Search Results for: Salsa en Venezuela

The seeds of capacho give the sound to maracas

The capacho tree (Canna Generalis Bailey) is a large flower and its colors can be yellow, red or orange. The fruit they produce has seeds used by Venezuelan folklorists to create the filling of the maracas and, in turn, get their sonority.

For this process, there are three steps to make them and obtain the final product.

capacho flor bocono — Capacho flor Bocono

In Venezuela, the typical llanera maraca is filled with seeds of capacho, which are very hard and do not wear out easily.

Another material used is the so-called “espuma e sapo” which are a type of seed that also give a very good sound to the maracas.

I have been collecting these seeds you can see in the photos for the maracas that we are going to make for the dancing devils of Tinaquillo in my community of Santa Rita in the lower part of El Valle.

Manuel Alejandro Rangel

The maraca in Venezuela has been present mainly among our native peoples. It is used to accompany the dance, be a child’s toy, invoke, heal and cleanse at the hands of the shaman. This small and powerful Venezuelan instrument is composed of three elements of nature: mango or stick extracted from the wood of wild trees; tapara or gourd, fruit of a climbing plant with the same name and originally African; and finally, seeds of capacho (Achira) or seeds of Espuma e ́ Sapo (wild plant) that go inside the tapara and are commonly found in Latin America.

For being an idiophone instrument, the maraca produces sound thanks to the vibration of its own body, that is, to the shock of the seeds inside against the walls of the tapara when it is shaken, generating a dry and strong sound. Besides resonating when shaken, when we hold the maraca and make repeated circular movements with the wrist, we achieve that the seeds result in friction with the walls of the tapara, which produces a sound with greater sustain, similar to the sweep of a broom, called for this reason by several cultists escobilla’o.

Over the years, the maraca in Venezuela was incorporated into musical expressions of different regions, becoming an almost essential accompanying instrument and varying its playing technique according to the regions and genres that have adopted it. That is why in the Venezuelan plains, the maraca performance resembles the sound of galloping hooves, that is to say, the blows of the seeds to the tapara when shaking it are mostly dry or staccato, with an possible use of the escobilla’o technique that we will explain in detail in this method.

Unlike the performance in the Venezuelan plains, in the east of Venezuela the maraca emulates the sound of the sea with the prominent use of the escobilla’o; while in the center of the country, the use of this technique is low and the shaking of the seeds is less staccato or forceful than in the plains, making its rhythm function as the main guide for the dancers. The maraca can also be seen in different Afro-descendant drum ensembles in the country, and is generally played by the singers, who use only one maraca instead of two as in the aforementioned regions.

The Venezuelan maraca is fundamentally a popular instrument. Maybe that is why, until now there has not been a specific academic musical writing that allows to know in depth all its language. The most direct way to learn to play this instrument is mainly by oral tradition, as well as by observing, listening, and deciphering great maraca players who, thanks to the cultural heritage and family tradition of their towns, play it in a very genuine and masterful way. Insignificant Venezuelan maraca players who were masters in this field such as: Santana Torrealba, Máximo Teppa, Pedro Aquilino Díaz “Mandarina”, José Pérez, Coromoto Martínez, Trino “Chiche” Morillo, Ernesto Laya, Jorge Linares “Masamorra”, Lorenzo Alvarado, Manuel García, and from the Colombian region masters who have adopted the Venezuelan maraca tradition such as Gilberto Castaño, Diego Mosquera, William León, Emanuel Contreras, among many other anonymous heroes from different regions of Venezuela, have been and will continue to be the most important guide for the teaching and evolution of the maraca in the world, providing new generations with a cultural connection to the deepest roots.

Thanks to the legacy left by each of these maraca makers, a vital source of inspiration for many performers for decades, the commitment to continue with important educational inputs that allow the expansion of knowledge and the evolution of our popular Venezuelan instruments at the academic level is born, since these instruments per se, require a rigorous study in terms of vocabulary, technique, and history.

In this method 5 Movements are the key, I want to share the experience that helped me to understand the traditional playing techniques of the Venezuelan maraca and that led me to the design of a musical writing that shows its performance with clarity and discernment for each Venezuelan genre according to the vocabulary and variations that have been standardized over time.

And when I talk about variations, I emphasize five basic movements that I consider to be the key to the playing of the maraca. Five movements that will later become the musical discourse of those who master them.

