Israel Rojas, photo courtesy of Buena Fe (Página Oficial) & Gabriel Davalos

We continue DIAL WEEK with a special celebration: today Israel Rojas, director and lead vocalist of Buena Fe, celebrates his 40th birthday! It has been a hectic week for Buena Fe and their team, between all the preparations for the three shows at Karl Marx, the press conference on Monday, picking up the visas for Miami, and the long-awaited presentation of the new CD "DIAL" starting tomorrow. Let's hope that Israel is able to take a little break today to just relax and celebrate with family and friends.

As a fan I want to thank you, guajiro guantanamero, just for being yourself; an intelligent, funny, easygoing, straightforward, openhearted and sincere man, who spreads a little light in people's lives. You have a rare gift for communicating ideas and emotions and reaching people's hearts. In a time when sarcasm and irony are in style, through your lyrics and by your example, you make people care about things again. May you and those you love always enjoy good health, happiness and music. Happy Birthday Israel!

deja un comentario

continue reading Timbera Mayor

Buena Fe has the visas for the Miami Concert!

DIAL WEEK and BuenaFeManía continue! In just two days Buena Fe will finally unveil their new CD "DIAL" with three spectacular shows at Karl Marx Theater February 8-10. Tickets went on sale yesterday and fans have been posting comments such as: I got in line at 6:30 am and waited for six hours to get tickets, but it will be worth it! And my favorite comment: Getting tickets to Karl Marx was almost like getting a visa to the USA.

For the lucky fans who have tickets to Karl Marx, the shows will be more than just concerts. In keeping with the theme of "DIAL" , which is a tribute to 90 years of Cuban Radio, Buena Fe has put together a performance that will be a fusion of art forms such as dance, by the group Havana Queens, as well as acting and film. Buena Fe has worked hard hoping to give their fans  an unforgettable experience.

There is more good news. Buena Fe will do a Valentine's Day concert at Habana Café at Hotel Cohíba. Yes, that means February 14th, at 9:00 pm. So don't despair if you are just not able to wait in line for the Karl Marx tickets. You have another opportunity to see the band soon, albeit not the special extravaganza for "DIAL WEEK"

And the good new just keeps coming! Buena Fe also announced at their Facebook page today that they have the visas for the Miami concert on February 22 at Miami-Dade County Auditorium. I know some fans who live in Tampa and other cities have been afraid to buy tickets and plan a trip until the visas were granted. Well they've been granted, so don't delay any longer! Buy your tickets today at Ticketmaster or you may find them sold out!

deja un comentario

continue reading Timbera Mayor

UPDATE: Due to BuenaFeMania and the incredible demand for tickets, Buena Fe have just announced that they will have a third concert on Sunday February 10th at 6:00pm!

Fuera de aquí se desplaza un dial que me quiere decir cien ideas por igual
Creo que voy a escoger la que, a l menos feliz, emociona, edifica, enamora
                                                                                               "Dial" por Israel Rojas

Ladies and gentlemen, after much waiting for what is probably the most eagerly anticipated of all of Buena Fe's CDs to date, it has been declared "Dial Week" at Buena Fe's official Facebook page and Timba.com is ready for the party! The activities begin today with a press conference that is taking place at Bar Bilongo at EGREM even as I write. They are announcing the plans for the concerts and the personal exposition of artist Jesús Lara. The official CD release takes place with concerts at Karl Marx Theater on Friday the 8th at 9:00pm, Saturday the 9th at 9:00pm and Sunday the 10th at 6:00pm. Tickets go on sale tomorrow at the ticket office at Karl Marx at 9:00am, but fans are already saying they plan to start camping out in front of the ticket office tonight. It's BuenaFeMania!

Buena Fe will follow the two Havana concerts with a major event at Miami Dade County Auditorium on February 22nd. Organized by Blue Night Entertainment, the Miami concert will be filmed for subsequent release of a concert DVD. Tickets are already on sale via ticketmaster. According to an article in the Venezuelan periodical Primicias24, there are also plans to do a worldwide live stream of the concert! This would be historical and more than that, it would be a dream come true for all of the fans in Europe and South America who can't attend any of the release concerts. If we get any more information about a live stream we will update Primera Plana of course!

"Dial" is the 8th studio CD released by Buena Fe, and without ever having heard it, I'm going to go out on a limb and predict that it will be another hit and another Cubadisco winner. Buena Fe seems to live by the credo that anything worth doing is worth doing superbly. Every detail of the production is given the same attention. The album cover itself is worth a design award! The original intent was to release the CD in 2012 for the 90th anniversary of Cuban Radio.  We are used to an eclectic mix of styles from Buena Fe, but this time the idea was to have different songs representing the changing of stations on the radio or different types of songs you would have heard on Cuban Radio over the years. "Dial" may end up redefining eclectic, but I have so far only heard six songs from the album, so this is pure speculation on my part.

