Search Results for: Orchestra

The Lehman Center Performing Arts Series Presents Andy Montañez’s 55TH Anniversary

North America / USA / New York

Lehman Center for the Performing Arts Presents Andy Montañez:

Enjoy this Puerto Rican star recognized as one of the best and most influential singer in Latin America in a Special Show with special guests: Victoria Sanabria, El Trio Ideal and Johnny Olivo & Herencia de Plena

Date: Saturday, May 11^th

Show: 8:00PM

Cost: $65 – $100

Venue: 250 Bedford Park Boulevard West Bronx, New York 10468

Lehman Center for the Performing Arts is proud to present the Latin GRAMMY Lifetime Achievement Award winner, Andy Montañez as he celebrates his 55^th Anniversary with special guest: Victoria Sanabria on Saturday, May 11^th. In addition to this, enjoy EL TRIO IDEAL and the exciting dance rhythms of JOHNNY OLIVO Jr. & HERENCIA DE PLENA’s performance of their afro-rich folkloric musical traditions of Puerto Rican Bomba and Plena in a Salsero Show never before seen in New York City.

BIO: The Andy Montañez ’s beginnings go back to 1962 with the orchestra: El Gran Combo de Puerto Rico. It was 15 years of success. El Niño de Trastalleres recorded 37 LP’S with this great Latin orchestra. There he created and sealed the luggage that would accompany him always: “El Barbero Loco”, “Julia”, “Guaguanco del Gran Combo”, Un Verano en Nueva York”, “Vagabundo”, “Milonga Sentimental”, “Las Hojas Blancas”, “La Soledad” and the now classic “A mí manera”, a song that he recorded with Paquito Guzmán and with Pellín Rodríguez originally.

In 1977, Andy Montañez decided accepts the irresistible offer made by the popular Venezuelan orchestra “La Dimensión Latina” to replace Oscar D’ León. With this important orchestra, Andy Montañez recorded eight LPs that placed the Venezuelan band at the popularity top and sales. The first album with Dimension Latina marked big hits, such as: “El Eco Del Tambor”, “Mujer Impura”, “Ritmos Cubanos”. Then, the triumphs continued with the themes: “Las Perlas de tu Boca”, “Como Canto Yo “, “Nuestra Tierra”, “Vuelve”, “Rumberos de Ayer”, “Son del Bohío”, “Ave María Lola”, “Mi Son Oriental”, “Cantante Errante”, and others.

For 1980, Andy Montañez recorded with the group “Puerto Rico All Stars” three LPs that were the prelude to his return to Puerto Rico. “Reunión en la Cima”, “Isla Bonita”, “Homenaje al Mesías” dedicated to Eddie Palmieri, outlined the growth process in which the Salsero still remains.

Returning Puerto Rico, Andy Montañez forms his own orchestra. By 1981, he recorded his first solo LP titled “Salsa con Caché” with record label LAD (TH Rodven’s subsidiary). His third LP “Simplemente Andy Montañez” rang with the hits: “Dulce Veneno” and “Payaso”. This album stayed 30 weeks in the magazine, Bilboard, inside its pages Tropical Music with five themes.

For 1998, he finally created his first independent production as a Salsero artist. Guided by his feelings, his proven experience and his artistic spontaneity was released the album: “Soy Como Soy”. This production is a tribute to his people to whom Andy Montañez responds with commitment of national pride wherever he goes.

In 2002, this worldwide multifaceted artist sees the support of his people materialized by filling the Centro de Bellas Artes’ Festival Hall for three consecutive days, where he captivated three generations with an unforgettable musical tour in which El Bolero, la Música de Tríos, La Salsa and La Plena harmonized that unparalleled Salsa experience. For more details, please, visit him through http://www.andymontanez.net

BIO: Victoria Sanabria was born on October 6, 1976 in Guayama (Puerto Rico). This woman with a sublime voice who carries in her throat all the essence of singing peasant, is one of the most impressive talents that has given the Trova Jíbara of the island of enchantment.