Five movements that will show the student why and how the main traditional Venezuelan rhythms are born. Five movements that I have not invented, but that are the vocabulary of tradition, and that the student will observe in the performance of Venezuelan maraca players who have dedicated their lives to this instrument.

Personally, Special mention should be made of maestro Juan Ernesto Laya “Layita”, who instilled in me much of the basic knowledge of the maracas in the workshops dictated by the Ensamble Gurrufío: Aprende y toca con Gurrufío in 2000. Years later, once graduated as a classical guitarist from the Vicente Emilio Sojo Conservatory of Music in 2004, I began to design exercises that would allow me to pedagogically transmit to my students the language learned with maestro Laya and with several of the musicians mentioned in this writing.

An important step if we take into account that no music school in Venezuela had a pedagogical program for the teaching or application of theory to this instrument at that time.

It should be noted that I have put these exercises into practice in various clinics, master classes, courses, and seminars that I have had the opportunity to dictate around the world, where the development and learning of the participants has been satisfactory in a large percentage. Especially in the Simon Bolivar Conservatory (Ccs- Vzla) where I teach since 2014, in the Venezuelan Music seminar organized by Venezuelan percussionist Fran Vielma at Berklee College of Music (Boston-USA) in 2014, and in the “Venezuelan Creole Music Course” (Mirecourt-France) produced by maestro Cristobal Soto, in which I participate since 2015, among others.

With regard to the writing of the Venezuelan maraca, over the years I came across Venezuelan works for orchestra where there are specific parts for maracas such as the guitar concertos by Antonio Lauro, the works of Evencio Castellanos, La Cantata Criolla by Antonio Estévez, La Fuga con Pajarillo by Aldemaro Romero, and the Concierto para Maracas y Orquesta Pataruco by Ricardo Lorenz, to name a few. When I read them, I realized that their writing was not entirely idiomatic, so I had to interpret and adapt to the technique and idiosyncrasy of the Venezuelan maracas what the composer wanted to say and that the writing was not able to convey to me.

That is why in 5 Movements are the key, I propose the musical writing for the Venezuelan maracas in a bigrama, since, within the large family of percussion instruments, the maraca is one of the few that produces sound with the movement of the arm both up and down. And therefore, the upward movement is part of the rhythmic phrase.

In the bigram I suggest, the upper line represents the right hand, and the lower line the left hand, very similar to the piano writing in two clefs: right hand treble clef, and left-hand bass clef. In this way, the polyrhythm of the two maracas is visually separated when carrying out their movements. In addition to the bigram, I assigned to each movement a symbol that defines which of the five that I describe will be used in each figure.

Finally, I would like to comment that one of the main objectives of this method is that these five movements and their combinations show how basic traditional Venezuelan rhythms are accompanied, and besides, how they link or build connections that allow the performer to go from an accompaniment pattern to a variation, and then back without interrupting at any time the rhythmic stability, the sound, or the movement of the arm or wrist. I would also like to add that this method not only applies to Venezuelan music genres, but can also be used to incorporate this sublime and powerful instrument into any musical culture in the world.

Maracas in Latin rhythms belong to the minor percussion section.

A classic of Latin percussion. It is an idiophone instrument, it uses its body as a resonator element, which has its own sound. The origin of the maracas is South American and dates from the pre-Columbian era in America. Originally only one maraca was played, nowadays they are usually played in pairs. Its operation is simple, the sphere is filled with small elements that when shaken impact the inner wall producing the sound we all know. These small elements can be small stones, seeds, pieces of metal or glass… They are normally used to mark the rhythm in Latin music.

Hands to the maracas!

Sources:

Photographs: Alberto Cardenas

https://www.facebook.com/ZorcaCultura/?ref=page_internal

https://cuentaelabuelo.blogspot.com/2010/03/las-maracas-o-capachos.html

https://tucuatro.com/camburpinton/las-maracas-instrumento-musical-economico-y-facil-de-elaborar/

https://www.clasf.co.ve/maracas-pan-con-queso-cuero-y-semillas-de-capacho-en-caracas-1721485/

https://manuelmaracas.com/manuelsite/articulo/a-las-maracas-venezolanas/

Article of Interest: Génesis of Salsa, its essence, characteristics, rhythm, history, and expansión

Video Courtesy of multi – percussionist Diego Gale “Master Class: Maracas

Orquesta La Moderna Tradición frontman Tregar Otton talked to us

What Orquesta La Moderna Tradición is

Tregar Otton playing — Tregar Otton, founder of the orchestra, playing the violin

Orquesta La Moderna Tradición has been one of the most legendary groups of Cuban music in its entire history. It is a group whose members are based in San Francisco, California, and consists of 11 members who play different genres such as danzón, timba, guaguancó, cha cha chá, son, rumba, charanga, among others. They also mix in elements from American jazz, violins, and Afro-Cuban rhythms.

