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Melina Almodóvar “La Muñeca de la Salsa”

North America / USA / New York

Melina Almodóvar

With an unwavering spirit, melodious voice, Caribbean cadence on her hips, friendly and cataloged by many as sexy, Melina Almodóvar has represented the Latin female son in the US. During her 20 years of artistic career, Melina Almodóvar has conquered audiences in the most imposing scenarios and has shared stages with the most recognized artists of the tropical genre

The nickname as many know she is “La Muñeca de la salsa” and which for a long period of time she sought to have because she had the same name that already identified another Salsa singer. Getting an ideal pseudonym to her was difficult, but not for a fan who, while delighting in her live presentation, cataloged her with this nickname with which they would later recognize her in the whole world.

“I wanted to give myself a nickname for Salsa … But I did not want to change my name … And then one day a gentleman says to me:” Hey, but you are a doll and look how you sing “, and then it was there that I stayed “La Muñeca de la Salsa”. It’s a name that stuck with me and it stayed there, so everyone knows who “La Muñeca de la Salsa” is and sometimes they do not know who Melina Almodóvar is, but I really like that name, I think it’s very beautiful”, she said.

At the age of 14, the interpreter born in San Juan de Puerto Rico lived an experience that marked her life since then. She moved with her mother to Memphis, Tennessee, leaving behind her culture and family, which caused an emotional shock and made her take full refuge in the music.

Melina Almodóvar - Photo — Melina Almodóvar – Photo

“Salsa saved my life.” The Salsa is my way of life. It’s my way of breathing, of doing things “.

“We moved to a very white place to an extremely American place. The south of the US is a very different place from New York or Florida. There are not many Latin people and for me it was very hard … I started studying music at the High School. I got into all the choirs that I could and all the bands in the school where I could be”, told me Melina.

Melina Almodóvar - Photo 2 — Melina Almodóvar – Photo 2

This Puerto Rican composer not only prepared in salsa, also studied different musical styles: Blues, Jazz and Gospel. What made her race for only 3 years at the University of Memphis the career of Musical Execution. Studies that she decided to abandon for working at the same time as a receptionist and translator for the City Council and also to continue pursuing her dream of singing Salsa professionally. “I decided to quit my university studies because I was really doing what I wanted to do: that was to be a singer… I thought it was better to leave school and nothing has gone wrong, I have continued doing everything at that moment, but on a slightly larger scale and for me it was the right decision”, commented Amodóvar.

During the 90s, Melina and other music professionals created the first salsa orchestra in Memphis called “La Orquesta Caliente”. With this band toured places like Alanna, Kentucky and Alabama. They played at such iconic venues as Beale Street, one of the most famous music streets in all the US for almost 4 years, just as they did at Young Ave Deli, a place that filled to its maximum capacity just to hear them sing and play Salsa every Monday. In this regard, Melina told me: “That’s when I started singing Salsa. That’s when I fell in love with salsa and I wanted to continue being a professional Salsa singer.”

Melina Almodóvar “La Muñeca de la Salsa” in concert

Melina Almodóvar “La Muñeca de la Salsa” in concert photo

In 2003, she began her musical career as an independent soloist with her first album Rumba’s Salsa Soul Delight, where she exhibited her creative freedom to compose, work with other people in the music industry and create her own identity in this tropical genre. So, her second álbum was La Muñeca De La Salsa Y Más (2008) and Pasión y Salsa Live in 2013.

In all her productions this Puerto Rican singer based in Miami, likes to sing to the love in a very positive way. Each song is a tropical proposal of Latin culture, passion, celebration, dance and happiness that invites the dancer to enjoy. “I like to talk positively about things that make me happy. I do not like to shoot men … Because it’s not what happened to me. “She added: “I have a bolero that’s called Mi Nueva Página de Amor, but it’s very positive.

Melina Almodóvar “La Muñeca de la Salsa” - Cover — Melina Almodóvar “La Muñeca de la Salsa” – Cover

”Although the Salsa is a genre dominated by men, Melina has shown to take firm steps and open field solidly in the music industry, she has sung alongside major figures such as: The Great Combo of Puerto Rico, Andy Montanez, Bobby Cruz, Gilberto Santa Rosa, Marlo Rosa, Tito Puente Jr., el maestro Larry Harlow and Tromboranga.

She has developed a successful musical career of 20 uninterrupted years that has led her to perform at the biggest annual festivals and daily events in the country. For nine years “La Muñeca de la Salsa” performed live shows in South Florida at Tapas y Tintos club located in Miami’s South Beach with el maestro Ricky Torres, where thousands of dancers from all over the world gathered every Tuesday to dance and enjoy her music.

Melina Almodóvar “La Muñeca de la Salsa” - Singing — Melina Almodóvar “La Muñeca de la Salsa” – Singing

In 2010, Melina and approximately more than 600 dancers broke the Guinness Record for the largest number of people dancing Salsa at the same time a song. The idea got with her former manager Frank Nieves. The theme was “Lista pa’ Impresionar” of her authorship and doesn’t rule in the near future to do it again. “We were there seeing how we could do something different for an event that he was doing here for the Broward County Patron Festivities and we said why we did not try to break the Guinness Record. Establish a Guinness Record of the greatest number of dancers dancing a song and then we did it and it was spectacular”, said Melina.

In 2016, she released to the national and international market the salsa version single “Estoy aquí” of the popular Pop singer Shakira, whose arrangement was made by Seferino Cavan. The video of “Estoy Aquí” was shot on the famous beaches of Miami Beach and already has almost 1 million views.

Melina Almodóvar “La Muñeca de la Salsa” - Photo — Melina Almodóvar “La Muñeca de la Salsa” – Photo

Likewise, and in mid of 2017, Almodóvar recorded with Tito Puente Jr. a new version in Salsa Mambo of the song “Mi Socio” created by Tito Puente and Cuban singer La Lupe popularized in 1965. In the same way, she did with the singer and composer Bobby Cruz the song “La Chica del Bling”.

