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Story of achievement and dedication of Yoshie Akiba

Yoshie Akiba, Life and Achievements

Yoshi’s has become one of the most famous and frequented places in the San Francisco Bay Area thanks to its delicious food and the quality of its shows demostrates the great work its owners and team do on making this a very special place for anyone who goes there. However, the idea of a place like this did not come up overnight and it was not an easy process. This is clear upon seeing the story of Yoshie Akiba.

Yoshie Akiba, who is one of the founders of Yoshi’s in Oakland and San Francisco

Interesting story of Yoshie Akiba

Yoshie Akiba, founder of Yoshi’s, is a native of Yokohama, Japan, where she lived in an orphanage during a childhood filled with shortcomings of every kind. According to Akiba in some interviews, there was a U.S. naval base very close to this orphanage where children were invited on special occasions such as Christmas, Thanksgiving, among others. Of course, including her.

In view of the bad quality of the food, little Yoshie felt in paradise whenever she was invited to the base, a place where there were always musical bands (some played Latin music) which performed to entertain those present. These days were engraved in the girl’s memory and she would remember them forever.

After growing up and receiving some training in singing and dancing at a very young age, she met a naval officer named Chris through a friend of hers, who offered to take her to the United States and pay for the dancing and music classes she needed to be a professional. This is how Yoshie and the young soldier traveled to the United States when she was 19 years old.

Yoshie grew up in an orphanage and went to the United States when she was 19 years old

Unfortunately, the union between both did not work, so they decided to go their separate ways and Yoshie went to Berkeley to continue studying dance on her own. Due to her complicated economic situation, she came to an agreement with some young people she met in that city to stay in a room in exchange for cooking and cleaning for them. This was until she got a job as a seamstress at the Andre Godet’s clothing store.

It was not long before Akiba, Kaz Kajimura and Hiro Hori founded Yoshi’s and opened their first place, which was very small and had only 20 tables. It became so popular among locals that they had to look for a place with much more space in order to meet the high demand from customers they were having. From the beginning, Yoshie knew she wanted much more than just a eating establisment, she also wanted a music club and was successful.

The new facilities they selected for Yoshi’s included a much larger restaurant area and a theater of sorts to perform bands. That’s how this place started to become a mandatory stop for anyone touring the West Coast. Today, it is one of the most famous clubs in and around the San Francisco Bay Area and features all kinds of artists and bands from all genres and nationalities although it was conceived as a venue specialized in jazz and Japanese culture at the same time.

Yoshie is a cultural icon in the San Francisco Bay Area

Acknowledgments to Yoshie Akiba for her social and cultural work (título 3)

Ms. Akiba has been recognized as a cultural and community activist who has made major contributions to music and culture in the Bay Area. So much so that the California State University has recognized her great work by granting her with an honorary doctorate in Fine Arts from this alma mater.

She has also contributed greatly to education thanks to his non-profit organization called 51 Oakland, through which she promotes opportunities for the young talents of the city in music and arts. In addition, Yoshi’s two headquarters provide large donations to help arts departments at schools and universities throughout the Bay Area.

For these things and many more is that Ms. Yoshie Akiba is a leading figure in the Berkeley and California music scene in general. Her work speaks for itself.

También lee: Orquesta La Moderna Tradición frontman Tregar Otton talked to us

 

 

 

 

 

Musical memory and Alzheimer’s

Why musical memory is important

Memory is extremely important for people’s mental health and life in general, but there is no denying that it is even more important for those working in the entertainment industry. This is where the so-called musical memory comes in, which is what we are going to talk about at this time.

Musical memory is so important for musicians and those working in the entertainment industry

Musical memory can be defined as the ability to retain, remember and memorize musical pieces and fragments, so that they can be correctly performed by a musician. Within this concept, there are several types of musical memory today. There will be a type of memory more useful for some than for others, depending on the professional field.

Types of musical memory

There are several classifications of musical memories, so we will try to mention some of the most important ones in this section according to the research we have done. These are some of the most frequently mentioned, but there are many others.

  • Mental memory: mental memory is the one that a musician should use in order to be aware of written music while reading it. This is how this symbol set can be perceived as a concept or idea that including understanding of a number of aspects such as rhythm, melody, harmony, among others.
  • Auditory memory: this type of memory is what allows musicians to retain memories in the form of sound and helps them to know for certain if a sound is in tune or out of tune.
  • Muscle memory: this part of the musical memory is the one that fixes motor and tactile sensations in the brain. It is thanks to it that musicians can play each and every one of their notes without having to think about all of them at the same time.
  • Visual memory: while it is true that a musician does not need to see to be able to play an instrument, it can greatly help to enrich the memory. Vision is important when knowing the hand and finger positions in the instruments and the memorization of sheet music.
  • Emotional memory: emotions are extremely important at the time of remembering things, especially if they are very important to us. Many serious studies have shown that human emotions play a fundamental role in the preservation of memories. In the case of a musician, the more emotional he/she is while playing an instrument, the easier it will be for his/her brain to remember the actions and have the necessary thoughts to proceed.