The beginning of this orchestra’s story goes back to 1996, since they started to perform throughout the United States to bring the best of traditional Cuban music to every corner of the country and transport Cuban immigrants back to the Havana’s streets and clubs during the 50’s. All the success accumulated allowed them to perform at the San Francisco Jazz Festival, the Smithsonian Institution, the Lincoln Certer and many other venues of high prestige.

Recently, Orquesta La Moderna Tradición once again displayed their talent at Yoshi’s, a jazz club and restaurant located in Oakland, California, whose reputation in the San Francisco Bay Area is not up for discussion. Our editor Eduardo Guilarte was present at the show to cover the details of the event, which left all those present in awe.

Conversation with Tregar Otton, founding director of the orchestra

Tregar Otton and Maru Pérez-Viana, his wife and an important part of the orchestra

Based on the above, we talked with Tregar Otton, founder, director, composer, and violinist of the group. This talented musician, born in the Marshall Islands and raised in Texas, started to learn about classical music from an early age and joined the Berkeley Symphony while he still was a teenager. By the 1990s, this musical promise worked as a regular part of Virgilio Mart Y Sus Majaderos, La Tipica Novel and the Charanga Orquesta Broadway.

By the year 1995, Otton founded Orquesta La Moderna Tradición with Roberto Borrell. At the beginning, the group started to become well-known for its soft sounds of Afro-Cuban charanga, which are accompanied by a set of wind instruments and violins that give a unique touch to this group’s music.

Today, we have the welcome presence of the musician to talk about each and every one of the issues raised in this brief review and anything he wants to reveal to our dear readers. It is such a pleasure to have you here today, Tregar. How are you feeling?

I am fine here near San Francisco. Good to see you today.

Very good, Tregar. You got started in the world of music at a young age. Could you tell us a bit about your beginnings?

I started playing violin when I was four years old and my family had a violin teacher as a neighbor. My parents did the laundry for all our neighbors, so we met her and she ended up giving me classes every day. After that, I studied a lot of classical music, bought music when I was about 20 and fell in love with it because it used the violins differently from classical music. I really enjoyed playing dance music because the connection with the public is quite different from that of classical music. In the case of classical music, many people get bored, but Cuban music and salsa music make a much more direct connection to the audience. There is nothing like playing for a floor with dancers.

We understand that you were born in the Marshall Islands, but grew up in Texas, is that correct?

Yes. After my dad married my mom, they both moved to Micronesia, the Marshall Islands, in the middle of the Pacific. After that, I grew up in Corpus Christi, Texas, till I was 13 or 14 about when I moved to California.

I asked because it is very interesting how you set your eyes on Cuban music despite your origins. Where does this interest in Cuban music and the rhythms you play come from?

For the same reasons I play dance music. It caught my attention when I heard Charanga de La 4 or one of these New York bands. I was impressed that violins were part of the percussion and were making repetitive sounds with the refrain and the son montuno. We are more part of the rhythm section than the melodic section in many of our songs. We can dance while we are on stage. I was also impressed by the improvisations of Cuqui and Alfredo de la Fé. I had many Latin friends I met in college while learning Spanish because no one in my family spoke it.

How did Orquesta La Moderna Tradición come about and who joined you in its foundation?

I was working with a group. I was in New York, where I was playing with the Broadway Orchestra and the Orquesta Tipica Novel. I was very lucky to have been in that city because I got to know many veteran musicians in the 80’s like Renato Valdés, Virgilio Martí, and Adalberto Santiago. I visited a Cuban friend from San Francisco named Fito Reinoso, who had a group called Ritmo Y Armonía and he visited us here in New York. I was tired of the cold in New York, so I decided to go to San Francisco, where Tito and I had the idea of creating a group. It was there that I met a great drum instructor and dance teacher Roberto Borrell, who joined us to found Ritmo y Armonía. After two years, we had to be apart, but Roberto and I still wanted to play danzón. At least here in the Bay Area, it is very difficult to get singers. The ones we have are good, but there are not so many. So, we planned to make a danzonera or danzón group. When the orchestra began to work, we only played danzón songs, rehearsed every week and did many tours with this musical genre because there was a boom with swing dancing and dance music during the 40’s. So, we were surfing that wave. So, we were surfing that wave and doing collaborations with swing groups because it was older music. Danzón is a very rich genre, but it is no of interest to many people because they do not know how to dance it, so we started expanding our repertoire to include more modern and dance music. We still play danzones, but only two per set. There are still musicians from the original group in the orchestra including Michael Spiro. Roberto went to Peru about a decade ago, so Michael and I stayed with the group and invited Eduardo Herrera, who is a singer born in Caracas, Venezuela, to perform with us. We expanded the repertoire by doing the best we could with my own creations. Let’s remember I am the arranger of the group, so I do some songs and we have one that is included in the new recording in which I wrote the music and maestro Carlos Caro from Cuba added the lyrics.

