Salsa Orchestrations in the ’70s
The evolution of Salsa orchestrations during the '70s dramatically increased its popularity and established it as a solid genre of popular music, not a passing craze.
Salsa Music in the '60s
It started in the '60s when bands began to mix…
Jose Aguirre & Cali Big Band (Gente con Alma)
I was mesmerized when I heard the first notes of Jose Aguirre's Cali Big Band in "Gente con Alma". It just got better from there.
This album, nominated for Best Traditional Tropical Album at the 2021 Latin Grammy Awards, features a 23…
Mother of Song (Queen Marimba): Songs and History
It's a song, a protest, a call for justice! And it's framed in the sound and history of the Marimba. "Mother of Song (Queen Marimba)" captures it all.
As you know, I rarely write about singles, but this one merited an exception. I…
A Market for Hybrid Concerts
I believe that there is a market for Hybrid Concerts, where an artist performs in front of a (socially distanced and/or fully vaccinated) live audience and via streaming simultaneously.
The Case for Hybrid Concerts
The COVID-19 pandemic…
BMI Celebrates 2021 Hispanic Heritage Month
Broadcast Music Inc. (BMI) is celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month with several online events and other goodies. There are artists' interviews, panels, and a Spotify playlist that you can check out!
As you may know, Hispanic Heritage…
Carlos Henriquez “The South Bronx Story” Album Review
Carlos Henriquez, the talented Nuyorican bass player, released "The South Bronx Story" his third Latin Jazz album as a bandleader.
Henriquez is the bassist for Winton Marsalis' Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra and presented this project…
Larry Harlow: 3 Albums at Apex of Salsa
Larry Harlow recorded 3 albums that helped elevate the orchestration in Salsa music, and catapult the genre to its apex. These were "Hommy", "Salsa", and "Live in Quad".
In the first part of the 1970s, artists like the Palmieri brothers,…
Viva Netflix’ “Vivo”
Lin-Manuel Miranda did it again in Netflix "Vivo", an animated story anchored in Latin music.
In"Vivo", Lin-Manuel gets a little help from his friends Gloria Estefan (glad to see the Latin music diva back at work) and Cuban maestro…
Music & Domestic Violence: Salsa Clean-up
Following up on the previous blog on "Music & Domestic Violence", we look back at how Salsa music reflected our society's "machista" culture, contributing to this unfortunate behavior.
Salsa "Machista"
I'm using this term to describe…