Tom Ehrlich was on-hand for the 2021 San José Jazz Festival, featuring legendary rapper/actor Common, Pete Escovedo, Ray Obiedo y Mambo Caribe, Justo Almario, Gonzalo Chomat & Iris Cepeda. Three of the four galleries are up (see New Stuff links at the upper right). Check back soon for Sunday's gallery.

Obiedo's band featured Bay Area stars Michael Spiro, David Belove and Jeff Cressman:

Judith Hill

                      Camile Safiya, Joshua Icban & Anthony Mills Branch of Futurelics

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Dayme Arocena, Kati Hernández, & Melvis Santa

DAYMÉ AROCENA, and MELVIS SANTA will be featured live on line this weekend in two different classes, thanks to Los Angeles-based Cuban dancer Kati Hernández, director of Kimbámbula dance ensemble, and the power behind a series of on line Cuban dance and music classes that has been dubbed by a growing number of students around the globe as a "virtual university of Cuban arts!"

DAYMÉ AROCENA, composer singer, arranger, internationally feted jazz artist, will be speaking  on Saturday, April 10 at 12:45 pm (Pacific Time) to the Con Clave: Musicality for Dancers class, a class that incidentally, and understandably, has attracted as many musicians as dancers over this last year.

MELVIS SANTA, musician, song writer, singer (Interactivo, Sexto Sentido...) has become a regular bright spot in Kati's program speaking to and leading lectures on Cuban music in the Musicality for Dancers class, as well as periodically teaching Afro Cuban song. This Sunday, April 11 at 11 am (Pacific Time) Melvis will be leading the Afro Cuban song class.

To sign up for these special guest classes ($15/class), as wel as Kati's dance classes, and to peruse the over 60 classes/month that Kati's program offers (including not only musicality, for dancers, Afro Cuban song, popular and Afro Cuban dance classes, but percussion workshops as well), visit www.katicubandanceonline.com.
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Watch for Curuye LA's upcoming interview with Kati Hernández

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Sad news. One of the key figures in the legendary creative chemistry of Los Van Van has passed. 

Click here for more LVV photos by Tom Ehrlich.

Hugo Moreón was a trombonist, keyboardist and arranger who first came onto the radar in the early 70s in Acheré, a group of future all-stars that included Calixto Oviedo, Omar Hernández and NG trumpeter El Greco.

Hugo did stints with Pachito Alonso and Adalberto Álvarez before joining Van Van in the early 80s. In addition to playing trombone and keyboard solos on many classic tracks, he composed the mambo parts for nearly every major Van Van hit. He'll be sorely missed.

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Sue Taylor passed this weekend. She was a huge friend to Cuban music, putting up entire bands at her home, working tirelessly on promotion, and -- on a personal note -- proofreading the Beyond Salsa series and providing her house for the filming of the Calixto project. She'll be greatly missed.

with Paulito FG & Calixto Oviedo

with Juliana Álvarez Thumas, Emiliano Echeverría & members of La Colmenita.

with Iván Melón Lewis

with Ismael Berriel, Orestes Vilató,  Rafael Navarra Pujada, & Walfredo de los Reyes

with Patricia Morgovsky & Bill Martínez

all photos by Tom Ehrlich

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