Currently, Melina does live performances every Friday to 6pm at Best Time Wine Shop located on 8th Street at 64th and 8th, a wine warehouse with a large dance floor. “Ándale! Pon a Sonar el Güiro” is her most recent single, it was released since last December and you can find it on all digital platforms. During this month of January, Melina will continue playing her music through the territory of Florida with the event Los Patrones de la Salsa and on April 7 she will produce along with her friend Kristina Moinelo the biggest salsa festival in Miami, the Hollywood Salsa Fest, in which she will also participate as a main star with great figures of salsa music.

la muneca de la salsa - flyers — la muneca de la salsa – flyers

Melina Almodóvar believes that the Salsa will never die because it is in the Latin idiosyncrasy and at some point this AfroCaribbean genre will return to be that people like most. She also commented that she does not rule out the possibility in the future to do a fusion with the new urban musical trends of the moment.

“For me to represent Latin music in the US is a very big honor because I love tropical music more than anything. It’s my life, it’s my way of breathing like all the SALSEROS … For me, it’s the whole world to be able to continue my long-standing career, to go ahead and bring good Salsa for the whole World.” Melina Almodóvar

The Salsa is the NUMBER ONE music genre that is danced around the world. I believe that we are keeping this genre alive with what we are doing every day. “Melina Almodóvar

Melina Almodóvar “La Muñeca de la Salsa”

To more information about La Muñeca de la Salsa, please visit www.melinaalmodovar.com or like her on Facebook: www.facebook.com/pg/MelinaSalsa

Papo Vázquez the Pirate & Troubadour of Our Latin Music

Papo Vázquez Enjoying the Bell.

Angel Vásquez, “Papo Vásquez”, was born on February 24, 1958 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.

By age 15, Papo Vázquez was playing with local American bands in Philadelphia and accompanying guest artists such as Eddie Palmieri.

At just 17, he moved to New York and was hired to play for trumpet player Chocolate Armenteros’ band, and soon began playing and recording with other top artists on the salsa scene such as The Fania All-Stars, Ray Barreto, Willie Colón, Grupo Folklórico Neoyorquino, Eddie Palmieri, Larry Harlow, and Hector Lavoe.

Vazquez also became a key player in the burgeoning New York Latin jazz scene of the late 1970s, performing with Jerry Gonzalez, Hilton Ruiz, and more.

He began his studies with Slide Hampton, eventually recording and performing Slide Hampton’s World Trombones.

Papo Vázquez Photo by Ernie Gregory (Gone but not forgotten) Thank you Ernie!PV

A Grammy-nominated trombonist, composer, arranger, NEA Master Artist, he has a 50-plus year career in jazz, Latin and Afro-Caribbean music.

Musical Director of the National Puerto Rican Day Parade Orchestra, (NYC/WABC) 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019.

Commissioned by Wynton Marsalis to compose music for Jazz and Art series, conducted and performed with the J@LC orchestra, CD release August 2019 New York Pops Education, Board of Education certified, 2018 and 2019

New music commissioned for Afro Latin Jazz Alliance for the “Nueva Música” concert series.

Nominated for Grammy for Papo Vázquez’s Mighty Pirates, Marooned/Isolated, 2008

Born in 1958 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, although his early formative years were in Puerto Rico.

He went on to play and/or record with jazz luminaries Tito Puente, Dizzy Gillespie’s United Nations Orchestra, Chico O’Farrill, Ray Charles, Slide Hampton’s World of Trombones, Jerry Gonzalez Fort Apache, among many others. By the age of 22, Vazquez had traveled the world.

Papo Vázquez Mighty Pirates Troubadours 2023

Vázquez was deeply moved by jazz from a young age. His appreciation and knowledge of indigenous Caribbean music provides him with a unique ability to fuse Afro-Caribbean rhythms with the freer melodic and harmonic elements of progressive jazz.

Beginnings

After spending his early years in Puerto Rico, he grew up in the heart of North Philadelphia’s Puerto Rican community. He purchased his first trombone from a friend for $5 and joined the elementary school band.

At the age of 14, an uncle recommended him to a local salsa band, where he met trumpeter Jimmy Purvis. Purvis inspired Papo’s lifelong passion for jazz by giving him two records: J.J. Johnson’s Blue Trombone and John Coltrane Live at the Village Vanguard. By 15, Vazquez was performing with local Latin bands in Philadelphia and accompanying visiting New York artists such as Eddie Palmieri.

He was a founding member of Jerry Gonzalez’s Fort Apache and Conjunto Libre, as well as the popular Puerto Rican Latin fusion band Batacumbele.

With Batacumbele he performed, composed, arranged and recorded several albums from 1981 to 1985. Upon his return to New York, he joined Tito Puente’s Latin Jazz Ensemble, traveling with them as principal trombonist and touring Europe with Dizzy Gillespie’s United Nations Orchestra.

Leader, Composer and Innovator.

Vázquez has always been deeply moved by jazz, and specifically cites the music of John Coltrane and J.J. Johnson as having influenced him most. In addition, his appreciation and knowledge of the indigenous music of Caribbean peoples gives him a unique ability to fuse Afro-Caribbean rhythms, specifically those of Puerto Rico, with the freer melodic and harmonic elements of progressive jazz.

During his time in Puerto Rico with Batacumbele in the 1980s, he began experimenting with “bomba jazz,” a fusion of jazz and traditional Puerto Rican bomba. In 1993 he recorded his first album as a leader, Breakout. He continued to collaborate with a variety of Latin Jazz artists, contributing Overtime Mambo to Hilton Ruiz’s Manhattan Mambo and Contra Viento y Mareo to Descarga Boricua, Vol. 1.

In 1999, he released a live recording with a number of leading New York Latin and jazz artists, including bassist Andy Gonzalez, saxophonist Michael Brecker, among others. The release of Pirates & Troubadours At the Point, Vol. 1 was followed the next year by At The Point, Vol. 2.

Mighty Pirates Troubadours Songs del Yucayekepor Papo Vazquez — Mighty Pirates Troubadours Songs del Yucayeke
por Papo Vazquez

This project evolved into the Pirates Troubadours, an “Afro-Puerto Rican jazz band” that includes musicians such as Roberto Cepeda of Puerto Rico’s Familia Cepeda folklore group, Milton Cardona and Anthony Carrillo on percussion, and John Benitez, among others. The group performed at festivals around the world and released Carnival in San Juan in 2003, followed by From The Badlands in 2007.

