LBMO.com - Latin Beat Magazine - Latin Music Magazine - Features http://www.latinbeatmagazine.com/features.html Home |Features | Columns |Hit Parades | Rev iews | Calendar |News |LB Style |Contacts | Shopping | E-Back Issues APRIL 2012 ISSUE FROM THE EDITOR Bienvenidos to Volume 21, Number 3, April 2012, issue of Latin Beat Magazine, celebrating our 21st anniversary (19 years on the newsstands and 2 years 100% online).Our cover story features the Barcelona, Spain based salsa ensemble "Bloque 53," who are enjoying the release of their third CD, "Tumba Puchunga" and getting ready to tour extensively throughout Europe this upcoming summer. Also in this issue you can enjoy "From Havana to Hamburg: The Positive Musical Energy of Ricardo Alvarez & Cubanísimo" by Luis Tamargo. Nelson Rodriguez compiled a "Salsa Radio Host list" of active salsa and Latin jazz radio shows from all over the planet. This listing will stay posted throughout the year allowing us to update it monthly. Photo journalist Ricky Richardson was present at the "Afro-Latino Festival at Long Beach's Museum of Latin American Art." Visit our video corner, streaming music, national and international hit parades, and our popular monthly columns. Musically yours, Rudy & Yvette Mangual Bloque 53 Cogelo Ahi Windows Media Quicktime BLOQUE 53: Barcelona's Salsa Machine Chico Álvarez By Rudy Mangual El Indio Caonabo Windows Media Quicktime Bio Ritmo La Muralla 1 of 49 4/30/2012 8:43 PM LBMO.com - Latin Beat Magazine - Latin Music Magazine - Features http://www.latinbeatmagazine.com/features.html Streaming Music Louie Cruz Beltran Paint the Rhythm Windows Media Quicktime Cintron Band Live Human Nature Windows Media Quicktime Vanelis Como Lo Extraño Windows Media Quicktime Nayibe Borinquen Windows Media Quicktime Luis González Spain Windows Media Quicktime Rolando Sanchez Vamonos De Fiesta Windows Media Quicktime Steve Pouchie Watch Ur Wallet Windows Media Quicktime What do the Joe Cuba Sextet, Rubén Blades' Seis del Solar, and the New Swing Sextet have in common? Well, aside from being amongst some of the more innovative salsa groups of all times, they all used the vibraphone as their lead melodic instrument, while omitting the utilization of any Somos Son horns in their arrangements. Bilongo 2 of 49 4/30/2012 8:43 PM LBMO.com - Latin Beat Magazine - Latin Music Magazine - Features http://www.latinbeatmagazine.com/features.html Windows Media Quicktime This raw, heavily percussive style of tropical dance music dates back to the 1960s, in the case of the Joe Cuba Sextet, which showcased the amazing vocals of Cheo Feliciano and Jimmy Sabater, whereas the sociopolitical lyrics and compositions of Rubén Blades have been The Estrada Brothers resonating throughout the international airwaves for over four decades now. Mr. Ray Windows Media Quicktime Manny Silvera Bassed in America Windows Media Quicktime In the cosmopolitan Catalonian city of Barcelona, Spain, a group of salsa musicians came together with the purpose of making music inspired primarily by the sounds of the early pioneers of the salsa movement in New York City, hence the birth of the group called "Bloque 53". The following is a recent Skype interview between Bloque 53's percussionist/composer/ bandleader Joaquín "Waco" Arteaga and Latin Beat Magazine's Rudy Mangual... 3 of 49 4/30/2012 8:43 PM LBMO.com - Latin Beat Magazine - Latin Music Magazine - Features http://www.latinbeatmagazine.com/features.html Rudy Mangual (RM): Congratulations on Bloque 53's recent release ("Tumba Puchunga") and thank you for choosing Latin Beat Magazine to internationally promote your music and your products. Joaquín Arteaga (JA): Thank you very much for the opportunity to showcase Bloque 53 in the pages of Latin Beat Magazine. It's a great honor for me and all the members of Bloque 53 to be featured in such a special and renowned publication. RM: Are you originally from Barcelona? JA: No, I'm a native of Caracas, Venezuela. I was fortunate to win a scholarship in Venezuela to study music abroad in 1998. Initially, I planned to attend the Berklee School of Music in Boston, but financially, it was not possible. So I opted to study in Barcelona. After graduating (as a percussion major), I was offered a position in the school to teach, which I accepted. That was over 13 years ago. Now, I'm practically Catalonian. 4 of 49 4/30/2012 8:43 PM LBMO.com - Latin Beat Magazine - Latin Music Magazine - Features http://www.latinbeatmagazine.com/features.html RM: Do you speak Catalán (the language of Catalonia? JA: I do; it's not that difficult. The fact that I teach many kids and young adults who mainly prefer to speak Catalán made it easier for me to learn the language a bit faster. You learn so much faster from the kids, it's amazing! 