In preparation for their upcoming national tour, the Pacific Mambo Orchestra played the open air lawn to more than 3000 at the Civic Center Plaza in downtown Los Gatos. Sharpening their set and show, the PMO featured 6 saxes, 4 trumpets and 4 trombones...a veritable wall of classic mambo sounds. Visit the official tour page here.

Click HERE to view the full PMO Show Photo Gallery by Peter Maiden 

Jorge Pomar, Bass, with the Band

Co-leader & trumpeter Steffen Kuehn

Co-leader Cirstian Tumalan on the piano and keytar

The Pacific Mambo Orchestra in Full Swing

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Lots of action this year for Cuban artists in the 57th Grammy® nominations! Here's a quick recap:

BEST LATIN TROPICAL ALBUM

Tremendo PALO! -- Afro-Cuban Funk group PALO! is buzzing hard after their LatinGrammy® nomination. The group -- singer Leslie Cartaya, Raymer Olande, Philbert Armenteros, pianist Steve Roitstein and saxophonist Ed Calle -- got a nomination for their live record Palo! Live. The group’s unique, danceable sound blends the allure of Cuban music with funky beats and jazzy improvisation. You can check out Bill Tilford's review of the record (click) here.


Click HERE to download Track 2 (La Malanga Resbala) from their album PALO! LIVE

Aymee Nuviola - Also following her LatinGrammy® nomination, "La Sonera del Mundo" Aymee's album First Class to Havana counts with guest artists Amaury Gutiérrez, Alexis Valdés, Gonzalo Rubalcaba y also nominated percussionist Pedrito Martínez. The singer had a banner year after her participation in Sergio George's SALSA GIANTS tour. 

BEST LATIN JAZZ ALBUM

Yosvany Terry - Matanzero and saxophonist Yosvany Terry got a nod for his album New Throned King, is the musical culmination of his spiritual exploration, and one of the most creative recordings of the year. "The entire set is comprised of music Terry composed, based on Arara "cantos" and rhythms, which for the most part have never been performed outside of Matanzas."-- AllAboutJazz.com

Click on the photo below to visit Tom Ehrlich's photo gallery for Yosvany's performance last year at Yerba Gardens in San Francisco.

Pedrito Martínez Group - The highly anticipated, self-titled debut album from the Pedrito Martínez Group has been a delight to Latin jazz, traditional jazz and dancers alike. "Pedrito Martinez is undeniably one of the most talented young musicians in Latin music today and has become one of the most in-demand in the industry for both his beautiful voice and his exceptional percussion skills."-- AllAboutJazz.com

Click on the photo below to visit Tom Ehrlich's photo gallery for Pedrito Martínez Group's performance last year at Kuumbwa Jazz Center in Santa Cruz.

Arturo O’Farrill & The Afro-Latin Jazz Orchestra - Following in his father's footsteps, Arturo O'Farrill scores another nomination for Motema Music (same label as Pedrito Martínez Group;'s album) with his record The Offense Of The Drum.

"With The Offense of the Drum, O'Farrill nails that lofty goal. The sounds of a big band are here, the sounds of various Afro-Caribbean rhythms are here, and the sounds of some of New York's best musicians in any genre are here. But what's guiding the music is a vision that incorporates sounds from the streets today with a spoken-word performance that's manifesto-like in its call to recognize culture as something that changes and grows every day."-- NPR.org

BEST ARRANGEMENT, INSTRUMENTAL OR A CAPELLA

Alfredo Rodríguez - Alfredo puts himself on the Grammy map with an arrangement of Guatanamera, a track from his second record The Invasion Parade. "Co-Produced by Quincy Jones, Rodríguez’ champion and mentor, and featuring a superb ensemble that includes bassist and vocalist Esperanza Spalding, percussionist and vocalist Pedrito Martínez, and drummer and percussionist Henry Cole, The Invasion Parade comprises nine tracks including originals by Rodríguez as well as evergreens such as 'Guantanamera', Maria Teresa Vera’s 'Veinte Años', and 'Quizás, Quizás, Quizás'..." -- AllABoutJazz.com

BEST WORLD MUSIC ALBUM

Luis Conte - Santiaguero and percussionist Luis Conte partners up with musicians Daniel Ho and Wu Man for a collection of international popular songs adapted for traditional chinese instruments for the album  OUR WORLD IN SONG. "So, a Chinese pipa player, a Cuban percussionist and a Hawaiian guitarist go into a studio cross-pollinating instruments and traditions in a series of musical selections from around the world... and successfully traversed genres with such delicious delight that audiences will find the combo hard to resist." -- WorldMusicCentral.org

There you have it.... Best of luck to all the nominees!

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TIMBA.com is excited to announce the 2013 USA Tour of Los CONQUISTADORES DE LA SALSA, stars of Lima, Peru's established Timba music scene, and ready to meet their US based fanbase after their release of their 4th album CUBANO NATURAL. Confirmed cities to be announced soon -- stay tuned. Their current hit is Enamorao de la Habana ...watch it on their video page. 

Para más información escriba al -- for more information and tour booking contact
conquistadores.usatour [arroba] gmail.com

West Coast = 775.230.6501                                551.482.8766 = East Coast

click here for the full bio in English                        oprima aquí para la biografía en Español

click here to see their Videos                                               oprima aquí para ver los Videos

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After its much anticipated premier at the 2013 Los Angeles film Festival this past July, The House That Jack Built is a new motion picture coming your way after a nearly 20-year long journey. This was the last script written by Joseph Vasquez, whose 1991 film HANGIN' WITH THE HOMEBOYS was a rare Latino themed hit in the early days of the American Indie movement. With the blessings of Joe's mother, producers Mike Lieber and Sam Kitt (Love And Basketball) kept alive the idea of turning the script into a film, which was then filmed on location in New York by director Henry Barrial.  

Quick summary: With the hope of re-creating his gauzy vision of good times gone by, Jack is pot dealer who buys a Bronx building into which he moves his extended family. When his relatives fail to meet his nostalgic expectations, Jack tries to force them to conform. Instead, he learns a sad lesson about the strength and limitations of family bonds.

Music for the film includes Celosa, a Cuban son by 2013 Grammy nominee Raúl Lara, an old-school, Trio-Los-Panchos love song La Golondrina del Amor by boricua Willie "El Zentinela" Delgado, the Afro-Cuban grooves of Vissión Latina with Que Sabor Tiene Odalys, a lively plena from Plena LIbre with Que Rico Tumbao, the dark urban vibe of Hay Que Frontear courtesy of LG el Xtrasensorial and the ending scene cue from another boricua Tropmontune with Que Pasará.  

A red-carpet film screening of The House That Jack Built is scheduled for New York early October (stay tuned for the exact date). It will be the first film in a series called PROYECTO NEXT, sponsored by HBO.

Speaking of music in film, the Billboard Film & TV Music Conference is scheduled for October 29 & 30 at the W Hotel in Hollywood. Highlights include talks on the expanding role of music publishers -- the key players behind the scenes securing uses of songs for film and TV projects -- and a keynote address by Alexandra Patsavas, whose credits include "Scandal", “Mad Men”, "Hart of Dixie", "Gossip Girl", "The O.C.", the “Twilight Saga”, "Perks of Being a Wallflower", and the upcoming film “The Hunger Games: Catching Fire”. Use the code LPM13 to register here.

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