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Eddie Palmieri on Salsa-Central

Posted on October 13th, 2008 by Allan Tabilas

Our friends Steve and Mel C at Salsa-Central had a chance to do an extensive interview with the legendary musician, Eddie Palmieri.  The musician spoke at great length about his history in the music business, with his latin jazz and salsa bands and peers like Tito Puente.  Some of Eddie’s most famous hits include “Palo Pa’ Rumba” and “La Malanga”.  Mel C actually interviewed Eddie for Nuevotec at an event in New York in late August at Club LQ, but we were not permitted to post footage.  Eddie Jr., where’s the tape?

A brief excerpt from the interview - “… In my opinion, the latin music has the most complicated and exciting rhythmical patterns.  That’s why you can’t just sit down in your chair, you gotta get up, you gotta get up, and we got to get you to dance… if you’re really into it, that’s what makes it so unique.”

Here is a brief snippet of his biography from his website.

Eddie Palmieri, known for his charismatic power and bold innovative drive, has a musical career that spans over 50 years as a bandleader of Salsa and Latin Jazz orchestras.  With a discography that includes 36 titles, Mr. Palmieri has been awarded Nine Grammy Awards.  He received his first Grammy Award in 1975 for his release The Sun of Latin Music, which is often considered the most historic, as it was the first time Latin Music was recognized by the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences (NARAS)

Please click on the image below to go to Salsa Central’s interview with Eddie Palmieri. In addition, Baila Society’s Daniel Enskat also interviewed Eddie Palmieri for MamboNYC.com.

Eddie Palmieri

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Estilo Dance Studio - A Tribute to La Lupe and Celia Cruz

Posted on September 12th, 2008 by Allan Tabilas

Where would the dance be without music?  Continuing its theme of highlighting musical artists, Estilo Dance Studio in Philadelphia and South (New) Jersey held their Fall Student Showcase on September 6, honoring legendary vocalists La Lupe and Celia Cruz.  The staff at the studio, including founder Michael Andino, and instructors Darlin Garcia, Irina Pistolet, Uriel Garcia, Elizabeth Becerra, and George Dennis, choreographed routines for several student groups, all to music inspired by salsa royalty.  (In the Spring of 2008, Estilo’s Student Showcase was a tribute to Hector Lavoe).    We enjoyed the student and professional performances (including Darlin and Irina, and Cultural Explosion’s Juan Calderon and Christina Piedra, the interludes on La Lupe and Celia, and the social dancing!

To hear some of La Lupe’s music, go to the La Lupe page at Last.fm or iMeem, including her mostly English version of Fever, and the complete Spanish version, Fiebre.  To hear some of Celia’s music, go to the Celia Cruz page at Last.fm or iMeem, which feature tracks such as Quimbara and El Rey del Timbal (Tito Puente).

Below is a short preview performance of the Finale, featuring all the student groups! (Sorry, we do not have a timeframe for the video gallery/dvd yet). Click on the image or click here.

Click here to watch the Finale performance

In one of the more lighthearted moments of the night, Philly’s very own DJ La Clave closed the night with some crazy music, because there’s more music than just salsa out there (honestly). Watch the video below with salsa dancers gone country (Cotton Eyed Joe, thanks Zoe).

Click here to watch the salseros dance cotton eyed joe

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Salsadelphia - A new Philadelphia area Salsa Directory

Posted on September 11th, 2008 by Allan Tabilas

Are you in the Philly area and wondering where to go for a night of salsa dancing (or even classes)? For Philadelphia and South (New) Jersey salseros, Tom Boutell has just launched a new site called Salsadelphia. As a Linux and web developer, Tom has broken down his directory into event types (classes, DJs, clubs, studios, bands), musical genres, locations, and venues. And as a local Philadelphia resident, he’s broken down the clubs and studios location with maps and transporation directions with Septa/Patco buses, subway, rail trains, and more.

Here are some other Philly area salsa resource listings:

Salsa In The City - Stephen Choo Quan and Cindy Torruelas have put together their local list of events from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania suburbs, North and South Jersey, and Delaware for the past 4 years.

Seen on Salsa Scene - Wilford Shamlin, a writer with The Courier Post (a South Jersey newspaper), posts on various salsa topics in his blog. He has a weekly post called “Weekday guide to salsa scene”, where he lists the different venues that are hosting salsa nights.

PhillySalseros - This was one of the original Philly salsa websites by DJ David Ortiz, aka “El Viaje”, who plays a three hour salsa radio set at 90.1FM on Saturday nights. The site is kept up to date from an events perspective; However David is a musical goldmine, and has content on many musicians and artists.

Below are some New York / North (New) Jersey area salsa resource listings:

Salsa New York - Produced by Steve Shaw, SalsaNewYork’s NY/NJ events calendar is the first thing we hit up. They have a large directory of dancers, instructors, and performers, along with content on the technique of dancing and music.

