KCC Productions presents the FIU Big Band featuring guest vocalist Wendy Pedersen

KCC Productions presents the FIU Big Band featuring guest vocalist Wendy Pedersen

Opening the 2014-15 season of the South Motors Jazz Series, Pinecrest Gardens, October 18 at 8 PM

The FIU Big Band, directed by James Hacker, is the most visible artistic group at FIU. With over 25 major performances yearly it has become internationally recognized as one of the premier college jazz ensembles in the world. Invitations to the International Association for Jazz Education Convention, the Mid-West Band & Orchestra Clinic, the Wigan Jazz Festival, the North Sea Jazz Festival, the Quito Jazz Festival, and the Maceo Jazz Festival have taken this world-class group of graduate & undergraduate students beyond the realm of the ‘typical’ college band. "This big band sports an explosive sound and fluid mode of attack. They abide by a get up and go style of musicality via brisk charts and precision-oriented interplay. In effect, the album title offers a vivid depiction of the band’s multihued gait, where they tear it up and also temper the various pulses in spots." (Glenn Astarita)

Wendy Pedersen is one of South Florida’s favorite performers. Her high-energy vocal delivery, with deep, convincing emotion has been impacting audiences for many years. Wendy has won many awards including the Southern Bell/Pace “Jazz Artist of the Year”  and a Miami New Times “best vocalist”, saying, “Wendy can shake the rafters or break your heart...” "When she sings, her voice, an elegant melismatic instrument, evokes the standard emotions, yes, but deeper longings and muted desires.”
(Leonard Pitts, Miami Herald)

Pinecrest Gardens is located at 11000 SW 57th Ave (Red Rd.) Tickets are $25-$30 at pinecrestgardens.org or 305-669-6990.

GRAMMY-WINNER MARLOW ROSADO Y LA RIQUEÑA TO RELEASE THEIR NEWEST SALSA DURO ALBUM, “SALSANIMAL,” JULY 29

The best music is that which reaches beyond its original genre. It can move people deeply, even when the composer and listener are separated by oceans. Such a work is the latest release by Marlow Rosado, “Salsanimal.” 

With over two decades' experience in the music industry, Grammy-winning pianist, composer, and producer Marlow Rosado has developed a powerful portfolio working with many of the top artists in the Latin recording industry. From salsa to rock, from merengue to hip-hop, from bachata to reggaeton, producer, composer, and pianist Marlow Rosado has had his musical hand in all of it. He is continually sought out by Latin Artists for his musical arrangement skills, his aggressive montunos on the piano, as well as his ability to direct orchestras for artists such as the late Salsa legend Celia Cruz, Tito Puente, Jr., Tito Nieves, and many others. It is not uncommon to see Marlow’s name on CD liner notes, whether it is as a pianist, producer, songwriter or musical director.

After his extremely successful second album, "Retro," which won a Grammy for best tropical album of 2013, Rosado is set to release album number three, "Salsanimal,” which he produced, wrote, and arranged. It's power-packed with 12 original hard-driving salsa arrangements featuring nine invited artists, each interpreting a song tailor-made for him.

Legendary salsa pianists Larry Harlow and Richie Ray join Marlow in a friendly piano solo battle among the three virtuoso salsa pianists. Harlow, founder of Latin Legends of Fania, holds a Latin Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. And Ray, “El Embajador del Piano,” best known for the duo Richie Ray and Bobby Cruz (“the kings of salsa”), is still considered one of the best and more influential pianists of all times in salsa music. The veteran salsa singer Herman Olivera interprets Rosado's “Cataño”, a song written as a love letter to Marlow's home town in Puerto Rico. This dynamic sonero  is currently the lead singer of the Eddie Palmieri Orchestra, where he is featured on five CD's with the nine-time Grammy-winner  and master pianist, including "Masterpiece/Obra Maestra" with the late, great Tito Puente, which garnered two Grammys.  Mayito Rivera, lead singer for Cuba's legendary group "Los Van Van" for over twenty years, and one of Cuba’s most notable singers, takes on "Así Son" another composition by Rosado. 

Other artists on the CD are Jon Secada, Domingo Quiñones, Alex Matos, Checo Acosta, and newcomer De La Torre.   The world-renowned Secada has won two Grammys and sold some 20 million albums.  Singer/actor Domingo Quiñones performed on Tito Puente's 100th album, and demonstrated his acting abilities in the rock opera Jesus Christ Superstar. Alex Matos, known as “el salsero de ahora,” is a winner of the Casandra Award of the Dominican Republic for his singing.   Checo Acosta holds two Latin Grammy nominations; he is one of the leading exponents of Colombian carnival music, specifically folk styles native to the country's Caribbean coast such as cumbia and vallenato.

Salsanimal will be released on CD, digitally and as an LP. The attention to detail is impressive. Everything: the mix, the mastering, and the artwork, is just exquisite and refreshing. Signed to Fania Records and with one Grammy already on his shelf, Marlow Rosado is most definitely a driving force of the tropical music industry who can look forward to still greater recognition. 

CONTACT:

Kimberly Chmura

KCC Productions

kcc_productions@yahoo.com

305-332-2623

DRUM LEGEND WILL CALHOUN TAKES HIS RHYTHM TO THE CANVAS WITH NEW ART RELEASE

Over the last three-decades, drummer Will Calhoun's creativity has stretched genres, mediums and continents.  From his Grammy award winning work with Living Colour, to his solo work, some of the most touted drummer-led jazz recordings of the decade, Calhoun is one of music’s most versatile figures. Now with his latest release “AZA,” available at www.willcalhounart.com, Calhoun is going from drum kit to canvas through the groundbreaking new medium of “rhythm-on-canvas.”

Through the visuals with “AZA,” Will's signature style and rhythms are translated by a sophisticated process involving the manipulation of light, time, and geographic space.  Like a painter using brushes with different colors, Calhoun utilized a wide variety of drumsticks of different colors to build the visual artwork featured within “AZA.”  In total, eleven different works are featured within the “AZA” release. Each piece is then limited in edition size and availability. All in the collection are numbered and individually signed by Will Calhoun.

To create the collection, Calhoun worked exclusively with Los Angeles art team SceneFour (www.scenefour.com) over the last year. His involvement with SceneFour is years in the making, as SceneFour notes Calhoun’s influence on the medium as a whole. “Will Calhoun is one of the greatest drummers of his generation, and he’s also one of the key figures in the birth of the rhythm-on-canvas medium,” SceneFour Partner Cory Danziger states. “As a player, Will embraced the use of light sticks during his live shows many years ago, his dedication to bringing forward a visual aspect to rhythm cannot be questioned. We’re very grateful to have the opportunity to work with him on the “AZA” art collection.”

For more information and to see the entire “AZA” art collection, please visit www.willcalhounart.com. For public relations inquiries and bookings, please contact Kimberly Chmura at KCC Productions at kcc_productions@yahoo.com.