5 of 49 4/30/2012 8:43 PM LBMO.com - Latin Beat Magazine - Latin Music Magazine - Features http://www.latinbeatmagazine.com/features.html RM: How did Bloque 53 come to be? JA: The band came together around 2006. We initially named ourselves “Chicha y Melao” due to the fact that the band was composed of white and black musicians. Chicha is the name of a white South American beverage (made of pineapple rinds, sugar, or molasses), while the term melao (or melado) refers to the honey-colored, twice boild-down juice of the sugar cane. As a vibe-led sextet, we had all agreed to play scores from the Joe Cuba Sextet’s repertoire, as well as interpretations from groups such as Son Boricua and Seis del Solar. Yet, we were not happy with the band’s original name. It was too festive. After a while, we all decided to add a new vocalist to the group, making us an octet rather than a sextet, and the name issue came into discussion once again. While discussing possible new names for the band, one of our original Venezuelan ex- members, Lenin Jiménez, mentioned that the band had come to resemble a block, with three vocalists in the front row and five musicians in the back (like the streets of his native neighborhood in Caracas) and suggested our current name, “Bloque 53”, which was precisely where his grandmother lived in Barrio 23 de Enero in Caracas. Therefore, by 2007, we had become Bloque 53. RM: In your latest CD production “Tumba Puchunga”, the recording features as special guests “Los Trombones de Tromboranga”. What is Tromboranga? JA: Tromboranga is a special and separate project from Bloque 53. It’s led by trombonists Vladimir Peña and Tom Johnson, as well as vocalist Freddy Ramos (from Bloque 53). I have also been involved with Tromboranga for the past two years. Tromboranga is a trombone- propelled salsa ensemble favoring the sounds of groups like Conjunto Libre, Willie Colón, and Eddie Palmieri’s La Perfecta. We recorded a four-track EP a year ago, which continues to receive good airplay throughout Europe. What happened was that, while working with Tromboranga, the date for Bloque 53’s new production came up and we had to stop work with Tromboranga. About six months ago, both bands performed together in a concert, joining forces in the end as one group and sounding incredible. Therefore, while conducting the new Bloque 53 recording, we decided to invite Los Trombones de Tromboranga to add their magic to our final mix. Another guest musician on the recording is trumpeter Albert Perez, featured on the selection 6 of 49 4/30/2012 8:43 PM LBMO.com - Latin Beat Magazine - Latin Music Magazine - Features http://www.latinbeatmagazine.com/features.html “Bésame Otra Vez.” RM: If I am fortunate enough to catch Bloque 53 performing this coming summer in Barcelona or throughout Europe, will I see the band with or without trombones? JA: This year we will definitely play with trombones, and perhaps even a trumpet, especially while promoting the new CD. Bloque 53 likes to have that element of experimentation and surprise for its fans with every one of its productions… Our debut CD, “La Ruta de la Salsa”, introduced the group’s vibraphone-based salsa and Latin jazz sound to Barcelona and the entire world, inspired by the music of both Joe Cuba and Seis del Solar… Our second production, “Bloque 53 Te Hace Mover Los Pies” (Bloque 53 Makes You Move Your Feet), was a more ambitious production, loaded with more original hardcore salsa scores aimed to please the dancers. Our third and latest production, “Tumba Puchunga” showcases the latest evolution of the band with a frontline of three vocalists and the addition of guest musicians from our brother group Tromboranga, for the ultimate salsa experience. RM: Can you introduce the members of Bloque 53? JA: The vocal frontline includes the energetic and beautiful Yadira Ferrer (from Holguín, Cuba), Damián "El Bombón" Alonso (from Havana, Cuba), and Freddy Ramos (from Caracas, Venezuela). The band features Marcel Pascual (from Barcelona) on vibraphone, Andreu Cañadell (from Colombia) is featured on piano in the recording, but Rafael Magartal (also from Colombia is 7 of 49 4/30/2012 8:43 PM LBMO.com - Latin Beat Magazine - Latin Music Magazine - Features http://www.latinbeatmagazine.com/features.html our current pianist. Colombian bassist Simón Delgado is one of the original members of the band and is responsible for all the arrangements of this new recording. Rhumer Mora (from Venezuela) laid down all the conga tracks for the recording, but currently Compota (from Cuba) has the conga chair in the band, and yours truly, Joaquín Arteaga, is responsible for most of the original compositions, while playing timbal, bongó, quinto, and güiro throughout the entire production. RM: What is the state of salsa in Barcelona? JA: During the 14 years that I have been calling Barcelona my home, there has always been salsa music around.