The Pedrito Martinez Group CD Release

Tuesday Oct. 8 will serve as an important date for Cuban music enthusiasts in the New York metro-area, as The Pedrito Martinez Group will be holding a special concert celebrating the release of their much anticipated studio album. Cuban percussion laureate Pedrito Martínez and his distinguished quartet have established themselves as one of the most eminent NY ensembles regardless of style or category. In recent years the group has enjoyed an abundance of live performance opportunities few US-based groups in their genre encounter. Their impressive itinerary includes numerous concert dates across the continental United States and Europe, coupled with the band’s long-standing tenure at Guantanamera Restaurant in Hell’s Kitchen. This wealth of stage time has enabled the group to evolve and mature into one of the tightest and indeed most exciting ensembles in their idiom, resulting in raving accolades from critics and musicians alike.

The Pedrito Martínez Group consists of bassist Alvaro Benavides, percussionist Jhair Sala, pianist Ariacne Trujillo and of course Mr. Martínez himself. Along with their impressive instrumental prowess, all four musicians share vocal duties in both live and studio contexts, producing a group sound that belies their small size as an ensemble. The quartet’s self-titled studio debut is not only an apogee to the countless hours these great musicians have shared on the bandstand, but also serves to exhibit a different side of the group by featuring an impressive guest roster that includes Steve Gadd, John Scofield and Wynton Marsalis.

The show will be held at City Winery located at 155 Varick Street between Vandam and Spring. The music will begin at 8pm, with doors opening at 6pm. Further information on purchasing CDs and tickets is available from the group’s website.

Of course for those who cannot make this event, there is always the option to check out this excellent band every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday starting 8:30pm at Guantanamera Restaurant located at 939 8^th Avenue between 55^th and 56^th. Reservations can be made via http://www.opentable.com/guantanamera.

thursday, 25 july 2024, 12:04 am

Cuba's heralded vocalist and chékere player Eladio "Don Pancho" Terry, will join his sons Yosvany and Yunior Terry in a one-time NYC performance at Minton's in Harlem on Tuesday, May 27, 2014. The night's kaleidoscopic program is said to run the gamut "from AfroCuban Folklore, to Charanga, to Contemporary Latin Jazz".

The lineup of the evening will consist of the patriarchal Eladio on vocals and percussion, Yosvany Terry on saxophone and Yunior Terry on bass along with pianist Osmany Paredes, percussionist Yusnier Sánchez and flutist Javier Porta.

thursday, 15 october 2015, 06:25 am

What happens when one of New York’s premier Cuban dance events teams up with one of NY’s premier Timba Bands along with one of NY’s premier dance schools at one of NY’s premier world music venues? Salsondria, Fuakáta and La Tematik will come together for a special evening at SOB’s (Sounds of Brazil) on Friday October 16 to answer that very question.

Salsondria, featured in earlier blogs, has been growing and evolving steadily since first catching timba.com’s attention in late 2014. Host and founder Daniel Odría has been working tirelessly to bring together the Cuban dance community and the musicians who play Cuban music live, with much success in doing so along the way. From his steady Tuesday residency at Favela Cubana to his guerilla-style parties at various locations across the metro area, Odría has averaged around 8-10 Saslondria events per month this past summer.

La Tematik are of course no strangers to the Sounds of Brazil stage. The group still stands as one of the few large Cuban Music ensembles performing regularly throughout the NYC area. They’ve established themselves, among other things, as the go-to orchestra to back up artists such as Mayito Rivera and Jose “Pepito” Gomez during their seasonal performances and have made many appearances on media sources such as ©Congahead. Under the direction of pianist Sebastian Natal and Jhair Sala, the band features a revolving door of some of the best singers and instrumentalists the city has to offer.

The itinerary for the night will commence with and intro to Cuban dance lesson by Fuákata at 7:00pm, followed by the band's 1st set at 8:00pm, a 9:00pm DJ set and finally the band's 2nd set at 10:00pm.

Tickets are $10 in advance and $15 at Door

For ages 21 and over.

SOB’s is located at 204 Varick St, New York, NY 10014.

friday, 08 august 2014, 09:17 am

Unity is a musical project and collaborative ideal conceived in the summer of 2006 by Cuban-American drummer Amaury Acosta and Cuban pianist Axel Tosca Laugart. Their musical influences run the gamut and include the likes of J Dilla, Tower of Power, Chucho Valdez, McCoy Tyner, Robert Glasper, Bon Iver, Arnold Schoenberg, Allan Holdsworth, Jimi Hendrix, Derek Trucks, Tyler the Creator, Irakere, Los Muñequitos de Matanzas, Brian Blade, Jay-Z, Buena Vista Social Club, Busta Rhymes, Freddie Hubbard and many more. Unity’s strong heritage and eclectic modernism come together to form a refreshing and unstoppable sound.

Their debut album Peace, Love &Music was released in April of 2013 “as Unity’s manifesto, mission statement and first step to reaching all those who dream of being enlightened, refreshed and inspired by music again. In their mission of fusing Afro-Cuban culture with modern jazz, soul, hip-hop and gospel they’ve sacrificed neither virtuosity nor groove”.

For their residency at the legendary Zinc bar, located in historic Greenwhich Village, New York City, the group will be performing songs from their album along with new, unreleased compositions The groups lineup will include guitarist Michael Valeanu, pianist Axel Tosca Laugart, bassist Alex Da Silva, saxophonist Max Cudworth, and musical director Amaury Acosta on drums.

Zinc Bar - 82 w 3rd st (Bet. Thompson and Sullivan Sts)