In 1992, she won the third prize in the category of singing in the competitions “Juventud Vibra”. The following year she won first place in the Troubadour Contest of the Institute of Puerto Rican Culture, becoming the national troubadour per excellence. Later, Victoria was part of the Choir of the University of Puerto Rico, Ponce Campus.

Continuing her ascending path in the arts, in December (1995) she made her debut in Bellas Artes with the Puerto Rico’s Symphonic Orchestra. That same year this talented artist managed to be crowned as the first female to win the Bacardí Troubadour Contest, proving to be the best improviser of Puerto Rico at the end of the century.

Her first album as a soloist, Cánticos de Serrania, was recorded in 1999, and in the next eight years she released three more in Puerto Rico including 2008’s Celebra Conmigo that featured Andy Montañez and Andrés Jiménez as guest artists. That same year, she joined the world-wide Tribute to Hector Lavoe concert tour.

In December 2009, Sanabria released her international breakthrough album Criollo Con Salsa, in which she had combined Puerto Rican folk music with salsa. The album contained several hits including “10 Dias”, “No Lavo, No Plancho, Ni Cocino”, “Jibara Natural” that featured Luis “Perico” Ortiz, and “No Te Quiero” sung with reggaeton star Ivy Queen. 2011 saw the release of the highly successful album Boleros which established Victoria as a major singer, and a year later she followed up with the release of Boleros II, which is now considered a classic.

The Sanabria’s most recent releases are her live concert album Trayectoria that was recorded in Santurce in 2012, and 2016’s Música Mía. In addition to her own recordings, Victoria has been featured as a guest on works by Domingo Quiñónez, Olga Tañon, Richie Ray, Bobby Cruz, Gilberto Santa Rosa, El Gran Combo, Danny Rivera, Charlie Aponte, and Willie Colon, among others.

Purchase your Tickets NOW at:

https://lehmancenter.org/ANDY-MONTANEZ-VICTORIA-SANABRIA/

Oscar D’ León, A Universal Latin Artist

North America / USA / New York

Oscar Emilio León Simoza, better known as Oscar D’ León “El Sonero del Mundo”, is undoubtedly a man who throughout his career has made a name like a few others in the music world. An exceptional Venezuelan born in the west of the Capital, who from an early age, began to be interested in Caribbean music.

His innate talent was growing and nowadays is the biggest Venezuelan exponent of the Tropical rhythm and other musical genres, where he has proven to be a global artist.

He started his career at 28 years old in 1972, when he created La Dimensión Latina with Cesar Monje- Elio Pacheco- José Rodriguez- Rojitas and Chuito. A year after, they together recorded their first full-length record, obtaining their first hit: “Pensando en ti”, so they were hired to participate in the Maracaibo’s carnival celebrations … The success was immediate! The group ranks an important place in the musical spectrum of Latin music since then.

In 1977, Oscar broke up with La Dimensión Latina and began the most successful part of his large trajectory, now as a soloist and with his own orchestra: “La Salsa Mayor”. HITS after HITS: : “Mi bajo y yo”, “El baile del suavecito”, “Bravo de verdad”, “Llorarás”, “La Vela”, “Divina Niña”, “Taboga”, “Juancito Trucupey”, “El frutero”, “Parampampam”, and “Dolor Cobarde”,are only part of his most famous songs at the time, today turned into Classics.

Oscar D’ León made a stop in his illustrious career to say “present” at one of the most important festivals on the American continent, the International Festival of Viña del Mar in Chile (2015), where El Sonero del Mundo served as Jury and closed the festival with a majestic show. Obtaining Silver and Gold Seagull for his great musical quality and public preference in this Latin Festival marked a milestone in the history of this event.

Separate chapter deserves his CD “Antológico”, already turned into a musical jewel with universal preference and in all honesty, “Oscar D’ León Clásicos de Big Band” was a mega production recorded between Nashville (cradle of Anglo music) and Miami. These two CDs were recorded in Spanish and English languages with emblematic world themes.