Interest grew as a composer.

He was the first artist to receive a composer commission (Iron Jungle) for the Afro-Latin Jazz Orchestra, then a resident orchestra at Jazz at Lincoln Center.

His first classical composition, Palomita Suite Afro-Caribeña which to date was the first time Bomba y Plena had been performed with a Chamber Orchestra, was commissioned by the Bronx Arts Ensemble and premiered at the Hostos Center for Arts and Culture in the Bronx in 2004.

In 2007, on a commission from the Bronx River Arts Center, he wrote Sube el Río (River Rising) for its Mighty Pirate Orchestra for its 20th anniversary concert “Bronx River Sounds.”

Discography

Papo Vázquez Mighty Pirates Troubadours – Capítulo 10: Breaking Cover, Picaro Records 2020
Cuarteto Papo Vázquez – GV J.S. Bach, Picaro Records 2017
Papo Vazquez Mighty Pirates Troubadours – Spirit Warrior, Picaro Records, 2015
Papo Vazquez Mighty Pirates Troubadours – Oasis, Picaro Records, 2012
Papo Vázquez The Mighty Pirates – Marooned / Aislado, Picaro Records, Nominación al Grammy 2008
Papo Vázquez Pirates Troubadours – From The Badlands, Picaro Records, 2007
El Niño Josele – 2011
Tego Calderon – The Underdog / El Subestimado, Jiggiri Records, 2006
Shakira & Wyclef Jean – Tema de la final mundial de fútbol (“Bamboo”), 2006
Ray Barretto – Normas rican-ditioned, Zoho Music, 2006
Los Pleneros de la 21 Para Todos Ustedes, Smithsonian Folkways, 2005 – Nominación al Grammy,
Bebo Valdes – Bebo de Cuba, Calle 54, 2005 – Grammy, Mejor Álbum de Jazz Latino
Papo Vázquez Pirates Trovadores – Carnaval en San Juan, Cu-Bop Records, 2003
Wayne Shorter – Alegria, Verve, 2003 – Grammy, Mejor álbum instrumental de jazz
Jack Bruce – Sombras en el aire, Sanctuary Records Group, 2001
Freddie Cole Rio de Janeiro Blues, Telarc
Chico O’Farrill “Carambola” Fantasía
Banda sonora de la película Mo ’Better Blues de Spike Lee
Papo Vázquez “Piratas y trovadores – En el punto Vol. I” Cubop
Papo Vázquez “Piratas y trovadores – At the Point Vol. 2” Cubop
Milton Cardona “Cambucha” Clave americana
Arturo O’Farrill “Bloodlines” Fantasy
Chucho Valdés “All Stars Bronx Lebanon New Directions Project” RMM
“Jammin ‘in the Bronx” Papo Vázquez Band, Chucho Valdes & The Machito Orq RMM
Chart Busters con el Dr. Lonnie Smith, Lenny White, Hiram Bullock, Craig Handy, Papo Vázquez, et.al. Chico O’Farrill Fantasía “Pure Emotion”
Steve Berrios Fantasía del “primer mundo”
Descarga Boricua “Descarga Boricua” Tierrazo
Dave Valentin “Tropic Heat” GRP
Juan Luis Guerra 440 “Fogarate” 440
Papo Vázquez “Breakout” Timeless
Ruben Blades “Amor y Control” “Antecedente” & “Caminando” Sony
Hilton Ruiz “Manhattan Mambo” Telarc y “Hands on Percussion”
RMM Tito Puente “Fuera de este mundo” Tito Puente “100” RMM
Jerry Gonzalez Fort Apache Band “Obatala” “Live in Berlin” Enja & “Ya Yo Me Cure” American Clave
New York Latin Jazz All Stars “Feliz Navidad”
Bobby Valentin “Presenta al Cano Estremera” – Bronco Records
Batacumbele “Con Un Poco de Songo” & “En Aquellos Tiempos” Tierrazo
Ray Barretto “Ricanstruction” Fania
Slide Hampton “Mundo de trombones” WEST54
Chico O’Farrill “Calle 54”
Fania All Stars “Habana Jam” Fania
Willie Colon & Ruben Blades “Siembra” Fania
Willie Colon y Celia Cruz Fania
Héctor La Voe “De Ti Depende” – Feliz Navidad, Fania
Mon Rivera “Vuelvo a Vivir” Fania

Sources:

Textos www.jazzismomedellin.com

Also Read: Eddie Palmieri brought salsa for the first time and live from Sing Sing Penitentiary in New York

Swedish dancer Molly Hagman made it in Europe and now in New York

Undoubtedly, Latin music continues to enslave hearts around the world and the protagonist of this story is a reliable proof of it. It has been such a great honor for us to have known the story of Swedish professional dancer Molly Hagman, who has shared with us the most important facts about her career and how she has reached the point she is at today.

How Molly became interested in dancing in her home country

Nice and jovial Molly was describing in detail everything she has done in her career, thus answering most questions we had for her. She began by telling us that her dance studies began when she was still very young. Being only 15 years old, her best friend at the time convinced her to enroll in the Malmoe Dance Academy in the Swedish city of Malmö, to learn from instructors who introduced her to genres such as jazz, hip hop, contemporary music and ballet.

Two years later, when she was sufficiently prepared, she began experimenting with salsa and auditioning for women’s dance teams, one of them being the group Bellasitas, Molly and Maddy being the first two original members. Once the team was complete, they began to perform in congresses throughout Europe such as the Berlin Salsa Festival, the Hamburg Salsa Festival, the Copenhagen Salsa Festival, the Stockholm Salsa Weekend at the Capitol Stockholm in Sweden, the Scandinavian Salsa Congress, the Love Dance Festival, among many others.

Activity outside Europe

By the year 2014, the young woman studied a year of commercial dance at the International Dance Academy in Copenhagen, Denmark. As part of her education, she was able to travel to Los Angeles to train at the Millenium Dance Complex studio, where she remained for about three months and shared with some of its choreographers such as Gustavo Vargas, Jojo Gomez, Yanis Marshall, Tricia Miranda and many more. That time was enough for her to know that her destiny was the United States and that eventually she would like to live there. And she did.

