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Imágenes Latinas, the new album by Spanish Harlem Orchestra

New album by Spanish Harlem Orchestra

The three-time Grammy winner Spanish Harlem Orchestra has an undeniable impact on the perception of the public towards music in general and this is no coincidence, as the work done its members has an unsurpassed quality.

These salsa veterans have always been characterized by looking for a raw and organic sound based on the past, something that does not prevent them from being focused on the future. On each album, they are very conscious that their main goal is to keep good music alive.

Spanish Harlem Orchestra members

How this started

Once again, the salsa orchestra shows what they are really made of in their new album Imágenes Latinas, which will surely be a hit with the band’s fans. The record label in charge of releasing this recording is Ovation Records, whose owner is Oscar Hernández, pianist, composer and founder of SHO.

It is very interesting to note that Imágenes Latinas is the result of a funding model driven by the group’s fans in exchange an advance copy of the album and even a type of executive producer credit. The release show took place on May 20 at DROM, New York. There are multiple images from the show on the group’s official social media accounts, whose members thanked those present for their support.

Oscar Hernández commented that his mission and vision is to represent the history and legacy of this music, of which he feels very lucky to be part of. He also pointed out that his commitment to the music will never end and that the group explores new dimensions without deviating from its core belief. What Hernández means is that the concept and sounds are the same, but the arrangements and shows always seek to innovate one way or another.

The new album by Spanish Harlem Orchestra Imágenes Latinas

Inspiration

The title is inspired by group Conjunto Libre, which has always been one of the main souces of inspiration for SHO. The song Imágenes Latinas was one of Conjunto Libre’s most important pieces throughout their career and talked about the evolution of the Latin American diaspora in history. SHO seeks to give a touch of modernity to the song and introduce some contemporary arrangements while respecting its original essence.

A noteworthy aspect of Imágenes Latinas is that the group travels through various moods and styles, showing the vast experience of all its musicians in each piece. A great example of this is Mi Amor Sincero, which starts with the typical sounds of the bolero until becoming a joyful cha-cha that surprises anyone who will listen. These sorts of transitions from one style to the other can be found throughout the work and its brilliant interpretations.

The album is a true reflection of SHO’s career, which is still seen as one of the leading salsa ensembles even after all these years. The quality of their work has not decreased in the least, quite the opposite. Its members continue to risk breaking ground and experiment with the novelty of music without losing focus of who they are.

Spanish Harlem Orchestra performing on stage

Cuba Will Be the Protagonist at the Music Meeting Festival

Nijmegen is the city that will host this musical meeting with “Cuba Al Revés” as the main theme

Music Meeting Festival was organized in Concertgebouw de Vereeniging and Stadsschouwburg Nijmegen until 2003

This year Latin America will invade the 37^th edition of the Music Meeting Festival with Cuban music from Saturday, June 4^th to Monday, June 6^th at the Park Brakkenstein facilities. This park can accommodate 12,500 visitors and is in the Nijmegen city in the province of Gelderland. Nijmegen has more than 170,000 inhabitants (2015 data provided by the UN) and is very close to the border with Germany.

This festival in the Netherlands will have as its main theme this time Cuba Upside Down. In this event, around 30 concerts will be presented with the participation of established artists and new promises from the Cuban music scene, Spanish, and Brazilian.

Regarding the main theme of this edition, the Dutch trumpeter and Artistic Director of the Music Meeting Festival, Maite Hontelé, pointed out: “I would like to have been born in Havana, to have grown up with Son, Mambo, and even the beginning of Cuban Salsa modern, Timba. But I grew up in Haaften…although almost every day, I listened to Cuban music on cassettes and played it on my trumpet.”

