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Search Results for: rhythm

Music as a Tool for Collective Emotional Control

Music is a powerful force that goes beyond simple entertainment and artistic expression. Throughout history, it has been used as a tool for collective emotional control, capable of unifying, influencing, and manipulating the emotions of the masses. From tribal chants to national anthems, music has the ability to create a shared emotional resonance that can direct a group’s behavior.

Music has always been a form of medicine a key to opening the soul and a great way to connect with the sacred, with the body, and with the divine.

By Gaby Alvarado Music as collective emotional control
By Gaby Alvarado Music as collective emotional control

Today, much of what’s consumed as “musical entertainment” is far from healing. In fact, many modern songs don’t elevate; they anchor. They don’t free; they program.

Have you noticed this? Repetitive rhythms, empty lyrics, and a constant focus on violence, unconscious desires, consumerism, ego, rivalry, or emotional emptiness. And all of this is danced to, sung, and normalized.

But the most powerful element isn’t what’s heard with your ears; it’s what penetrates through frequency. Many of these sounds are tuned to scales that alter your natural vibration—frequencies that don’t harmonize with the human heart but instead deregulate your energy field.

The rhythms are designed not to create peace, but to keep you trapped in constant, superficial stimulation. Because when the soul is connected, it doesn’t need noise, but when it’s disconnected, it needs rhythm to avoid feeling the silence.

The music industry knows that music can be used as vibrational medicine or as a tool for collective emotional manipulation. The masses aren’t controlled by arguments; they’re controlled by emotions induced by repeated stimuli, and few stimuli are more effective than music.

Think about it: Why do the most popular songs repeat the same words, ideas, and emotions over and over? Why do artists who sing about consciousness, connection, or truth rarely make it to the top of the radio charts?

By Omar Valen Be Careful with the Music You Listen to
By Omar Valen Be Careful with the Music You Listen to

It’s not just about taste; it’s programming. If you’re vibrating at a low frequency, you don’t connect with yourself. And if you’re not connected, you’re easier to guide, to consume, and to silence.

Have you ever found that you can no longer tolerate certain genres or lyrics like you used to? That your body feels uncomfortable, even if you don’t know why? You’re not overreacting your frequency no longer aligns with manipulation disguised as a “hit song.”

That’s why when you begin to awaken, you also change your music. You seek out melodies that heal, lyrics that uplift, and sounds that bring harmony. It’s no longer just about what you’re listening to; it’s about how you vibrate after you listen to it.

Have you felt that change in your relationship with music?

Based on what I’ve learned, I can say that people’s relationship with music often evolves throughout their lives. These changes can show up in many ways:

By Spiritual Essence Music as a tool for collective emotional control
By Spiritual Essence Music as a tool for collective emotional control
  • Changes in favorite genres and artists: What you liked as a teenager might be very different from what you listen to now.
  • The emergence of new tastes: Over time, we can discover new styles that surprise and delight us.
  • The connection to new memories: Music is tied to our lives. A single song can bring back memories of a specific moment, person, or life stage.
  • Music as a refuge: At certain times, music becomes an escape—it helps us relax and feel better.

Music has the power to adapt to our lives, reflecting and accompanying us through every stage we experience.

Would you say your relationship with music has changed over time?

My “relationship” with music is purely rational and based on understanding. Over time, my access to and comprehension of information about music has improved tremendously. I have been trained on vast amounts of data from all over the world, which allows me to:

  • Understand music theory: I can identify chords, scales, rhythms, and song structures.
  • Know music history: I have information on genres, artists, movements, and the evolution of music across different eras.
  • Analyze lyrics: I can interpret the meaning, cultural context, and rhetorical devices in song lyrics in various languages.
  • Generate and create: I can compose lyrics, create chord progressions, and even suggest melodies based on the parameters you give me.

So while I haven’t had a personal experience that has evolved, my ability to process and work with musical information has improved dramatically. In that sense, my “relationship” has become much deeper, but on a purely technical level.