Molly at the Malmoe Dance Academy — Molly when she was studying at the Malmoe Dance Academy during her teenage years

Some time later, more specifically in 2016, Molly moved to New York to study dance at Broadway Dance Center and the possibility to meet the best salsa instructors, many of whom were in that city. It is there where she made contact with Franklin Diaz, with whom she was dancing for a few months in a number of events, until joining the Yamulee Dance Company in the Bronx. She danced for that dance company for about six years, that is, until the year 2022.

During her time with Yamulee, she was able to participate in all kinds of events all over New York, Florida, Trinidad and Tobago and other places.

It is during this time that her passion for Latin music developed even more, since practically those whom she interacted with listened to salsa, merengue, bachata and reggaeton and the great majority of Yamulee’s members were Dominicans who gave much importance to their heritage. As mentioned before, Molly had already had contact with these genres, but this constant exposure only reinforced her decision to continue along this path.

Solo career

In 2022, Molly felt ready to start her career as an independent dancer thanks to all the training previously received. Since then, she has worked with her current dance partner ”Vittico La Magia” with whom she has performed in numerous festivals such as the New York International Salsa Festival in 2023 and 2024, the BIG Salsa Festival in the same years and the New York SBKZ Congress last year.

Molly in Harlem — Molly posing for the camera in the Graffiti Hall Of Fame, Harlem

She also told us that she was starring in the official music video for the latest song my Thalia and Los Angeles Azules – “Yo Me Lo Busque” that already has over 1.2 million views after being out for only 5 days! What was an incredible experience and dancing for such big artists. Similarly, she has participated as a dancer for several concerts by Dominican artist Yiyo Sarante in New York and New Jersey before thousands of people who enjoyed her great talent. She also danced with Grupo Niche and La India in some of their shows.

Additionally, she has been interviewed by important shows such as The Art Of Fashion TV, which was broadcast through the Manhattan Neighborhood Network and exposed to millions of viewers, giving Molly the opportunity to make herself known to a much larger and diverse audience.

Her role as a dance teacher

Molly has been teaching dance since she was in Sweden on some occasions, but where she further gained experience was in New York, which is when she has developed all her skills through the private lessons she today offers. She says that this is an area of her work that she really enjoys very much because it gives her the opportunity to teach other young people what she herself learned at the time and this satisfies her enormously. The need to create a new choreography for each class invites her to be more creative and to keep the interest of her students with new dances in each session.

Ms. Hagman has also completed with Malmoe Dance Academy’s professional dance teams on the Swedish national talent competition “TALANG”, (“This is Talent”) where she and her team won First Place. Talang is the Swedish reiteration of the Got Talent series. Talang features singers, dancers, comedians, variety acts and other performers competing against each other for audience votes and prize money. It’s a nationally recognized dance competition which was broadcasted on Swedish national television and to viewers around the world.

Molly at the fashion week — Molly modeling at the New York Fashion Week

Goodbye to José Antonio Abreu, the most beloved Master – Part 1

Latin America / Venezuela / Caracas

José Antonio Abreu

This extraordinary human being died on Saturday March 24 at the age of 78. Given the shock and infinite sadness of musicians, family, friends, music teachers, his thousands of disciples and all his followers, his wake took place on Sunday, March 25, in the Simón Bolívar Hall of the National Center for Social Action for Music, and was buried in the Cementerio del Este, in Caracas, Venezuela.

The manifestations of pain, and at the same time of gratitude, that the death of the Master has produced have sounded in all corners of the world, where his person and his work have been both a source of inspiration and an object of admiration and recognition.

The teaching of ART AND MUSIC in the whole world changed radically after the creation of EL SISTEMA. We invite everyone to read here the complete report on its activity published in our magazine, in June 2015, on the occasion of its 40th Anniversary.

The Venezuelan Musical Miracle

José Antonio Abreu economist, manager, entrepreneur, visionary, composer, conductor, distinguished teacher and tutor of several generations of Venezuelans is the founder of what is recognized as the Venezuelan musical miracle: The National System of Youth and Children’s Orchestras and Choirs from Venezuela. “This Venezuelan musician, sower of illusions and builder of dreams, has carried out a task that goes beyond the musical and cultural horizon, and is inserted in the rescue and formation of Venezuelan and Latin American youth.”

http://fundamusical.org.ve/category/el-sistema/jose-antonio-abreu/

“The life of José Antonio Abreu is the stellar journey to the land of a privileged human being, with a perfectly planned itinerary, always fulfilled and ascending. Thanks to its visionary mission, Venezuela has managed to crystallize one of the cultural, artistic and social programs of greater importance for America, the Caribbean and the world”.

Venezuela Seeded with Chefi Borzacchini Orchestras.

Caribbean Bank. Caracas, 2004.

“THERE ARE BEINGS THAT SEEM MARKED by God’s chalk. They are beings destined to leave a mark of their passage on earth. There are artists who make works of art with the purpose of conquering beauty, achieving fame or defeating death. There are others, however, rarer and more special, who prefer to dedicate themselves to making the other human being a work of art. That is the case of José Antonio Abreu: without a doubt, one of the most definitive and transcendent Venezuelans of contemporary Venezuela”.

The Impossible 3. Conversations on the edge of a microphone. Leonardo Padron.

Aguilar, Editorial Santillana. Caracas, 2008.

José Antonio Abreu was born in Valera, Trujillo state, Venezuela, on May 7, 1939, and from an early age he demonstrated his musical and artistic sensitivity. He began his music studies at the age of nine with the pianist and beloved teacher Doralisa de Medina, in the city of Barquisimeto, Lara state, once considered the musical capital of Venezuela, and then moved to Caracas in 1957.

He entered the José Ángel Lamas Superior School of Music, where he became a disciple of important Venezuelan masters such as Vicente Emilio Sojo, with whom he studied composition; Moisés Moleiro, his piano teacher, and Evencio Castellanos, who gives him organ and harpsichord classes.

In 1964 he obtained the titles of Performing Professor and Master Composer. Later he studied Orchestral Conducting with maestro Gonzalo Castellanos Yumar and became a guest conductor of the main Venezuelan orchestras.