The artists from the Afro-Caribbean Island that will converge at the Music Meeting Festival 2022 are:

Alain Pérez with the Orchestra demonstrates the origin and future of Cuban music

The musical genius in the Salsera scene, Latin-Jazz and Flamenco, Alain Pérez will take the stage on Sunday, June 5th at 11PM for an improvisation party at the Jam. This show will last 50 minutes. Alain with the rhythm section of his orchestra will establish the basic rhythm to which countless musicians will join and improvise, bringing special guests for that day. Who are they? They are still a surprise.

After 24 hours, Alain Pérez returns to the stage, but this time with his young Orchestra for the closing day. They will perform for the first time on Monday, June 6^th from 8:40PM to 10:50PM. Alain with this band of young Cuban artists brings a sound in which traditional Cuban music is intertwined with modern Jazz and Funk.

The same way will also join this celebration of Afro-Caribbean music Osain Del Monte with a group of young percussionists, singers, and dancers. They will recreate during their musical act a traditional cult with initiation rituals to be members of a secret brotherhood. This one-hour act will take place on the first day of the festival, on Saturday, June 4th, starting at 5:30 PM.

Likewise, Music Meeting Festival will feature the percussionist and singer Brenda Navarrete as a special guest in several musical presentations. Brenda has trained in Batá drums and has belonged to Latin Jazz bands such as Joaquín Betancourt and Alain Pérez, as well as in the Interactivo group, where Funk and Ska melodies are mixed with Afro-Cuban rhythms.

Cellist Ana Carla will also be brought to this stage of the festival. She will be on Sunday, June 5^th from 8PM to 8:40PM. Her third studio album is Bahía and has influences from Cuban Son, Tango, Samba, Bossa Nova, Jazz, and even the classic French Chanson. She currently is touring for South America.

Ramón Valle, Marialy Pacheco, Rolando Luna, and Ivan “Melón” Lewis

Joining this constellation of established and emerging Cuban artists on Sunday, June 5^th, starting at 2PM, is the Ping Pong Piano project. This 50-minute musical project brings together the following virtuous of this instrument: Rolando Luna, Marialy Pacheco, Ramón Valle, and Ivan “Melón” Lewis, the latter winner of the Latin Grammy for Best Latin Jazz Album for his album Voyager in 2021.

The starting point of this “four-sided” meeting is spontaneous. It consists of placing two grand pianos on stage and letting four stellar pianists converse musically. There will be friendship, rivalry, confrontation, and harmony putting aside their impressive resumes.

“Marialy Pacheco is a concert pianist known for her duets with Omar Sosa and her contagious rhythmic interpretation. Grammy winner Ivan ‘Melón’ Lewis counters this with almost mathematical precision as the founder of modern Cuban Salsa, Timba. Ramón Valle swings across styles and feels best when given the freedom to let his Cuban heritage hang over the music. The quartet of star pianists is completed by the whirlwind Rolando Luna, one of the most important Cuban pianists of the last ten years, who became world-famous for his work with Omara Portuondo”. Fragment extracted from the Music meeting Festival 2022 website. www.musicmeeting.nl

Likewise, the band El Comité will be present (Saturday, June 4th, 10:30 PM – 11:30 PM), the Son Bent Braam orchestra (Saturday, June 4th, 4PM – 5PM), African electronics, percussion from Brazil with the duo made up of Oleg Fateev & Simone Sou, and the New York afrobeat represented by the musical group from Brooklyn, Antibalas.

This interesting congregation of artists will be completed by the Spanish trombonist Rita Payés, one of the emerging artists of the new era of the Catalan scene.

Tickets for the three days of the Music Meeting Festival in Nijmegen are €80 at the box office. It costs €34 daily, and for those under 16 who want to attend, the admission is free.

In September: Latin Festival Madras In Their Ninth Edition

The Oldest Latino Festival In India Returns With More Salsa Immersion

Latin Festival Madras started in 2014 and is the only one of its style in Chennai

The largest and oldest ten-day Latin gathering in Chennai (India) will bring the Maestro Jimmy Bosch “El Trombonista Criollo” and one of the best timbaleros in Europe today, Joaquín Arteaga live at the five-star hotel, Vivanta Chennai It Expressway located at 309, Old Mahabalipuram Road, Shollinganallur Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India 600119.

