Search Results for: Trumpet and Percussion

Arturo “Chico” O’farrill

North America / United States / New York

Arturo “Chico” O’farrill “The Afro-Cuban Jazz Architect”

Arturo O’Farrill or better known as “Chico” O’Farrill was born in Havana (Cuba) on October 28, 1921. He was the son of a recognized Jewish family whose father was an eminent lawyer whom one day decided to immigrate to the United States. Arturo undertook his studies at the Riverside Military School in Gainesville, Georgia (interned by his father).

He began to love the jazz orchestras (big bands) and within that environment he fed musically, listening to recordings of Benny Goodman, Artie Shaw, Glenn Miller, and Tommy Dorsey, so much, that in a brief time he learned to plays the trumpet and became the trumpet player of the military band as well as the several dance groups.

Years later, Chico returned to Cuba. He studied law and at the same time developed his facet as a composer, receiving a composition and harmony study with the master, Félix Guerrero. Likewise, he was also Armando Romeu Bellamar Orchestra’s member and the Isidro Pérez Orchestra, when the Son and the Mambo prevailed in the Latin music.

TRAJECTORY

From 1943 to 1947 “The Afro-Cuban Jazz Architect” worked at the cabaret Montmartre. He was a member of Bellamar Orchestra, directed by Armando Romeu and integrated by Luis and Pucho Escalante, Gustavo Mas and Mario Romeu, among others. He traveled to Mexico and Europe as a trumpeter musician as well as he created the band, Los Raqueteros del Swing, being the director and trumpet.

Subsequently, he founded Los Beboppers (the first group of Cuban bop), which was presented at the Saratoga Hotel with Chico again as the director and the trumpet.

In the ‘50s decade began the successes for Chico as an arranger, working briefly for several orchestra directors, such as Gil Fuller, Noro Morales, Frank “Machito” Grillo, and Benny Goodman.

In the same way, he composed his first great masterpiece “Afro-Cuban Jazz Suite” in five movements: Song, Mambo, 6/8, Jazz and Rumba Open. This masterpiece was made and recorded for the businessman Norman Granz’s label, using the Machito’s Orchestra as an accompanist and rhythmic base.

“Afro-Cuban Jazz Suite”, according to Luc Delannoy: “begins and ends with a hypnotic flute and conga duo that reflects the essence of Cuban treatment; the union of musical universes: the European (the flute) and the African (the conga).

To these two instruments is joined the oboe, followed by the trumpets, saxophones and the “Tumbao” of the double bass… After a return to swing and bebop in the fourth movement, Chico takes us to the origins of Latin jazz with a melody of clear Arabic accents, before sinking back into the universe of Afro-Cuban percussions”. Likewise, for Benny Carter, this Suite was: “The reason for the coherence of the rhythmic parts and their relationships with the solos that have their own life and independence, Masterpiece of a genius.”

In New York and following the success of “Afro Cuban Jazz Suite”, O’Farrill writes “Cuban Fantasy” for Stan Kenton, who later changes its name to “Cuban Episode”.

In 1953 he traveled to California, where he founded his orchestra that included renowned musicians such as Mario Bauzá, Doug Mettome, Jimmy Nottingham, Eddie Bert, Fred Zito, Lenny Hambro, Flip Phillips, and saxophonist Eddie Wasserman. The orchestra used the rhythm section of the Machito’s Afro-Cuban, harp and oboe. With this concept he recorded for Norman Granz, performed in Birdland (New York), and the Hat Ballroom located in Los Angeles. In this period he composed three new movements: “La Jungla”, “Contraste”, and “Rhumba Finale”, baptized as “Manteca Suite” recorded with the Jazz player Dizzy Gillespie and orchestra of 21 excellent musicians in 1954.

He returns to Cuba again in 1956 to be inspired and immediately began working for the best record companies on the island such as Panart and RCA Víctor, recording “Chico’s Cha-Cha-Cha”, adapting the Charanga rhythm to the big band format. This album is released, one more time, on compact disc by BMG during the last decade of the twentieth century. Chico also made a recording for the popular D’Aida Quartet and arrangements for Bola de Nieve and the famous Orchestra Director, Aldemaro Romero.