Orquesta La moderna Tradición at one of its shows

Although rhythms like danzón are not so popular, did you feel the acceptance of the public?

There were many people who knew danzón who began to notice that it was a very interesting genre due to the presence of the violins. As Roberto Borrell is a dance teacher, he teaches many of his students how to dance danzón, which is not easy because they should be affixed on each turn they have to make according to the sounds of the instruments.

Can you go from one genre to another in the same song?

Yes, we do that a lot. On our new album, we have rhythms with batá drums from music of Santería, which we use for our danzón songs. It sounds complicated when I explain it, but it is easy at the time of listening to it.

What makes Orquesta La Moderna Tradición different from other Latin music groups in the United States?

Well, I know no other group that plays danzón or charanga. There are two genres of popular dance music in Cuba that come from son montuno, which uses violins and flutes. In the case of charanga, the musicians use violins and flutes. Since the 70’s and 80’s, charanga is now no longer heard in the United States. In Cuba, neither do you hear danzón much. We are a group that has so many danzones in the repertoire. There are not too many groups that play cha cha chá. Me being an arranger, I try to create cha cha chá songs that are not copies of what was played by Orquesta Aragón and other bands in the 40’s and 50’s.

Given that music has evolved so much, what reaction do you perceive from the young public when you play charanga, cha cha chá, danzón and other rhythms?

Interesting question. For young people who do not know and are not salsa fans, our music sounds like salsa because it is difficult to distinguish the genres without knowing them well. However, I work as a music teacher and I have many groups of children, in which there are many salsa fans. They listen to Ray Barreto, Willie Colón, and Hector Lavoe. They also like charanga and understand it well. However, I think danzón is more difficult because it has to be a reflection of what people are feeling in their culture. Cha cha chá is simpler and innocent, but danzón is finer and refined. I think music can influence people and play its part in changing the direction of their culture.

Can you tell us a little bit about your performance at Yoshi’s?

Because of COVID-19, for a year and a half, we could not do anything. We could not even rehearse until the vaccine came on the market. We got this date with Yoshi’s because we have played there many times before as well as Yoshi’s in San Francisco. So, they gave us a date and we had the support of local DJs like Luis Medina, Chuy Varela and Jose Ruiz. We also made use of social media to promote us, sell our CDs and attract people to our shows. The staff of Yoshi’s was impressed because it is rare that a local band has been able to sell so many tickets. We were very excited to see so many people loving us and showing how much they love music. We have a large audience that is very loyal to us and has been going wherever we perform for over 20 years.

Orquesta La Moderna Tradición performing at Yoshi’s

What are your future projects?

We get everything ready for the repertoire of the new album. When I was in New York, I was working with Juan Carlos Formell, Juan Formell’s son, who is the bass player and took over his father’s position in Los Van Van. I was one of the first people he met here in the United States and we became very good friends. Then he told me that I could arrange any of his songs without any problem, so I have about four or five of his songs ready and some others that I have not finished yet. We have enough material to make at least two albums, but it is very expensive. One could only cost us about $15 to start with.

Cover art work for the Orquesta La Moderna Tradición new album El Encantado

Your social networks or websites

Official website: www.danzon.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OrquestaLaModernaTradicion

Bandcamp: https://orquestalamodernatradicin.bandcamp.com/album/encantado-2

Víctor Porfirio Baloa Díaz, more commonly known as Porfi Baloa

He is a Venezuelan musician, composer, producer, and arranger. Creator of the group Adolecent’s Orquesta.