In this ninth edition of the festival, you will also find carefully designed Salsa, Bachata, and Kizomba workshops, special training camps with instructors with more than a decade of teaching experience at festivals around the world, performances by national and international dancers (Korea, Japan, Malaysia, Canada, Vietnam, China, and Russia) acclaimed worldwide, also social dancing in the company of the seven best DJs from Asia, pool party, theme parties, surfing, buffet lunches, and dinners with a luxury stay that characterizes this event as the only one of its kind in Madras, currently known as the Chennai city, capital of the Tamil Nadu state.

Friday, September 2^nd will be the opening of the Latin Festival Madras https://www.latinfestivalmadras.in/ at Surf Turf beach, where you can dance all day long with delicious local food, and if you prefer a little more excitement you can surf in the Bay of Bengal with your fellow dancers. But, if you don’t know this sports discipline, don’t worry because there will be instructors on-site to perform this water sport with the correct technique.

7 DJs will participate in this Latin event from Malaysia, Japan, Canada, Thailand, and India.

On Saturday, September 3^rd, and Sunday, September 4^th, all the activities (workshops, camps, shows, and parties) will take place at the Taj Vivanta hotel, a five-star venue to have a luxurious, memorable, and family experience.

Two of the peculiarities of this Festival are the parties before to the Latin event (August 29^th – September 1^st) and the getaway after the closing of the festival (September 5^th – September 6^th). The event’s organizers have planned to visit Pondicherry through Mahabalipuram for two days, the latter place a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

In Pondicherry they will be able to taste the typical dishes, dance, and do a guided exploration of the ruins and historical sites of the town.

On the second day, you will explore the old Franco-Tamil city. During the day they will visit the old Auroville community located 10 km from Pondicherry and during the night they will dance at the pool party at Anandha Inn Convention Center and Suites. And on Wednesday, September 7^th, will be the big farewell to Chennai.

But, before leaving the city of Chennai, we must talk about the live music that will be present at this Latin event in India. The greatest exponents of the Trombone and the Timbal will say here, the maestro Jimmy Bosch and the creator of the hard Salsa orchestra Tromboranga, Joaquín Arteaga.

The objective of this festival is to provide a memorable experience and exposure to the educational value for future talents, artists, and instructors.

Jimmy Bosch is an exceptional Latin Music Trombonist acclaimed in more than 70 countries and has 11 Grammy Awards and more than 100 recordings in the Salsa and Latin Jazz genres. “El Trombonista Criollo” has worked with the FANIA All-stars, Eddie Palmieri, Ruben Blades, Ray Barretto, Machito, Cachao, and more. He has participated in Salsa conventions and Latin and Jazz music festivals around the world, as well as performed in clubs in Asia, Europe, America, and Oceania.

On the other hand, the second artist to perform on this special evening is the Leader, Director, and Timbalero of the Tromboranga salsa orchestra, Joaquín Arteaga. This Venezuelan timbalero based in Barcelona (Spain) has been part of the Gerardo Rosales Orchestra (2004) and has toured Europe accompanying international artists such as Andy Montañez, Andrés Cepeda, Jhon Lozano, Venezuelan Masters Orchestra, and Bloque 53, among many others.

Since 2009 he has been a sponsor of the prestigious Latin Percussion LP brand. Joaquín has produced and recorded nine albums for Tromboranga and has toured extensively throughout Latin America, North America, Europe, Australia, and Asia. This Venezuelan composer has also organized and taught salsa percussion workshops in Spain, Japan, Australia, Colombia, the USA, France, the UK, Morocco, Lebanon, Thailand, and South Africa, among many other countries.

The Full Passes for the event are USD 140 (travel to Pondicherry and Mahabalipuram is not included). The online sale ends on August 31^st, and the prices of the passes increase every two months.