In 1958 the restless O’Farrill moved for Mexico, an essential platform for all Latin American musicians at that time. There he returned to create another special sound and appears on television as musical director of the Andy Russell singer, and there his life changed radically. He started a semi-retirement period, but never stopped creating music. At that moment, he composed his famous “Azteca Suite” for trumpeter Art Farmer, and he made history again!

In the 60s he returned to New York and makes arrangements for such important figures as La Lupe (They Call Me La Lupe); Cal Tjader (Along Comes Cal); Clark Terry (Spanish Rice); Count Basie (High Voltage); Gato Barbieri (Chapter Three: Viva Emiliano Zapata); Ringo Starr (Night and Day) and dabbled in the Rock music with David Bowie (I Know It’s Gonna Happen, Looking for Lester), and finally he was director of the Aldemaro Romero´s Orchestra.

This stage extends until the end of the 20th century, although already in the 70s, the big bands go down in history for several genres that would be manifested due to their novelty and immense popularity in the United States and around the world. The architects of the new fashion used new techniques, styles, and sounds, especially in the field of harmonization. Suddenly popular music stopped being exclusively for the ballroom and -of course- “new sound” icons appeared in the Jazz Music. For this reason, Chico O’Farrill begins working in the lucrative field of music for television commercials.

In the mid-1990s, “The Afro-Cuban Jazz Architect” was contacted by American producer and Jazz director Todd Barkan with Pure Emotion, a compiled of his musical career with which he got a nomination for the 37th edition of the Grammy awards.

O’Farrill toured Europe with his orchestra in 1996 and recorded his latest album titled “Heart Of A Legend”, which contains 14 tracks, a formidable orchestra of 18 masters and a staff of international artists. The arrangements of “Heart Of A Legend”, considered for many as the best album of his career, took care by himself and the musical direction was entrusted to his son, Arturo O’Farrill Jr., a formidable pianist and heir of his legacy.

Arturo “Chico” O’farrill died on June 29, 2001, in New York City at 80 years.

Undeniably, Chico for more than half a century was a great musical creator. He was at the forefront of an innovative style that many know as Latin Jazz nowadays, which was called at the beginning with many names, such as Cuban bop, Mambo Jazz and Afro-Cuban Jazz.

Our dear “AFRO-CUBAN JAZZ ARCHITECT” Until forever!

In memory of 18 years of his passing!

Balazo de Norteamérica:

Arturo “Chico” O’Farrill

“The Afro-Cuban Jazz Architect”

In memory of 18 years of his passing!

Alex Sánchez “Salsa has always had a special place. It is a genre that will never go out of style ”.

Latin America / Venezuela / Miranda

Mulato en Rumba his greatest bet Alexis José Sánchez:

He is a versatile artist, who like many other musicians begins his training from home, with his brothers he learned to play the cuatro and the guitar, this motivated him to continue his formal studies at the School of Music “José Lorenzo Llamozas”, where he also studied trumpet alongside maestro José “Cheo” Rodríguez; He jointly studies Afro-Latin percussion with maestro Orlando Poleo, Barloventeña percussion with Alfredo “Pandilla” Bolívar and Arturo Piñango, African percussion with José Shalons and Yonder Rodríguez.

At the “Nicomedes Marrero” Cultural Training Center in Tacarigua, he took piano lessons with professor Manuel Sepúlveda, Afro-Venezuelan percussion with maestro Alexander Livinalli and Choral Direction in the free art workshop of “Río Chico”.

Photo- Alex Sánchez — Photo by Alex Sánchez

Although he was born in the city of Caracas, all his life he has lived in the Barlovento region, an area with a great cultural and musical richness, there he also performs the role of teacher, being a facilitator of the Afro-Barloventeña, Afro-Venezuelan and Afro-Venezuelan percussion chairs. Afro-Latin, in School District No. 4.

From a very young age he has been linked with the traditions of his town; Tacarigua. This young man is an active part of the cultural development of the area and together with his wife Yermy Martínez and his mother-in-law Zenaida Gamboa, founders of the group “Danzas Tacarigua”, they are in charge of training the youth of relief, in order to keep the demonstrations alive. traditional barloventeñas for many generations.

