congaplace.com

A late afternoon at Leimert Park, Los Angeles, California...

Greetings KidCuba.
Why was I not invited?
I recognize a couple of these individuals, in particular the one playing the bell and the one playing the Timbales.
We all took lessons from Mario Punchard to learn Makuta, check out the attached link.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1rzB8D6zA54

Hey Kid , but seriously, is there a way to know or a schedule in regards to these events?

King Conga,

I started a small blog regarding to Los Angeles "rumba" related events here: http://www.larumbero.com

I am hesitant to announce every little happening here, as I don't want to bug people.

KidCuba wrote:King Conga,

I started a small blog regarding to Los Angeles "rumba" related events here: http://www.larumbero.com

I am hesitant to announce every little happening here, as I don't want to bug people.

This is one of the purposes of this forum so don’t feel bad. Like everything else, there are those who will receive it and then there are those who will not, don’t sweat it bro.

April 1, 2012 Rumba at Leimert Park...

Our first rumba Rincon Rumbero went off on Saturday, May 5th at the KAOS Network (Los Angeles).

We had a great turn-out of about 100 people through-out the day, and some excellent rumberos including Jose "Pepe" Martinez and Pedro "Muñeco" Aguilar.

I don't want to flood the post with dozens of pictures, but you can view them here if you like: http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.143074042489091.26951.126013927528436&type=3&l=7b28e2efab

WAS THIS THE LEIMERT PARK, LOS ANGELES, EVENT?...BECAUSE THE PICTURES LOOK LIKE IT WAS AN INDOOR EVENT...IS IT HTE SAME EVENT YOU WERE PUTTING TOGETHER FREE RUMBAS IN LA ARAEA..

Mr. Conga wrote:WAS THIS THE LEIMERT PARK, LOS ANGELES, EVENT?...BECAUSE THE PICTURES LOOK LIKE IT WAS AN INDOOR EVENT...IS IT HTE SAME EVENT YOU WERE PUTTING TOGETHER FREE RUMBAS IN LA ARAEA..

Yes this is the event.
From what I have read it turned out very good for being the first time, over 100 people. The plan is to have this event once a month. I believe that the second event will taake place on June the 2nd which I will once again try to make it.

Mr. Conga wrote:WAS THIS THE LEIMERT PARK, LOS ANGELES, EVENT?...BECAUSE THE PICTURES LOOK LIKE IT WAS AN INDOOR EVENT...IS IT HTE SAME EVENT YOU WERE PUTTING TOGETHER FREE RUMBAS IN LA ARAEA..

It was in the Leimert Park neighborhood, but we hold it inside to help control the music. We don't have to worry about people interested in other drums, and drumming traditions spoiling the rumba. It also gave it a nice community vibe, we had a lot of people bring food for the potluck, and donate a few dollars to give the owner of the establishment who is providing us the space for free. We also had DJ Sonzoo spinning some records in between the rumbas.

We had great feedback from everyone who attended, it was a blast.

Again, it was FREE.

I hope to see you and others from the board come out. There are pictures here: http://www.facebook.com/pages/LA-Rumbero/126013927528436 If you come down, look for me I am the dude with the Dodgers Jersey in the photos. Ricardo.

During the 90's Jose "Pepe" Martinez was a main figure at the Griffith Park rumbas on Sundays. I don't ever remember him playing a drum, not to say he cannot, but he was always playing clave and singing.

During the early 2000s he had a rumba group here in Los Angeles by the name of Los Cimarrones. I don't remember the exact line-up of players, but remember Pepe, Alfredo "El Nino" Ortiz, and Mannie Rivera as being members.

After not seeing Pepe for eleven years, I reconnected with him at Rincon Rumbero. He was strict as ever, refusing to sing until the swing was just right, but when the guaguanco got to his liking - he set-it off with his voice.

Hi KidCuba

Is the recording on larumbero.com a recording from this event?

Well whether or not, I have a question regarding it. The clave is being played, what I have always learnt as, 'backwards'; ie the 3 side of the clave coincides with the tones of the tresdos. I learnt that it should be the other way round.

Am I mistaken, and can it in fact be played this way?
It's strange, because the musicians are clearly experienced and yet they don't correct the clave. So it makes me think that it maybe can be played this way, though I've always learnt otherwise.

Thanks
Assaf

Assaf,

We don't have any audio recording from the event, if you send me a link to the sound file you are describing I can give you a more precise answer.

If you are referring to the audio being played over the picture slide show from the event, that song is called "Siete Leguas" from Justi Barreto's Guaguanco 69 album.

That being said, guaguanco can be played both ways. I have mainly heard the tres dos playing its tones on the 2 side of clave. But there are a lot of older recordings, where the tres dos is being played on the 3 side of clave.

I do not know the history behind the shift of the tres dos from the 3 side to the 2 side, or which is considered "correct".

In Los Angeles, since I have been around (since the mid 1990s), most people play the tres dos on the 2 side. At a recent rumba, the player on the tres dos was playing the tones on the 3 side and was quickly dismissed.

I hope that might help.

Assaf wrote:Hi KidCuba

Is the recording on larumbero.com a recording from this event?

Well whether or not, I have a question regarding it. The clave is being played, what I have always learnt as, 'backwards'; ie the 3 side of the clave coincides with the tones of the tresdos. I learnt that it should be the other way round.

Am I mistaken, and can it in fact be played this way?
It's strange, because the musicians are clearly experienced and yet they don't correct the clave. So it makes me think that it maybe can be played this way, though I've always learnt otherwise.

Thanks
Assaf

Ok a brief history as I experienced it in NYC in the 60's...all we really heard back then and played to was 3/2 guaguanco..we had not really learned to play Havana or Matanzas style, that didnt happen until the late 60's early 70's...nobody ever spoke or taught the clave either...and more times than not, all anybody knew how to play was guaguanco in 3/2..then when Mariel in 1980 came about it changed everyone s playing in NYC..Rumba Clave had been heard on record but there were very few actually playing it except for Grupo Folklorico Nuyorkino-with Jerry G, Gene Golden, Frankie Rodriguez and Milton Cardona...Gene out of all of them had actually been playing longer and had the most experience playing Rumba with Cubans..this is how I understand it and experienced it back then...

Yeah, JC is right on that history of the clave change in the US. Here is my perspective. In the Central Park rumbas since I started in 1971, we played guaguanco with the tres dos on the 3 side of the clave, like most salsa songs that played guaguanco. Most drummers were Puerto Rican, Dominican, African American and a few Cubans. Even some of us New Yorkers who were Cuban or part Cuban didn't really have a clear idea of playing on the 2 side. After Mariel in 1980 a lot of recently arrived Cubans began coming to the park and demanded that we play tres dos on the 2 side. Some of us learned quicker than others, and some stuck to the old style. Up to that time there had been rumba recordings from Cuba with clave played both ways, and there was much confusion and conflict. Fights even broke out over clave. A few of the older recently arrived Cubans like Manuel Martinez taught us how the songs went with the coro on the right side of clave and the tres dos on the 2 side. Felix, Abie, Skip, Eddie Bobe, Mark, Cecil, and a few others learned from Manuel and some of the other Cubans and a lot of us decided we liked that way better. Within a few years, just about everyone had converted. It was really the Cubans who came in the Mariel boatlift, some with serious attitude, who pushed the change. "Somos los cubanos que venimos invadiendo, somos los cubanos que venimos a decirte a ti, que la timba es brava, la timba no es como ayer..."

Hi Jorge ..I am almost positive we played on that bench at some time together, or even at the fountain when we jammed there back then...and Thanks for completing the story, as it's all true...