Cuban Charanga Ensemble

Series: January 13, 2020 – April 6, 2020

Mondays 6pm-8pm in the Lounge

Instructor: Tregar Otten| Contact the instructor at tregaro@danzon.com for more information and to register!

The class is dedicated to performing Cuban dance music, much of it comes  from the Charanga/Típica tradition incorporating strings and woodwinds  into the traditional Cuban dance music ensemble with congas, timbales, piano, bass and vocalists along with brass instruments.

In the class, we will play various genres of Cuban music and Salsa, including Danzón, Cha-Cha-Chá, Bolero, Son-Montuno, Guaracha, Guajira, and the more modern styles of Salsa, Songo and Timba. Everyone learns not only their piece of the puzzle, but also has opportunities to improvise, learn about clave, what the rhythm section is doing and how each instrument fits into that, the form of each genre, and the historical context of each piece that we learn and perform.

The class is comprised of a group of very dedicated students, most of which have been participating for more than 3 years. The level of musicianship is mostly advanced, but intermediate students are also
welcome. The class is open to most all instrumentalists and vocalists, with approval from the teacher. Class is held on a quarterly basis, usually comprising of 12 classes with a performance on the 13th week where the public is invited to dance, listen and have fun!

About the instructor Tregar Otton:

Tregar Otton (Violin, Composer, Arranger, educator), born in the Marshall Islands and raised in Corpus Christi, Texas and California. Otton began his classical music training at the age of four. He has been a part of the Bay Area Latin music scene since 1990, working primarily with Orq. La Moderna Tradición (Cuban), Los Cenzontles (Mexican), and the Potaje (Flamenco). While living in New York in the 90’s, he played as a regular member of Virgilo Martí y sus Majaderos with Cuban legends Chocolate Armenteros and Patato Valdez. He also worked closely with Juan Carlos Formell, and with the celebrated New York Charanga groups Orquesta Broadway and La Típica Novel.

Tregar founded Orquesta La Moderna Tradición with Roberto Borrell in 1995. Orq. la Moderna Tradición is a Cuban Charanga orquesta dedicated to playing popular Cuban music that incorporates violins and woodwinds (Danzón, Cha Cha Cha, Son Montuno, and more modern genres). The group has toured extensively in the United States and internationally.

Tregar has been on the faculty of the Community Music Center of San Francisco for over 15 years, teaching both individual and group classes to youth and adults. He teaches a performance oriented class in Cuban Charanga at the Center.

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