Sánchez, assures us that he has a great responsibility, to preserve the legacy that the Africans left in their path through our land, that despite the obstacles he gets along the way to carry out his work, he is overcoming them one by one with perseverance and dedication. that love he feels for music, his family, his traditions and his other passion for teaching.

Salsa and Venezuelan Folklore, two different worlds, each rich and varied in rhythms and styles, however, it takes them by the hand, something that is not strange in a country where the mixture abounds, that we Venezuelans are the product of an ethnic and cultural mix.

How were your beginnings in music?

“I started in music at home with my brothers. I learned with them to play cuatro and guitar. That was the fundamental basis of what has been my musical career up to now and it also inspired me to continue with formal studies in music ”.

Your musical training has been very broad. Why did you decide precisely to specialize with the trumpet?

“I decided on the trumpet, since it has been the traditional instrument in my family, first my great-grandfather Gregorio Machado, then my great-uncle“ Perucho ”Machado and my brother Wilman”.

A man from Caracas who decides to emigrate to Barlovento Why not Barquisimeto or another region?

“My whole family is from Barlovento, since I was born I have lived here in Tacarigua, Brión municipality. After studying music I realize the musical wealth that exists in this region. That is why I decide to bet on the musical production of my homeland and also be part of that artistic movement that represents Barlovento and that has given so much to our country ”.

Composing and arranging music, the work that leads its creators and orchestras to position themselves in the first places. Which of your works as a composer and arranger have been positioned in that place?

“That is the dream of every arranger, to achieve that an orchestra reaches the first places of popularity and in sales. I haven’t had that luck yet, but it’s my dream as a songwriter. I have arranged for many orchestras that have been quite popular and are playing in various countries ”.

Alex Sánchez — Mulato in Rumba your biggest bet

There are many orchestras for which you have done this work, could you name them?

“I have arranged for orchestras and singers such as: Bailatino, Cheo Linares and his Orchestra, Víctor Cardona and the Salsa Machine, Cheo Navarro and his Tribute, Francisco Pacheco and his People, Hildemaro Jr., Orquesta Sarayé (Colombia), Orquesta La Suprema (Panama), Orlando Watussi and my musical project “Mulato en Rumba”, among other national artists “.

Percussion is another of its virtues, of the different rhythms. Which of them is more difficult to teach or learn?

“Percussion is a world that allows you to express yourself and make contributions based on its rhythmic quality. All rhythms have difficulties, but their great musical richness and the magic of the ancestral charge make it possible for us to digest them naturally ”.

“I invite the musicians and the community in general to come to Barlovento to learn about the regional culture, so that they learn to play Mina, Culo e puya, Quitiplás, Fulía and Parranda.”

In the vineyard of the Lord there is everything and for everyone. What has been the most difficult thing about this profession?

“Music gives you a lot of satisfaction, but around it there are circumstances that create disappointments – they can scam you, you have friction with colleagues, etc. – you will find obstacles, but I think that all this is overcome with perseverance and dedication to work. That is what it takes to stay in the musical world ”.

The Music Producer is the architect of a record. What do you feel at the end of each record? What do you feel at the end of each work done?

“Music production is hard work, bringing together musicians, writing and selecting songs, directing, molding and creating a pleasing product for the public, where feelings are reflected on paper, which in turn become sounds that will mark the life of anyone who is a music lover. That is the greatest satisfaction ”.

Each era has its ups and downs, do you think you can make a living from music?

“Of course, if we think of music as an industry we can find that starting from being a composer, arranger, through instrumentalist, singer, among other things, always keeping in mind the quality of the work to be able to sell it, it can be said that we are prepared to live from what we love to do ”.

How does it feel to be part of the cultural development of Barlovento?

“It is a great responsibility to know and feel that you are the bearer of such an important heritage for the development of the culture of an area where the legacy of the Africans who populated our lands will always prevail. Maintaining, disseminating and promoting the culture of my people through workshops, talks and exhibitions will guarantee that tradition is not lost and that these children and young people, just like I started, will be the future protagonists of the traditional Barlovento demonstrations. ”

Tell us about the Black Theater of Barlovento and Danzas Tacarigua. How do you undertake the preparation of the new generations so that the traditions last over time?

