Ricardo Vega isn't exaggerating when he describes himself as "really dedicated to music." He started off playing guitar and "cuatro" (a string instrument of his native Puerto Rico) as a child, took up the trombone and bass, and later majored in music education. Vega taught music to junior high and high school students for four years before enlisting in the Army in 1986. He continued to play and arrange songs for salsa and Latin bands while stationed in Germany, and so it was only natural for him to put a band together when he was transferred to Hawaii.
PHOTO COMPOSITE BY DAVE SWANN / DSWANN@STARBULLETIN.COMA little aloha spirit stirred in
with the sounds of salsa
makes for a potent mixBy John Berger
jberger@starbulletin.comThe group came together in January of 2000, and he named it Orquesta SalsAloha.
"I put the salsa with the aloha spirit to combine the names," Vega said.
He is one of those lucky musicians for whom music is also his day job. He plays trombone for the 25th Division U.S. Army Band by day, and salsa whenever possible (and if he had any more free time, he'd be playing jazz, too). Orquesta SalsAloha has performed in an ever-growing list of venues that includes Don Ho's Island Grill, Kapono's, Nick's Fishmarket, Planet Hollywood, Rumours and Zanzabar.
JOHN BERGER / JBERGER@STARBULLETIN.COM
SalsAloha rehearsed Tuesday at Schofield Barracks. In the back row were John Ellis, Roger Shattuck, Luis Cruz, Matthew Hubbard and Rafael Lopez. In the front row were Paul "Gringo Puente" Baker, Ricardo Vega and Jose "Cheito" Rivera.
Now you can add, of all things, Unity Church, where the Hawaii Chamber Orchestra Society usually puts on its quiet and polite chamber music soirees. The society's Jackie Ward hopes the salsa band will be the first of several acts to attract a crossover audience at the church.
SalsAloha has also performed with master conga player Giovanni Hidalgo, contributed three songs to the "Salsa from Hawaii" compilation album released in April and appeared on "Caliente," a Latin television show that taped shows on location here.
Other members of the band are Sgt. Paul Baker (timbales), Staff Sgt. Luis Cruz (percussion), Staff Sgt. Kenny Hall (trumpet), Spc. 1st Class Jose "Cheito" Rivera (vocals) and Michael Schucker (trumpet). Guests Winston Raval and Aaron Aranita will trade off on keyboard duties.
The military connection doesn't surprise anyone familiar with Puerto Rican music in Hawaii. Puerto Ricans who came to Hawaii a century ago brought their folk music with them, and local Puerto Rican bands continued to play it for years after their countrymen had come to see it as quaint and old-fashioned. Puerto Rican military personnel and others who visited Hawaii in the 1970s and '80s often said of the local bands, "they're playing my grandparents' music."
Salsa, a style of Latin dance music with deep roots in Cuba, became known as such in the 1960s. It became a cultural phenomenon noticed by the American pop mainstream in the 1970s. (Some musicians say that the term "salsa," or sauce, is a catch-all marketing term for modern Hispanic-Caribbean music.)
The leader in playing salsa and taking it to non-Hispanics in Hawaii has been Nicaraguan-born Rolando Sanchez. His band, Rolando Sanchez & Salsa Hawaii, has been the foundation of Hawaii's mainstream salsa scene for years (and, coincidentally, will be starting a regular gig at Ward Centre's Brew Moon tonight). Most of the other hot salsa bands in Hawaii have consisted of Hispanic military personnel, such as Ricardo Vega and his Orquesta SalsAloha.
"I think it's a pretty good band," he said confidently. "I think you're gonna like it."
Hawaii Chamber Orchestra Society presents Orquesta SalsAloha: In concert
Where: Unity Church, corner of Monsarrat and Diamond Head Circle
When: 7:30 p.m. today
Tickets: $15 available at the door ($10 seniors and military, $5 students, free for ages 11 and younger)
Call: 734-0397
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