“Clásicos de Big Band” is a musical project with quality and sounds from that ancient era. 36 live musicians all gathered in a single recording studio, recreating the best of this musical genre that gave success to figures, such as:

Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett, Dean Martin, Nat King Cole, among many others. For this project, its producer, Rodolfo Castillo, traveled to the city of Nashville- Tennessee (The musical city)

Where with a group of professionals, colleagues and talented musicians, arrangers and engineers of this great city, such as: Chris McDonald and Dan Rudin, decided to produce and develop a tribute to this musical genre for which he would need a voice, the voice of an artist, with the ability to interpret in English and Spanish, a classic repertoire, such as:

“My Way, New York New York, Fly Me To The Moon, Sway, I’ve got you under my skin, Volare, I did it my way, Perhaps, Cachito Mio, Copacabana, Starngers in the night, among many others.

In addition, the image of Oscar D ‘León is a living example of perseverance, work and discipline, Not in vain has he been a motivational coach. He has given talks on proactivity and motivation in universities and private companies. Coincidentally, in 2015 he received the Doctorate Honoris Causa awarded by the Universidad Pedagógica Experimental Libertador (UPEL), belonging to the Caracas’ Pedagogical Institute.

Oscar D’ León is a true global artist, multifaceted and a Venezuelan with a universal heart, a Latin per excellence who has undoubtedly been converted by his talent, actions and examples into a Latin ambassador in the world, the most charismatic and with the greatest penetration in the different music markets of the world.

NEXT SHOWS:

FRIDAY, MAY 31^ST

SHOW: 10:00PM – 4:00AM

PRICE: $38 – $70

VENUE: La Boom. 56-15 Northern BlvdWoodside, NY 11377

AGES: 21+

FRIDAY, MAY 17^TH

SHOW: 7:00PM

PRICE: $72 – $104+

VENUE: House of Blues Orlando, Orlando, Florida

SATURDAY, MAY 18^TH

SHOW: 9:00PM

PRICE: $40 – $84+

VENUE: The Fillmore Miami Beach at Jackie Gleason Theater, Miami Beach, Florida.

For more details and tickets:
http://www.OSCARDLEON.net/

Gabriel from the band Changüí Majadero talks about traditional Cuban Music

Latin America is the birthplace of so many different musical genres that a lot of us could never even know them all. Although salsa is our main focus, there are many Latin genres that also deserve our full attention and, in this writing, we are going to talk about one of them: the changüí. That is why we interviewed one of its main exponents: Gabriel García, leader and founder of the band Changüí Majadero.

Gabriel García from Changüí Majadero playing — Gabriel García playing his Cuban tres

Gabriel’s beginnings in music

Gabriel started relating a little of his history with music. Something interesting to say about this artist is that his beginnings in music did not take place as a child like many others, but when he was about 19 years old.

Before being a musician, Gabriel was an amateur boxer since he was a child and, thanks to his dedication, he went on to win Gold Gloves and was part of sport organizations in his native Mexico. The sport was the center of his life until a school friend of his lent him a guitar and taught him how to play along some chords. This was the beginning of his interest in music.

Apart from this, he learned that his grandmother was an opera singer in her youth, which increased his desire to start experimenting with music and focused entirely on it, to the point that he applied the same discipline as with boxing at the time.

Gabriel then decided it was time to be academically trained in what would become his new passion, so he took a degree in jazz and a subsequent master’s degree in Afro-Latin music. This is interesting because he did not grow up with these genres and had not heard them before, so studying them was something new for the artist. And of course, he did not know changüí either.

Gabriel García from Changüí Majadero smoking — Gabriel García smoking a Cuban cigar

The Cuban Tres

Let us remember that Gabriel was a guitarist and jazz player and his initial training was based on this, but that changed as he got to know Cuban rhythms and salsa itself. Something that caught his attention is that salsa hardly ever uses the guitar, until one day he heard a son montuno record with something very similar to a guitar, but it was not one. It was a Cuban tres.

When he realized that the tres was the root of all this type of music, he set himself to learning to play it and bought one. To help himself, he began listening to artists and groups such as Buena Vista Social Club and the famous tres player Pancho Amat, who was the one Gabriel became interested in the Cuban tres for.