His work as a pianist, arranger, and director in the orchestra has been intense, but his compositions have been the base for the triumph. He has been nominated for New York City’s star award a total of 11 times, the ACE, winning 7 of them. Apart from the prices already won in different places of America and Europe.

About 39 songs of his own composition came in first place in the Record Report, which was unique to a Venezuelan composer and a musical group (Los Adolescentes).

Porfi Baloa Creator of the group Adolecent's Orquesta. — Porfi Baloa is a Venezuelan musician, composer, producer and arranger.

Personal life and beginning of Porfi Baloa

He was born on September 19 in the city of Caracas. At age 8, he was already playing the bass with matchless skills, knowing his talent as a composer at that young age.

He started very young in the world of music, having been a pianist for groups such as Las Vibraciones and Dimensión Latina.

He was the creator of the youth orchestra Salserin, being both its owner and musical producer.

Musical career

Since then, he decided to create an orchestra with a different concept, being born La Adolescent’s Orquesta, better known as “Orquesta Los Adolescentes”, so that all the songs of his four musical productions were in top positions of the national and international charts.

Adolescent`s Orquesta, a group formed by young Venezuelans between the ages of 19 and 23, was consolidated in 1995 with the support of Luis Francisco “El Negro” Mendoza and the label of Korta Record.

The band’s innovative style of performing the salsa genre rapidly earned hundreds of fans who made the release a success at home and abroad in a few weeks.

The passion for music and the creative magic in lyrics took Porfi Baloa to compose infinities of music hits, which, along with his Adolescentes, has managed to show and take to the 4 continents.

Porfi Baloa is the winner of approximately 87 awards, 4 Billboard Awards nominations, and 3 lo Nuestro Awards nominations, and has a record of 60 first places in the Venezuelan Hit parade.

Around 39 songs of his authorship have been positioned in the first place of the Record Report, being a unique case for a Venezuelan composer and a Venezuelan musical group (Los Adolescentes). — Víctor Porfirio Baloa Díaz, better known as Porfi Baloa

The high degree of expertise in his arrangements and compositions, coupled with the playing of the piano, bass, congas, bongo, timbal, and trombone have made him a well-rounded musician and composer in his genre.

He went inside of the hearts of the public thanks to the records made by his group such as: “Reclamando nuestro espacio”, “Persona ideal”, “La misma pluma”, “Ahora más que nunca”, “Búscame”, “Sellos de mi ADN”, including his other groups such as “Chiky Salsa” and “El Klan de Porfi”.

Songs like Persona ideal (me Tengo que ir), Virgen, Me negó, Aquel Lugar, Anhelo, among others, have had great commercial success at both national and international levels.

After 20 years of artistic career, he returns in 2016 with a new single, Bésame, which spent 17 weeks in the musical bill and rises to the post of honor to become the 61st hit that Porfi Baloa obtains as First Place in the Record Report.

Porfi Baloa y sus Adolescentes will be performing this coming Saturday October 2, 2021 at Dominic Hall Event Center in Miami FL.

Facebook: Porfi Baloa y sus Adolescentes

Article of Interest: Yolanda Rivera The Lady of Salsa and the Sonera of Ponce

Eliel Rivero, “The Shaman of the Trombone”

The versatility, trajectory, and professionalism of this musician and composer, born in the capital of Venezuela, make him one of the most important and sought-after salsa bastions in the country.

This time comes to Salsa Escrita “La Columna Salsera de Barquisimeto”, the outstanding trombonist Eliel Rivero Rivas, who was born on April 3, 1961, and already has an artistic life with more than 40 years; for this and many reasons, we bring to our readers a complete review about “El Chamán del Trombón”, as he is jokingly nicknamed by his musical friends.

Eliel, welcome to the salsa column, which is currently dedicated to providing information on the happenings of Afro-Caribbean music and therefore also projects and makes known nationally and globally the musical talent here.

Thank you very much Professor Carlos Colmenárez, for giving me this opportunity to share with you and all the regular readers of your prestigious Salsa Escrita “La Columna Salsera de Barquisimeto”, and to spread my career.

To begin with, we want to know how were your beginnings in music? -My life was surrounded by music since I was a child since my grandfather Pablo Emilio Rivas was the first tuba player of the Symphonic Orchestra of Venezuela, besides that in the family gatherings we listened from symphonic music to the most emblematic Caribbean artists of the moment, and so on, until I lived in Los Frailes de Catia, Macapaya sector, there was “La Dimensión Latina” and I was captivated by a cover where the trombone was shown, I think it was Dimensión Latina 76, and since that time I said, I would like to learn to play that instrument, but I did not do it because it was so expensive to buy one. Until one day Rodrigo Mendoza, who had just joined Dimensión Latina and who lived in front of my house, heard me playing a trombone solo of the song “Yo tenía una mujer” by Roberto Roena in a meeting that we often had and he told me: start studying that instrument.