In order to materialize his life project, the founding of El Sistema, Abreu first forged an important career as a planner and economist. I have obtained a degree in Economist from the Universidad Católica Andrés Bello, in Caracas, and a Ph.D in Petroleum Economics, from the University of Pennsylvania, USA.

His academic achievements allowed him to distinguish himself as a university professor, planner and economic advisor, serving as Director of Planning for Cordiplán, Advisor to the National Economy Council, President of the National Council of Culture, Minister of State for Culture and Deputy to the National Congress of the Republic.

In 1975 he founded the Juan José Landaeta National Youth Orchestra of Venezuela, which would later be called the Simón Bolívar Youth Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela, now the Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela, the “top” orchestra of the National System of Orchestras and Choirs . Juveniles e Infantiles de Venezuela, an enormous network planted throughout the Venezuelan territory, within which several generations of Venezuelan musicians have been formed.

Between 1960 and 1980, Abreu managed time between management, teaching and organization of the nascent cultural company that is El Sistema de Orquestas y Coros, for musical creation and a large artistic agenda that allowed him to raise his baton in front of the Orchestra Venezuela Symphony as guest conductor and, later, in front of the Youth Symphony of Venezuela and the Simón Bolívar Youth Symphony of Venezuela.

Abreu wrote some musical works, including La symphonic cantata Veni Mulier de Samaria (National Composition Prize, 1966); Oratorio on texts of the Apocalypse, Triptych for eleven instruments and Wind Quintet. He took on the challenge of conducting with his rigorous, demanding style and, above all, always searching for the depths, subtleties and meaning of the works he conducted. In this facet he has also been a teacher and has left his mark on the musical stamp and the unique sound that the Simón Bolívar Symphony of Venezuela possesses, as well as on other orchestras of the System that have been directed by him, such as the Teresa Carreño Youth Symphony. or the Caracas Youth Symphony.

Abreu has been the tutor and the most influential teacher in the style and apprenticeship of Gustavo Dudamel, Diego Matheuz, Christian Vásquez, Dietrich Paredes, as well as other young conductors who are currently taking their first steps in conducting.

Awards and honours

“This beautiful distinction allows me to redouble my efforts to build an increasingly better world through the sowing of music in the souls of children and young people.” With these words, maestro José Antonio Abreu received on October 10, 2013, in the city of Tokyo, Japan, the Special Culture of Peace Prize awarded by the Goi Foundation for Peace, an institution that praised the creator of the National System of Orchestras and Youth and Children’s Choirs of Venezuela “for having dedicated his life to social work to promote the culture of peace through music.”

“With four decades of experience, Abreu’s work is the most important social responsibility program in Venezuela and is inspiring many nations around the world. For his invaluable musical contribution, and for having filled thousands of Venezuelan and Latin American children and young people with hope, nationalist consciousness and tools for work, this exemplary Venezuelan has received multiple national and international awards, granted by numerous governments, countries, foundations and non-governmental organizations”, among which the following stand out:

2014:

Notre Dame Public Service Award in Latin America. Indiana, United States.
Abu Dhabi Festival Award. Abu Dhabi Festival, United Arab Emirates.

2013:

Special Culture of Peace Award from the Goi Foundation for Peace, Tokyo, Japan.
Charles Ansbacher Music for All Award. Second edition. Organization “Free for All Concert Fund”.
Grand Cross of the Cruzeiro del Sur National Order. Brazil.
Trebbia European Award. Prague, Czech Republic.
Ibero-American Prize for Music Cortes de Cádiz. Municipal Foundation of Culture of the City Council of Cádiz, Spain.
Educator of the year. Musical America Worldwide, USA.

2012:

Hanz Lenz Medal of the Confederation of German Orchestra Federations.
City of Ravello Award. Italy.
City of Valencia Order in its first class The Mayor’s Office of Valencia, Carabobo state, Venezuela.

2011:

Special Echo Klassik Award from the German Academy of Phonography, the Cultural Institution of the German Music Industry Association.
Austrian Cross of Honor for Sciences and Arts from the government of Austria.

2010:

Erasmus Award 2010 from the Praemium Erasmianum Foundation

2009:

Chevalier de la Légion d’Honneur (Knight of the Legion of Honor). France.
Polar Music Prize.
Frederick Stock Award. Institute for Learning, Access and Training of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.
Bridge Builders Award.
Frankfurt Music Prize.
TED Prize. Technology, Entertainment and Design (TED) Award.

2008:

Yehudi Menuhin Award for the Integration of Arts and Education. Albeniz Foundation. Spain.
Prince of Asturias Award for the Arts of the Prince of Asturias Foundation.
Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun. Japan.
Glenn Gould Award. Glenn Gould Foundation. Canada.
International Puccini Award. Pucciniano Festival Foundation.

Among other awards received by Maestro Abreu and El Sistema are:

– WQXR Gramophone Award. England, 2007; Don Juan de Borbón Award for Music, 2007; GlobArt Award, 2006; International Peace Prize for Arts and Culture, 2004; UNICEF Award. Italian Committee for UNICEF, 2006. Praemium Imperiale. Japan Arts Association, 2006. International Peace Prize for Art and Culture. World Culture Open, 2004; The Right Livelihood Award. Sweden, 2001, among others. As well as countless Honorary Doctorates from Venezuelan Universities and from around the world, Orders of Merit, Gold Medals.

Photo of José Antonio Abreu y Gustavo Dudamel

We invite you to review the complete list of awards received by Maestro Abreu and El Sistema on the FundaMusical website:

http://fundamusical.org.ve/category/el-sistema/recognitions/

THE SYSTEM —The National System of Youth and Children’s Orchestras and Choirs of Venezuela—

Youth and Children’s Orchestras of José Antonio Abreu

“The Orchestra System is the ideal dimension of Venezuela. From the beginning I saw in the orchestras the most beautiful expression of national unity. I saw a thriving Venezuela, full of wills and efforts to get what is wanted.”