Then, a friend told him that, if he wanted to know the roots of this instrument, he had to study changüí. The problem was that, at that time, there was very little information about this genre, so it became much more difficult for him to learn about it. The only thing he had was a record by the most famous changüí group, whose name was Changüí Majadero.

There was so little Gabriel could know about changüí that he met Cubans born and raised outside Guantánamo who did not know it, since it came from very rural areas. For the same reason, changüí was unable to reach the big cities like Havana, where most foreign tourists went.

Given that there was only little information available on changüí, Gabriel chose to do part of his master’s degree in Guantánamo and that is when he finally got to know this genre for real. He also had the opportunity to make friends with changüí teachers, who helped him a lot to understand it, including the founder of the group Changüí Guantánamo.

Changüí Majadero

After returning to Los Angeles with all the information he collected in Guantánamo, he began recording videos for YouTube playing the original changüí and its typical instruments. Alfredo Ortiz, a very popular salsa percussionist in Los Angeles and member of the orchestra Son Mayor, saw these videos and immediately contacted Gabriel to invite him to play with his group. Subsequently, they all decided to form a new group based on this not so well known genre.

Gabriel explains that he and the other members decided to call the group ChangüÍ Majadero because it was relegated to being heard only by poor farmers in Cuba, so the wealthy people from the big cities referred to ChangüÍ in a derogatory sense as ”música majadera” (music for uneducated and poor people).

The guantanameros who played changüÍ started using the word ”majadero” in their lyrics, but to refer to how proud they were about their roots and this genre. This fact made Gabriel and the other musicians choose to use ”changüí majadero” as the name for their group.

Fortunately, this situation has changed over time thanks to those who have been interested in making changüí known to the rest of Cuba and the world. After many years of work, it has become much more popular and well respected compared to other times, but it is still not enough. In the words of Gabriel, it is necessary to pursue efforts to make this traditional and folkloric genre more relevant every day.

Pupy Pedroso An Ambassador of Cuban Music in the World

Latin America / Cuba / La Habana

When we talk about the beautiful island of Cuba, it is impossible not to automatically think of its rich and ancient musical culture. We are talking about a small piece of land in the world, of that long Caribbean, but it is full of the most successful musicians of Cuba. the history of Latin rhythms.

It all lies in the Spanish and African influences that came to the Island hundreds of years ago, that race that was created from the strings and the drum, from the white and the black, from singing and dancing.

On this occasion I feel very proud to be able to speak directly with a cultural ambassador, recently appointed by the Latin Institute of Music, the leader of those who are are and one of the founders of the very famous Van Van orchestra, the great Cesar Pupy Pedroso, teacher of teachers, as we have called him for this occasion.

Good morning maestro, thank you in advance for the time you give us to all the readers of the International Salsa Magazzine and the portal www. salsamundi.com.

“Well, here I am very happy to be able to talk a little with you and grateful that you want to talk about this server”

Maestro with 19 years of foundation with Pupy and those who are maestro, tell us how the idea of founding this great orchestra was born after making the whole world dance with the Van Van.

“The idea for the project ‘’Los que Son Son’’ arose from a recording I made (while in Los Van Van) with songs of my authorship performed by an internationally renowned performer. (Omara Portuondo, Rolo Martínez, Xiomara Laugart, Raúl Planas, Caridad Cuervo, Pedro Calvo, Raúl Planas etc…etc..) From that moment on I got the idea of making another album with other performers, with a German publisher, and The album was called César Pedroso y Los que Son.

There came a time when I was on tour with Van Van and the dancers came with the records, so I could sign them, and it was then that the idea came to me of forming an orchestra and leaving Van Van and calling it ‘Los que Son Son’. . ”

Why Pianist?

“In my house when I was born there was already a piano, my father was a pianist, and children always want to be like their parents, and I was not going to be the exception, regardless of the fact that I liked the piano since I was little.”

What theme do you consider the flag of Pupy Pedroso’s new journey? When your orchestra opens

“Themes of the new transit: themes like ”What are the things in life” ””A crazy man with a motorcycle” ”Mommy behave well”, ”They’re calling me” and of course ”Six weeks “”

Tell us the story of the musical piece “De la timba a Pogolotti” does it tell us about a change in your life?