“The Black Barlovento Theater, a group that has 43 years of artistic experience, also proudly carries the cultural heritage of the Miranda State. It is and has been a great school for me for 27 years when I made my first presentation with this great family. I say that it is a great school because it is characterized by being an avant-garde group and that it has given me the green light and total confidence to develop and put into practice all the knowledge acquired musically throughout my career through the different productions of the theatrical works brought to the scene ”.

“Following this example and great experience with the Black Theater of Barlovento, we have been working with the Danzas Tacarigua group, directed and founded by my wife Yermy Martínez and my mother-in-law Zenaida Gamboa for 20 years, training children and adolescents in terms of traditional Venezuelan culture, emphasizing the Barloventeña. They are currently part of the main actors in the traditions of my Tacarigua people. It is an arduous work in favor of the diffusion of the same ”.

His wife is an active part of the Cultural development of the young people of Barlovento, here we could say that “Next to a great man goes a great woman”?

“When one is passionate and responsible with what he does, with his profession, his home, that is accompanied by a great companion, I thank my wife very much, a large part of who I am and what I have achieved is accompanied by her great support, she is passionate about what she does, and that gives me a lot of strength ”.

Salsa and Venezuelan Folklor take you by the hand, how does it unfold between these two worlds?

“Despite the fact that they are two different worlds and from different markets, I have tried to take them by the hand, since from a very young age I was linked with the tradition of my town and the Barloventeño region in general, participating in the demonstrations held throughout of the holiday calendar. The salsa world has helped me understand and handle our culture in a more respectful way through arrangements, compositions, and also when interpreting it”.

Flyer Alex Sánchez — Alex Sánchez & Mulato in Rumba

How do you see the sauce right now?

“Salsa has always had a special place. It is a genre that will never go out of style. We must thank the DJs very much, who, whether they like it or not, have been a fundamental part of the salsa being maintained over time, since the media have lost that interest in promoting and promoting new salsa talents for their music. respective development.

In Venezuela the salsa movement has suffered a lot, since orchestras and producers have had little support at the level of the music industry, since it has diverted its attention to urban genres, which according to them is the most commercial. Despite all this panorama, many musicians, singers, producers have made efforts to continue working in favor of Venezuelan salsa with what we call “record pocket” -hahaha-. All this so that his musical work does not remain only in a dream ”.

Barlovento and its sauce, what can you tell us about “Trabuco Barlovento”? “Trabuco Barlovento is an initiative of my cousin Richard Frías. He told me one day at a salsa concert held in Mamporal, seeing that the great stars were accompanied by musicians from Barlovento, -with all those musicians who are there you can make a blunderbuss that represents Barlovento- and that is how the group was born ” Trabuco Barlovento ”, with more than 10 years of artistic life and 1 recording production to be finished.

I remember that among those musicians who accompanied the artists were Rodolfo Rada (trumpet), Ángel González (saxophone), Darlin Palacios (trombone), among others who are today the fundamental pillar of this group. It has 14 members, where I work as the musical director and main arranger of this prestigious group”.

Orlando Poleo, a national and international percussion reference. What anecdotes do you have of his training with him?

“Orlando Poleo arrived in Tacarigua in 1986 as a percussion teacher at the” Nicomedes Marrero “Cultural Training Center, which was a great experience for me, since he was venturing into the world of Afro-Caribbean music”.

“I remember that once he came with his orchestra“ Casino ”and as he was quite advanced in his classes, he rewarded me by playing a song. It was the glory for me to play with the maestro. It was a great experience for the musicians of Tacarigua and other nearby towns because it helped improve playing techniques and understanding of the use of the clave. Much of that learning I apply to create arrangements. ”

He is a teacher and a student, what is more difficult for you to teach or learn?

“Both are difficult, because to teach well you must learn well.”

You are working with a new musical proposal. What do you have in store for us with the Mulato en Rumba project?

“Mulato en Rumba is my biggest bet. This movement has more than 15 years, began as “Alex Sánchez and his Orchestra” to accompany artists and participate in ¬estas and salsa events in the area. One day recording for another orchestra, we met my brother Edward Plater, my compadre Yoryi Pacheco and I fine-tuning details of what we had already recorded. We saw each other’s faces and said -Why don’t we make an orchestra that is ours? -; we always record and produce for others ”.

