plena

We had the pleasure of visiting Puerto Rican singer-songwriter José Nogueras in his studio to talk about his career, Christmas, his album"A Gozar la Fiesta", Parrandas, Tite Curet Alonso, Cheo Feliciano, and so many other things.…

As this week Puerto Rico commemorates its "discovery" by Columbus (November 19) in 1493, our folk rhythm of "Plena" is still going strong over a century after its origin. Note: this blog was originally published in 2010, when this rhythm…

In "Mil Años de Plena" Danny Rivera pays tribute to the late trumpeter and bandleader Cesar Concepcion with the backing of today's acclaimed trumpeter and bandleader Humberto Ramirez. Don Cesar, Danny & Humberto: the Beginnings Danny…

For this Father's Day Special we honor two great father-son musicians in Hector (Atabal) Rodriguez and his son Caymmi Rodriguez. Past Father Day Specials in Latino Music Café have honored Bebo & Chucho Valdez, Rafael Jose and Juan…

Using a subtle blend of Jazz with Puerto Rican rhythms, The Nuñez Project launched their debut EP "Historias Desde Otros Lares". I want to highlight that the music in "Historias" uses Puerto Rican folk rhythms of Plena and Bomba as a…

This Salsa Lab video of a guy who's car broke down and ends up doing a "Parranda en Uber" is fun to watch. The song, a "Plena", is pretty catchy as well. I got this via a comment on Latino Music Café and decided to share it. Since it…

As "Bomba" turned into the 20th century, it only survived in the backyards of the black neighborhoods in Puerto Rico. The free, but still marginalized, negro population in Puerto Rico began to listen to and experience other types of…

In the United States and Puerto Rico, the Thanksgiving holiday marks the beginning of the Christmas season. In Puerto Rico, this will go on until mid-January with the "Octavitas", which should really be called the "Octavas", and then…

Puerto Rican folk group Atabal released their awaited EP "Yo Soy Atabal" just in time for the festive 2018 Christmas season. "Yo Soy Atabal": the EP The new EP contains six songs of which four have been previously released as singles.…