Search Results for: Latin Music

Where the idea of the name of the Fania Record label came from

October 2020

Jerry Masucci and Johnny Pacheco

Genaro Masucci, known as Jerry Masucci and Juan Azarías Pacheco Kiniping, known as Johnny Pacheco — Jerry Masucci and Johnny Pacheco

Where the idea of Genaro Masucci, known as Jerry Masucci ((Brooklyn, New York, Oct. 7, 1934 -Argentina Dec. 21, 1997)) and Juan Azarías Pacheco Kiniping, known as Johnny Pacheco ((Santiago, Dominican Republic, Mar. 25, 1935)) to give the title to the record label “Fania” arose.

The name was taken from the old Cuban son: “Fania”, which was successfully performed by the Conjunto Estrellas de Chocolate and composed by Reinaldo Bolaños.

The lyrics present a syncretism between the Spanish and African languages.

Members of the Conjunto Estrellas De Chocolate.

Theme: Fania

Author: Reinaldo Bolaños

Voice: Filiberto Hernández Fuentes

Voice: Chinese Lion Lahera Wilson

Voice: Agustín Cabrera .

Three: Andrés “Nino Rivera” Echevarría

Bass guitar: Sergio De Cuba

Bongos: “Pichi”

Piano: David Palomares

Trumpet: Armando “El Gorilla” Albertini

Felix “Chocolate” Alfonso was not afraid to put together and lead an ensemble in the style of Arsenio and Chappottín in 1959. The ensemble format was part of the medium in which he swam like a fish in water.

He knew the best montuneros musicians and called them together. The good ensembles still retained the favor of part of the public.

Jesús Gorís, the architect of the Puchito label, didn’t think twice about it and recorded them right away.

Victrolas in bars and bodegas all over the island began to spread the son montuno macho of Las Estrellas de Chocolate.

But the 1960s in Cuba were too strong, diverse and creative, and the good work of Chocolate with its stars had to deal with a scene that was too competitive for a novel ensemble.

As often happens, it took several years for the Chocolate Stars to finally shine as stars and be on everyone’s lips.

was recorded in the voice of Pedro Juan Rodríguez Ferrer "Pete" El Conde Rodríguez — “My New Tumbao Cañonazo”

Fania, although composed by Reinaldo Bolaños for Conjunto Estrellas de Chocolate, was recorded on the voice of Pedro Juan Rodríguez Ferrer “Pete” El Conde Rodríguez (Ponce, Puerto Rico, Jan. 31, 1933 – Dec. 2, 2000); who along with Pacheco’s group recorded the company’s first album entitled “Mi Nuevo Tumbao. Cañonazo”, with a majority of Cuban songs, like most of the albums recorded by Pacheco and many of those recorded by that label.

In 1964 Jhonny Pacheco and Jerry Massucci founded Fania Records and created the international and renowned Fania All Stars.

Pete was the first singer that Fania had, and on his shoulders was the responsibility of taking that project forward.

In the first Fania album Cañonazo (1964) Pete interpreted the theme Fania, composition of Reinaldo Bolanos and with which the band was inaugurated.

It is 1964 and the history of Latin music is about to change.

The Dominican flutist Johnny Pacheco, one of the most popular Latin artists in New York, has parked his flute, changed his orchestra and recorded an album, “Mi Nuevo Tumbao…Cañonazo”.

It’s a curious recording, although it doesn’t seem special.

It sounds like a somewhat modernized Sonora Matancera. But it has been released under a new label, Fania Records, which he has just founded in partnership with New York lawyer Jerry Masucci.

And what was only meant to be a start to relaunch and boost Pacheco’s career is out of the hands of both of them and becomes a phenomenon.

Fania All Stars

Additional information:

The name of one of the most important record labels in Latin America and the world All comes from a song by Cuban Reinaldo Bolaños called Fanía, which refers to a story about a woman whose name was Epifanía and her mentally challenged son.

The story goes that in the middle of a fight between the two, she threw flour (funche as it is called in the Caribbean) in her son’s face and he responded “Fania Funché”.

Bolaños liked the story very much, as did the founders of the record company Jerry Masuci and Jhonny Pacheco, who decided to name their music company after her and include the song in the first album produced.