“It is then that we decided to set up and start this musical project with our own songs composed by Yoryi Pacheco and myself and arrangements made by me as well. The main members are: Yoryi Pacheco (singer), Edward Plater (trumpet), José Madera Niño (tumbadora), Jonal Rivero (trombone), Rodolfo Frías (bassist) and Alex Sánchez (trumpet, piano and musical direction). Soon our first record production will be ready, which has been done uphill because it is financed by “Pocket record”

–”jajajajajajaja”-.

That name sounds like ¬esta, joy and sauce. How was the name Mulato born in Rumba?

“This name was given to him by my friend and brother Cheo Linares. I told him that we had a new project and he told me

-The mulattoes are going to start partying in Barlovento- and from that moment we call ourselves “Mulato en Rumba”.

Creativity is in decline in Venezuela, you are a composer and arranger and many of the Salsa orchestras are betting on versions or tributes, they do not risk innovating, creating or inventing. What do you think about this matter?

“I think that covering is very fashionable, I think that for many people it is easier to live attached to the shadow of another than to risk producing their own.

Perhaps it is fear of failure due to the lack of support for the artist that exists in our country. There are those who do take risks and bet on other markets (other countries), where the appetite for good music is always thanks to the fact that in those countries there are people eager for new things. In our country that culture of wanting to hear something new and as the saying goes: “-No one is a prophet in his land-” has been lost.

If you bet on innovating and creating, what are the themes of your production?

“We have 10 songs, 2 versions and the other 8 songs are unpublished, we bet on ourselves, not to be in the shadow of others, here the lyrics and music are by José Madera Niño, and my person, Yoryi Pacheco also writes some of the topics. In the version of “Tú mi Delirio” I sing ”.

“The song, get ready, Dancer, the lyrics and the music are by Freddy Junior Solórzano.”

The support of the media is important to show the work done by national talent. Do you feel that there is little dissemination by the media to show the work done by the different groups?

“-Well-, in previous questions I have said that there is no support from the mass media. Hopefully that will end one day and they give importance to Venezuelan music and talent as much as they give it abroad.

La Payola, many criticize it and want it to disappear, however, there are musicians who contribute to this scourge that hurts everyone. Would you ever pay to play?

“I don’t agree with the Payola. Colleagues have told me that if they have done it that it is a rather shameful situation, since many times they have to play without any remuneration in exchange for playing on the radios several times a month. Personally, I would never pay for what he calls Payola ”.

What would be the good and not so good things about this beautiful but tough profession?

“I think there are more good things than bad things, and more when we take music as a profession. The musical world is very satisfying, since it makes you live unique experiences that fill your soul and spirit with joy ”.

Teacher, musician, arranger, music producer What do you feel you need to do?

“Learn, learn and keep learning to make good music and also be able to make” Mulato en Rumba “recognized nationally and internationally.”

His daughters have grown up in an environment full of music, tradition, folklore, they have the musical vein Sánchez, would you like them to be musicians, what legacy would you leave them?

“Hopefully they decide to be musicians, I would never force them to do something they don’t want to, because I think that everyone should do what they really like and are passionate about. The legacy that I will leave you will be all I can do in my musical life, since a large part of what I do is for my family. My daughters at their young ages have already been immersed in the artistic world, they sing, dance and participate in the cultural manifestations of our people. ”

In a word, who is Alex Sánchez?

“A fighter”.

Barlovento and Venezuela in one sentence

“My homeland, My Dear Homeland”.

Eiling Blanco Latin America Corresponded

The legacy of Leopoldo Pineda, the ambassador of the trombone in La Maquinaria Fania All Stars

The Dominican trombonist was part of Las Estrellas de Fania and stood out for his virtuosity on his instrument, as commented by musicians Joe de Jesús and Willie Álvarez.

Leopoldo Pineda, “Palma Sola” was born on May 8, 1939 in a small batey called Palma Sola, in Barahona, southern province, Dominican Republic.

El legado de Leopoldo Pineda, el embajador del trombón en La Maquinaria Fania All Stars

He passed away on June 27, 2019 in New York City. Due to his solvency on the instrument, Leopoldo was a participant in hundreds of salsa recordings for more than three decades.

