bailar y tocar
Son Montuno
I was originally going to 7 salsa events in 11 nights on my trip. It ended up going to 5 salsa events.
Salsa Stras Festival Strasbourg - Maykel Blanco y Salsamayor
The opening was the salsa highlight of the trip in spite of the heat in the venue, a sports gym w/o air conditioning and the weather is 32'C. The band is one of my favorites and I had seen them only once way back in 2006 with the lousy sound system at CDLM Habana. Here they were with a good sound system all the energy and several of their newer songs. I danced all night to the band and the DJ before and after. The salseras were very friendly and from the entire region (SW Germany, East France and Switzerland). Most were excellent casino dancers, some were beginners.
I was planning to dance in Zurich but the venue I wanted to go to had closed and there was a big construction site was in its place.
Barrio Latino Paris - Timba Monday nights - DJ
People were friendly, dancing was fairly good although nowhere near as good as at the Strasbourg event. The DJ was also nowhere near as good as the Strasboug DJ. A bonus: the venue was walking distance from the apartment I was staying at.
I had caught a cold and skipped Balajo Paris Tuesday night salsa
Herbands - Köln - Salsa Thursday nights - DJ
This was almost as hot as the Strasbourg venue and the level of the dancers was so-so. Still ok with reasonable music selection and easy to get to.
CK Studio - Frankfurt - Orquesta Guayacan Special Event - DJ opening
This started out ominously. I walked in and saw the stage and wondered how they were going to get the 11 guys from Guayacan in the tiny space and where were the 11 microphones or sound hookups and monitors. Well, they never appeared and the band almost didn't either for that reason. Finally at 1:20am the band mgr comes on and says the band will be coming. They came, played about 6 songs for about 30 min, then quit and did photoshoots with the fans. The first two songs there was no bass. The third mic for one of the singers didn't work until the last song. There as a backup piano player (not Guayacan/ not Colombian) whose attack was behind the rhythm section which is quite irritating. I suppose he really needed the monitors as he was playing from charts. There was a backup trombone player who was never heard as he was too far from the one and only horn mic for three horns. The bongo player was never heard. I don't think he had a sound hookup. The soundboard looked like some toy one can get from an electronics shop.
The positives:
Lots of ladies from Cali, awesome viewing and I had a good time dancing Cali style to the DJ in the early part o the evening.
I met a few local salsa dancers and told them about the event in Bad Homburg on Sunday.
Kurhaus Kultur Sommer Bad Homburg - Septeto Santiaguero
The venue was great. The dancers I met at the Guayacan concert came and we danced all the songs except for one brief rain shower that lasted for 2 songs. One of the dancers mentioned that she and her Cuban husband had been to the Salsa Stras Festival in Strasbourg and thats when I realized why she looked familiar. I rarely forget gorgeous women especially in salsa venues, I couldn't admit that though with her husband standing next to her, oh well.
Summary.
Paris isn't all that, there is better salsa at major events elsewhere in France.
I had not idea there were so many Latinos in Frankfurt and that so many of them are from Colombia. Frankfurt salseros/as were very friendly, sociable and enterprising, i.e. willing to travel to a suburb for a live free open air salsa concert.
Salsa Stras Festival Strasbourg - Maykel Blanco y Salsamayor
The opening was the salsa highlight of the trip in spite of the heat in the venue, a sports gym w/o air conditioning and the weather is 32'C. The band is one of my favorites and I had seen them only once way back in 2006 with the lousy sound system at CDLM Habana. Here they were with a good sound system all the energy and several of their newer songs. I danced all night to the band and the DJ before and after. The salseras were very friendly and from the entire region (SW Germany, East France and Switzerland). Most were excellent casino dancers, some were beginners.
I was planning to dance in Zurich but the venue I wanted to go to had closed and there was a big construction site was in its place.
Barrio Latino Paris - Timba Monday nights - DJ
People were friendly, dancing was fairly good although nowhere near as good as at the Strasbourg event. The DJ was also nowhere near as good as the Strasboug DJ. A bonus: the venue was walking distance from the apartment I was staying at.
I had caught a cold and skipped Balajo Paris Tuesday night salsa
Herbands - Köln - Salsa Thursday nights - DJ
This was almost as hot as the Strasbourg venue and the level of the dancers was so-so. Still ok with reasonable music selection and easy to get to.
CK Studio - Frankfurt - Orquesta Guayacan Special Event - DJ opening
This started out ominously. I walked in and saw the stage and wondered how they were going to get the 11 guys from Guayacan in the tiny space and where were the 11 microphones or sound hookups and monitors. Well, they never appeared and the band almost didn't either for that reason. Finally at 1:20am the band mgr comes on and says the band will be coming. They came, played about 6 songs for about 30 min, then quit and did photoshoots with the fans. The first two songs there was no bass. The third mic for one of the singers didn't work until the last song. There as a backup piano player (not Guayacan/ not Colombian) whose attack was behind the rhythm section which is quite irritating. I suppose he really needed the monitors as he was playing from charts. There was a backup trombone player who was never heard as he was too far from the one and only horn mic for three horns. The bongo player was never heard. I don't think he had a sound hookup. The soundboard looked like some toy one can get from an electronics shop.
The positives:
Lots of ladies from Cali, awesome viewing and I had a good time dancing Cali style to the DJ in the early part o the evening.
I met a few local salsa dancers and told them about the event in Bad Homburg on Sunday.
Kurhaus Kultur Sommer Bad Homburg - Septeto Santiaguero
The venue was great. The dancers I met at the Guayacan concert came and we danced all the songs except for one brief rain shower that lasted for 2 songs. One of the dancers mentioned that she and her Cuban husband had been to the Salsa Stras Festival in Strasbourg and thats when I realized why she looked familiar. I rarely forget gorgeous women especially in salsa venues, I couldn't admit that though with her husband standing next to her, oh well.
Summary.
Paris isn't all that, there is better salsa at major events elsewhere in France.
I had not idea there were so many Latinos in Frankfurt and that so many of them are from Colombia. Frankfurt salseros/as were very friendly, sociable and enterprising, i.e. willing to travel to a suburb for a live free open air salsa concert.