With the passage of time, they stopped pronouncing the tilde on the “i” and started calling it Fania, without an accent.

Research sources:

Thomas Muriel (Puerto Rico)

www.gladyspalmera.com

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ROX’s new single “Cristal”

Cristal is dedicated to those strong women

“Composing is a magical process”, said a Venezuelan living in the United States that puts the name of her country very high. She is a multifaceted artist and this time presents her new single “Cristal”.

Roxana Frontini, her real name, known in the industry as “Rox”, unveils her new song: “Cristal”, inspired and dedicated to “all the queens of the world”, as its description dictates. Frontini wanted to consciously empower women and honor what they stand for. The song is within the Latin genre and has a very powerful message: “No one can stop her” is one of the phrases she mentions there, referring to “the glass woman.”

“Cristal” had the voice, melody and authorship of the artist, while the production and arrangements were in charge of Arturo Cabrera. The music video was directed by Nestor Cabrera. Since the beginning of December, it has been available on digital platforms. The positive comments have been increasing, as well as the support of her colleagues and followers; the views on YouTube exceed the 100 thousand.

“Cristal is a celebration of the Queen that each woman carries inside, whatever the path we have chosen, we all fulfill an essential role that contributes to the development of our society. The mother, the daughter, the sister, the cousin, the grandmother, the friend… We all matter”, stated the businesswoman.

In the music video, different women can be seen in their facets of everyday life as mothers and workers. This is the first song she has done in Spanish, and she hopes to release its English version soon.

“Our stories are full of challenges and victories that make us precious, like crystal. In each one of us there is a warrior, a friend, a teacher, an angel, and a queen. It is my greatest wish that by singing and dancing this song, each woman connects with her value, and together we shine more. This goes to my beloved, respected and admired Crystal Women all over the World!”

In the music video she wanted to reflect the process she went through while creating the song. She sought to stay fresh, natural, with little makeup, and everyday wardrobe. For this reason, she added some shots in her gym look, very constant in times of pandemic. With the phrase “This song is for each of you because we are all queens and together we shine more”, ends the credits of the music video.

“Part of the song came out one day exercising on my balcony (because we were in full lockdown); minutes before I had had a long conversation with my mother where we covered her life trajectory, and all the things she has overcome including cancer. Then, when the first part of the song was ready, I started working on a new fine art series called Reinas; this series shows very different women, all with something in common, Modern Crowns: hats of different styles, colors and sizes that symbolize the originality of each one. As this series began, the missing piece of Cristal emerged with total fluidity. Every time I sat down to work on the art pieces, it was like the information for Cristal was downloaded to me”

The work was made up of enterprising women who have obtained great merits in different areas: Almudena Álvarez, lawyer, LL.M, partner at Álvarez Lentner; Gisela Morichetti, Visual Communication designer; Lisset Galeyev, photographer, owner of Lisset Galeyev Photography; also Liz Nieves, fashion designer, owner of Ilogear Active & Dance Wear; and Ethel Schutz, Christian, faith leader, and the woman who taught Frontini to paint. All brilliant and worthy of admiration.

Rox is presenting her new single Cristal — Roxana Frontini better known as ROX.

ROX’s Biography

Rox is Venezuelan, born in Caracas and who has made her way internationally. She is an artist, a businesswoman, and has led projects in different areas. She has a very solid career in different aspects. She founded FashionCurators.com, a business that seeks to provide opportunities for stores, brands, and designers to broaden their horizons, and gain a further scope. She has combined her role as an artist and a businesswoman. She writes, paints, dances tango, sings, designs, creates content, and runs businesses. In fact, she has a personal blog. She has done volunteer work, is an expert in marketing and the digital area. A Crystal woman!

The singer began her musical career from a very young age. Her first steps were at the Juan José Landaeta National Conservatory, in her native Caracas. From the age of 15, she composed and collaborated with renowned artists signed by Sony Music. In addition, she is the daughter of a long-time musician, a member of the Fenix Jazz Band, in Argentina. On many occasions, she accompanied him in his presentations, and learned many tips that she then put into practice, in addition to obtaining greater ease in the industry.