At 80 years of age, Leopoldo Pineda, the Dominican trombonist who earned the respect of his colleagues in the most courageous years of salsa, has passed away.

A case of diabetes had undermined his health in recent years and the fatal outcome came on Thursday, June 27 in New York City.

In recent years, Pineda had been retired from musical activity, due to health problems and diabetes.

Willie Álvarez y Leopoldo Pineda (Foto Willie Álvarez)

He began at a very young age to seek out musical instruments. In his hometown, Pineda would often visit a neighbor’s house to watch him rehearse different instruments.

There he began his first lessons, learning to play trumpet and tambora.

He studied music at school for compulsory education and there he developed certain tropical rhythms.

In Barahona, there was a music school where Leopoldo graduated and later, because of his talent, he was referred to the National Conservatory of Music in Santo Domingo.

As he grew in knowledge, musically speaking, he learned to play several instruments, among them, the Saxophone and the Trombone, the latter being his weapon of choice for the rest of his life.

In his native Barahona, he was known as “Chanchito”, but it was at the Conservatory where the nickname “Palma Sola” was born, identifying him to his classmates by the name of the town where he was born.

After participating in various groups in the Republic, Leopoldo went to New York City and there he started playing with Tito Rodriguez’s orchestra in the 60’s.

He also recorded with Los Cachimbimbitos and Los Cachimbales.

He also recorded with Ismael Rivera’s Los Cachimbos and was producer of one of Milly Quesada’s first albums.

Musician Jimmy Bosch used to include Leopoldo Pineda in the select group of trombonists from whom he learned. Willie Colón, el Malo del Bronx, had emotional words for don Leo. Indeed, the Dominican Pineda is part of the glorious history of the best salsa, the one that was born in the neighborhood and that has deeply penetrated in this part of South America.

Alfredo de la Fe posted on his Facebook account: “Leopoldo Pineda, great musician, we played together with Típica 73 and Fania All Stars.

Lepoldo Pineda Trombonita de la Típica 73 y Fania All Stars

Then he began to walk the best paths of Salsa, being part of orchestras such as Típica 73, Orquesta Harlow, Willie Colón, Fania All Stars, Sar All Stars, Jose Mangual Jr, La Conquistadora, Jose Alberto “El Canario”, Rubén Blades, Orlando Watussi, Laba Sosseh, Monguito El Único and Héctor Lavoe, among others.

Fania Records

Mayito Rivera “El Poeta de la Rumba” was the distinctive voice of Los Van Van de Cuba

Mario ‘Mayito’ Rivera is, without a doubt, one of Cuba’s most outstanding contemporary singers.

For more than 20 years he was the distinctive voice and recognizable face of Cuba’s most famous musical group, Los Van Van.

Regardless of the musical genre he performs -rumba, son, salsa, bolero or timba, modern or traditional style, with strength and dynamism or with delicacy and tenderness, Mayito Rivera’s performances, with passages adorned with tremors and coloraturas, are always stellar.

Mario Enrique Rivera Godínez was born on January 19, 1966 in Pinar del Río, a province located in the westernmost part of Cuba and famous for its handmade Havana cigars.

It was there that ‘Mayito’ began his musical training as a child. Later, he moved to Havana, where he studied percussion at the renowned National School of Art (ENA), which he later extended with advanced studies at the Higher Institute of Art (ISA).

After completing his training, which lasted a total of 15 years, Mayito Rivera joined the musical ensemble of the well-known Cuban singer Albita Rodríguez.

Later, he played bass in the Moncada Group, a formation belonging to the Nueva Trova Cubana movement, whose renovating spirit is firmly rooted in traditional Cuban rhythms.

At the age of 26, Mayito was discovered by Juan Formell, the director of Los Van Van, an orchestra that by then had already become a legend. Initially hired to play bass and sing backing vocals, he soon established himself as the group’s lead vocalist.

Over the next 20 years, Mayito Rivera, more than any other musician, put his stamp on Los Van Van.

He burst onto the scene as the representative of a new generation of musicians, and his fresh style contributed to the group’s endurin Singer of the group’s countless salsa hits that were played in the discotheques, he has been nominated twice for a Grammy and won it once.