Once again, maestro Bobby Valentín delivers a very daring and innovative musical theme

While it is true that salsa is very much alive, it is also true that it has been enriched through fusions and transformations. Of course, this is not the first time we see that the salsa sound is transformed to give way to increasingly daring musical themes.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: “I’m glad there are collaborations where the wallet of other sounds invests in producing music that I enjoy. Note that the only music I enjoy with the passion I enjoy nothing else is salsa. This salsa I’m talking about also includes fusions and other inventions, as long as I like them.”

Well, let’s get to the mambo….

During the “Tropical Music Festival” I was backstage and was able to share with the musicians before and after their performances. That privilege gave me the opportunity to talk to them about their projects, among other things. On a side note, Oria Rivera graciously let me know about the release that same day of Bobby Valentin’s latest single. As soon as I got home I listened to the song via You Tube.

Once again, maestro Valentín delivers a very daring and innovative song. I know that “chinchas” are going to fall on me as usual; but without being repetitive, you know that I am one of those who believe that Valentin is never wrong.

Let’s establish that boogaloo or bugaloo is a Latin music and dance genre that was popular in the United States in the 1960s. It originated in New York City, mainly among Hispanic and Latin American teenagers. The style was a fusion of popular African-American rhythm and blues (R&B), in turn combining soul music with mambo and son montuno.

In the 1950s and 1960s, African Americans in the United States listened to various styles of music, including jump blues, R&B and doo-wop. Latinos in New York City shared those tastes, but also listened to genres such as mambo and cha-cha-chá. There was a mix of Puerto Ricans, Cubans and African-Americans in clubs, whose groups tried to find common musical ground. In the end, boogaloo or bugaloo was the common musical ground, a fusion of many styles cooking American son montuno, guaguancó, guajira, guaracha, mambo, R&B and soul on the same stove. That must have been the reason why the boogaloo or bugalú allowed Spanish and English on equal terms.

As you can see, fusions are not a recent fad.

Well then. The time has come to tell you what my salsa ears have heard, since there will be those who say that this is not a salsa song. Well, the truth of the matter is that it is not suitable for salseros without musical appreciation skills.

From the first bars of this song, Bobby Valentín’s musical arrangement highlights the bass, accompanied by trumpets and saxophones in an arrangement that sounds great. In the first thirty seconds of the song you can appreciate the vocal part of the composer -Bobby Valentín- ultra well accompanied by his most recent acquisition for the front of his orchestra: Leró Martínez. And for the most skeptical, Bobby and Leró sing in impeccable English.

The song is perfect, since in three minutes it opens up a range of musical possibilities in “English without barriers”. Despite the brevity of the song, it lacks nothing. Nor does it feel or sound like musical creativity was curtailed by trying to shorten the time. The track flows naturally from the prelude, to the mambo, to the closing. At one and a half minutes, the saxophones provide the melody and the trumpets the breaks. At the fiftieth minute, the trumpets play challenging the rhythm section, formed by: Victor Roque on the tumbadoras, Kevin Vega on the timbal and Javier Oquendo on the bongo. Ceferino Cabán’s piano complements the “king’s” bass in a masterful way.

Shortly after the second minute (2.19), Victor “Yuca” Maldonado’s baritone saxophone sets the stage for Julito Alvarado and Angie Machado’s trumpets to firmly establish their presence. This second minute also highlights the dynamism of the trombone by Eliut Cintrón. Let’s not forget that the composer, arranger, producer and bassist of this song was a trumpet player in his beginnings. At exactly 2.40 the bass takes command of the orchestra with more forcefulness, melodically allying itself with the sound of the trumpets and saxophones. Well into the second minute (2.44) the electric guitar in command of Javier Perez begins a correspondence with the bass, which is maintained until the closing of the song.

