Los Cojolites performed to a packed house Friday night. On tour all the way from Veracruz, they brought the lively music and singing style, son jarocho. Many of their songs had the audience singing along or even dancing in the aisles. It was quite a thing to hear a chorus of heels hitting the hardwood floor to the music. The excitement kept building and then the audience erupted when Los Cojolites ripped into their version of “La Bamba”, perhaps one of the most famous son jarocho songs.
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Celtic Flamenco Concert
As soon as this show appeared on the calendar I was very intrigued. Celtic flamenco? How is this going to work out? Actually surprisingly well as I’m sure the packed room would agree! It was cool to see such an unexpected fusion come together.
The night saw many performers playing separately and together in various combinations. Fanny Ara brought on some fiery flamenco dancing accompanied by, yes, Celtic music. Daniel Torres was featured on flamenco guitar and the Puerto Rican cuatro.
Diáspora Negra – The African Legacy in Latin America
Gabriela Shiroma, the artistic director of the program, said “We are all part of the African culture, the Diaspora. Not only has [it] enriched the Americas but their legacy has taught us to honor our ancestors, to sing without fear, to dance from our hearts, to connect with our internal rhythm, to have a sense of community and gathering, and to laugh about life, but most importantly it has made us aware about our connection and unity. We are all a part of humanity: learning from the struggle for freedom and equality”.
Last Saturday was the second of two performances which gathered an amazing collection of artists together. All of the performers were so talented and passionate and brought their own unique styles to the show.
Kicking the night off was Sandy Perez y su Lade demonstrating Afro-Cuban music and dance. Powerful drumming accompanied some absolutely fierce dancing. It was a sight to see the machete wielding dancer running down the aisle in the audience.
More photos on the next page…
De Rompe y Raja Cultural Association
The performance by De Rompe y Raja Cultural Association last Saturday had the audience captivated and clapping along with the rhythms of the music. The dancers even brought some of the audience members on stage to shake their thang during the final piece.
Their concert Guitarra y Cajón! featured Grammy Award Winner David Pinto and Peruvian singer, Andres Alejandro (aka Andy). More photos on the next page…
Aguacero
Last Saturday Aguacero, an Afro-Puerto Rican Bomba music and dance group, gave an incredible performance in the theater. Lively rhythms from the drums and percussion drove the performance as dancers gave fiery improvisations to the beats.
It was really cool to see this interplay between the drummers and dancers. Dancers called for beats and accents with a flip of the hands or a turn of the hips. It all made for a very exciting performance that was great to watch come together.
This performance also featured singing and musical accompaniment by various instruments. Also featured were guests Rico Pabon, Sandra Garcia Rivera and Lina G. Torio.
If you were at the performance, let us know about your experience by leaving a comment. If you’re interested in getting hands on experience with bomba, Héctor Lugo and Shefali Shah hold workshops at La Peña for both adults and youths. For more information go to La Peña’s Classes page or check out the Bomba y Plena Workshop site.
Continue to the next page for more photos and a short video clip.