At the age of 17, she started in pop-rock covering songs by some greats of the genre and her favorite singers such as: Shakira, Soda Stereo, Fito Páez, The Police, Alanis Morisette, and No Doubt.

At an artistic level, she stands out for her beautiful pieces, inspired for the most part by the femininity that characterizes her so much. Elegant and very subtle pictures and illustrations. It also offers cell phone accessories, clothing, and details for home decoration. Frontini has other musical singles to her credit in English and Spanish. It fuses elements of pop, electro pop, and Latin music “Oasis”, “Your Groove”, “Better Choices”, among others.

She is one of the most renowned Latin exponents in the United States, and has achieved success in Europe, and Latin America. She has struggled to be successful and overcome life’s obstacles; among them, she had to recover from a facial paralysis that changed her perspective but gave her more strength to continue. Thanks to being a multifaceted woman, she was able to focus her energies in other areas.

Her passion for music, art and entrepreneurship gave her the hope she needed at that time. From this experience, she learned to value moments more, and that the greatest treasures are inner power, creativity, purposes in life, family, and wisdom. For this reason, she wanted to inspire others to grow and have tools to constantly face life.
The artist has been very excited about the release of her new single. She did not miss an opportunity to thank those who have supported her and the women who inspired her:

“Special thanks to all the women of the world, for inspiring this song”

For Frontini, composing is a magical process, she feels blessed to be able to collaborate with producers who challenge her as a singer and author. For her, it is a privilege that she is inspired to go beyond her own mental and emotional barriers.

Her musical career will continue to give something to talk about, and perhaps before we imagine, she will surprise us with her album!

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Selena: the series The New Netflix Show

Selena Quintanilla Perez

Also known as the queen of tex-mex, Selena was undoubtedly one of the greatest exponents of Latin music, her songs continue to be played on many radios around the world, and keeping in mind the legacy that the singer has left, this is not surprising. If you don’t know who this extremely talented artist was, right now it’s a good time to find out about her story, the new Netflix series called “Selena: the series” shows her artistic career in detail, and it also let us watch an important part of her Personal life.

Selena was not only an icon of the genre she pioneered, but she also greatly facilitated the exposure of many Latin artists that emerged after her tragic death; All this has only made the expectations of the fans who adore the artist continually grow, but is this show just a gift from Netflix for the Selena fans, or is it also capable of pleasing the general public?

How good is the series?

It is important to mention that, as mentioned before, the show does not focus exclusively on Selena’s artistic career, but shows what the life of the Quintanilla family was like, always in a smooth way, without trying to be too dramatic. We constantly observe how what reigns in the family is the union, despite all the adversities that they go through; However, as the series continues, we observe how the tone changes little by little until we reach the last episode, where the approach is clearly cruder than that of the rest of the series.

Despite being a biographical series, the way it is told can be very entertaining, it is a show that seeks not only to tell what the artist’s life was but also to entertain the viewers, even those who watch it without knowing the singer’s story.

Another important aspect to mention is the fact that this series is authorized by the Quintanilla family, which means that the events we see on the screen are very similar to those that have taken place in real life. On the other hand, unlike what many may think when hearing about the series, the first season does not tell the whole story of Selena until the day of her unfortunate death, but focuses on her first steps as an artist, as well as at the beginning of his rise to stardom; However, season two will focus on the artist’s legacy, what it meant to her fans, and how painful and heartbreaking her death was.

The show is highly recommended for all those who want to see a new version of the story, although it is true that what we see on it may not surprise those who are very familiar with the singer’s life, it is definitely worth seeing a different version with the Netflix production in between, plus, it may turn out to be very interesting for those who do not know the history of this iconic artist.

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Los Angeles salsa and its origins

Salsa and its origins

Salsa is a musical genre of Latino origin that has become very popular around the world thanks to the enormous number of artists who have been responsible for spreading it far and wide. Neither salsa or any of the other genre remains static in time and this is because all the transformations and combinations suffered at the years begin to pass. This has given rise to a number of new styles that have also been spreading to many countries thanks to those interested in learning to dance them.