The versatility, trajectory and professionalism of this musician and composer, born in the capital of Venezuela, make him one of the most important and sought-after salsa bastions in the country. — Eliel Rivero, “The Shaman of the Trombone”

From then on my musical career began, I was able to buy a trombone and thus began this beautiful story that I enjoy to this day, thanks to the support of my family. I began to have contact with many musicians in the area, among them, Johán Muñoz, a brother sent to me by God, Antonio Acevedo “Toñito”, son of maestro Dugarte, trombonist of the Sinfónica Venezuela and Alberto Crespo, who also lived in Los Cuatro Vientos de los Frailes.

We all followed the trajectory of orchestras and musicians that rehearsed in the area such as “La Banda y su Salsa Joven”, “La Renovación”, we followed the steps of Alejandro Pérez Palma, Faustino González, Enrique Blanco “El Bachaco”, César Monjes “Albóndiga”, José Antonio Rojas “Rojitas”, Nené and Taíto Piñango and many more. From that moment I began to take my course as a trombonist with seriousness and professionalism until today.

Eliel, where did you study music and with whom? My friend Carlos, I studied theory and solfeggio at the Musical Association of the Federal District with maestros Daniel Contramaestre and Daniel Milano.

I continued my training at the “Simón Bolívar” Conservatory of Music, directed by maestro José Antonio Abreu, and at the “José Ángel Lamas” music school, under the guidance of professors Ángelo Pagliuca, Tiero Pezutti, Antonio Estévez, Erick Colón, among others.

I continued my professional and work training with the “Simón Bolívar” Symphony Orchestra for 40 years, sharing with different masters of national and international music.

At the same time, I had the opportunity to participate as an active or guest musician in national and international orchestras of the salsa genre.

Now that you mention the salsa genre, with which orchestras and vocalists have you participated? Professor, at the national level, apart from the Simón Bolívar Symphony, Municipal Symphony, Venezuelan Symphony and Caracas Philharmonic, I have been on stage with: Bailatino, Oscar D’León, El Pavo Frank, Mariana, Marianella, Andy Durán, Cheo Navarro con Tributo, la Banda Sigilosa, Orlando Poleo, Hildemaro, Alfredo Naranjo y su Guajeo, Silva y Guerra, Saxomanía, Trina Medina, Orlando Watussi, Magia Caribeña, Moisés Daubaterre with Grupo Mango, Bacheo, Servando y Florentino, Naty y su Orquesta, La Negramenta, El Trabuco Venezolano, La Nueva Parranda, Canelita Medina, Javier Plaza, Guarará, among other participations to which I have been invited.

And as for international artists and groups, which ones have you worked with? My friend Carlos, I have had the honor of accompanying: Gilberto Santa Rosa, Celia Cruz, Justo Betancourt, Nino Segarra, Eddie Santiago, Willie González, Roberto Lugo, Ismael Miranda, Maelo Ruiz, Cheo Feliciano, Paquito de Rivera, Andy Montañez and in relation to artists outside the salsa genre: Rafael, Andrea Bocelli and José Luis Rodríguez “El Puma”.

Excellent and admirable career Eliel, now, what can you tell us about who you have recorded with? Indeed Carlos, I have made recordings with the Simon Bolivar Orchestra, Música Latinoamericana, Bailatino, El Pavo Frank, Naty y su Orquesta, Victor Quintana, Rumberos del Callejon, Bacheo, Un Solo Pueblo, Trina Medina, Saxomania, La Dimension Latina with Joseito Rodriguez, La Negramenta, Orlando Poleo, Carlos Julio “El Oso”, Juan Pablo Barrios, Víctor Cardona y su Máquina de la Salsa, Gilberto Santa Rosa con la Sinfónica Venezuela, Cheo Navarro y su Orquesta Tributo, Francisco Requena, Oscar Dudamel, Otilio Galíndez, Luisito Quintero, among others.