MamboNYC - This is online hub and community for mambo dancers in the New York area. Produced by Waygee Ho, they have a great calendar (similar to Salsa New York), video performances, forums, and original interviews series (by Jazz Bianchi) with dancers such as Magna Gopal, Ahtoy Wonpat-Borja, and Duplessey Monic-Walker.

JerseySalsa - The site lists events and local club parties from New Jersey area dancers, and specializes in photography event coverage, brought to you by salseros Johann and Angela.

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8th Annual New York Salsa Congress

Posted on August 27th, 2008 by Allan Tabilas

New York Salsa Congress 2008

It’s the end of August, and we’re nearing labor day weekend in the U.S.  So you know what that means?  The 8th Annual New York Congress is on!  Officially starting on Thursday is a weekend packed with workshops, performances, live music, social dancing, and much more!  Choco (John Knight) and his staff are veterans of the congreso game, continuing the legacy started with the late David Melendez.  Choco cannot stop the hustle, it’s that simple.   From what we understand, Saturday night at the 2007 event had over 6,000 attendees alone!  (The ballroom for the performances was completely full!).  And Sunday (2007) was packed with music headliners, performances, and the 1st annual New York Salsa Dance Championships, won by Kelvin Hernandez and Licelott Maldonado.  If you want to watch last year’s competition, head over to  iMambo.tv.  The Hispanic Information and Telecommunications Network, Inc, or HITN, streamed the 2008 Puerto Rico World Championships.  They are a sponsor of the 2008 NY Congress as well.  (we have not confirmed that they are streaming video this weekend).

Some of the performers scheduled for the 2009 event include Eddie Torres, Dancesport All Stars, Karisma, Yamulee, Hacha y Machete, Juan Matos and Candy Mena, Baila Society, Jayson Molina y su Rompecabezas, and Santo Rico.  Sunday’s 2nd annual New York Salsa Championships will send qualifiers to the 2008 World Salsa Championships.   Currently the New York Hilton is sold out, and possibly the partner hotels as well.

We should be at the event on Saturday and Sunday night.  So please say hi!

Choco interview (talks about his first NY Congress in 2007) with Nick Padin, George Dennis, Yesenia Peralta, and Griselle Ponce

Social dance 2007 - Betto Herrera from North Carolina’s Mambo Dinamico and Melissa Pabon from Enixe / Art in Motion.

Social dance 2007 - Marco Ferrigno from Italy and Nancy from Los Angeles.

Edie the Salsa Freak, Beto Rojas, Chayanne Rojas, Syra, and Nancy - LA Salseros talk about the 2007 NY Salsa Congress

Below is an “old” video from 2004 at the home of the NY Congress, the Hilton Hotel.   The Hilton at 1335 Avenue of America has one of the largest ballrooms in Manhattan.  So we captured the dance floor on Saturday night in 2004, with infrared night vision.  Click on the image to see the video.

2004 NY Salsa Congress DanceFloor

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Shaka Brown and the 4th annual 2008 Washington DC Salsa Congress

Posted on August 12th, 2008 by Allan Tabilas

Salsa aficionados on the East Coast get ready!    Shaka Brown and his staff are bringing tons of artists, DJs, and instructors to Arlington, Virginia for the 4th annual Washington DC Salsa Congress from August 15-17.  Scheduled artists include Junior and Emily, Al Espinoza and Karla Espinoza, Leon Rose and Noemi, Lee Rios and Maria Falcon, Art in Motion, and ClaveKazi.

This public service announcement was brought to you by the fine staff at the Washington DC Salsa Congress, with Shaka Brown, Yesenia Peralta, and Dany Joshua.

Interview - Shaka Brown

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A Gozar - An Introduction to Salsa Dancing & the Unlikely Salsero

Posted on August 6th, 2008 by Allan Tabilas

Has salsa dancing captured your imagination?  Have you been bit by the salsa bug?  Los Angeles area filmmaker Kate Thomas is addicted to the dance, and she created a short documentary about her passion.  The short is called A Gozar (To Enjoy): An Introduction to Salsa Dancing, and is about 10 minutes in length.  Kate talks about (what you know already) about salsa dance, that it is incredibly fun and exciting, and it’s unlike anything seen in nightlife.  You may know your partner on the dance floor, but it doesn’t matter.  You connect with each other through the music.  The documentary is handy for people who haven’t given much thought to dancing — show it to your friends.

