Chucho Valdes & Irakere 50, Eliades Ochoa & El Niño y La Verdad Cuban Royalty & one of the island’s brightest stars conquer SF at SFJAZZ, Freight & Salvage and Salsa Rueda Fest
The San Francisco Bay Area was treated to an extraordinary month of Cuban music. Visiting the Bay Area was the Cuban maestro Chucho Valdes and the latest edition of his celebrated band Irakere who are celebrating their 50th anniversary at the SF JAZZ Center.
read moreThe Weekly Rumba – Live Music in SF Tonight for Fat Tuesday/Mardi Gras
Tonight, Tuesday, February 13th is Fat Tuesday known worldwide from it’s origins in the Mardi Gras of New Orleans. Carnaval San Francisco has made it a home town tradition to celebrate Mardi Gras time with a free bacchanal of live music in various venues in the SF Mission District.
read moreJessy Diaz “Diosa Y Fé”; Con Sabor Playlist for Sat. 2/3/24-KPFA 94.1 FM
On this past Saturday’s Con Sabor program, I featured an interview with Jessy Diaz, a rising star from Matanzas, Cuba now based in Miami. Jessy is a powerhouse vocalist and dynamic performer who gave a number of electrifying performances in the SF Bay Area in a variety of diverse settings that showcased her versatility
read moreMusic News SF Bay Area 2/5/24
February is going to be a busy month for live music aficionados in the SF Bay. Piano icon Chucho Valdes celebrates the 50th Anniversary of his heralded band Irakere at the SFJAZZ Center from Thursday, February 15 through Sunday, February 18.
read moreShall We Begin…Happy 2024. The Best of 2023-Salsa/Latin Jazz/Musica Cubana-Luis Medina-Con Sabor KPFA
Happy New Year everyone. It’s 2024 and I hope that you brought the New Year safe and sound! The following are my complete biased opinions of best recordings in Salsa, Latin Jazz, Musica Cubana during 2023. (and that came out in 2023!) I hope that this list will inspire you to catch up with great music that you haven’t caught up to during this impressive year. Be sure to keep listening to Con Sabor every Saturday evening from 9 to 11 pm except on the last Saturday of the month when Emiliano Echeveria and Radio Cuba Canta sits in for me. This list isn’t in any particular order but it’s simply the best music from 2023 in my humble opinion. LM
read moreCatching Up With All of You…Dec. 2023 News
I’m catching up with some important news since December has been so crazy busy for me. For one, I want to wish one of my great musical inspirations, piano master Eddie Palmieri, a happy 87th Birthday which he celebrated earlier this month on Friday, December 15th.
read moreMusic News 12/9/2023
I wish el maestro, Latin music Icon Eddie Palmieri a happy 87th Birthday this Friday December 15th. In Palmieri’s honor, I aired the first night of a two part Birthday salute to Eddie Palmieri on my program Con Sabor on KPFA 94.1 FM and www.kpfa.org. Part one aired last night, December 9th and the second part will be aired between 9 to 11 PM PST next Saturday evening, December 16th.
read moreMusic Highlights for this Post Thanksgiving Week
Today Sunday, November 26rh, there will be a special appearance of Grammy Award winners Pacific Mambo Orchestra performing the music of Tito Puente, Machito and Tito Rodriguez…the Mambo Kings of the Palladium era at the Seahorse, 305 Harbor Drive in Sausalito starting at 5 pm. This will be a special afternoon to catch this great big band throwing down classic mambo and dance music for the dancers.
read moreMusic News: Charanson is back & other News!
Charanson, the renowned SF based all-star band led by violinist Anthony Blea has returned to the scene! I have many good memories from working with Chranson as a resident dj at the legendary club Jelly’s on alternating Sundays with DJ Coqui (Ivette Fuentes) which was the big Sunday thing during the 1990’s and early 2000s until the club’s demise in 2010. The band and I would keep the music on a high intensity level for the delighted crowd both sonically and on the dance floor.
read moreRemembering Oscar Valdes, Irakere co-founder, lead vocalist and percussionist; Music News
Oscar Valdes, the commanding, charismatic vocalist, master percussionist and co-founder with Chucho Valdes of the Cuban Grammy Award winning supergroup Irakere died on Thursday, October 19 at the age of 85.
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