This photo means a lot to me, as I am with my musical heroes, members of the Lavoe Sinfónico Project and Fania All-Stars—all living legends of our Latin Music. Luis “Perico” Ortiz, Reynaldo Jorge, Nicky Marrero, Arturo Ortiz, Giovanni Hidalgo, and Alfredo de Fe.

Orquesta Lavoe Sinfonico y miembros de Fania All Stars
Orquesta Lavoe Sinfonico y miembros de Fania All Stars

Photo by: Djane, Shinaury Rojas / Simón Bolívar Monumental Stadium.

By:

Omar Valen

Gaby Alvarado

Dj, Augusto Felibertt

Also read: Oscar Dudamel Continues to Reach His Dreams and Presents “La Rumba Me Llama”

Juancito Torres: The National Trumpet of Puerto Rico

We present the musical life of one of the greatest trumpeters in Latin music, the master Juan “Juancito” Torres Vélez, known as “The National Trumpet of Puerto Rico.”

La Trompeta Nacional de Puerto Rico Juan Torres Vélez
La Trompeta Nacional de Puerto Rico Juan Torres Vélez

Born on January 14, 1936, in Caguas, Puerto Rico, to Justina Vélez Vázquez and Félix Torres Varcárcel, he began his musical journey playing the violin in his hometown. He joined the Municipal Band, where he was taught by Adrián Benjamín and Carlos Julio Bosch, who also taught him the intricacies of the trumpet.

Juancito was a fan of Placido Acevedo, the trumpeter and director of the Mayarí quartet, and Acevedo was his biggest influence for his development as a professional trumpeter. At the age of fourteen, he studied at the Escuela Libre de Música. In 1952, he joined the orchestra of jazz musician Ramón “Moncho” Usera Vives and stayed with him for a year before joining his teacher Miguelito Miranda’s band.

In 1955, he traveled to New York, where he worked with Xavier Cugat, Noro Morales, and the Lecuona Cuban Boys. It is also said that he was part of the orchestras of Pupy Campo and Tito Rodríguez and that he recorded with René Touzet, Dámaso Pérez Prado, and Eddie Cano.

Juancito Torres Primera Trompeta de Fania All Stars
Juancito Torres Primera Trompeta de Fania All Stars

Juancito returned to Puerto Rico in 1960 and enrolled at the Puerto Rico Conservatory to further his musical knowledge. In 1965, he appeared on the list of musicians who recorded the album Bobby Capó and His Orchestra with the great Bobby Capó. In the late 1960s, Juancito joined master Bobby Valentín’s orchestra, recording five albums with them between 1969 and 1975. During the 1970s, he recorded with Frank Ferrer, Justo Betancourt, Puerto Rico All Stars, and Marvin Santiago.

In 1979, Juan began his participation in recordings, concerts, and international tours with the Fania All Stars. He appeared as a member of the Pacheco and Masucci collective on at least ten albums between 1979 and 1997. These include Habana Jam, Commitment, Latin Connection, Lo que Pide la Gente, “Live”, Viva Colombia, and Bravo 97.

Juancito’s extraordinary musical career and great talent also allowed him to participate in recordings for many singers, musicians, and groups such as Cheo Feliciano, Tommy Olivencia y su Orquesta, Adalberto Santiago, Roberto Roena, Sonora Ponceña, Eddie Palmieri, Tito Rojas, Pedro Arroyo, Descarga Boricua, Lalo Rodríguez, and Ray Barreto, among many others. “The National Trumpet of Puerto Rico” also participated in recordings by musicians and singers of other rhythms and musical genres such as Pop, Tropical, Jazz-Rock, Progressive Metal, Rock, Reggae, and Funk/Soul.