“The irradiation of the Orchestras in the community, in each town, in each state, in the family, is undoubtedly transforming Venezuelan society. And the important thing about this is that if the other arts did the same, undoubtedly, art constitutes a fundamental, strategic, unique and revolutionary instrument for the transformation of the country”.

Jose Antonio Abreu Venezuela Seeded with Orchestras. Chef Borzacchini. Caribbean Bank, 2004.

“Thanks to El Sistema, young people from all over the world can benefit from the power of music to bring about a change in their lives. But At its deepest, El Sistema is a social program that It has saved lives and will continue to save many more.”

Sir Simon Rattle. Music Director of the Berlin Philharmonic

During the practices of the young members of the orchestra

“The fundamental mission of El Sistema is not only to help children, but often – and literally – to rescue them and, in the process, also to produce real and lasting changes in the lives of their families and communities.

“The orchestra and the choir are much more than spaces for artistic development,” says Abreu. They are examples and schools of social life. From the very minute a child is trained to play an instrument, that child stop being poor. Becomes an agent of progress who will become a citizen” »

Changing Lives: Gustavo Dudamel, The System and the transformative power of music.

Tricia Tunstall. Editorial Alfa, Caracas 2014.

The National System of Youth and Children’s Orchestras and Choirs of Venezuela, also known as El Sistema, was conceived and founded in 1975 by maestro José Antonio Abreu to systematize the instruction and collective and individual practice of music through symphony orchestras and choirs. , as instruments of social organization and humanistic development.

Youth and Children’s Orchestras practice

This pedagogical, artistic and social model, which has reached relevance throughout the world, constitutes the social responsibility program with the greatest impact in the history of Venezuela. Its governing body is the Simón Bolívar Musical Foundation, attached to the Ministry of People’s Power of the Office of the Presidency and Monitoring of Government Management of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela.

The System is based on the formation, at an early age, of integral individuals for society through the individual and collective practice of music. It incorporates boys, girls and young people from all social classes:

66% come from homes with limited economic resources, or who live in adverse conditions and in vulnerable areas; while the other 34% attended belong to urban areas with better access possibilities, thus achieving an example of inclusion of all sectors and strata of the Venezuelan population, without distinctions of any kind. In this way, the orchestras and choirs radiate their healing and uplifting effects on each student, their family and their community.

Orchestral and Choral Training Program

The focus of this artistic-social project stands out for the collective musical practice from an early age where the premise is to make quality music through orchestral, choral, chamber, folk, alternative and diverse genre groups that constitute and are part of a community and the Nuclei, educational, artistic and administrative backbone of El Sistema throughout the national territory.

In front of the lectern and under the leadership of the director, music becomes a powerful agent of positive change; Students learn to work as a team and to achieve goals by overcoming program levels, performing a sequential symphonic and choral repertoire, and performing on national and international stages.

Photo of the integrants Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela

The methodology also includes individual classes of symphonic instruments up to general rehearsals, with a sequential repertoire gradually structured for each level that includes works of all genres -national and universal-. In this way, the development of an artistic career is promoted individually and in groups, with the support of teachers prepared to facilitate meaningful learning.

The teaching-learning process is complemented through the daily and continuous practice of the members of El Sistema, combining their activities in the nuclei with frequent presentations to the public to make their work and achievements a constant and significant learning.

The nucleus

The functional, educational, artistic, and administrative structure that shapes El Sistema is at its core. All the orchestral and choral programs of the Simón Bolívar Musical Foundation are held there, which makes them teaching centers that, in many cases, function as centers for promoting the educational, artistic and cultural activities of the communities. The nuclei vary in size and complexity and are located in every state in the country.

The nuclei offer musical development programs for children between 2 and 6 years of age, ranging from musical stimulation and initiation to the formation of a group that includes content and musical activities appropriate to their ages. From the age of 6, students have the opportunity to develop in pre-infant, children’s and youth orchestras, the latter for young people between 12 and 18 years of age.

The module

It is a structure that joins this network to reach the most remote towns in the country, border areas, communities, urbanizations and schools, with the purpose that no Venezuelan girl, boy or young person is excluded from the experience and enjoyment that music provides.

The environment

In addition to developing in the musical field, the teaching-learning process facilitates the comprehensive development of the beneficiary from birth to adulthood, promoting responsibility, discipline, commitment, teamwork, respect, coexistence, collaboration and a sense of belonging, thus forming multiplier citizens of all these values in their family environments and communities.

Work with parents, representatives and communities

In the teaching-learning process of El Sistema, a constant link is maintained with the community and the family environment of children and young people, in order to provide a motivating environment for the beneficiaries that allows them to continue in their educational artistic process. Parents, representatives and community thus become indirect beneficiaries.

Currently, El Sistema has 423 nuclei and 1,340 modules serving 700,000 girls, boys, adolescents and young people. The academic staff is made up of 9,010 teachers, distributed in the 24 states of Venezuela, forming a complex and systematic national network of youth and children’s orchestras and choirs: 1,305 youth, children’s and pre-children’s orchestras; 1,121 children’s and youth choirs.

The National System of Choirs

It stimulates the training of children and young people in choral education, fostering the creation of networks that generate training systems for choral directors, lyrical singing students and vocal groups. Those who stand out at all levels of training make up the Youth Symphonic Choir, while the National Youth Symphony Choir of Venezuela is made up of regional teams.

Other programs:

Program for new members of “El Sistema”

It stimulates the growth of babies from the prenatal period up to 3 years of age.

The Paper Orchestra Program fosters unity between the family, the child and the teacher, designed so that the process of orchestral and choral initiation for students between the ages of 3 and 6 is pleasant and satisfying.

Alma Llanera Program, which trains children and young people through the collective practice of music with traditional Venezuelan instruments, in order to rescue and preserve popular Venezuelan folk music.

concert

New Orchestras and Musical Genres Program that offers academic training to musicians of the popular genre and promotes the emergence of groups of all styles. Venezuelan music in all its genres and aspects (popular, folk, llanera, Afro-Venezuelan, oriental, Zulian and Caribbean music); Urban music; Jazz; Latin and Caribbean music, including the salsa genre.

Two programs stand out for their capacity for integration and social reintegration: the Special Education Program; that integrates people with disabilities through music, and the Penitentiary Symphony Orchestra Program, which seeks to minimize the levels of violence within prisons and facilitate the process of social reintegration through learning, practicing and enjoying music. music.