“From Timba to Pogolotti: It arises from a piano solo that I did in ”Sandunguera” and Pedrito Calvo identified me, as ”Pupy the sandunguero of Pogolotti” and the neighbors of La Timba (neighborhood where I I was born) they asked my older relatives why they said about Pogolotti, if I was born in La Timba, then I wanted to be okay with the two neighborhoods, when I made ”Los que Son…”

Well, I made that song in honor of the two neighborhoods, because I was born in La Timba, but I grew up in Pogolotti, and all my childhood friends are from Pogolotti, I don’t have friends in La Timba, and I consider that one is from where one is from. upbringing, not where he was born, because all the customs, friendships, first ”girlfriend” were Pogolotti’s.”

Which song is your favorite from Van Van’s golden era?

“If you talk to me about the songs from Van Van’s golden age, there are several, of mine the authorship of Maestro Formell and others of mine, for example of the maestro, there are several, “My doubts” ”Marilu”” The Painful” ”There are women” ”I’m everything” and one of mine: ”Six weeks “Sugar” ”The Negro is cooking” ”It must be over” ”That’s good ”, among many others, we live in a wonderful time”

Since August 2018, he was named Cultural Ambassador by the Latin Music Institute. Do you consider it an achievement or a new commitment?

“I consider both things, an achievement because it is not easy in a country with so much talent and so many performers to take me into account for said recognition, and at the same time a commitment, because I am obliged not to let my musical guard down in any way.” sense.”

Maestro comes from a family of great musicians, his grandfather a director, his father a pianist, both from great Cuban orchestras. Can we say that being a musician in your family comes in your blood? Is it inherited in the genes?

“Yes, sir, I am grateful for having been born in this family where there was so much musical talent, where only music was breathed, my autistic grandfather, director of an orchestra called ”Cuba”, my uncle a percussionist in an orchestra very famous for that ”Arcaño y sus Maravillas” era, and I believe a lot in the musical heritage because I consider myself a product of it.

As a pianist, it is because my fundamental patron was my father, from whom I copied and learned a lot from what I could discreetly practice and as a conductor, because I had the joy of having worked with different directors, Rolando Valdés, Enrrique Pérez, I assisted in substituting for my father and the ones I spent the longest time with, Elio Revé and Juan Formell, I spent 6 years with Revé and 32 with Formell and I learned a lot with both directors, I was lucky.”

To what do you owe your great success as a pianist and conductor?

“I think that to be good at any career, the fundamental thing is that you like it and have the aptitude for it, I think that music does not escape from that rule, because you can like it, but if you don’t have the aptitude, don’t waste your time, and Maybe if you have aptitude and you don’t like it, over time you may like it and fall in love with it, so aptitude is the fundamental thing.”

What is your greatest reference or influence in music?

“My greatest influence is Son, I love Son, rumba, guaguancó, Cuban music and Brazilian music, jazz, but my greatest influence is Son.”

Currently, how do you see timba within the island of Cuba? Minimized by Cubaton or leader of local rhythms?

“I believe that at all times, there have been different musical genres, which have been in the preference of the dancer, in the era of Rock and Roll they danced with Elvis Presly, with Bill Halle and his comets, with Little Richard, but also they danced with Aragón, Benny Moré, Sonora Matancera, among others,…

but today the balance leans more towards these foreign movements, good and bad, and that is happening all over the world, in the dance area, but I do not consider our dance music critical or dead, because there is taste for everything and every time “A convening orchestra performs on an open-air stage, it overflows with audiences, that means we are in battle, and the country that has the most musicians making a living from music is Cuba.”

Tell us about the 2019 projects? New CD? Tours?

“Fundamentally starting the next album, the release of a documentary of a tour we are doing in Cuba and some presentations abroad, to reappear again at the end of the year in Europe, with one of the dance hits from France:

”Having a good time”, I make a parenthesis, clarify that there are countries where our music prevails (El Son, La Timba, La Salsa) like Peru and Colombia, Cuban rhythms are still in fashion, thanks to many musicians and orchestras that make a great job for the dissemination, to the printed media and now the digital wave that quite develops our work, look, you are an example of this, we hope to continue giving our audience reasons to dance.

