Yoel Cuesta Fernández is the new conguero of Los Van Van upon the passing of Manolo. Timba fans know him from his work with Azúcar Negra and Adalberto Álvarez y su Son. In addition to being a stellar conguero, Manolo was a wonderful human being who contributed to the group with his kindness and his love. Yoel, in addition to being an excellent conguero, is also a genuinely nice person and thus a fitting choice to fill the huge space left by Manolo's death. We wish him the best as he steps into the shoes of one of Cuba's legendary percussionists.

We will soon see Yoelito with El Tren as Los Van Van begin their European Tour on March 1st. This will be the first European tour for Los Van Van since the departure of Mayito Rivera and the entrance of Mandy Cantero, and now the first international presentations with Yoelito on congas. Click here for the list of Van Van concert dates.

Below you can check out video of Los Van Van with Mandy singing Este amor que se muere - qué riiico!

Los Van Van with Mandy Cantero singing Este amor que se muere

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Tirso Duarte "El Charanguero Mayor" and timbero de excelencia arrived in Miami on Monday and is preparing for his New York / New Jersey concerts, which begin on Friday February 17 with a concert at Chango in Astoria . He will perform at La casa de la timba in New Jersey on the 18th and the S.O.B.s date has now been confirmed for March 30 . Tirso has recently performed a number of concerts in Colombia where he had an overwhelming reception by his ecstatic fans, so much so that they sang every song from start to finish. Now his US fans can enjoy the energy of his live concerts during this, his first ever solo tour of the US! Keep checking Tirso's Tours page because we will update it as other concerts are confirmed during February/March.

To whet your appetite, here is a sample of what you can expect, filmed on August 5, 2011 at Teatro Jorge Isaacs in Cali, Colombia by Eventos Timpop. Con Tirso no hay casualidad!

Tirso Duarte - Dejala que corra - live in Colombia

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Maykel Blanco & Salsa Mayor arrived today in Peru where they will have 11 concerts. Thanks to Joseiito Tiimba, we have updated the Salsa Mayor tour page with all the concert dates in Lima. And we can also inform European fans that the summer tour will take place from June 21 to July 15. We will update the tours as soon as we have more info, so keep an eye out for concert dates near you!

Maykel Blanco y Salsa Mayor with Yordi - " Se acabo el amor"

But you don't have to wait until the summer to enjoy your timba en vivo! We have Bárbaro Fines y su Mayimbe on their first European Tour in March! We are still waiting for the final list of confirmed dates so check back with us.  Los Van Van are also touring Europe in March, starting with a couple of concerts in England before they move on to the Continent. Also in March - April, the Viking Line Cuba Cruises between Stockholm and Helsinki will take place featuring Elito Revé y su Charangón, Yumurí and Charanga Forever. There will also be a number of traditional groups as well as dance shows. So check out Viking Line and book yourself a cruise!

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It's like the holidays all over again for bassists! Kevin is hard at work finishing the first book in the Beyond Salsa Bass series, and Feliciano Arango will be giving a clinic at the Berklee College of Music about the role of the bass in Cuban jazz/salsa/timba and his work with the group Los Hermanos Arango on February 22nd at 1:00pm. The night before the clinic, Los Hermanos Arango will perform (February 21st) at the Berklee Performance Center at 8:15pm.

Now as all timba fans know, there is no one better to talk about the role of the bass in contemporary Cuban music. But since there may be some readers who have recently discovered timba and who are not yet on a first name basis with all the major players, here is an excerpt from the announcement by the Bass Department, which is sponsoring the event as part of the Visiting Artists Series.

Feliciano Arango was born in the Guanabacoa section of Havana, Cuba where Yoruba, Abakua and other African traditions are preserved in their most authentic form in the Americas. He was mentored by seminal Cuban bassist Orlando 'Cachaito' Lopez and attended Escuela Nacional de Arte where he studied with the top musicians from around the island. Soon after graduating from ENA, Arango joined the group of legendary pianist/composer Emiliano Salvador who was a leading figure in Cuban jazz through the 1990s. After extensive touring and recording with Salvador, Arango went on to be the founding bassist for N.G. la Banda, whom he performed with for the next fifteen years. With N.G. la Banda, Arango developed a new style of Cuban dance music called 'timba'. He was responsible for leading Cuban bassists in a new approach to playing salsa that greatly enhanced the melodic, percussive sound of the bass. Since leaving N.G. la Banda, Arango has been the top call bassist for jazz, salsa, timba and other forms of Cuban music.

Feliciano Arango now leads Los Hermanos Arangos along with his two brothers Eugenio and Ignacio and sister Cristina. The Arangos are the only Cuban band to use completely unaltered Afrocuban ritual voice/hand drumming as the basis for a modern repertoire that integrates electric bass, keyboards, brass/winds (no drumset).

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