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Son del Monte

North America / United Stated / New York

Son del Monte, Something more than a “Charanga”

It was one of those nights of meeting with friends, those friends with whom you share the same musical preferences among other things, you know, of those gatherings where only you and your friends can spend hours discussing the best songs of Héctor Lavoe or remembering the best hits of the Fania, and in which there is no other way to end the evening than with the deities that brings the good Salsa music from a live band to close the night with a flourish.

And so that was, when with the hours passed we came across one of these charming Latin clubs that fill the streets and every day prevail more in the city of New York, where, of course, they offered Live Salsa. Eureka! If you allow me to say it … It was the perfect place to “Echarnos un Pie” (colloquial term that we usually give in some Latin countries when we refer to dance).

Upon entering, the characteristic sound of the band wrapped up the entire venue, no doubt, captivated us. It was the harmony of an orchestra that played the typical Cuban music: “La Charanga“, which had its maximum exposure in the 20th century. We were all enthralled or if you want to say “delighted”, it was the mixture of wind instruments with percussion instruments but especially with the string instrument that most caught our attention, the Violin.

When we asked for the name of the orchestra, they told us: “Son del Monte”. It’s the ideal name for an orchestra of 12 Latin musicians who project their virtuosity before an audience eager for Caribbean Music that bathes the senses and awakens the joy of living.

Son Del Monte is a band based in New York City that presents unique tunes from various artists. This orchestra was born from the musical director and timbalero, Manny Rivera whose aspiration was to create a Charanga band with a hard New York sound that paid homage to the orchestras of the 60s, 70s and 80s. “Our music is captivating for the listeners and dancers. Fans from all over the world have come to love Son Del Monte: Una Charanga Con Algo Más and our incredible musical swing”, said Manny Rivera.

This band that combines the typical sound of Cuba with the mixture of flute, violins and trombones with three singers that create a distinctive harmony of three parts, have performed in so popular Salsa venues, such as: Maryland Live Casino, the Baltimore´s Latino Festival, the boardwalk of Coney Island, SOB’s, Empire City Casino in Yonkers, Gonzalez y Gonzalez, La Marqueta, the Latina Hats Society, Industry City, Harlem Mist, among other recognized Salsa venues.

The members of this Charanga orchestra with “Sabor” and electrifying sound are: Mauricio Smith Jr. (Flute), Eric Roberto Salazar and David Rimelis (Violins), Michael Pallas, Juanga Lakunza and Charlie Garcia (Trombones), Eli Rivera (Piano), Bert Castro (Bass), Joe Gonzalez (Conga), Manuel Rivera (Timbales / Musical Director / Leader) and Luis Ayala, Armando Jiménez Sonji and Luis Soto (Singers).

Since the beginning of this year (2019), Son del Monte has been working on their record proposal for the Latin market with unpublished themes, rhythmic and unique sound – contemporary. To date they already have two singles: “Rumba Omelenko” and “Vengo de Nueva York” availables in: CD Baby, Deezer, iTunes, Apple Music, and Spotify. Likewise, the song “Herman” is in the process of recording. So, get ready because this Charanga orchestra promises their CD ended with great compositions for the public later this year.

Undeniable, the acceptance of Son del Monte has been so extensive on the part of New Yorkers and all who are Salsa lovers that they were recently awarded with the TANAE Digital Media Award for Band of the Year 2018, giving recognition to an arduous musical performance, but above all of great cultural value that keeps alive our Latin idiosyncrasy.

Son del monte - Premios Tanae — Son del monte – Premios Tanae

Manuel Rivera (Musical Director / Manager/ Timbales):

Manuel Rivera, have been a professional musician for more than 40 years and now Son Del Monte’s Leader/ Musical Director. His musical career started playing Bongo in a Latin Workshop band which eventually became Orchestra Yambu. Yambu was known for its Latin Jazz style and Disco Hit “Sunny”, his first recording. Subsequently, I joined the original Charanga Orchestra Sublime of New York City, doubling up on Bongo and Timbales. He recorded on Sublime’s first two albums in 1977 and 1979.

In 2001, he rejoined Orchestra Sublime now known as “Sonsublime”. Manuel recorded on Sonsublime’s Gran Reserva and Bailando Con Sonsublime, their latest CDs. He studied various folkloric rhythms, Bata drums and sight reading at the Harbor’s Conservatory of Music in El Barrio in New York City under the guidance of the Master Louie Bauzo.

Manuel Rivera has performed with the Bassist: William Millan, of the original Conjunto Saoco, singers: Henry Fiol, Ray Ramos, and Luis Ayala. Also, he performed with Yerason and the MTG All Stars Orchestra under the direction of Hector Leguillow, Joe Quijano at Lincoln Center and other various artists throughout his musical career.

