| MORE | Click here to go back to videos |
 | Quantic Interview at Las TablasThis is part 1 of an exclusive interview with DJ, producer and musician Will Holland A.K.A. "Quantic". Quantic will play a DJ set at Rumba (351 W. Hubbard) on September 9th, 2010.In this 3-minute piece, Quantic tells us how he became interested in music and his process for discovering Cumbia and other Latin treasures. The interview was taped on April 30th, the day after Quantic's successful 1st DJ set at Chicago's Zócalo. This video was produced by Agúzate in collaboration with Sound Culture and filmed at Las Tablas. |
| Launch Related Site Click to open video | |
 | July 26: Bomba Estereo live at Green Dolphin - Raw FootageThis was the official closing concert of the 1st Annual Colombian Music Festival in Chicago w/ Bomba Estereo direct from Colombia @ Green Dolphin.Bomba Estereo have literally blown up around the world since putting out their second album, 'Blow Up'. Their infectious fusion of raw Afro-Colombian percussion and classic Cumbia with Electronic music and Reggae is critically acclaimed on every continent. It is absolutely irresistable dance music highligthing the best of the past and the future. |
| Click to open video | |
 | July 9: Afro-Cuban All-Stars Live at LSA, ChicagoThis clip presents a piece of the July 9, 2010 concert at Chicago's Logan Square Auditorium. Bandleader Juan de Marcos González is one of the most important figures in Cuban music today. He has a mission to show the world the wealth, diversity and vitality of Cuban music. His work with the Afro-Cuban All Stars, the Buena Vista Social Club, Rubén González, Ibrahim Ferrer, Sierra Maestra and others has made an extraordinary contribution to raising the profile of Cuban music throughout the world. However, neither his name nor his crucial contribution is well known to the general public and he remains something of an unsung hero of Cuban music.The music of the Afro-Cuban All-Stars is a mix of all the styles of Cuban music, including bolero, chachachá, salsa, son montuno, timba, guajira, danzón, rumba and abakua. They are known internationally for their 1997 album A Toda Cuba Le Gusta, which was recorded at the Buena Vista Social Club sessions. Members have included Rubén González, Orlando "Cachaito" Lopez, Ibrahim Ferrer, Raul Planas, Pío Leyva, Manuel "Puntillita" Licea, Yanko Pisaco and more recently Caridad Hierrezuelo and Pedro Calvo. |
| Click to open video | |
 | Plena ColloquiumOn February 26, 2010, Segundo Ruiz Belvis cultural Center in collaboration with Agúzate Productions and IPRAC presented a Plena Colloquium. This unique event included a panel of distinguished scholars and plena practitioners who engages in a discussion around the origins, sociology and musical characteristics of this Afro-Puerto Rican tradition. Participants included Dr. Emanuel Dufrasne, Ramón López, jorge Emmannueli and Víctor Emmannueli. |
| Launch Related Site Click to open video | |
 | 6TH ANNUAL TRIBUTE TO SONEROS featuring Frankie Vázquez (11/25/09)The Old Town School of Folk Music and Agúzate Productions partenered once again to bring you the 6th Annual Tribute to the Improvisational SInger. This event is a celebration of the improviser (or "sonero") in traditional Salsa. Frankie Vázquez is one of the greatest proponents of the sonero tradition whose credits include Manny Oquendo's Conjuto Libre, The Spanish Harlem Orquestra and Jimmy Bosch. Frankie currently fronts his own orchestra, Los Soneros Del Barrio, while still recording and performing with other top acts in the industry. He was accompanied by an all-star lineup of Chicago's top salsa musicians, under the direction of Edwin Sanchez, including Papo Santiago, Franklin Paz, Juan Picorelli, Danny Feliciano and Víctor García.The tradition of the improvisational singer, or sonero, has suffered the tragic loss of some of its greatest exponents. Legendary improvisers, such as Ismael Rivera, Hector Lavoe, Frankie Ruiz, Chamaco Ramírez, and Marvin Santiago left their legacies for us to enjoy and study. Other practitioners of this art were displaced by the good-looking, untalented singer virus which infected record companies looking to make a profit over producing art during the 90s and the beginning of the 21st century. In recent years there has been a revival of artistic salsa, and has arrived with it the increasing recognition of the sonero as an integral part of salsa music. Frankie Vázquez is an important link between the original innovators of the tradition and the next generation of salsa soneros. Although Vázquez may still be one of the best kept secrets to the general public, those who know the music are well aware of his talent, pedigree, and accomplishments. Born on Three Kings Day (January 6), 1958 in Salinas, Puerto Rico, Efrain Frankie Vázquez exhibited early on a gift for percussion. He formed his own band at age 16, and when his singer became unreliable, he found himself forced to sing. It turned out he had even more talent as a singer. In 1977 he moves to New York City, where he begins to establish himself Latin music scene. He began as a member of Fuego 77, then continued honing his craft in other groups, such as Sonido Taiborí, Orquesta Calidad, Orquesta Metropolitana, and Charanson. As his experience grew, he became sought after by many of the top salsa acts in the East Coast. He has worked extensively with Manny Oquendos Libre, Lebron Brothers, Wayne Gorbeas Conjunto Salsa, The New Swing Sextet, and Javier Vásquez y la Sonora. In addition, he has shared his talents with other son and salsa luminaries, including La Sonora Matancera, Joe Cuba, Moncho Leña, Henry Fiol, and Jimmy Delgado among others. In recent years, Vázquez has become one of the torchbearers for the sonero tradition, taking part in some of the most important salsa projects in the new millennium. He participated in all three of Jimmy Boschs albums, recorded on the first Spanish Harlem Orchestra outing, Ricky Gonzalezs and George Delgados solo incursions, and all three productions of Los Soneros del Barrio. This last one has become his main group, and is currently blazing a path through cynics who contend the salsa movement is on its last breath. Their three albums to date clearly demonstrate Vázquez's link to the tradition. He has studied all the styles and intricacies of those who came before him, and demonstrates it in his renditions of classic and challenging selections immortalized by the likes of Rivera, Lavoe, Santiago, Ramírez, Néstor Sánchez, Angel Canales, Adalberto Santiago, and others. Frankie Vázquez is a true ambassador of the art of improvisational singing. |
| Click to open video | |
 | Miguel Zenón Live at the Jazz Showcase (October 8, 2009)Miguel Zenón was not afraid to bring plena to the jazz stage like no one has done it before. Enjoy this short clip of his opening show at the Jazz Showcase where he promoted his new album "Esta plena" with Puerto Rican plena icon Tito Matos. |
| Launch Related Site Click to open video | |
Dynamod Web Portals © 2003 - 2010 Fluxure Advanced Motion Media, Inc. All rights reserved.