Relationship of musical memory with Alzheimer’s

Music is stored in the frontal lobe

Contrary to what many may think, Alzheimer’s does not take away 100% of the sufferer’s memories, and a perfect example of that is music. We all know how devastating this terrible disease is for the brain, especially for everything to do with memory, but for some reason, a huge percentage of those affected keep their musical memories, even in the worst stages of this disease. This is because music is stored in brain areas different from other memories.

According to studies conducted in some of the patients, there isevidence that music is stored in a network in the frontal lobe, which has come to be called the disco of human beings. It is in this part of the brain that auditory memory, including songs, is managed. The unusual thing is that Alzheimer’s greatly affects this area, so it is very curious that these memories remain intact despite the damage suffered.

What some researchers in the field have done is to monitor which brain areas are activated when listening to songs. Once these areas are identified, they proceed to find out if they are atrophied, pr on the contrary, if they resist the disease in a better way.

There are many patients who do not even know their own names, but they remember the songs that caused them intense emotions. This is because the brain experiences listening to music in a different way from remembering and memorizing it. Both processes are carried out by this organ of the body in a totally different way, and science is shedding more light on this important subject every day.

The brain experiences listening to music in a different way from remembering and memorizing it

The most fundamental aspects of musical memory are processed in brain areas linked to semantic, episodic and autobiographical aspects. However, medical and scientific professionals are still very prodent in relation to this subject, because it is not easy to find so many test subjects to conduct studies of this type, so all this is still not enough to draw definitive conclusions.

Music as part of potential treatments for Alzheimer’s

Yet there is still much to investigate on all of that, research has become known that music can be highly beneficial to Alzheimer’s patients. Even if music is not the cure they so desperately need, they can benefit a lot at the emotional and behavioral level. It can help reduce stress, agitation, depression and anxiety.

It can also help relatives relax and connect with their loved ones at levels they have never imagined. In such cases, it is recommended to find the music preferred by the patient, establish patterns with it, encourage hand or foot movements, sing along and pay close attention to patient’s reaction.

It is from there that the medical team attending each case can determine which the best alternative for each case, since each one is different.

Versatile multi-instrumentalist, producer and arranger, Taylor Aranguren

In Barquisimeto, a city catalogued as the musical capital of Venezuela, there are musicians of excellent quality and one of them is the versatile multi-instrumentalist, producer and arranger, Taylor Eduardo Aranguren García, a young man born in the aforementioned city on August 2, 1991.

Taylor plays piano, bass and trumpet to perfection. His musical beginnings were in 2003 and in 2005 he had the great honor of joining the Lara State Symphony Orchestra, accompanying the “Sonero del mundo” Oscar D’León in a concert held at the “Coliseo Hípico” of the twilight city of the country.

Then in 2005, he makes artistic life in Puerto la Cruz, Anzoátegui state; in 2007 he moves to Colombia, in 2009 he returns to Caracas as a member of the Staff of the television program “Súper Sábado Sensacional”; then in 2010 he travels to Beijing to perform musical works, later in 2012 he accompanies Maelo Ruiz on a tour of Venezuela, later he is contacted by the Band of Benjamin Rausseo, humorist known as “Er Conde del Guácharo”.

In 2014 he joins Óscar Arriaga and Néstor Rivero ex-vocalists of “Los Adolescentes”, directing them as musician and arranger and additionally they record with the musicians: Diego Galé, Ytúrvides Vìlchez, Franco Lemus and Freddy González, achieving successful concerts in countries such as: Dominican Republic, Peru, Colombia, Chile, Ecuador, Panama, United States, Mexico, Italy, Germany and Spain.

And with this preamble of his artistic career, consequent readers, we welcome again, to the column “Salsa Escrita” to one of the best musicians of our country.

Greetings Taylor, it is an honor to have you as a special guest in International Salsa Magazine, “the Only Salsa Magazine in the World”.

Thank you Professor Carlos, for giving me the opportunity to be in your well read column “Salsa Escrita”, through this prestigious media and to be able to interact with all readers nationally and worldwide, making known my projects and part of my artistic life.

Taylor to begin with, we want you to tell us about your role as an arranger and to which artists you have done your musical works?

Ok my friend Carlos, let me tell you that I was arranger and musician in the production “Quintero Salsa Proyect” with the Quintero brothers (Luisito and Roberto Quintero) on that occasion with the song “Chamito Candela”, performed by Gustavo Aguado and Luis Fernando Borjas of Guaco, I also had the pleasure of arranging the song “No lo Beses” in the voice of my uncle Jorge Luis Suarez (former singer of Oscar D’Leon), also the song “Chismoso” by Marcial Isturiz; “Te Quedas” interpreted by José Alberto “El Canario”, in the same way “Te amo y punto” with Óscar Arriaga, I also made arrangements for the last movie of “Er Conde del Guácharo” and many more that at the moment do not come to my memory.