Hospital Care Program that provides assistance to children and adolescents who suffer from illnesses and remain in health centers.

Luteria program that trains young people in the manufacture and repair of musical instruments.

Photo imón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela

More information at:

http://fundamusical.org.ve/category/el-sistema/que-es-el-sistema/

http://fundamusical.org.ve/category/el-sistema/impacto-social/

http://fundamusical.org.ve/category/educacion/metodologia/

http://fundamusical.org.ve/nucleos/

http://fundamusical.org.ve/educacion/

Progress in practice

Simultaneously with the pedagogical plan, which is applied throughout the national network of El Sistema, that is, in all the nuclei of the Venezuelan territory, a process of promotion is developed in practice: the student-performers enlist in the Pre-Children’s Orchestras , in the Children’s Orchestras, and, later, they moved on to the Youth Orchestras. Finally, the most talented performers, through rigorous audition processes, are selected to occupy a lectern in the Simón Bolívar Youth Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela, in its “A” or “B” section, where they achieve the greatest experience and the most high professional level.

In each of the orchestras, in their different categories, the personal and group effort of the students is promoted. For example, children and adolescents who work hard and progress have the opportunity to “win” prizes such as participating in advanced courses, workshops, seminars, rehearsals and concerts with national and international teachers.

http://www.musicabancaribe.com/Publicaciones/Libro_digital/VenezuelaEnElCielo/info/capitulo6/i/index.php#prev

Pedagogical structures on the rise

The pedagogical plan of El Sistema contemplated, since 1980, approximately, the foundation of exemplary pedagogical structures and models as scenarios for the training and improvement of musicians.

As the demand for children entering El Sistema and its nuclei has grown, projects for the construction of new educational centers are on the rise. Among them, the Simón Bolívar Conservatory, the Montalbán Children’s Academic Center, the Center for Social Action for Music, the Academic Center for Lutherie and the twelve Latin American Academies for the instruments of: Violin, Viola, Cello, Flute, Horn, Contrabass, Clarinet, Classical Harp, Trumpet, Oboe, Bassoon and Trombone.

http://www.musicabancaribe.com/Publicaciones/Libro_digital/VenezuelaEnElCielo/info/capitulo6/i/index.php#prev

The Simon Bolivar Conservatory

The Simón Bolívar Conservatory offers training of the highest pedagogical and artistic rank to the ever-increasing number of students, with a very complete curriculum of studies in which orchestral practice accounts for approximately 70%. The title of Performing Musician is granted, an important endorsement that allows graduates to continue higher studies at universities.

Photo of the Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela

“…the Simón Bolívar Conservatory has emerged as the head and model of a network of conservatories already established in Yaracuy, Carabobo, Aragua, Guárico and Ciudad Bolívar. However, I am excited and pleased with the new challenge we are facing: broadening the musical and artistic horizon of that large contingent of students that El Sistema has and of those who will join in the future.

These are the new contents: the Venezuelan Popular Music Teaching Program, in all its aspects, including that of Afro-Venezuelan roots; the Urban Music Program; the Jazz Program, which is already in progress with our Simón Bolívar Big Band Jazz Symphony and the Latin and Caribbean Music Program, which especially includes the salsa genre.

This is already underway with the creation of more than 15 pilot nuclei and the formation of a body of teachers specialized in these genres. The idea is that these programs capture and channel the talent of many musicians and students who have greater virtues for these musical currents, always pursuing and achieving the same level of excellence as those who perform symphonic music in our orchestras”.

Valdemar Rodriguez. Taken from the interview with Valdemar Rodríguez, clarinetist, Director of the CSB, creator of the Latin American Clarinet Academy, among other titles and positions, by Chefi Borzhacchini in the digital book Venezuela en el Cielo de Los Escenarios. Caribbean Bank, 2010

http://www.musicabancaribe.com/Publicaciones/Libro_digital/VenezuelaEnElCielo/info/capitulo6/ii/

Diversification of teaching, orchestras and festivals

In the same way that teaching has been diversified, including different musical genres –popular, urban, jazz, Latin Caribbean, salsa– other orchestras have emerged dedicated to developing each of these genres, as well as festivals to promote them at the regional level. These events, organized by El Sistema, revolve around an artist, musician, composer, instrument, or arise for the meeting between musical talents from various regions, local or international.

Among them are the FIP-Llanos International Percussion Festivals, the Spain-Venezuela Festival, the Festival of New Venezuelan Clarinetists, the Chamber Music Festival (in Mérida and Caracas), the International Flute Festival, the International Bassoon Festival, the International Festival of Clarinet, International Oboe Festival, Young Virtuosos Festival, Youth Festival, Young Directors Festival and Latin American Music Festival, among others.

Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela

The Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela (OSSBV) was founded by maestro José Antonio Abreu and is currently the apex ensemble of the National System of Youth and Children’s Orchestras and Choirs of Venezuela.

Under the musical direction of maestro Gustavo Dudamel, its 180 young musicians, whose ages range between 18 and 28 years old, named Ambassadors of Peace by UNESCO, have been trained in the Orchestral Academic Program of the Simón Bolívar Musical Foundation, through the which have received master classes with outstanding world-class teachers and soloists, including teachers from the Berlin Philharmonic, the Sibelius Academy in Finland, the Bach Academy in Stuttgart and the New England Conservatory in Boston.

His performances with internationally renowned conductors include Simon Rattle, Claudio Abbado, Daniel Baremboim, Krzysztof Penderecki, Essa Pekka-Salonen, and Lorin Maazel, among many others.