In August we return to South America, it is the tour we are most looking forward to, the Latin public is one of the best, we think about stopping in August in Colombia, Ecuador and Peru, in the same way we are now planning to organize the calendar, for businessmen or producers who wish to have us in their cities, must contact our direct representatives, talking to them is like talking to Pupy”

What should a producer do to have them in their Latin American projects?

“No compadre, very simple, contact them at these numbers +573022582306 and +51992630351, they are the only ones authorized to market our tour, we want to be in all the cities of Latin America.”

Grateful teacher for your time and for letting us get to know you a little, may the successes continue for what they are.

“Grateful to you, thank you for the dissemination you make of the popular dance music of my island.

It remains to leave you the social media links of such an important orchestra so that you can follow in its footsteps and find out about the development of the successes of this great band, on Facebook:

@pupypedroso and the numbers

+573022582306 and +51992630351.

Roberto Roena and Apollo Sound will celebrate 50 anniversaries at the Puerto Rico Fine Arts Center

Latin America / Puerto Rico / San Juan

Roberto Roena: Staying active in any profession for 50 (fifty) years is not an easy task for anyone. But if it is a musical orchestra that half a century later continues to bring tropical music to all corners of the planet, more than a musical group, it becomes an institution.

That is the reality of the Apollo Sound orchestra and its founder, the percussionist and dancer Roberto Roena, who this summer celebrate five decades making the world dance and will celebrate it with a great concert to commemorate his career.

“We are going to do something big to celebrate 50 years. It will be in the month of June at the Center for Fine Arts, “said Roena in conversation with this medium.

“It’s going to be something really cool. We are going to sing the hits of the orchestra, we will have guests and a little bit of everything”, added the musician, who indicated that the exact date will be confirmed in the coming weeks.

The Apollo Sound Orchestra was founded in July 1969 and its name derives from the launch that same month of the Apollo 11 space mission, which aimed to carry the first human being to walk on the surface of the moon.

His record catalog includes more than 20 productions and among his most notorious hits are “Tú loco loco y yo tranquil”, “El Escapulario”, “Marejada Feliz” and “El Progreso”, among many others. In the case of Rohena, the renowned 79-year-old musician from Mayagüez began his musical career much earlier, at age 16, with the distinguished group of Rafael Cortijo y su Combo.

He was also part of Rafael Ithier’s Gran Combo and appeared in the star catalog of the famous Fania record company and its All Stars, among other collaborations.

It was in the Mayagüez neighborhood of Dulces Labios where he was born, raised and took his first steps as a dancer. “Sweet Lips is my neighborhood. I have many memories of my childhood days.

From there came great musicians, such as Santitos Colón and Mon Rivera”, he pointed out.

When she was nine years old, her family moved to Santurce and when she was barely a teenager, she was already appearing on television.

He was discovered by Cortijo in one of his dance performances on the La Taberna India program and from there he became a percussionist for the renowned group. Since then, he has not stopped delighting his followers with his music.

“In these 50 years, there is no greater satisfaction than being able to continue playing,” said Roena, who last Saturday began the celebration of his 50 years in a concert at the Lehman Center of Performing Arts in New York, where he brought together several of the singers who accompanied the group in its beginnings, such as Sammy González, Tito Cruz and Carlos Santos, among others. In addition to the concert, Roena does not rule out going back to the studio to continue shaping her music for posterity.

“This does not mean the end of Roberto Roena and the Apolo Sound. We are going to continue as long as God wants”, he sentenced.

RELATED ITEMS: 50TH ANNIVERSARY, CENTER OF FINE ARTS P.R., INTERNATIONALS, ROBERTO ROENA AND HIS APOLLO SOUND

http://asondesalsa.com.pa/roberto-roena-y-apollo-sound-celebrara-50-aniversario-en-centro-de-bellas-artes-p-r-para-el-mes-de-junio/