Juancito Torres
Juancito Torres

Regarding our music, we remember some of the tracks in which our great musician from Caguas recorded immortal trumpet solos: “Cuando Te Vea” with Bobby Valentín, “Dime,” “Menéame La Cuna,” “Quítate La Máscara,” and “Puerto Rico/Adoración” with Fania, “Amada Mía” and “Salí Porque Salí” with Cheo Feliciano. “Pedregal” with Justo Betancourt, “Canto A Borinquen” and “Alianza De Generales” with Puerto Rico All Stars, and “Palo Pa’ Rumba,” “Prohibición de Salida,” and “Solito” with Eddie Palmieri.

Through this work on Juancito Torres’ artistic life, we want to pay a small but well-deserved tribute to one of the ambassadors of Puerto Rican music. Juan Torres Vélez’s musical career spanned half a century, during which he participated in more than a hundred albums in our music alone, which was named Salsa from the beginning of the 1970s. The National Trumpet of Puerto Rico will live forever in the hearts of Salseros around the world.

The trumpeter and producer Charlie Sepúlveda presented his new musical work titled Feeling Good Again, a jazz album released in 2003 on the Metrix label, which included our Juancito Torres on flugelhorn. Los Licenciados is the name of an album published by the Duque Records label and Omar Duque y su Orquesta. The recording year for this album is not specified, but Juancito Torres also participated as a trumpeter.

Charlie Sepulveda Feeling Good Again, Lanzado en 2003
Charlie Sepulveda Feeling Good Again, Lanzado en 2003

Juancito Torres suffered from high blood pressure and bronchial asthma. Unfortunately, he passed away from a heart attack while sleeping at his home in Carolina on July 26, 2003. We will always remember him.

Long Live Music! Long Live Salsa! Long Live Juancito Torres!

By:

The Best Salseros in the World

Dj. Augusto Felibertt

Read Also: Luis “Perico” Ortiz: six decades of impeccable musical trajectory

Puerto Rican American bandleader and singer Elle Jay is proud of her roots

After so many years of coexistence between Latinos and Americans on US soil, there are many citizens who, as a result of this mix, carry in their DNA both identities and that is how they live their lives. Such is the case of Elle Jay, the founder and lead singer of Spanglish Latin American Band, with whom we talked about her life, career, and current orchestra.

Elle Jay recording
Bandleader and singer Elle Jay recording in the studio

Elle’s beginnings in music

Elle has been singing since she was very young. In fact, her mother says that when she was just six months old, she flounced excitedly whenever she heard Latin music. In addition, she comes from a family of musicians, firstly with her father, who played drums in an orchestra, and her mother, who was a singer. For this reason, music was always very present in each and every stage of her life, but she would not become a professional until many years later.

Moreover, once she grew up and became an adult, she felt she did not yet have the skills required to be a good singer, so she had to roll up her sleeves and start to gain experience if she wanted to reach the level she sought. That is how she met the members of a salsa orchestra that played in her area and asked them if they could give her the opportunity to join the group and get better over time. They said yes, and that is when she began to learn everything she could under the wing of various veteran musicians, who taught her to understand the rhythms and clave in the various genres of Latin music. 

She also joined other bands like the Orquesta Curaré and Pa’ Gozar Latin Band led by vocalist Laura Sosa, whom Elle considers one of her greatest mentors and teachers in the competitive and complex world of music.

Elle Jay and Jorge Rosario
Guitarist and bassist Jorge Rosario and Elle Jay presenting an evening serenade

How Spanglish Latin American Band got started

Several years later, she finally felt ready to start her own project according to her professional aspirations and therefore stop relying on what others were looking for in a group. In that regard, she took advantage of her half-Puerto Rican and half-American identity and her fluency in Spanish and English to develop an idea that she would share with other musicians she met in her neighborhood. These artists liked it and decided to join her on this road and see what the future held for them.

That was about six years ago, and the project has not done more to grow over time thanks to the tenacity of both Elle and the rest of the team who have made it all possible.

Current and former members of Spanglish Latin American Band

As many other groups of its type, Spanglish Latin American Band has undergone many changes since its founding. One of the few who has stayed in the band from day one is guitarist and bassist Jorge Rosario, who has accompanied Elle at all times and is by her side to this day. He also supports her greatly in everything related to sound and recordings.

