It is too cold for Central Park, the Sunday afternoon CP rumba usually does not start until May. For over 2 years now, we have had a really excellent indoor rumba every Thursday night at 11 pm at the Zinc Bar, 82 W. 3rd St (between Thompson and Sullivan) in Manhattan.
http://www.zincbar.com/calendar/2016-03-24Here is our core group in the studio with 2 guest singers from Cuba (El Gato and Lali) and a guest percussionist on kata (Javier). You can drag the screen with your mouse to see all the musicians (360 degree video)!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7OC6btzrUfsThe core group at the Zinc Bar is led by Roman Diaz (formerly of Yoruba Andabo), with Melvis Santa singing most weeks, and our usual lineup of Maximo Valdes, Chino Real, Jennifer Hernandez and a few others on vocals, Felix Brito (Matanzas) on tumbador, Clemente Medina on quinto and me on tres dos. Some great rumberos come and sit in with us, different each week. This past Thursday we had a particularly great lineup of guest artists, including Pedrito Martinez, Raydel Medina (visiting from Spain), Camilo Molina (timbalero with Eddie Palmieri), Diosvany Valladares, Abby Holliday, Lazarito, Marvin Diz, Migelo Valdes, and a few more. Modern Cuban rumba with some of the best Cuban rumberos outside of Cuba, we play modern guaguanco/guarapachangueo, yambu, rumba columbia, Abakua, Makuta and occasionally comparsa, Batarumba, Bata and other rhythms. If you have not heard of some of these folks, check them out on YouTube or on the Congahead channel.
Come to the rumba on a Thursday night when you are in NYC, you can check the website for details. Most of these guys play rumba and bata and teach, I am sure you could find a great teacher among the drummers at the rumba, either in our core group or one of the guest artists. You could probably set up some intensive classes for the time you are visiting. Melvis Santa is an outstanding professional singer and an excellent vocal teacher recently arrived from Cuba. In addition, Roman, Pedrito and Clemente have an outstanding bata group, you can ask them if you could go to a tambor Aberikula while you are here. PM me your email address and I can give you more details.