We found this documentary through Don Baarn’s blog, The Unlikely Salsero (who is also an interview subject in the short).  Using his experience as a percussionist and musician, Don is able to weave together his fundamental understanding of music with technical aspects of the dance.  He has some interesting observations on the social and psychological aspects of dancing as well.   In order to expand his own horizons, he took hip-hop classes with dancer Sho-Tyme, and found himself way over his head. Here’s a brief excerpt of dancers going too far above their level, with a general human observation:

Most people dislike being called a beginner as an adult, even if that’s their current status. Many guys prefer struggling in the intermediate or advanced classes rather than be caught dead in the beginner class. For many, it’s simply uncool to be at the novice level, and they can’t wait to “move on,” even if that means skipping some fundamentals. They purchase “advanced” DVDs when they are far from mastering the lower level DVDs from the same instructor.

As someone famous for taking classes over his head, I’ve seen some great progress and been frustrated at points. I highly recommend you attend some classes above your level, even if you sit out part of the class and watch. Being around great dancers can inspire or depress you, depending on your personality and goals; but either way, it’s good to see what you’ll be like in a few years if you put in the effort.

We encourage everyone to read his blog for his deep insight in dance and music. Tell him Nuevotec sent you.

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Salsacrazy News Network Worldwide Video Podcast

Posted on July 17th, 2008 by Allan Tabilas

SalsaCrazy left logoEvan Margolin and the SalsaCrazy Staff have combined the best in what Internet video, marketing, and salsa dancing have to offer — The SalsaCrazy News Network Worldwide Video Podcast.  The episodes are 6-10 minute news videos, similar to the idea of a local news segment, with high production value.  Each episode highlights the current salsa events in the U.S. and the world.   Never heard of the Crystal Salsa Party in Poland?  Evan mentioned the party that is located 150m deep in a salt mine.  How about the Croatian Salsa Festival?  Evan has that down too.  For reference, Evan also adds his own insight if he’s previously been to an event. Salsacrazy has so far produced five episodes for their worldwide podcast, and eleven episodes for their Salsa Dancing Bay Area (California) news videocast.   Additionally, each videocast features a website of the week.  Our good friend Anthony Persaud from Addicted2Salsa and Earl Rush from Stuck on Salsa received dap and salsa love from the news podcast.  The videos are that they are completely free, and you can watch or subscribe to them via iTunes or through their RSS feed.

In addition, SalsaCrazy has a great blog that we follow through a RSS reader like Google Reader.   Among their most notable posts were the series of entries on the 2007 World Salsa Championships written by Dakin Ferris.  They were one of the few sites who had neartime results (and video) of each day from the biggest salsa competition in the world (sorta like an Engadget or Gizmodo at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas).  SalsaCrazy also offers a large number of instructional DVDs for salsa, bachata, and other dances (ballroom from DanceCrazy, from beginner, intermediate, and advanced levels.  We would be remiss if we didn’t mention their online SalsaBootCamp.com site, as they offer instructional salsa content online too.  Again, their DVDs and online vides have very high production value too.

Salsacrazy videocast episode 03

Salsacrazy videocast episode 05

SalsaCrazy itunes podcast

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July 4th - Super Salsa Congress Weekend

Posted on July 3rd, 2008 by Allan Tabilas

In the United States, the Fourth of July commemorates the adoption of the Declaration of Independence.   For some reason, this July the 4th is also super salsa congress weekend in the U.S., with three large scale salsa events occurring simulataneously. (Update at bottom with the Croatian Summer Salsa Festival)

Philadelphia Salsa Congress 2008 The 2008 Philadelphia Salsa Congress celebrates its 4th (5th) anniversary at the Pennsylvania Convention Center on 1101 Arch St, Philadelphia.   The event features such artists as Andy Cruz y Los Soneros Del Swing, Henry Herrera, Mas Mambo, Tropical Image, and Son De Cali.  Promoter Willie Torres who is part of the Salsa Seven group behind the World Salsa Championships is also working on an upcoming film called Born to Salsa, the Movie.  For some of the footage from the past two years, please check our 2006 video gallery and 2007 video gallery.  Additionally, competitors can quality for the 2008 World Salsa Championships at the Philly Congress in the on1, on2, cabaret, and team division.   The 2006 qualifying round saw on1/on2 couple Darlin Garcia and Kathleen Eccleston and cabaret couple Victor Colon and Sonya Elmore qualify was the initial spark behind our documentary at the World Salsa Championships, Salsamentary.  Nuevotec’s Harry Sanabria will be on hand for the 2008 congress.

Las Vegas Salsa Congress 2008 Sin City and salsa come together with the 5th annual Las Vegas Salsa Congress at the Tropicana Casino and Resort.   The festival is organized by the 2006 Mayan World team champions and 2006 World Salsa Championships top 10 finalist Sin City Salseros (Oscar Coronado and Nathan Strager), along with David Nieto, who placed 3rd in the on1 division at the 2008 World Salsa championships.  Headlining the congress is one of the finest dance teams in the world, Tropical Gem from Italy.  Nathan Strager has told us that 2008 will be its largest event yet, with an incredible amount of artists and performers, with strong representation from Los Angeles, San Diego, and San Francisco groups.  Coverage of the event will be provided by Nuevotec’s Allan Tabilas and Living in Rhythm International’s Joe Figueroa.  You can also qualify for the 2008 World Salsa Championships here!