How Los Angeles Salsa Originated

Los Angeles salsa and how to dance it — Two people dancing Los Angeles salsa

One of those styles is Los Angeles salsa, which is named after the city where it was born. In Los Angeles, United States, a family of Mexican origin was directly involved in the origins of this style of salsa. Francisco Vásquez, who spent a significant part of his life in Los Angeles, was delighted with the way many of the greatest dancers of those years danced in nightclubs.

Around this time, this man began to mimic the movements made by these dancers, to perfect them and to add other Hollywood dance steps. After all this process experienced by Francisco, he gave rise to what would later be known as On1. Sometime later, Francisco would teach his brothers what he learned in these clubs, which gave origin to what would become a family business known as Los Rumberos. These brothers were real important in the expansion of this salsa style, but there were many other professional dancers and lovers of Latin culture who have created other companies focused on promoting many musical styles from Latin America.

A very important thing to say about this salsa style is that it was neither the only nor the first salsa rhythm to become famous around the world, as New York salsa has also become very popular in recent years and includes some of the sounds present in tango, jazz, among others.

The presence of Los Angeles salsa in Europe

A type of salsa that only emerged at the local level has become one of the most sought-after musical styles by European music festivals to give them a privileged place in their respective programs, which implies that Latin music has already expanded in its multiple variants to every corner of the Old Continent.

One of the most important reasons why this style has become so famous is the richness of its steps and the varied movements in relation to other typical dance forms of salsa. If Europeans were already very interested in Latin rhythms, such a diversity of rhythms and styles makes them even more curious about our musical culture.

These competitions and festivals held around Europe are very striking and prestigious, as they invite locals to learn to dance different rhythms in order to be eligible for one of the luxurious prizes offered therein. The best of all this is that these competitions include all levels, so you don’t have to be a professional dancer to have a good time and gain one or another recognition.

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Role of the Triangle Trade in the birth of Cuban rumba

What Cuban rumba is

As we all know, Latin music is a very diverse mix of a series of rhythms and musical styles from all over the world. What we know today as Latin music was the result of a whole concoction of historical facts that must come first in any story that seeks to explain the origins of any Latin rhythm that wants to be studied.

A good example of this that we have just said is the Cuban rumba, which is part of a set of cultural concepts that can be found in many parts of the world. There are certain musical rhythms that have allowed us to see that some seemingly alien places have made us discover each and every one of the common points they have, both historically and culturally.

How Cuban rumba starts

Cuban rumba and the Triangle Trade — Some people dancing rumba and and playing drums

One of the most important historical events that marked the birth of the Cuban rumba was the triangular trade carried out between Africa, America and Europe. This fact was the emergence of a large number of musical genres that were resulting from the mixture of rhythms and styles from all the aforementioned continents.

After the Discovery of America, Europe saw in the New World a useful territory for many of the economic activities that were not possible in their respective countries. In the case of labor, many African chiefdoms offered for sale to part of their inhabitants, something that was seen with very good eyes by the powerful Europeans of the time. This is how what historically would be known as triangular trade began.

This activity consisted of sending low-quality materials to be exchanged by African slaves to work with African and American resources in terrible living conditions. Once in America, some African ethnic groups were in charge of introducing the rumba in the Antilles, although the origins of the groups that brought these rhythms continue to be controversial among many scholars of the subject.

Although the slaves worked very hard during the day, they continued to practice their traditional rituals and rites at night. These practices were entirely based on their traditional music and religious customs to stay united with their Mother Earth despite the remoteness and the circumstances. Over time, these rites and percussion instruments were banned, so the new inhabitants of America had to adapt to the instruments allowed by the Spanish Crown. This made these sounds unknown to the Africans together with their forbidden dances in this land were merging until resulting in what we know today as rumba.

Rumba today

Cuban rumba and the role of the slaves — People dressed in white to enjoy Cuban Rumba on the streets

The characteristics of the rumba vary enormously from one place to another, since there are many variations and changes from one continent to another. In Africa, many see this genre as similar to zouk or benga, while Europeans refer to it as flamenco or Catalan rumba. There have been many artists who have taken on the task of making this genre their own and making it evolve to unsuspected levels to make it what it is today.

Today, we can appreciate a good number of subgenres that have their origin in the same parrones rhythms from which rumba derives in its different versions.

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