Next Shows:

Monday, Jult 15^TH

Venue: Cunanele Restaurant and Lounge. 1 Route 46 W, Totowa, NJ 07512

Saturday, August 17^TH

Venue: La Placita de la Marqueta. North trains between 111th and 112th Streets in East Harlem, “El Barrio” and uptown Manhattan, NY.

For more information, please visit:

https://www.SONDELMONTE.com

Or Follow them for their Social Channel:

https://www.facebook.com/MRSONDELMONTE/

Argenis Carruyo is known in the music scene as “El Volcán de América” (The Volcano of America) due to the power of his voice

Carruyo He was born in Maracaibo on August 22, 1953 at the Chiquinquira Hospital in Maracaibo, located in the same sector where he grew up.

Argenis Carruyo he had the good fortune of being a neighbor of Los Blanco, who 12 years after his birth hired him as an instrument picker, an experience that served to awaken in him the love for music, a feeling that was nurtured when he discovered in him an unmistakable talent to make singing his life support.

“The Volcano of America” because the power of his voice makes the senses of those who have the opportunity to listen to him rumble; so sings Argenis Carruyo, from Zulia, who from a very young age began to demonstrate the vocal quality that characterizes him.

Argenis Carruyo is known in the music scene as "El Volcán de América" (The Volcano of America) due to the power of his voice — Argenis Carruyo is known in the music scene as “El Volcán de América” (The Volcano of America) due to the power of his voice

He has stood out as an interpreter of the gaita zuliana and during the 1970s and 1980s belonged to the Dimensión Latina.

The 80’s was a very busy decade for this multifaceted character; he sang with Orlando y su Combo, and did a duet with Ender Carruyo in the orchestra “Los Hermanos Carruyo” and then again with the Super Combo Los Tropicales, until 1985 when he decided to found his own group called “Argenis Carruyo y su Orquesta”.

He began his musical career with the youth group Los Larkings. Later, he was part of Los Juglares and Los Casinos.

In 1973, he joined the ranks of Súper Combo Los Tropicales and in 1977 he was recruited by Dimensión Latina, with whom he sang until 1981. Later he joined the group Los Melódicos.

During the 1980s he had an intense artistic activity in which he sang with Orlando y su Combo, duetted with Ender Carruyo in the orchestra Los Hermanos Carruyo, worked again with the Súper Combo Los Tropicales and, in 1985, formed his own group: Argenis Carruyo y su Orquesta.

Sabor a Gaita:

Apart from his work with rhythms such as guaracha and salsa, Carruyo has also performed the gaita zuliana.

The Volcano of America has not only stood out among the great interpreters of the Caribbean for playing rhythms such as the guaracha, he has also honored his land by making famous great gaita compositions.

During his time in the genre he worked with groups such as El Número Uno, Rincón Morales, Guaco, Los Morillo and Gaiteros de Pillopo.

He owes part of his fame to the gaita, because the Zulian melody accompanied him on stages and still accompanies him in his veins as it does to anyone who appreciates being a worthy Maracaibero.

During his artistic life he has received numerous recognitions, as well as the publication of a book with his biography.

In 1975 he won the Festival de Cantantes y Compositores Zulianos and has received the Mara de Oro (1993, 1994, 1995) and Gran Cacique de Oro awards as best singer, the Gran Aguila de Venezuela as best singer and dance orchestra (1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2001), and the Catatumbo de Oro as best popular singer (1993) among others.

"The Volcano of America" — “The Volcano of America”

His orchestra received the Orden Ciudad de Maracaibo in its first class as best dance group.

He has performed in the most important nightclubs in Maracaibo, the country and abroad, alternating with the most recognized figures of the song, which is why he is considered one of the most genuine interpreters of tropical Caribbean genres in the Zulian region, such as salsa, guaracha, cumbia, merengue and bolero.

With a prolific career of more than twenty-five years that has served to demonstrate his talents as a vocalist and his own characteristic style, which gives him his most authentic identity.

Argenis Carruyo, with pride from Maracaibo, proclaims that he owes to Zulia the success and fortune that always accompanied him since he discovered the enormous talent he carried in his blood, his homeland became his main fan, to Maracaibo he owes his life and to its inhabitants the affection and the memory that will always keep him alive through his songs.

For 2023 Argenis was specially invited to participate in the excellent group Quintero’s Salsa Project – Tributo A La Dimension Latina directed by New York based percussionists Luisito Quintero and Robert Quintero.

