Estrellas Cubanas performed the Danzon Amalia Batista by Rodrigo Prats at the Danzon Festival in Havana in 2007 – do contact me if you’re interested in promoting an exchange project between Estrellas Cubanas and Charanga del Norte. I have worked with members of Estrellas Cubanas and am particularly interested in getting the singers and percussionists to perform with Charanga del Norte in Havana and also on tour. As these veteran Charanga players are over sixty it would be nice to do a collaborative project sooner rather than later!

Pancho Terry, Sue Miller, ?, Guillermo Rubalcaba, Polo Tamayo

I guested with various veteran bands such as Charanga de Oro, Orquesta Sublime and Estrellas Cubanas as part of the International Danzón Festival. I also gave an invited lecture in Spanish on the history of Charanga de Norte and on my research into Cuban Charanga at the International Conference on Danzón organised by UNEAC. My performance with Orquesta Sublime on 6 April in the Cabaret Nacional was filmed for Cuban Television and video extracts are available on this site.

Performances in Havana as Guest Flautist 2006 & 2007:

Charanga de Oro, ‘Teatro America’, Havana matinee                     25 March 2007

Charanga de Oro. Santa Cruz del Norte, evening                              25 March 2007

Estrellas Cubanas, ‘Union Fraternal’, Habana Vieja                       22 March 2007

Orquesta Sublime, ‘Cabaret Nacional’, Havana                                 9 April 2007

Orquesta Barbarito Diez, Bejucal                                                           14 April 2007

Estrellas Cubanas in ‘Casa de la Cultura’, Vibora’, Habana           17 Feb 2006

La Sublime in ‘Associacion Artistica Gallega’, Habana Vieja        5 March 2006

Performance in New York as Guest Flautist 2007:

Orquesta Broadway, Mamoncillo Festival                                              15 July 2007

Salsa Performance 2010:

The Wardrobe, Leeds: A Tribute to Eddie Palmieri’s La Perfecta    5 February 2010

Charanga del Norte 2010

Seven Arts Centre, Seven Jazz, Leeds                                                       13 May 2010

Charanga del Norte 2009

Lakes Alive Festival, Carlisle                                                                        24 May 2009

Victoria Park with Orquesta Aragon & Changui de Guantanamo   21 June 2009

Barbican, London                                                                                              28 June 2009

Barnsley Civic Theatre                                                                                        7 November 2009

Charanga del Norte 2008

Marsden Mechanics                                                                                         1 March 2008

John Leggott College Scunthorpe                                                            26 April 2008

York World Music Fiesta                                                                             5 May 2008

Lawrence Batley Theatre, Huddersfield                                                3 August 2008

Colchester Arts Centre                                                                               23 August 2008

Charanga del Norte 2006/2007

Leeds Metropolitan University                                                             13  September 2006

Sheffield University Concert Series                                                     17  October 2006

College of St Johns, York 12^th Night Salsa Extravaganza             5 January 2007

Instituto Cervantes, Manchester                                                          21  February 2007

Instituto Cervantes, Leeds                                                                      22  February  2007

Richmond, Yorkshire                                                                               24 August 2007

The New Picket, Liverpool                                                                     13 October 2007

Charanga del Norte 2005/2006

Otley Courthouse Arts Centre                                                               3 Dec 2005

Leeds Hi-Fi Club                                                                                       24 April 2006

Colchester Arts Centre                                                                          24 June 2006

Park Lane College, Leeds                                                                       6 July 2006

Hull Jazz Festival                                                                                    29 July 2006

Darlington Arts Centre                                                                        29 July 2006

Charanga del Norte Summer Tour 2005:

Darlington Arts Centre                                                                         28 May

Helmsley Arts Centre                                                                            4 June

The Adam Smith Theatre, Kirkcaldy, Fife                                   11 June

Sunderland Kite Festival (organised by Sage Gateshead)     3 July

Colchester Arts Centre                                                                        9 July

North Cornwall Arts, Bodmin Moor festival                              22 July

Trowbridge festival                                                                              23 July

2003 Charanga del Norte UK Tour:

Wiltshire Music Centre                                                                                  14 June