Eliel, what can you tell us about your facet as a composer? I started when I was 13 years old and I have written songs for the following artists: Orquesta Los Satélites de Cheché Mendoza with the song “Sufrí por ti” on the LP Di Corazón, I have also written compositions for the Sabadonga orchestra, Oscar Dudamel, Victor Quintana and most for the Bailatino group, of which the hit “Bailatino llegó” was versioned and recorded by the Hispanic Orchestra of Harlem (SHD) of New York under the name “Baila Latino” on the CD “Viva la Tradición”, Grammy award-winning album.

World Artistic Tours? I have performed in Italy, France, Spain, Japan, Germany, Argentina, Colombia, Chile, Switzerland, England, Holland, USA, Mexico, Australia, Cuba, Dominican Republic, and Peru.

Eliel Rivero is one of the most important and sought-after salsa bastions in the country.

At present, what do you do besides being with different orchestras?

Well, Professor Carlos, I am currently involved in pedagogical activities with the trombone, doing master classes and I am a frequent guest in the “Orquesta Nuevo Mundo” of Bogota, directed by Alejandro Orellana, covering symphonic salsa and permanently in the trombone and composer with the group Bailatino.

By the way, how did Cheo Navarro ask you to be part of the staff of musicians of Bailatino y Tributo? In fact, my friend Carlos, that was one night when we were in block 6 of 23 de Enero in Caracas, we greeted each other and he told me that he wanted to make a band to cure us playing the salsa that fed our lives, such as Palmieri, Libre, Mon Rivera, Típica 73, Bobby Rodríguez and others.

And I told him to count on me and since at that time I was playing with Johán Muñoz with Ajoporro of Grupo Mango in private parties, Cheo told me: “Tell Johán if he wants to participate in this project” and the affirmation was not long in coming. As for “Tributo”, the same thing happened, Cheo wanted to record emblematic songs that nurtured his career, and of course, we gave him our support since those of us who recorded in that project are from “Bailatino”.

Eliel Rivero performing pedagogical activities with the trombone.

Finally, what are your social networks? My social networks are Eliel Bailatino on Facebook and eliel_bailatino on Instagram. Concluding, we want to know why that nickname “El Chamán”. Ha, ha, ha, ha, my friend Carlos, that epithet was given to me by my great friends of the “Negramenta” Orchestra. Let me tell you Eliel that for me and for “Salsa Escrita” it was a privilege to have you as a special guest in this issue and from “International Salsa Magazine”, we wish you the best of the best and of course, keep on giving it up with pure tastiness…!

Thank you very much Professor Carlos Colmenárez for this opportunity that you give me and I take this opportunity to send my greetings to the great number of salseros in the city of Barquisimeto and congratulate you for this praiseworthy work of supporting and projecting the musical talent of Venezuela and the world.

Remember not to leave your house…! Until next time and let’s keep on salsing!

Article of Interest: Written Salsa, Barquisimeto’s Salsa Column presents Pamir Guánchez

Photos: courtesy Lisbeth Weffe

Yamira Blanco -Director and tresista of her group Son Latino

Many musical genres that emerged over the years, among them are the salsa genre which was a boom in the decade between the 60s and 70s, being a movement that mixes African and Caribbean sounds, which has been adopted by male artists already that in those times the woman who played a musical instrument was frowned upon and it was not accepted that they were in music, however this did not stop and the experience made the artist and she spent many years, female groups managed to exist in Salsa.

In this October 2021 edition, we have the opportunity to interview Yamira Blanco Ramos, a salsa singer who participated in the orchestra made up of fourteen women who cultivate Cuban popular music, fusing the most traditional rhythms with contemporary sound, also known as “Las Mulatísimas del Sabor ”, have achieved a seal that distinguishes them and are appreciated by both critics and dancers from all over Cuba and from various countries around the world.

Yamira Blanco - Photo — Photo by Yamira Blanco

He was in the hands of the prestigious guitarist Efraín Amador during his beginnings and in turn began his studies at the National School of Art (ENA) and then continues the same at the Higher Institute of Art of Havana (ISA), where he graduated with a Degree de Oro, during his student years he always stood out for his active participation in groups of different formats, from duos to septets; Later, he had the opportunity to participate in the 2001 Mujer International Guitar Festival in Costa Rica, where he performed with the Plectro trio, made up of guitar, tres and lute.

He joined the Anacaona group, starting in September 2006 with his tres to enrich the musical spectrum of the group and after a year (January 2007) he joined the Los Galanes quintet simultaneously, under the musical direction of Armando Vidal , vocalist of said group, with whom he performs a musical work based on traditional Cuban music.