Luisito Quintero grew up in the Latin and African percussion tradition. His father is as percussive as his uncle Carlos Nene Quintero and cousin Roberto Quintero. He became a member of the Venezuelan Symphony Orchestra, but soon joined ensembles such as Grupo Guaco and El Trabuco Venezolano and toured with Oscar D’León.

He then moved to New York, where he met Latin jazz musicians like Willie Colon, Eddie Palmieri, Tito Puente and Celia Cruz worked. He then turned to the fusion of jazz, funk, salsa and African music and played with George Benson, Herbie Hancock, Ravi Coltrane and Toshiko Akiyoshi, but also with pop musicians such as Gloria Estefan and Marc Anthony. Louie Vega produced his first album with him.

Quintero’s Salsa Project – Tribute To The Latin Dimension

Tracks: Ya Tu Lo Véras; Sin Tu Cariño; Cara de Guabina; Sigue Tu Camino; Irimo; Dulce Cantar; De Quintero a Dimensión; Ahi Nama; Te Conocí; Parampampam; Arroz Con Manteca; Frutas del Caney.

Musicians: Argenis Carruyo; Jimmy Bosch; Marcial Istúriz; Roberto Quintero, Luisito Quintero.

Record labels in which Argenis Carruyo has participated.

Top-Hit (TH), Maracaibo Record’s, Argenis Carruyo, Discos VRZ, SonoVen Records, L. G. Record’s C. A; iMusician | EDGARSARMIENTO, Palacio, among others.

Sources:

La Buena Musica: Argenis Carruyo

La Salsa es mi vida: Quintero´s Salsa Project – Tributo A La Dimension Latina

Also Read: Víctor Porfirio Baloa Díaz, more commonly known as Porfi Baloa

ISM – September 2023

Steven Brezet. The Dutch influenced by African percussion

Europe / Holland / Róterdam

Steven Brezet. The Dutch influenced by African percussion

Through his mother’s interest in African dance, Steven Brezet grew up hearing African percussion. At the age of six he attended a gig at Podium Grounds in Rotterdam, where he watched Senegalese percussionist Aly Ndiaye Rose play a duo show together with Lucas Merwijk. Ndiaye Rose played on five drums at once, fascinating to such a little boy, and so began a lifelong love of percussion.

Right then and there, he asked his mother for lessons and they set up classes with Aly Ndiaye Rose.

Steven took djembe lessons with Ndiaye Rose and soon began expanding to other percussive instruments, including sabar, congas, bongos, timbales, timbal and others.

He worked on his skills as a musician not only by taking many different classes, but also by traveling to countries with different musical styles, including Senegal, Guinea, Curacao, Maroc and Brazil.

This broadened Steven’s musical passion from African percussion to include Brazilian and Latin music.

At home in the Netherlands, Steven played with people of many nationalities, of learning by playing in the streets.

Venezuelan percussionists Roberto Quintero and Orlando Poleo inspired him in this genre and taught him the importance of practice and structure.

Combining this methodological approach to percussion with practical, street-wise learning makes Steven’s technique remarkable and the broad range of instrumental knowledge adds impressive depth.

Currently, Steven is recording and touring with the band KOFFIE, but for the past two years he has also performed with bands like Banda Magda (USA), The Re:Freshed Orchestra (NL), The Bill Laurance Group (UK) and Grammy Award winning band Snarky Puppy (USA).

Steven can be heard on the Snarky Puppy album We like it here for which he recorded as a guest musician in Kytemans studio.

This work with Snarky Puppy led to broad recognition, while the KOFFIE album Huntu gave way to performances at many music festivals, bringing Steven’s percussion sounds to a wider audience. Jazzism described Huntu as outstanding album.

These projects and collaborations made Steven into the versatile percussionist he is today. Steven values innovation and tries to mix different styles and rhythms throughout all his musical endeavors.

At the moment Steven is recording his own music. A salsa album will be upcoming in the end of 2017.

And finally Steven will release his first album which was recorded in Kytopia Utrecht. It is a mix of Afrobeat and Funk.

Musical director of VibraSÓN Jake Jacobs is here

VibraSÓN is a musical group that makes life in the state of California, specifically in the San Francisco Bay Area, which has become one of the best options for festivals and nightclubs seeking fresh sounds in terms of salsa, swing and Latin music in general.

I was pleased to know about this great orchestra, its members and sound thanks to its work at Charley’s LG, Bar and Nightclub where Eduardo Guilarte, our editor, was working and directing everything related to the lineups and musical programming for Latin music nights, more specifically on Tuesdays.

When I made contact, the person who was kind enough to reply was musical director of VibraSÓN. Jake Jacobs, who at the same time works as a producer, percussionist and backing vocalist.