Queens Gardens, Hull                                                                                    21 June

Bar Rumba, London                                                                                       24 June

Colchester Arts Centre                                                                                 28 June

The Bridgewater Hall, Manchester (supporting Eliades Ochoa)     2 July

Fiddlers, Bristol                                                                                                  4 July

Cheltenham Town Hall                                                                                     8 July

The Lemon Tree, Aberdeen                                                                          11 July

The Y Theatre, Leicester                                                                               18 July

Brampton Live Festival                                                                                 19 July

Harrogate International Festival                                                               20 July

Trowbridge Festival                                                                                      27 July

Sidmouth Festival                                                                                          1 August

Chapel Allerton Arts Festival, Leeds                                                    27 August

Musicport Festival, Whitby                                                                      25 October

2001 Charanga del Norte UK Tour:

Manchester Streets Ahead Festival                                                       13 May

Whitby Musicport (Pre-Festival)                                                            28 May

Woodhouse Millennium Festival, Leeds                                               3 June

The Vale Centre, Todmorden                                                                   10 June

Heeley Festival, Sheffield                                                                          24 June

Kirkstall Festival, Leeds                                                                              8 July

The Kirkgate Centre, Cockermouth                                                        28 July

The Bridgewater Hall, Manchester (‘Hola Mundo’ Festival)         3 August

Talking Heads, Southampton                                                                  25 August

Colchester Arts Centre                                                                             26 August

The Tower Arts Centre, Winchester                                                    8 September

The Castle, Wellingborough                                                                 22 September

The Trades Club, Hebden Bridge                                                       23 September

Whitby Musicport Festival                                                                  30 September

1999 and 2000 Charanga del Norte performances included:

Casa Latina Leeds, Colchester Arts Centre, The Bridgewater Hall ‘Hola Cuba’ Festival, Hull Jazz Festival, Exeter Salsa Club, Westward Ho! Salsa Event, Window on the World Festival (North Shields), The Castle Arts Centre (Wellingborough), Hebden Bridge Trades Club and The Lawrence Batley Theatre (Huddersfield).

TEACHERS:

Richard Egües: Cuban Flute Improvisation (Havana)

Dr Luke Windsor: Supervisor for PhD, University of Leeds

Bill Kinghorn: Improvisation, Functional Harmony and Analysis (LCM)

Dharambir Singh: Indian Music (LCM)

Lis Parry: Classical Flute (LCM)

Nikki Iles: Jazz Piano (LCM)

Performances as Director of the 30-piece ‘Cuban Music Ensemble’: (Education Work)

Harrogate Festival (concerts in Kettlesing and Kirby Malzeard),      July 2003

Brudenell Social Club  (for Women’s Aid)                                               12 December 2003

Briggate, Leeds (for Refugee Week)                                                            13 June 2004

HQ Club, Chapel Allerton Leeds  (for Leeds Asylum Seekers)        17 June 2004

The Irish Centre, Leeds (for LGI and St James Infirmary staff)      20 December 2004

Brudenell Social Club (Leeds Cuba Solidarity ‘Moncada Rocks’)    3 June 2006

The Venue, Leeds College of Music                                                           24 November 2006

Headingley Parish Hall (Cuban Descarga night)                                  10 December 2006

Leeds United Football Club (for Women’s Aid)                                  22 November 2007

Seven Arts Centre, Leeds                                                                                6 June 2008

The Venue, Leeds College of Music                                                           6 May 2009

Seven Arts Centre, Leeds                                                                              12 July 2009

I am currently teaching Cuban music courses for undergraduates at the University of Leeds and flute, saxophone and piano at Yorkshire College of Music and Drama Yorkshire College of Music.

I will also be musical director of a course in traditional Cuban dance music in Havana in December 2010 (alongside veteran Charanga and Son musicians) so do contact me via the contacts page if you’re interested in this . Here is a video of me rehearsing for the first time with some of the tutors for this course – Zenen Arrascaeta on timbales, Cana on piano, Pedro on bass and Ernesto Oviedo vocals – the room was very reverberant so the sound is washy but you can see Zenen clearly having some fun with me on the improvised breaks and mambitos!