Diáspora & Mojito @ Manchester Jazz Festival 2010, St Anne's Square, Manchester

Alyss Rose - Lead Vocals
James Vielma - Lead Vocals
Rory Duffy - Alto Saxophone, Flute, Backing Vocals
Andrzej Baranek - Piano
Demetris Kanaris - Bass
Dave Simpson - Kit, Timbales
Rob Turner - Congas
Rick Farrow - Bongo, Bell, Guiro
Oliver Syrus - Tenor Saxophone
Heider Nasralla - Trombone
Gavin Hibberd - Trumpet

This is it! THE BIG ONE. Headlining Manchester Jazz Festival, 2 of Manchester's biggest Latin bands join hands for what promises to be a scorching, sizzling double-bill fiesta of Salsa and Latin Jazz.

When? Sunday 25 July, 2010
Where? Festival Pavilion, Albert Square, Manchester
How much? For just £7.50 you get 2 bands!
There's a bar onsite, so come along for the fiesta!

DIÁSPORA
8:00pm

"Clave... To us the word goes beyond explanations and definitions. It means life, salsa, the food of our leisure time, the motion of intense rhythm, the emotion of 20,000 people simultaneously grooving to the natural sounds of life. It’s being played in the beat, on key, on clave... It means to be on top of things, to be playing it right... Clave is history, it’s culture. African drums from far off places like Nigeria, Dahomey and Ghana married the Spanish guitar to bring us clave. The seeds were planted in the Caribbean and now their grandchild is Salsa."

Formed in March 2009, DIÁSPORA is an 11-piece band bringing you the most sizzling sounds from Latin America and the Caribbean. 

Starring:
Alyss Rose - Lead Vocals
James Vielma - Lead Vocals
Andrzej Baranek - Piano
Demetris Kanaris - Bass
Dave Simpson - Kit, Timbales
Rob Turner - Congas
Rick Farrow - Bongo, Bell, Guiro
Rory Duffy - Alto Saxophone, Flute, Backing Vocals
Olly Syrus - Tenor & Soprano Saxophones
Heider Nasralla - Trombone
Gavin Hibberd - Trumpet

The 11-piece line-up lends itself to a big band sound, without losing the dynamism and spark of a small group; and combines sensuous vocals, sophisticated horn lines and explosive percussion solos. With their vision to bring together the rhythms of the Americas, DIÁSPORA is one of the most exciting new projects to emerge on the UK Latin scene today.

"...a performance that was both great fun, and well received by our audience, who simply didn’t want to stop dancing..."
Cultural Collage World Music Festival 2010

"...a hugely talented and energetic band that blew the roof off Matt & Phred's on their first ever gig at the club. The band of 11 musicians has a great natural fusion and the ease in which they commanded the stage was a joy to behold..."
Matt & Phred's Jazz Club, Manchester

“...a great energy showing through; the arrangements are clever and innovative...some good musicians...”
Salsa Direct

“...Faithful enough to the traditions of Latin music to satisfy even the most diehard purist, but with enough energy and diversity for an amazing party band...”
Royal Northern College of Music

www.diasporamusic.co.uk

MOJITO
9:30pm

MOJITO bring the true taste of Cuba to Manchester and the North West of the UK, playing authentic and inspiring mixes of salsa, timba, merengue, son, reggaeton and chachacha. They have created our own unique style, guaranteed to pack the dancefloor.

Now firmly established on the UK salsa scene, MOJITO Salsa Band has been playing together for 5 years and during that time have been constantly working to perfect their sound, whilst playing at numerous salsa events such as Salsa Feel The Heat Wigan, Dance Cubana Nottingham, Funkysalsa Chester, a sell-out night at Copacabana Manchester and festivals such as Manchester Jazz Festival, Lancaster Jazz Festival, Kendal Brewery Summer Festival. Recently they played at Blackpool Tower Ballroom (in conjunction with Salsafever) for 500 salsa dancers and went down a storm.

This band likes to mix it up and they're not afraid to experiment and push the boundaries - you will hear salsa with reggae, funk and hip-hop. In the same way as these styles influence the contemporary sounds of Cuba they also naturally feed into the sound of Mojito. Versatile and always grooving, their vibrant style and energy are guaranteed to provide an electric atmosphere wherever they go.

"Mojito have developed over the years into a perfect unit for the UK salsa scene. A small band (7 piece) with a full sound, they specialise in Cuban salsa but cover all bases including Puerto Rican salsa, merengue, mambo and salsaton. With Rich Sliwa leading from the drumkit and Cuban singer Damian Castillo Diaz fronting the band, they are guaranteed to rock any salsa club, festival or party with great musicianship, a tasteful set plus an energy and enthusiasm which will make it impossible NOT to dance!"
Lubi Jovanovic, Salsa DJ, compiler and promoter

www.mojito-salsa.co.uk