In a recent interview in OnCuba, director and lead singer Israel Rojas said that the CD contains 13 tracks, 12 written by himself and "Volar sin ti", which he wrote together with Galician singer/songwriter Andrés Suárez. Interestingly, I have a list of 17 songs! Four of them are from soundtracks of radio programs that all Cubans will recognize. I am going to assume that it is the other 13 original songs that Israel was talking about in the interview. The CD should be on sale at the concerts, so bring some extra money to get yourself a copy. I still don't know what day the album will be available for MP3 download, but I will post an update when I know. The following is a track list for "Dial" minus the four soundtrack songs:
Acompáñame
Buena hembra, mala sangre
Pasa o parece
Ojeo
Volar sin ti (con Andrés Suárez)
Si yo fuera
Pablo
Se bota a matar
La culpa
De proa a popa
Papel en blanco
Dial
Corazón universidad (Bonus track con DcoraSon)

And to do our part in BuenaFeMania, here is a YouTube playlist with five of the songs from "Dial". Enjoy, and stay tuned for further updates during "DIAL WEEK"!

deja un comentario

continue reading Timbera Mayor

Before we get to my 2013 Winter NAMM (Anahiem) report, here are two excellent upcoming TIMBA shows that are not to be missed.....

Pedrito Mártinez Group in Washington DC -- Click here to read the full report from our D.C. correspondent Rosy Estrada. Rosy notes..."Heralded as one of the top percussionists in the Cuban music scene, New York-based Pedrito Martínez will be making his first appearance in the Washington, D.C. area since his 2005 performance as a former percussionist with Yerba Buena at the Kennedy Center. The Pedrito Martínez Group, a quartet of talented musicians and singers, will be performing live at the Artisphere, in Arlington, Virginia, on Saturday, February 9th at 8:00pm."

The very next day farther west we have Manolín "El Médico de la Salsa" at Café Cócomo in San Francisco. Click here for tickets. Excitement is in the air becuase Manolín with be backed by bassist Jiovanni Cofiños band -- an established group in Las Vegas. Jiovanni was the musical arranger and bassist for la Orquesta Revé in early 2000, writing the smash hits 1999, Dale Agua Al Dominó and Se Sigue Comentando!!  

Next we have a lighting round review of this year's Anaheim Winter NAMM (National Association of Music Mechants) Trade Show. I was there Thursday, Friday and Saturday and in my 10+ plus year of attending I've never seen it so busy. Rumors of 94,000+ or almost 100k people attended this year. 

yes we believe in music -- not open to the public -- get your pass and hotel early 

The new outdoor stage at NAMM. Right smack in front of the convention center. Tower of Power ripped it up Thrusday evening where I ran into...

NG La Banda / La Maquinaria / Afro-Cuban All Stars master precussionist Calixto Oviedo

Calixto has a bunch of stuff going on and upon his arrival from Sweden was immediately secuestered by all the pecussion greats for intense sessions of NAMM farandulation. Co-author of the now top Afro-Cuban study method for percussion on the planet Beyond Salsa Percussion, Calixto is sponsored by Tycoon Percussion among others and has an upcoming interview with Modern Drummer magazine, not to mention his La Maquinaria live DVD recording concert in Boulder on Feb 10nth with ex-Pupy star singer Pepito Gómez. 

Looking good Tycoon. A shout out to fellow TIMBA enthusiast George Balmaseda (Artist Relations Manager) and Ivy Yu (General Manager at Tycoon Percussion).

Another company besides Tycoon making great inroads into Latin percussion is German company MEINL. They have a slick new series of ciongas and timbales.

The new Latin percussion series from Meinl. Artists relations manager German Baratto shares a growing interest into Latin percussion and Cuban music. 

The Beyond Salsa series from our mad scientist extraordinaire and walking timbapedia Kevin Moore made waves at the show, catching the attention of Modern Drummer Editorial Director Adam J. Budofsky. 

Stay tuned for coverage of Calixto Oviedo and the Beyond Salsa Percussion books in Modern Drummer Magazine. http://www.moderndrummer.com (the world's top drum magazine).

SF Bay Area pianist Ben Heveroh lays down some montunos of a new Fazoli piano. Wall to wall, dedicated floors of piano and other gear can be found in great abundance at the NAMM Show.

Now back to post-NAMM show gear lust withdrawal....

deja un comentario

continue reading Pa' Ponerte en Talla