Jake Jacobs from VibraSÓN — Jake Jacobs, musical director of VibraSON

Talk with Jake Jacobs from the group VibraSÓN

Jake Jacobs comes from a very interesting background. His first contact with music took place with his father and uncle, both of whom were professional musicians, but Jake says he has always been interested in this world.

He studied classical piano and music theory at the University of Illinois and took some jazz piano lessons in his passage through the University of California. During these years, the musical director spent roughly 13 hours a day practicing with this instrument to master it as well as possible.

With time, he became interested in Latin music and dance, which also led him to take dance classes at university. With that knowledge acquired up to that moment, he went to visit New York and his trip coincided with the National Puerto Rican Day Parade (an event held annually in New York and other states to celebrate Puerto Rico and its traditions in the United States).

This event inspired Jake so much that he returned to the Bay Area with the intention to switch his dance classes to salsa classes. He became so good that he began to teach salsa dance classes himself to numerous students interested in learning these rhythms, something he has been done for over 20 years in widely recognized clubs and dance studios.

He used to provide these classes twice a week at the Cocomo Club, which was very important at the time and attracted more than 600 people every day. When bands performed live, the future leader of VibraSÓN began to know musicians, who, in turn, gave him music lessons and his first opportunities to play in bands.

Jake Jacobs with VibraSÓN — Jake Jacobs and the other members of VibraSÓN

Apprenticeships and classes with great musicians

One of the most impressive credentials that Jake can have is to have studied with some of the best musicians in the San Francisco Bay Area such as Edgardo Cambón, Karl Perazzo, Michael Spiro, Louie Romero, among others.

Evidently, all these luminaries have taught the producer much of what he knows and applies today, but he ensures that it was not easy to learn from so many ”teachers” at the same time, in both dancing and music performance.

Ensures that some of the most important things he learned have to do with technique and tips to be applied such as how to play the drums, the notes at the right times, silences and much more.

He points out that they all taught him valuable and important things, which are still very useful to this day. One of those great lessons was to practice and practice until he achieved the sounds he wanted, especially in Latin music.

VibraSÓN

Finally, in 2014, Jake decided it was time to put into practice everything he learned and create his own musical group with his own original details. This is how VibraSÓN came about.

The origin of his band’s name came from Luis Morales, one of its members. It is based on vibraphone, which is not widely used by the orchestras from the San Francisco Bay Area, but by the dancers and by this new group in their performances. As for the end of the name, it comes from ”son cubano”, a typical genre of the island Jake likes very much.

Although Club Cocomo unfortunately closed the following year, that didn’t stop VibraSÓN from making its way and becoming one of the most demanded groups in the Bay Area in recent years.

One of the things that Jake thinks makes his group unique is that there are very few people who use the vibraphone and, due to his training as a dancer, he is always looking to make the most appropriate music for that part of the audience for whom dancing is very important.

Jake Jacobs in San Francisco — Jake Jacobs performing on stage in San Francisco

How Jake and VibraSÓN read the crowd

For Jake and the rest of the band, it is very important to read the crowd and see how people react to the music they play at any time. They pay a lot of attention to the dance floor to see what works and what doesn’t with the people they play for that night.

Having played at clubs such as Charley’s, Bar Fluxus, La Peña Cultural, The Cigar Bar and Space 500, they have prepared a very generous repertoire for each performance. Just as they have written original music, they have also dedicated themselves to perform covers of the most buzzed-about artists in recent times in certain contexts, something that worked out for several orchestras when they need to draw on these resources to entertain the audience.

This wide repertoire that they now enjoy is what has allowed them to make diverse shows with lots of variety so that those present never get bored, even if they usually go to the same place.

Another thing they tend to do is add new arrangements and change genres to the covers they do so that they do not sound exactly like the originals and they can inject some of their essence, even if they are not songs written or sung by them originally. ”Even if they are covers, we always try to add our original arrangements so that the dancers enjoy them that much more” said Jake.

They have also learned to connect with the audience and know what the dancers and the general public want in order to give them exactly what they want. And they did not learn this overnight, but have observed in detail what other orchestras do to imitate what is good and useful.

Jake and VibraSÓN on stage — VibraSÓN performing on stage

Tours and future plans of VibraSÓN

At the end of the interesting talk, Jake told us that, for now, they only plan to record new music and other activities that are comfortable for all the members, since many of the musicians are in other orchestras and record for other people, so it is too complicated for them to tour with VibraSÓN. In addition to that, several of them have small children to care for, so it is impossible for them to travel for a long time.

He is so considerate because he always tries to keep the same members and preserve the unity of the group above all else. It has worked for them, as they have managed to made a name, which will continue to become popular over time.