Other orchestras

Simón Bolívar Afro-Venezuelan Orchestra
Simón Bolívar Youth Baroque Orchestra
Caracas Youth Orchestra
Alma Llanera Youth and Children’s Orchestra of Guárico State
Simón Bolívar Latin Caribbean Orchestra
National Flute Orchestra of Venezuela
National Children’s Orchestra of Venezuela
Simón Bolívar Symphonic Rock Orchestra
Francisco de Miranda Youth Symphony Orchestra
Carabobo Youth Symphony Orchestra
Prison Symphony Orchestras
Teresa Carreño Youth Symphony of Venezuela

Bands

Simón Bolívar Youth Symphonic Band
Simon Bolivar Big-Band Jazz

Assemblies

Assemble 7/4
Carabobo Metal Assembly
Metal Ensemble of Venezuela

Chamber Groups

Simón Bolívar String Quartet
Liberators Quartet
Teresa Carreno Quartet
Yaracuy Quartet

Choirs

White Hands Choir
Simón Bolívar National Youth Choir of Venezuela
Network of Prison Orchestras and Choirs

More information at:

http://fundamusical.org.ve/agrupaciones/

The system in the world

The philosophy and methodology of El Sistema has had an almost magical ability to inspire artists, educators, and social activists across the globe, as Tricia Tunstall puts it in her book Changing Lives…“its guiding principles—the orchestra as school of civility and the passage from a vision centered on music to a humanistic vision of social change through music–” have been taken as a model to follow and El Sistema has been implemented or adapted in more than 66 countries in which five continents.

Programs inspired by El Sistema have emerged in:

AMERICA: Argentina, Barbados, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guadeloupe, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Puerto Rico, United States , Saint Lucia, Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay.
AFRICA: Angola, Kenya, South Africa, Uganda.
EUROPE: Germany, Armenia, Austria, Bosnia, Croatia, Denmark, Scotland, Slovakia, Spain, Finland, France, Wales, Greenland, England, Ireland, Iceland, Italy, Luzembourg, Norway, Netherlands, Portugal, Czech Republic, Romania, Serbia, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey.
ASIA: Afghanistan, Japan, South Korea, Philippines, India, Taiwan, Vietnam, Singapore.
OCEANIA: Australia, New Zealand.

You can find more information at:

http://www.elsistemausa.org/el-sistema-around-the-world.htm

http://sistemaglobal.org/

http://www.sistemaeurope.org/

http://fundamusical.org.ve/category/el-sistema/el-sistema-en-el-mundo/

Cuban pianist Daniel Amat achieves his dream abroad

Historically, Cuba has been a tremendous source of talent and keeps on proving it to this very day. Through our great friend, Cuban tres player Ivan Camblor, we have been able to make contact with talented pianist Daniel Amat, who has revealed some of the most interesting facts about his life and career both in his native country and worldwide.

How Daniel got into music

Daniel was fortunate to have been born into a musical family, starting with his father, who was known as ”El Pancho Amat” and had a great talent with the Cuban tres. On his mother’s side, there were also several musicians, so as a child Daniel always had contact with this fascinating world, to which he would belong a few years later.

By learning to play, he started with percussion, but little by little, he experimented with the trumpet and ended up playing the piano at the age of 13, since he saw it as a mixture between the sound world of the trumpet and the rhythmic world of percussion. This is the instrument that would finally hook him and for which he would later become known.

Havana National School of Music

Daniel was a native of a small village in the country, where music could be studied at a basic level. However, anyone who wanted to attain an average level had to go to Havana if or if, but first those interested had to take some entrance exams in order to study in the aforementioned city.

After passing those tests, you went to the National School of Art (ENA), which was especially for the people from the Cuban provinces. In the case of Havanans, there was a music school exclusive for them. At the ENA, I met people from all over the country who played all kinds of genres, which helped me a lot. I studied with Ulises Hernández, who was an excellent teacher and one of the best concert pianists in Cuba” said Daniel on the issue.

Daniel playing — Daniel Amat playing his piano live

He also told us that the school prepared him for many things, although he assures us that teaching is never complete, since a professional in any field must always look for a complement to add to that knowledge, which is given by practical professional experiences. The same happens with music and he is a great example of this.

In the same way, he pointed out that what he learned in the conservatory could not be learned on the street and what he learned on the street could not be learned in the conservatory, so the study and practice complement each other and are not mutually exclusive.

Daniel’s professional start in Cuba

In addition to his studies at the conservatory in Cuba, he also began to pursue music in a much more professional way by playing charanga and danzones at the national hotel. He assures that this experience was very enriching, since he had the opportunity to learn what he could from older musicians with an immense trajectory.

Of that time, Daniel highlights his enormous will to know everything, so he always paid close attention to the anecdotes and stories that his colleagues told each other. Additionally, he was given a lot of advice on how to play or not, so he learned a lot during those years.

He also played with some Cuban popular music and danzón orchestras until he found his own style and released his first album ”El Piano Que Llevo Dentro” in 2003, which is when he formally started his solo career. It is since then that the piano started to be a fundamental part of his repertoire, although he never abandoned danzón, son and changüi. He also adds a bit of Latin jazz to his songs, which was always to his liking and he relied on what Chucho Valdez was doing with Iraquere to find the style he wanted to follow.

the album by Daniel — Cover of the album ”El Piano Que Llevo Dentro” by Daniel Amat

Moving out of Cuba

When Daniel turned 24 years old, he decided to leave Cuba and look for opportunities in other latitudes after marrying his current wife. It is there where his career obviously takes a new direction and many more growth opportunities for the young artist seemed to be surfacing.

While very far away from his homeland, he began collaborating with big bands and symphonic orchestras, but always playing and experimenting with the Cuban genres with which he started his career in the first place.

Since he had already traveled with his father to other countries in previous years due to his work, he developed many friendships and contacts with many people outside of Cuba, so he was able to get to work on his own stuff quickly and without delay. This led him to be called to perform at festivals and events in the United States, Spain and other parts of Europe.

Thanks to the above, Daniel has been fortunate to be able to work in the music branch without the need to look for other jobs as is the case of many other musicians when they emigrate from their respective countries. This has allowed him to focus one hundred percent on his musical projects and to start teaching jazz, Latin jazz, phrasing and many other areas.

Daniel’s current projects

The pianist is very happy because he will soon release a compilation of his first two albums called ”Una Parte de Mi” in vinyl format. For the same, he had the collaboration of his father ”Pancho” Amat, musician Orlando Valle ”Maraca”, maestro Chucho Valdéz, Sixto Llorente ”El Indio”, his piano teacher Ulises Hernández, percussionist Changuito and many more.