Joining forces to bring NYC another great performance May 13 @8P Concert Hall at Lehman College.
The importance of Orquesta Aragón to Cuban music is similar to that of the Duke Ellington Orchestra or the Count Basie Orchestra to American jazz. In the 1950s, Orquesta Aragón was signed to the American label RCA Victor and found great success internationally spearheading the first wave of Cuban cha-cha-cha and mambo mania that captivated American audiences. Then led by legendary violinist Rafael Lay, many historians cite this period as Orquesta Aragón’s apex. https://youtu.be/rONlPkU83L8?list=RDrONlPkU83L8
Tours of the U.S., Europe, and Latin America would ensue only to be interrupted by the politics and the Cuban blockade in the 1960s. Following renewed interest in Cuban Music in the 1990s, Orquesta Aragón would return to the United States for three successful tours beginning in 1999 including concerts at Carnegie Hall in New York, Orchestra Hall in Chicago, and Zellerbach Theatre in Berkeley. Their 1999 CD, La Charanga Eterna, marked the sixtieth anniversary of the band’s founding.
Also appearing, Orquesta Broadway which is a Cuban charanga style band that was founded in New York City in 1962 by flutist Eddy Zervigón and his brothers Rudy (violin) and Kelvin (piano) along with their neighbor Roberto Torres as their vocalist. https://youtu.be/rF59MuOU2lQ
Orquesta Broadway debuted in October 1963 at NYC’s Palladium concert hall. Now, more than fifty years after its foundation and despite changing music styles, the always-in-demand Orquesta Broadway continues to enjoy an enviable position at the forefront of Afro-Cuban and Latin music in the country.