Very good Taylor, Congratulations, but we are curious to know in which facet you feel better, as a musician or as an arranger?

Professor, it is different to feel as an arranger, it is cool because it is a work or a child that comes out of your guts, it is something that you create, it comes from you and you enjoy it a lot, but playing live is a feeling in the moment, you know, enjoy the stage, the musicians, but I like the recording more, both for me are super important.

Excellent, now which singer, arranger and percussionist would you like to record and play live with?

Well, as a singer would be Oscar Arriaga, in percussion, Luisito Quintero and arranger I would like to share with Oscar Ivan Lozano, a great brother from Colombia, director and arranger of “Grupo Niche”.

Taylor, can you tell us about the work you have been doing with the ex-vocalists of Adolescentes Orquesta?

Actually I am working sporadically with some of them and right now I am in alliance with former teenagers from Venezuela who are currently based in Bogota and God willing at the end of July we will be touring throughout Colombia.

My friend Taylor, do you have planned this year some shows where you accompany as a musician to some recognized artist?

Well yes brother, in mid-July I will be accompanying Andy Montañez and Maelo Ruiz in Buenos Aires – Argentina and then I’m going to Uruguay with my project Taylor Aranguren to a concert in the city of Montevideo.

And in relation to the recording of the video, “Taylor Aranguren and his Venezuelan salsa” which would be captured for DVD format and would be recorded in Barquisimeto and where they would be invited figures such as: Luisito Quintero, Roberto Quintero, Edward Montoya, (Willie Colón’s trombonist), Rónald Borjas, Rónald Gómez, Jorge Luis Suárez, Wilmer Lozano, Toñito León “El Bebé Salsero”, Marcial Istúriz, Hildemaro, Mariana “La Sonera de Venezuela”, among others; it is still standing? Tell us:

Let me tell you professor Carlos that for reasons of the pandemic everything was suspended and thanks to God I already have almost certain date between November and December of this year 2022 and we will record it in the city of Sol Miami – Florida and the reason for the change of city is because of the ease that almost all the artists and musicians are there and the logistics and sponsorship is broader, many producers have been interested and for that reason, it is less expensive and after that recording I am committed to do a concert with them in the city of Barquisimeto.

My friend Carlos, I take this opportunity to tell you that in August I have a tour in Europe with Maelo Ruiz and David Pabon but I am waiting for the confirmation of my friend also from Lara, Yomar “Caballito” Mendez and for my album that will be released with God’s favor at the end of the year, Rónald Borjas has already recorded, Óscar Arriaga, Néstor Rivero, Benjamín Rausseo, Erick Franchesky, Luis Matheus from Colombia, Rodrigo Mendoza, Sócrates and soon Oscar D’León, and I am also making some arrangements for Luis Fernando Borjas ex Guaco.

Excellent Taylor, we would like to know your social networks and also wish you the best of success and many blessings for exalting and putting up the name of our country outside our borders, demonstrating your quality as a musician; you know that you always have our support in all projects you undertake in your artistic career.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thanks a thousand, my friend Professor Carlos Colmenárez and INTERNATIONAL SALSA MAGAZINE through www.SalsaGoogle.com for giving me the support not only to my person, but also to many artists of Venezuela that day by day we work for our Latin music, also on behalf of this server Taylor Aranguren, I wish you the greatest success in your work and continue to make us known worldwide, to finish you can follow me through @Taylorarangurenpiano.

Hasta la próxima y sigamos salseando!

Article by Correspondent: Carlos Colmenarez

Yissy García Calzadilla, former member of the Anacaona Orchestra, plays drums, timbal and bongo

On May 29, 1987, in Havana, Cuba, Yissy García Calzadilla was born.

With a great musical heritage that comes from her father and inspiration, Bernardo Garcia, who is a drummer of the ICRT Orchestra.

Since she was a child she has been inclined towards percussion and has her father as her first teacher.

At the age of 9 she began her elementary music studies at the “Manuel Saumell” school, later attending the Amadeo Roldan Conservatory where she excelled in the school’s Charanga band and was also a member of the Youth Symphony Orchestra.

As a student of the conservatory in 2004 she traveled to the island of Guadeloupe as part of a cultural exchange between music schools in both countries.

Also in 2005 she was invited as a soloist in the paila (Cuban percussion instrument) to play with the National Symphony Orchestra of Cuba under the direction of the prestigious conductor Zenaida Romeu. In the same year she obtained the Special Prize of the “Fiesta del Tambor” contest.