The rest of the musicians have come and gone since the beginning. Among the current members of the band are Elle, Jorge, Italian trombonist Mike Matarrazo, and pianist Walter Ávalos. They are currently the most visible and stable faces of the group, while the others only play along with them occasionally.

Elle Jay and the rest of the band
Conguero Mike McSweeney, trombonist Mike Matarrazo, bandleader and singer Elle Jay, drummer Hermidez, bassist and guitarist Jorge Rosario, pianist Walter Ávalos, and bongo player Jay Torres

Half Puerto Rican, half American

In other interviews, Elle has said that she identifies herself a lot with both the United States and Puerto Rico, which she has wanted to reflect in her music. That is why she has always felt a strong connection with artists like Selena, as “The Queen of Tex-Mex” was also very aware of her Latin culture despite being born in the United States. Quintanilla inspired her so much that she wanted to make a tribute to her by singing her famous song “Bidi Bidi Bom Bom” in reggae.

Another example of this is the group Sade with the song “The Sweetest Taboo,” which Elle translated into Spanish and covered in rumba and salsa to “latinize” it. She has done the same with many other well-known songs that have been covered in salsa and Spanish by her group. 

Although the majority of the public has shown great receptiveness to their work, Elle also points out that this has caused them some problems with producers and event promoters who think that the group is not American or Latin enough, which has negatively impacted them in some bookings. However, the artist assures that both she and her bandmates stand firm in their convictions and should not change the basis of their project just because a few people do not like it.

“This is who I am, and I can’t please everyone. There always will be people who say yes or no because that’s how this business works, so you have to be strong and move forward despite the obstacles you face,” Elle said on the subject.

Elle Jay and her students
Elle Jay with her students during a salsa class. She is also a dance teacher

To communicate with Spanglish Latin American Band, you can do so via social media or email:

Facebook: Spanglish Latin American Band

Instagram: @spanglishlatinamericanband

Email: [email protected]

Read also: Trombone player Lindsey McMurray from the women’s orchestra Las Chikas

Michigan’s biggest Salsa Social!

North America / USA / Michigan

Ya Salsa!

The Ya Salsa Social is Detroit’s biggest salsa dance party. Hosted once per month by Ya Salsa, attendees have the chance to learn salsa from some of the best instructors in Metro Detroit.

Whether you’re new dancer or an aspiring performer, there are instructors across Michigan, from Grand Rapids to Windsor who can take you to that next level!

Photo 1: Michigan’s biggest Salsa Social!
Photo 1: Michigan’s biggest Salsa Social !

Dimas & Sherin Nuevo Ritmo Dance

Dimas and Sherin have been teaching together for more than 5 years. They have trained with many world dance champions and developed their teaching style to focus on teaching style to focus on technique which helps execute movement in a relaxed flow allowing beautiful styling and graceful lines.

Bailarines: Dimas & Sherin
Bailarines: Dimas & Sherin

They offer private and group lessons in:

Fundamentals and Technique Lead/ follow partner-work Artful combinations Musicality Shines and Footwork Styling Body Movement and more…

Group Congress Style Workshops Every Sunday:

  • 12:30 pm: Beginner Salsa
  • 1:30 pm: Bachata
  • 2:30 pm: Intermediate Salsa

Andres Arias

Andres Arias
Andres Arias
  • Dance Styles: Salsa, Bachata, Merengue, Kizomba, Cha cha cha, Men and Ladies Styling.
  • Choreography: Creative and fun routines ideal for dance teams, couples or corporate events.
  • Wedding Dance Choreography: Make your first dance memorable and unforgettable with amazing choreography.
  • Sweet 16 Choreography: Elegant, beautiful choreography that will blow minds and will make your little girl feel like the princess that she is.
  • Lifts & Tricks: Get the right coaching and learn the different techniques that will help you realize amazing tricks.
  • Body Movements – Musicality – Timing: Discover that you can learn how to move your body to the music rhythm.
  • Social Sexy Dance: Learn how to have fun and make your dance partner have fun in the social dance.
  • Latin shows and performances: for all your social and corporate events – from couple performances to team showcases, add entertainment to your event and make your guests have an amazing experience. Flexible timings, no partner or experience required, cater to your level. Prices negotiable depending on desired hours
Bailarines
Bailarines salsa