Mario ‘Mayito’ Rivera es, sin duda, uno de los cantantes contemporáneos más destacados de Cuba

At the same time, he was also working on other projects: in 1999 he released his first solo album, Pa’ bachatear.

Chappotín, in which he transports the past to our days with a brilliant interpretation of traditional Conjunto Chappotín songs.

But Mayito Rivera is not only a singer and percussionist. In 2005, he released Negrito Bailador, his second solo album, produced by the Timba label of the German music publisher Termidor, in which he performs only songs of his own composition.

The music, with a rumbero tinge, is fresh, lively and of timeless quality. Subsequently, Negrito bailador was marketed in the United States under the title Llegó la hora and was immediately nominated for a Grammy in the Best Salsa Album of the Year category.

Mayito Rivera is probably the most requested special guest by other Cuban orchestras; so much so, that in recent years he has sung with almost all of Cuba’s star casts.

Nor has his career suffered any interruptions since he left Los Van Van in 2011: currently, Mayito Rivera tours the whole world relentlessly, giving concerts in countries as diverse as the United States, Canada, Venezuela, Colombia, Mexico, Peru, Argentina, France, Germany, Denmark, Spain and Italy.

The great popularity and multiple talents of this ‘poet of rumba’ are reflected in his performances as guest singer for salsa greats such as Oscar D’Leon, Gilberto Santa Rosa, Issac Delgado, Adalberto Alvarez, Mayimbe, Son Como Son, Timba Live, Pupy y Los que Son Son, Charanga Latina, Havana D’Primera, Tumbao Habana and Elio Reve Jr, to name just a few.

In 2012, Mayito Rivera established himself as a permanent member of Los Soneros de Verdad, the most successful orchestra of the moment dedicated to son and its related rhythms, led by singer Luis Frank Arias.

Two sold-out world tours of three months each in Europe, Asia, Russia and the United States attest to the high quality and great interest in this amalgam of traditional son and the vocal artistry of Cuba’s most dynamic rumbero.

Mayito Durante más de 20 años fue la voz distintiva y el rostro reconocible del más famoso grupo musical cubano, Los Van Van

In 2014, the superstar will be touring with his own orchestra. But before that, from June to September 2013, he will give a series of concerts with Los Soneros de Verdad performing songs from his as yet unreleased album Alma de Sonero.

During this project he will return to his musical roots: son and rumba, bolero and guaguancó, both in their traditional interpretation and in their more modern variants.

The album Alma de sonero includes 11 tracks and will be released in September 2013 worldwide success.

The musicians include Alexander Abreu (Havana D’Primera) on trumpet, San Miguel Pérez on tres and Luis A. Chacón ‘Aspirina’ Bruzón on bongos and cajón.

Website: Mayito Rivera

Good initiatives must be shared!

North America - United States - New York

We were taking the Salsa exhibition to Puerto Rico for the I Encuentro de Coleccionistas de Salsa, we made an exhibition of the clothing, records and instruments used by the Fania All Star orchestra, Tito Puente, Héctor Lavoe, Adalberto Santiago, the Gran Combo and others. For the first time, the last “tuxedo” that Tito Puente used in his participation with the Orquesta Sinfónica de Puerto Rico was exhibited.

Spanish Harlem Salsa Music Gallery, offered an exhibition and Master Class on the history of Salsa at the Escuela Especializada en Música Jesús T. Piñero in Cidra, Puerto Rico. We transported ourselves to Puerto Rico in search of an opportunity to publicize the Salsa Museum-Gallery in New York.

This is part of the efforts being made for the participation and dedication that is made to the people of Cidra in the Desfile Nacional Puertorriqueño 2020 and that is locally coordinated by the Patronato Cidreño along with other civic and professional organizations.

We were able to benefit hundreds of students at this school who are precisely focused on music. The knowledge offered in the three conferences and being able to closely observe the exhibition helped to foster the enthusiasm of the students who make up the campus, unique in the mountains of Puerto Rico, dedicated to the creation of good musicians and knowledgeable in musical art.

We are dedicated to enhancing Latin music and offering spaces focused on arts education, accessible and friendly to the community as a strategic partner.

