products, but there is no limit with regard to this detail. Anyone who wants the greatest elegance, sophistication and comfort at the moment of dance anything can contact Carlo Farroni, who will be happy to assist them and offer them the best of his work.

Dancing shoes for men made by Carlo Farroni

September 22, 2022 marked the 48th anniversary of the Fania All-Stars concert in Zaire, Africa

Last Sunday, September 22, 1974 (On a day like today, Fania All-Stars made history by performing for the first time in Africa in front of 80 thousand spectators.

A magical night that included wonderful moments. This is their story.

In mid-1974, American boxing promoter Don King organized a fight in Kinshasa, Congo, for Muhammad Ali to regain the crown against the then heavyweight champion of the world, George Foreman, a bout that was called ‘The Rumble in the Jungle’.

Parallel to the boxing match, musician Hugh Masekela and renowned producer Stewart Levine scheduled a series of concerts at the 20 du Maipara stadium in Kinshasa (Zaire) as part of a 3-day festival (September 22-24, 1974) that would later become one of the most important musical events of the century in Africa, which the organizers called ‘Zaire 74’Unfortunately, an injury suffered by George Foreman while training forced the fight to be postponed for almost six weeks, but the music festival did take place.

The event was attended by 31 groups (17 local and 14 foreign) and featured artists such as James Brown, BB King, Bill Withers, Manu Dibango, Miriam Makeba, Fania All-Stars, among others.

The Fania musicians who traveled to Africa and performed at the festival were: Johnny Pacheco (flute), Larry Harlow (piano), Bass: Bobby Valentin (bass), Nicky Marrero (timbales), Ray Barretto (congas), Roberto Roena (bongos), Yomo Toro (Cuatro), Pupi Legarreta (Violin) Jorge Santana (Electric Guitar), Victor Paz, Kurt Ranno, Luis ‘Perico’ Ortiz (Trumpets), Lewis Kahn (Violin and Trombone), Ed Byrne (Trombone), and 6 singers: Celia Cruz, Ismael Miranda, Jose ‘Cheo’ Feliciano, Hector Lavoe, Santitos Colon, Ismael ‘Pat’ Quintana (vocals and backing vocals).

Concierto de la Fania All-Stars en Zaire, África

Everything was ready to return to the Big Apple, New York but a major misfortune forced Johnny Pacheco and company to stay.

Although it may seem incredible, musicians and singers had to stay 11 additional days due to a political and social problem in that country, unable to leave the hotel where they were staying. This is how Bobby Valentín tells it in an exclusive interview to Rafael Vega Curry, journalist of elnuevodia.com

“We couldn’t get out. (Jerry) Massucci had to pay an extra $18,000 because we would gather in the rooms to order food and empty the coolers (laughs). There was always someone who said “tomorrow we’ll play in my room”, says the well-known ‘King of Bass‘.

With the concert in Zaire, Fania All Stars had become the first tropical orchestra to set foot on African soil. The show, held at the Statu Hai stadium in Kinshasa, was attended by more than 80 thousand spectators.

It was part of the “Zaire 74” event held from September 22 to 24 of that year, and also featured R&B and Soul artists such as James Brown, Bill Withers and BB King.

In 1974, salsa was at its peak in New York. However, its top representatives were confined within four walls.

Among the musical geniuses were Johnny Pacheco, Ray Barretto and many others who made this orchestra the most important salsa orchestra in its history. Héctor Lavoe could not be missing in that directory.

Important Note:

The Democratic Republic of the Congo, also popularly known as D. R. Congo, Democratic Congo, Congo-Kinshasa or Eastern Congo, and called Zaire between the years 1971 and 1997, is one of the fifty-four countries that make up the African continent. Its capital and most populated city is Kinshasa.

Between October 27, 1971 and May 17, 1997, the African country currently known as the Democratic Republic of the Congo was known as the Republic of Zaire (in French, République du Zaïre).

The name Zaire was given to it during the rule of Mobutu Sese Seko, who ruled it with an iron fist during a long dictatorship, and from whom emanated the political system and the characteristic ideology of the State.

The instability and rebellions that plagued the Congo until 1965 culminated in the seizure of power by Lieutenant General Mobutu Sese Seko, then Commander-in-Chief of the Congolese Army.

Mobutu proclaimed himself president for five years and in 1970 consolidated his power by being elected president without opposition.

In 1971 the new name of the State was adopted, with the official proclamation of the denomination: Republic of Zaire. This name and the new national symbols would remain until 1997, when at the end of the First Congo War Mobutu was overthrown and fled the country.

Upon assuming the presidency of the country the guerrilla leader Laurent-Désiré Kabila proclaimed the Democratic Republic of Congo, recovering its own name.

Sources:

Bobby Valentín

Salserisimo Peru

https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zaire

You can read: Fania All Stars