In 2006 he travels to Barbados to participate with the “Quinteto Chico de la Habana” (a group of outstanding students of the conservatory) in the Barbados Jazz Festival and shares the stage with prestigious jazzmen such as Horacio Hernández (El Negro), Giovanni Hidalgo, Arturo Tappin (saxophonist) and Roy Hargrove (trumpeter), his performance is reviewed by international television stations and for the English newspaper Daily Niticns.

In November of the same year he obtains a Special Performance MECION at the International Festival of Young Jazz Players “JOJAZZ” and plays drums with the Big Band of Canada.

It is in this same year that she graduates in Percussion with excellent grades.

Once graduated, she joined the female orchestra Anacaona with which she made multiple performances on stages all over the country, and also performed on national television and radio, recorded the album “No lo puedo evitar” for the Bis Music label, and has also accompanied the Buena Vista Social Club diva Omara Portuondo.

With a small orchestra format, he recorded in 2008 the song “Parampampán”, for the musical film: “Chico y Rita” by the Spanish filmmaker Fernando Trueba. And also participates in another recording of traditional music with an American singer, both in the Areito studios of the EGREM.

In 2009 she made two important international tours with Anacaona, first in several Canadian cities, among them, performing at the “Art Jazz Festival” in Toronto, and in the Lula Lounge of the same city, the “30th Montreal International Jazz Festival”, alternating with the famous salsa singer “La India” with whom she was also invited to play, During the days of this great festival she participated very actively in various Jan sessions with Canadian musicians and musicians from other countries, in the city of London in the “Sunfest”, the Festival “La Nuit de Africa” in Montreal in its 27th edition and in the cities of Chicoutimi in the Festival “Rhythms of the World” and in the City of Quebec in its festival “Musics of the World” in addition to other venues in some of these cities, monopolizing in all many applause and congratulations for his outstanding performance.

In September 2010 the Aruba Jazz Festival is presented where they have the responsibility to close the festival and also perform with great success with saxophonist David Sanborn with whom they have the honor of downloading to close his performance the first day of the festival, for all this they are welcomed with great success by the public and the press.

He has worked in Cuba with other important jazzmen such as Alexis Bosh and Orlando Cubajazz.

He also performs for a special program on French TV channel 33 about his musical life and appears on a web page of the Spanish magazine “The H”.

He competes again in the JOJAZZ Contest and obtains the 2nd place in interpretation.

He has also recorded the Cuban Television program “A todo jazz” with trumpeter Roberto García and saxophonist Emir Santa Cruz, and with the group “Joven Jazz” led by saxophonist Michel Herrera, with whom he also performs in Havana’s Jazz clubs. He has worked with the outstanding trumpet player Yasser Manzano and his group.

In early 2010 he made the national tour of the singer Cucu Diamantes and also participates in the film that was recorded of the same.

In June 2010 he performed with Anacaona a successful tour of Curacao presenting the show “Viva Cuba”, in order to raise funds for the fight against breast cancer, organized by the Sinte Rose Foundation of that country and also close the 1st International Film Festival of Aruba.

Solo career

Yissy and Bandancha.

In 2012 she decided to embark on her solo career, debuting as composer and leader of the project YISSY & BANDANCHA, a quintet that develops jazz from the fusion with other genres.

She is regularly invited to participate in the most important festivals in Cuba, such as Jazz Plaza, JoJazz, Ellas Crean, Havana World Music Festival, among others.

Along with her project, she develops an intense work of collaboration in record productions and with various artists and recognized groups in the country, as is the case of Interactivo, Alexis Bosch and Telmary Diaz.

In 2014 he participated in Argentina in the festival El sur suena a cubano, along with Kelvis Ochoa, William Vivanco and Yusa, whom he also accompanied on his tour of Japan. He participated in the recording of the album Feeling Marta, by singer Gema Corredera, and accompanied the Buena Vista Social Club diva, Omara Portuondo, on her tour of Mexico.

Since that same year and until now, he is part of the line up of the band Maqueque, led by the renowned Canadian saxophonist Jane Bunnet, with whom he has played in the most important festivals in Canada and USA, in addition to having recorded the album Jane Bunnett and Maqueque, winner of the 2015 Juno Award for Best Jazz Album.

She began 2015 with the recording of her debut album Última noticia, and with a tour with her band YISSY & BANDANCHA through several cities in the USA.

She was included in a documentary for Brazilian TV directed by filmmaker Max Alvim, which aims to collect the most outstanding of the vanguard of Cuban jazz today.

She was part of the concert Women of the World, led by M Alfonso. She participated, together with Brazilian artist Baddi Assad, in the Les Voix Humains festival, held in Havana and organized by the Leo Brouwer Office.

Invited by the prestigious drummer Terri Lyne Carrington, she gave a clinic on Cuban rhythms at Berklee College of Music.