I thank valuable people such as Laura Torres, Silkia Vázquez, Wilson Nazario and Wilfrido Torres “Puruco” for all the attention and teamwork that we were able to develop during our visit. I cannot stop also thanking my assistant in Puerto Rico, Carmen Cruz; and to Joseph Cruz for his magnificent and beautiful work with me during this pleasant experience.

I also take advantage of this space in International Salsa Magazine because I want to tell you about an artist and a great friend who is doing his best for music and Salsa. Without a doubt, Yova Rodríguez is a long-standing professional who has developed countless projects and initiatives to support those who need it most. With his music, his work and his human quality, he has reached many hearts from New York.

Geovanni “Yova” Rodríguez Ruiz, born in Puerto Rico, had a musical inspiration since he was a child, his uncle Antonio “Toño” Ruiz – his mother’s uncle who played the cuatro – was his first music teacher (melody) and his uncle José Antonio “Pipo” Ruiz Crespo -mama’s younger brother- taught him how to sing aguinaldos (lyrics); and with this they formed the solid foundations that encouraged little Yova to prepare himself accordingly for his foray into the musical world.

The celebration of the Promesa de Reyes, a celebration in which he participated with his mother at his short seven years, leads him to worry about creating and recreating aguinaldos to be interpreted each year, which in some way becomes the seed of composer that we know today.

At the age of 14, he attended the Escuela Libre de Música Ernesto Ramos Antonini in Mayagüez, hand in hand with piano teacher César Toro, rising as vocal leader of the Orchestra after a year.

Years later he gave himself the task of forming his own musical concept, and thus Sakao Aká was born. This orchestra was in charge of accompanying singers such as Camilo Azuquita, Ray de la Paz, Pupy Cantor and Herman Olivera in their presentations in Puerto Rico; and the cover letter for some of these singers to integrate Yova as a chorus girl in their presentations in various countries in Central and South America.

At the end of the 90s, on a trip to Cuba, he was impacted by the music of Fernando Borrego Linares, better known as Polo Montañez, to the point that, some years later upon learning of his death, he had the idea of paying tribute to him, his musical reference, thus giving birth to the idea for her debut feature Homenaje a Polo Montañez (2005), a production of 10 songs by Montañez, and covered by Yova Rodríguez with the participation of renowned musicians from the patio such as Herman Olivera, Héctor “Pichie ”Pérez, Papo Lucca, Edwin“ Caneca ”Rosas, Edwin Colón Zayas, among others.

In 2008, like many of her compatriots, Yova prepares her luggage and heads to the southern United States, where she stays for two years and then moves to New York, a city that has become her center of operations and from where He has extended his working ties as a composer and where he records his next two productions.

The album Letras, canciones y sueños, musical work of 8 songs all written by Yova, comes to light after some years of having published his first production and of having worked silently composing and waiting for his opportunity. This possibility is materialized in 2013.

Already in 2015, the album Mi musa en las voces de mis amigos is released.

Recently, Yova Rodríguez has created more than 420 songs, and many of them have been duly registered with the American Society of Composers, Authors and Editors (ASCAP) under the registry “El Negrito De Delia Music” . “Exceso de amor” is the first composition he has interpreted and recorded; like the song “No me odies”, it is the first recording of a song by him made by a third party.

Now they are going to hear more from Yova, as some productions that will include her compositions are in the process of recording / publishing. Attentive to the upcoming releases of the young Puerto Rican percussionist José Jomar Marcano, the master trumpeter Luis González, the young trombonist, arranger musician and also singer Leo Morales; the renowned DJ Andy Rodríguez, better known as DJ ANDY and the Venezuelan sonero Marcial Isturiz .

As always, remember that Spanish Harlem Salsa Gallery is in 1708 Lexington ave New York N.Y. 10029. Open free to the public all Thursdays & Fridays from 4 to 7 pm and Saturdays from 1 to 8 pm. Check the updates in our website: spahasalsagallery.com.

Also, The Johnny Cruz Show, the # 1 Salsa Show on television on all 5 Boroughs of New York on CH67. Saturdays from 3:30 to 4:30 pm.

Contact: Johnny Cruz. 917-747-8505. [email protected]

By Johnny Cruz, ISM Correspondent, New York, New York