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A few fans may find Latin roots-pop pioneer Lila Downs' return to old-fashioned, romantic ranchera music to be a retrograde move, but her commanding presence and the astonishing skill and economy with which she embellishes these old-school Mexican ballads with modern rock, electronica and even a tasteful dash of hip-hop will blow your mind, if you give it a close listen. Similarly, she weaves in the rich rhythms of Cuban son and Central American cumbia, reconciling and uniting several strands of Latin American popular music. The repertoire blends striking originals with classics from Jose Alfredo Jimenez, while Downs' dark, husky vocals give more than a mild nod towards the great Mexican diva, Lola Beltran, while Tex-Mex accordionist Flaco Jimenez anchors the album in a solid border vibe. You have to be willing to get into the style (and not everyone is, including plenty of folks who listen to other kinds of Latin American music...) But if you give it a chance, this is a pretty cool album, particularly how it points the way to a canny revitalization and modernization of one of the hemisphere's liveliest and most musically conservative genres. Oh, and Downs' old fans will not be disappointed: she's as authoritative, innovative and charismatic here as on anything she's done.

Latin dance music CDs, DVDs and information. Specializing in Salsa, Latin Jazz, Timba, Rumba, Lucumí, Afro-Cuban, Bomba, Plena, Boogalú and more!

Latin Percussion (LP) mini-bio and photo of the widely-renowned, highly-sought conga drummer, Giovanni Hidalgo.

Contemporary Indian Dhrupad singing, Latin/Afro/Tango/Milonga/Morna/Rumba/Habanera, electro-sitar, folk cello, Balkan/Indian/Electro/NewAge, Welsh triple harp, Flamenco/Tabla, Celtic/Renaissance/Baroque, Ukrainian folk, Arabic/Jazz, Celtic harp, latin afro tango milonga morna rumba habanera sitar tabla cello folk baroque celtic renaissance ukrainian welsh harp balkan indian arabic world music

Chamber-jam music for the "remix generation". As if by alchemy, Eastern-European and Gypsy melodies, Latin rhythms, Jazz-inspired improvisations, and deeply rooted Classical forms. Ljova is a film composer, arranger, and violist.

Serbia's Boban Markovic, king of Roma brass and reigning trumpet royalty, shot thru w/jazz, Latin-Caribbean + other unmapped sound streams...

Reviews of the underground, eclectic dance music scene, with jazz, latin, electronics, funk, soul, and house mixed in...Eclectica!

Mini-bio and photo by LP (Latin Percussion)

List of one listener's favorite congueros (conga drummers) from Cuban, Puerto Rican, and other Caribbean / Latin-American cultures.

The Vibe: Afro-Cuban Rhythms, Latin Jazz, Mambos & Descargas (free). Mp3 is about 10 minutes long.

The origin of the term "Afrocuban Jazz" dates back to the 1940s ~ Mario Bauza, Frank Grillo "Machito", Chico O'Farrill, and John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie

Jerry Gonzalez and the Fort Apache Band perform incredibly smart, deeply engaging, viscerally exciting Afro Cuban jazz. Jerry plays trumpet & congas.

Latin American Music Review - University of Texas Press

Front page today: Eberhard Weber (Colours, ECM) w/ Charlie Mariano / Matthew Shipp (4D). Prior reviews of Jack DeJohnette, Ornette Coleman, Walter Beasley, Latin jazz bands, many resources; too TOO much to DO here!!

Rarely: core melody, prolonged synth, Often: acoustic, live, percussive, chanting, ululation, a capella, drums, drum-centric ~Fuses following ingredients: Latin House, African House, Dark House, Progressive House, Tech-House (techno/jazzy)...like mixing tasteful (intelligent) dance w/ minimal techno.