As for the cover art, it features a childish Bobby Valentine dressed as a musical celebrity. The boy wears dark pants and a white shirt with those stylish puffed sleeves that scream mambo. The title letters, which read It’s Boogaloo time are superimposed over the child’s image. The style of the yellow letters that inscribe the word Boogaloo over the image described above make me imagine letters in some liquid material. The composition of the artwork rests on a rather garish salmon-colored background. According to the credits, both the graphic design and art direction were created by Orialis Valentin. Brava!

If you are one of those who say you are tired of the same old same old, I challenge you to listen to this gem, just as I recommended El Twist a while back.

Salsa lives! I hope I have dispelled your doubts, if you had any. If you still have any doubts, I confirm that you are not ready for this salsa conversation.

Musical Director: Bobby Valentín

Audio Recording & Mixing: Play Bach Studio

Engineer Carlitos Velázquez and Ramón Martínez

Mastering: WAVEM Acoustic LLC; Eduardo Ramos

Producer: Bobby Valentín

The Tempo Latino Festival is Back

The major European festival of Latin and Afro-Cuban music will present Los Van Van, Pacific Mambo Orquestra, Interactivo, and Minyo Crusaders (H2)

The benchmark Festival of Latin and Afro-Cuban music in Europe, Tempo Latino, resumes its activities after the forced cessation of its activities for two years due to the Pandemic.

From Thursday, July 28^th to Sunday, July 31^st, on the main stage Les Arènes, the whole family, heterogeneous public, and inveterate traveler will enjoy the performances of Los Van Van, Pacific Mambo Orquestra, and Interactivo, as well as an exceptional set & exclusive presentation on Saturday, July 30^th at 11 PM of “Con Tumbao All Stars” with the winners of Best Traditional Tropical Album at the Latin Grammy 2021 for their album “Chachachá…Homenaje a lo Tradicional”, Issac Delgado and Alain Pérez, as well as Oscar Hernández, Robby Ameen, Tony Succar, and many more.

Minyo Crusaders rediscovered the songs associated with the working classes.

The festival to be held in Vic-Fezensac, the heart of the Gers de Gascony department (France), will open its doors on Thursday, July 28^th, with Tempo Latino Social Club on the stage of its satellite “Geo-rhythmic” Conga with a special performance by the Tokyo band, Minyo Crusaders.

This Cumbia band with a Japanese identity aims to make reversals between the traditional and foreign rhythms. Guitarist Katsumi Tanaka was in charge of bringing together the twelve musicians to perform these magnificent melodies with a fusion of the Caribbean (Reggae, Cumbia, and Cuban Salsa), Africa (Afro-Blues, Afro-Funk, Ethiopian rhythm), and Asia (Thai Pop) after of the Fukushima accident in 2011. The ticket for this show costs €15.80, and the opening is at 6 PM.

Pacific Mambo Orchestra is the only active Latin Big Band on the West Coast of the United States.

Continue on Friday, July 29^th with the concerts of the Pacific Mambo Orchestra and Los Van Van together with the Cuban trumpeter, composer, singer, and leader of the band Havana D’Primera, Alexander Abreu.

The first orchestra to perform at the festival in its twenty-eighth edition at 9 PM will be the Pacific Mambo Orchestra. This North American band, a winner of the Grammy Award in the category “Best Tropical Album” in 2014, is the revival of the Latin sound of the Big Bands of the 40s with the combination of Mambo, Pop, Cha Cha, Timba, and Bolero. Pacific Mambo Orchestra founded 12 years ago by the Mexican pianist Christian Tumalan and the German trumpeter Steffen Kuehn has collaborated with renowned artists such as Carlos Santana, Poncho Sánchez, Pete Escovedo, and Arturo Sandoval.

Currently, this Latin Big Band performs on the West Coast of the United States with elite musicians from the Bay Area, and their repertoire is in English and Spanish. Their third album “The III Side” (2020) fuses the traditions of the Mambo of the 50s with the musicality of the moment. This Latin Big Ban considered one of the best in the United States will also is at the prestigious San Francisco Annual Jazz Festival on Wednesday, June 8^th from 7:30 PM to 9 PM. Address: Miner Auditorium, 201 Franklin Street, San Francisco (EEUU).