Orlando Salsa Congress 2008 logoOrlando keeps the Fourth of July weekend hot with the 3rd annual 2008 Orlando Salsa Congress.   Promoters Frank Fuentes, Michael Barbieri (Salsa Heat), and Joseluis Gutierrez have scheduled artists such as Yamulee, Masacote, Salsa Heat, ClaveKazi, and the Cobo Brothers to beautiful Central Florida.  We’ve heard great things about the event, but cannot make it this year.   However, there will be tons of salsa media coverage from iMambo.tv, SalsaDynasty, and BorntoSalsa.  Local Orlando TV shot Hot Spots covered the 2007 event, which you can find directly on the home page.

Update - Croatia has its 4th Croatian Summer Salsa Festival in Rovinj, Croatia from July 3-6 also.  There is a highlights video on the front page which looks very hot with beach parties, performances, and workshops.   The event is organized by Los Mamberos from Croatia.

This weekend promises plenty of salsa fun (in the U.S.) on the east and west coast, and the south.   If you see us at any of the events, please say hi!

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Henry Knowles talks about the New Swing Sextet with Duplessey Monic Walker

Posted on June 29th, 2008 by Allan Tabilas

“The Rip Van Winkle Story” of salsa.  At the Stardust NY Meets Philly Social on 6/28, the talented Duplessey Monic Walker had a chance to talk with world renowed DJ Henry Knowles about the new album from New Swing Sextet, Back On The Streets (A Taste of Spanish Harlem, Vol 2).   This album comes a full 35 years after their previous album.  What’s old is new again!  Henry was the executive producer behind the album, and worked with coproducer Willy Torres.

You can buy New Swing Sextet (NSS)’s album at CD Universe or Amazon CD Store (I imagine it will be on the iTunes store or Amazon MP3 store or CDBaby.com any day now)

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New Swing Sextet - Back On The Streets - CD Release Party - June 30 - Taj Lounge, NY

Posted on June 29th, 2008 by Allan Tabilas

Update - Go to our video gallery from the New Swing Sextet - Back on the Streets. Watch our highlights video which includes short interviews and performances.

New Swing Sextet - Back On The Streets - 2008 Poster Go ahead George (Rodriguez), play those vibes!  Nearly 30 years after the group split up, the legendary New Swing Sextet (NSS) returns with their new album, “Back on the Streets - A Taste of Spanish Harlem, Volume 2″. The new CD includes some old and new tracks.  Some of our favorites include “El Raton” (with some hiphop vibe from Alejandro Rodriguez, “Flight” (instrumental latin jazz written by Jesus Santiago), and “Bobo Tu Te Quedaras”.  Unfortunately one of their standout songs, “My Favorite Things”, that is loved worldwide did not make the album. Thanks to NSS executive producer and DJ Henry Knowles for our copy. All the songs are very danceable and have the latin jazz, pop, and boogaloo that the New Swing Sextet are known for.A brief history of the group goes a little like this (paraphrased from the “Back to the Street” liner notes): The group made its debut in the Singer Bowl at the last New York World’s Fair in 1965.  The band played in the golden era of Latin music.  The original band had a successful 15 year run before splitting up in 1979.  Some 20 years later, some friends asked the members to play for an event.  They received a great reception, and the rest is history.  What’s old is new again!  They are in demand throughout the world, having played in countries such as Switzerland, Spain, the UK, and in their home of New York, and the West Coast (LA and San Francisco).

The New Swing Sextet’s CD release party is this Monday, June 30 (sorry for the short notice!) at the at the Taj Lounge on 48 West 21st Street, New York, New York 10001.Cost is $6 before 7 PM / $12 after 7 PM.  We’ll be there covering the event, so please say hi!The album includes one of the original members from the 1960s, George Rodriguez, plus artists such as Joe Mannozzi, Jr. on the piano, Hector Ortiz on the timbales/bongos, and Angel Justiniano on the congas.
Salsa Central Review (Sizzla) of the New Swing Sextet - Back to the Streets album Salsa Central Interview with New Swing Sextet members George Rodriguez, Angel Justiniano, and Jesus (”Jay”) Santiago
Below are some videos of several groups that have used New Swing Sextet tracks.
Clavekazi - New Swing Sextet - “Revolucionando” Caribbean Soul - New Swing Sextet - “El Raton”
Armando & Andrea - “My Favorite Things”  

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