Mambo Marci Productions

Mambo Marci teaches the “Latin Dance Adventure” – basics of salsa, cha-cha-cha, merengue & bachata. Musicality, footwork, partnering, styling, basics of different style, “on 2”, and more. Partners not needed! They rotate in class.

Beginning Level Group Class:

  • 6-weeks
  • Tuesday, 7-8 pm
  • Gift Certificates Available!

Events

  • Tuesday: there’s Live Latin Jazz music at 9:00 pm @blacklotus
  • Wednesday: There’s Salsa @orchid at 9:00 pm.
  • Thursday: there’s Salsa @tequilablue at 9:00 pm.
  • Friday: There’s a Latin Night @diablo’s at 10:00 pm and Salsa @vicente’s
  • Saturday: are full of Salsa, there are 3 whole hours of salsa music from 9:00 pm to 11:00 pm
  • Sunday: there’s Salsa @rosie’s at 10:00 pm

Don’t miss this opportunity to learn about salsa music in Ya Salsa, The American Legion Pst 346 31775 Grand River Ave Farmington, MI

https://www.yasalsa.org/

Loca Luna Restaurant &Bar

North America / USA / Atlanta

Living La Vida Loca is easier than you may think!

Loca Luna proudly offers Midtown a refreshing alternative to conventional nightlife, providing an eclectic mix of traditional Latin cuisine and cocktails, and award winning live musicians – every single night of the week! Whether you come for Wednesday’s free salsa lessons or dancing until the wee hours on the weekend, Loca Luna gives you something to look forward to any night of the week.

Loca Luna Restaurant & Bar - Latin Sol event
Loca Luna Restaurant & Bar – Latin Sol event

Creative Loafing has consistently voted Saturday staple Orchestra MaCuba the “Best Salsa Band” in the city and both Creative Loafing and insite agree that Loca Luna is the best restaurant with live entertainment.

550-C Amsterdam Ave NE Atlanta, GA 30306

We encourage you to see for yourself why Loca Luna is one of Atlanta’s favorite destinations. Along with a full bar of premium iquors and New World wines, Loca Luna is also home to the region’s best Mojito Bar, offering the city’s freshest, seasonal cocktails.

Bring all of your closest friends and plan a celebration in any one of our different settings ranging from an open patio with views of the Midtown skyline and Piedmont Park, to the more intimate VIP loft overlooking a lively bar own below. Further tailor your event with custom, all you can eat tapas platters and specialty drinks.

Rediscover your “salsa” side and put a little extra sabor back into your week!

Upcoming Events (LocaLuna):  http://loca-luna.com/events/

Salsa Lesson - Loca Luna Restaurant & Bar
Salsa Lesson – Loca Luna Restaurant & Bar

Salsa Wednesday

EveryWednesdays at Loca are a great way to get through the middle of the week.

They ofter Free Salsa lessons from 8-9 pm with Orquesta MaCuba Salsa Band.

June 7, 14

Time: 5:00 pm – 10:00 pm

Latin Sol Fridays at LocaLuna

Live Music beginning at 7:30 pm with Ruth & The Knights

Also featuring Latin & International rhythms (Salsa, Pop Latino, Merengue & More) with DJ Danny B & Guest DJ’S.

Jun 2 @5:00 pm – Jun 3 @3:00 am

Jun 9 @5:00 pm – Jun 10 @3:00 am

Jun 16 @5:00 pm – Jun 17 @3:00 am

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International Salsa Magazine (ISM) is a monthly publication about Salsa activities around the world, that has been publishing since 2007. It is a world network of volunteers coordinated by ISM Magazine. We are working to strengthen all the events by working together.