“Legado” is an album in homage to the legacy left by maestro Samuel Formell.

The second orchestra is to take the stage on Friday at 11 PM and will be Los Van Van with their special guest Alexander Abreu. The emblematic Cuban music orchestra will celebrate its more than 5 decades of history.

Los Van Van known by many as the “Rolling Stones of Salsa” was founded in 1969 by bassist and composer Juan Formell, a legend of Cuban music, who accompanied by José Luis Quintana, known as “Changuito” and César “Pupy ” Pedroso, invented the “Songo”, a Cuban rhythm predecessor of the “Timba” or “Salsa Cubana”, which generated the “Salsa – Son” with a Cuban sound that has made generations dance.

In 2018, they recorded their first record production “Legado” since the physical departure of Juan Formell in 2014. This tribute album has 14 songs with 3 new versions of the international singles Te extraño, Por qué lo haces y Amiga mía.

On the third day of the Festival, Saturday, July 30^th, the Latin sound will be awakened by the performances of the Interactivo group and the exclusive presentation of “Con Tumbao All Stars”. On Sunday, July 31^st, Tempo Latino will close its doors on the Les Arènes stage with London Afrobeat Collective and Alain Pérez & La Orquesta Bassiste.

Most of the members of Interactive are representatives of currents such as Nueva Trova, son, and Cuban jazz.

The avant-garde collective, Interactivo, is one of the most representative bands of the current Cuban generation and will take to the Tempo Latino stage at 9 PM.

This emerging orchestra of international stages brings together the most brilliant and eclectic composers and producers in Havana. Each member contributes their specialty: Timba, Funk, Jazz, Hip Hop, Rock, Rumba, traditional Cuban music, and Soul for a result of great richness, where individual originality, musical creativity, and avant-garde ideas enrich the group.

London Afrobeat Collective has hypnotic flashes and powerful percussive beats.

Similarly, the addictive London Afrobeat Collective has been offering festive music based on Jazz, Funk, Rock, Dumb, and African Vibes for ten years. Its international DNA made up of nine members from England, Italy, France, Congo, Argentina, and New Zealand with the powerful voice of the Congolese singer Juanita Euka has made its rhythm addictive music with powerful and committed messages. The London-based band will open the night of concerts on Sunday, July 31^st at 9 PM.

Alain Perez and the Bassiste Orchestra will offer a mixed show of Salsa, Son, Timba, and Latin Jazz

This musical evening ends with Alain Perez, bassist, singer, arranger, and who composes his orchestra of 13 young musicians on stage to offer a mixed show of contemporary Cuban Salsa, Timba, and Latin Jazz. His talent has given him wonderful experiences with internationally famous orchestras and musicians such as Los Van Van, Irakere, Issac Delgado, Paquito D’Rivera, and Celia Cruz. Always accompanied by his elephant-headed cane, in homage to Cuban musician Benny Moré, Alain has been influenced by flamenco through his work with Cuban artist Paco de Lucía.

The versatile artist born in Havana was twice-nominated for the Latin Grammy Awards in the category of Best Traditional Tropical Music Album with “El alma del Son, tribute to Matamoros” (2015) and “ADN” as Best Salsa Album. (2017).

El Cuento de la Buena Pipa (2020) is his most recent record production, and you can enjoy it on the main stage of the festival at 11 PM.

You can get the tickets for Tempo Latino 2022 on their official site http://www.tempo-latino.com/ for a four-beat tempo. The Tickets for the four nights of concerts are €86.70.

And while you wait for the Tempo Latino Festival (28th edition) you can enjoy its free predecessor event Clutcho at La Grainerie this May 4^th. This place is emblematic of the circus and itinerant disciplines that take place with a large space that involves a large open-air square, and a performance hall with a capacity for 230 people through an “interior street” that serves for creative studios and workshops.