Ralph Irizarry’s Kickstarter Project “Los Viejos de la Salsa”

After producing, recording and manufacturing three productions on my BKS label and funding all three with my own money, I need backers to finish this great project I’ve already begun. I have 12 incredible tunes, 9 of which are original compositions, and all arranged by the best arrangers you can find anywhere. I have veteran musicians, like Eddie Montalvo, Elias Lopes, Reynaldo Jorge, Eddie Martinez and a host of others [...]

Emiliano Salvador and his Music on Video

On August 19, 1951, Emiliano Salvador was born in Puerto Padre, a municipality and city in the Las Tunas Province of Cuba. On a day like today, he would be celebrating his 60th birthday. One of the most influencial musicians of his generation in Cuba, Emiliano Salvador is revered as a giant around the world. His pianistic vision permeates and embodies Cuban music and Afro-Cuban jazz.

Chico & Rita – The Full Movie

Chico & Rita’s love story (written by Trueba along with Ignacio Martínez de Pisón) begins in La Habana of the late 40′s, and then jumps to New York, taking place during a magnificent era of artistic creation. It’s the time of be-bop, cubop, mambo, after-midnight jam sessions and arousing boleros. The fusion and exchange of musical ideas -which are at the core of the Jazz spirit- converge in the magical city that never sleeps [...]

John Benitez at the congahead studio

Legendary bassist, John Benitez brought a powerhouse band to the congahead.com studio to perform his original compositions: Rumba Lírica, Purpose, Bomba and Pureza, . The group consisted of his son, Francis on drums; Will Vinson, sax; Manuel Valera, keyboard; Tom Guarna, guitar and Obanilú Allende, percussion [...]

Eliane Elias – Light My Fire

Since the mid-1980s, pianist/vocalist/composer Eliane Elias (pronounced eh-lee-AH-neh eh-LEE-ahs) has grafted various elements of jazz, pop, soul and other styles to her deep Brazilian roots to create a hybrid groove that exists comfortably on any hemisphere. Borrowing from an array of sources and singing in a variety of languages, Elias consistently forges a sound that appeals to listeners of every geographic locale and cultural persuasion [...]

The Ninety Miles Project

Critically acclaimed jazz musicians vibist Stefon Harris, saxophonist David Sánchez and trumpeter Christian Scott have collaborated to create a distinctly unique collection of songs, Ninety Miles. Recorded over the span of a week in Havana, Cuba, the US based trio recruited local Cuban musicians including pianists Rember Duharte and Harold López-Nussa to create the 9 song collection. The result is a true Cuban American musical collaboration [...]

Brian Lynch “Unsung Heroes” Project

The “Unsung Heroes” project represents a bold step in redefining the relationship between the jazz artist and the audience. “Unsung Heroes” transforms the jazz tradition even as it affirms it, through the breakthrough use of current technology to make the creative process of a classic form aurally transparent. “Unsung Heroes” allows a crucial segment of the jazz audience – the practitioner/listener – to directly enter the music as a participant [...]

CubaNola: More Than the Spanish Tinge concert

Cuba and New Orleans are more than musical cousins; they are more like twins and equally responsible for much of what we call Jazz. Arturo O’Farrill, together with special guest Donald Harrison, explores the common roots of Jazz as seen in the early music of New Orleans and Havana, with arrangements of early charangas, rags, and contemporary works, plus the world premiere of “CubaNola: More Than a Spanish Tinge.” [...]

Pedrito Martinez Group – Live in New York City

Pedrito Martinez Group – Live at the restaurant “Guantanamera” in New York City. Recorded on March 28, 2010.

Best Recordings of 2010

Best Recordings of 2010: Hilario Durán Trio – Motion; Danilo Perez – Providencia; Roberto Fonseca – Akokan; Jovino Santos Neto – Veja o Som/See the Sound; Alain Perez – Apetecible; Paquito D’Rivera with the Pablo Aslan Ensemble – Tango Jazz; Alex Brown – Pianist; Chicago Afro Latin Jazz Ensemble – Blueprints; Samuel Torres – Yaoundé; Hector Martignon – Second Chance [...]