In 2008 he recorded with the quintet the album Suena por mi Cuba with the Egrem label, and later with a small format of the Anacaona group, he recorded in 2008 the musical theme “Parampampan”, for the filmmaker’s musical film Chico y Rita Spanish Fernando Trueba; and after a year (2009) he participated with the Anacaona group in an artistic tour in Canada and also attended different jazz festivals and “World Music”, including the third edition of the Aruba Jazz Festival.

As of 2010 Yamira together with the Anacaona group, on their tour to Curacao they presented the show “Viva Cuba”, with the purpose of raising funds for the fight against breast cancer, organized by the Sinte Rose Foundation of said country. This tour brings the Aruba International Film Festival to a close.

Yamira Blanco in the music studio — Photo of Yamira Blanco posing at the piano

Later they resumed their participation with the Anacaona Orchestra in the Santa Lucía Jazz Festival in 2011, being its 20th edition, where they were together with leading jazz players from the international arena, shining for their improvisations on the different themes that they performed with the orchestra. both on the tres and on the guitar.

In 2012 they celebrated their 80th anniversary of this musical institution, making an extensive tour throughout the country in addition to multiple radio and television programs and in August they performed with the group at the PDVSA salsa festival. , in Venezuela, alternating with salsa groups from that country.

They began to record the album De Cuba soy, in 2013 under the Colibrí label, a phonogram dedicated to celebrating the eight decades of artistic life of the Anacaona group, then Yamira assumed the direction of the Quinteto Los Galanes, being appointed by its vocalist and founder, who decides to retire, so she poses new challenges in the music that is the inspiration of this young and talented Cuban tresera.

In 2015:

I participated in the documentary Mix The World by Grammy nominated filmmakers Alex Elena and Steve’s Baughman.
Son Latino, a music septet that he has directed since 2015, is made up of a format of three, guitar, double bass, bongos, tumbadora, singer, trumpet and minor percussion.
Works multiple genres such as son, song, cha cha cha, bolero, rumba, guaracha, bachata, merengue and the interpretation of current Cuban timba, starting from its purely traditional format.
It is a group that seeks to defend Cuban popular music from more contemporary harmonic and rhythmic sounds, with good taste and a high aesthetic sense in creation, seeking its own stamp with auditory and visual identity.

In 2020 Yarima Blanco becomes a Soundwear artist and records with several guests the CD Pa mi tres, a co-production between the Recording Company and Musical Editions, Egrem, and Soundwear Production that will have its presentation and launch in 2021.

The phonogram is a journey through the sounds of Cuban and Caribbean popular music based on 12 unpublished songs where the authorship of Yarima herself, the Puerto Rican Tomás Pérez and the Cubans Yunior Molina, César Lozada and Juan Antonio Gil stand out.

With musical production by the hand of the Latin Grammy award Roniel Alfonso Mella, they participate as special guests in several of the songs on the album: maestro Pancho Amat, Alain Pérez, Kelvis Ochoa, Rolando Luna, Bárbara Zamora, singer from Anacaona, among other important Cuban musicians.

Now if you want to know the exact list of the different activities that he carried out throughout his musical career, you can see them here:

Participation in Festivals:		Discography
2001	International Woman Guitar Festival, Costa Rica	2006	Cuba le canta a Serrat vol. 2, discography –Discmedi
2009	Aruba Jazz Festival	2007	No lo puedo Evitar, Anacaona -Bis Music
2009	Canadian Jazz Festivals	2008	Suena por mi Cuba– Quinteto “Los Galanes” – EGREM
2009	La Nuits D’Afrique Festival in Montreal Canada	2008	“Parampampan” – tema para el Largometraje Chico y Rita
2010	Aruba International Film Festival	2013	De Cuba soy – Anacaona – Colibrí
2011	20th edition of the Santa Lucia Jazz festival	2019	Lágrimas de la cantante Cassandra Nuñez –Egrem
2012	PDVSA Salsa Festival, Venezuela	2020	Pa mi tres, Egrem – Soundwear Production
2019	Salsa Festival in Bogotá Colombia Park
2020	Jazz Plaza Cuba Festival. Collaboration with Dominican-American Cassandra Núñez.
2020	Concerts and show in tribute to the bolero and its relationship between Mexico and Cuba, Mexico City, under the direction and musical production of Rosario Castro.

If you want to contact this great artist:

Contacto: https://www.facebook.com/yarima.blanco.79
Email: [email protected]