Merengue For Ever With La Banda Gorda

La Banda Gorda is a popular Merengue group from Dominican Republic directed by José Peña Suazo.

In 1994 Suazo went on his own and formed his own group which he named "Jose Peña Suazo y la Banda Gorda", dubbed 'Banda Gorda' for short. The group's first album "Libre al fin" (Free at Last), was released on April 19, 1994.

Source: Wikipedia



Merengue For Ever!!!

Merengue For Ever Made By The New Generation

This is what the new Merengue (locally made and consumed in the DR) sounds like. This is one of the most famous singers of the Merengue called "De Calle", "Urbano", etc.

Enjoy...

Merengue For Ever!!!

Merengue For Ever With La Banda Gorda

This is a teaser promo of the upcoming interview with Merengue artist Jose Pena Suazo, Lead Singer and Director of La Banda Gorda. (To be posted next week)

In the world of Merengue, La Banda Gorda lives up to its name: Its Merengue is Phat,and full of flava...

Merengue For Ever With Fernando Villalona

In the history of Merengue, this guy has earned a spot reserved for just a few in the showbiz arena.

Fernando Villalona represents Dominican Pride at its best.

His simplistic musical style and melodious voice, have found their way into the heart of three generations of Dominicans in the island and anywhere in the world Dominicans have migrated.

This song is titled "Corazón Salvaje", included in his 1994 album "El Niño Mimado" (The Spoiled Child).

Pure Tropical Flava.

And most definitely, it's Merengue For Ever!!!

Shakira Performs On The Letterman Show

Behold a great artist who's definitely on top of her game.

Shakira does Merengue at The Late Show with David Letterman.



Merengue For Ever!!!

Shakira Does Merengue With Flava

History continues to be made with Merengue, however, the people who created and produced this magical rhythm are the ones who profit the least from it.

Shakira has done again, this version of a popular Urban Merengue song is a hit, it's titled "Loca Con Su Tigre". This performance took place on September 17 at the Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, CT.

Her hips (once again) tell the truth: This is quite possibly the most flavorful music in the world.



Merengue For Ever!!!

Merengue For Ever Made By Aramis Camilo: 1986's "Susana"

This performance by Aramis Camilo and his band named "la Organizacion Secreta" took place on February, 1986 at the old theater called The Felt Forum at Madison Square Garden in NYC. The entrance was located on 33rd Street and 8th Avenue, right accross from the Post Office Building.

In the event participated around 15 bands from the Dominican Republic in an annual celebration called "El Carnaval del Merengue", produced by the Dominican impresario Jose Tejeda. All those bands were at the moment, on tour, and each and every one of them went back to the DR with excellent revenues.

Among the band personnel were many reputable musicians like Kaki Ruiz (Trumpet), Guillermo Sosa (Trombone), Lenny Camacho (Back-up singer and choreographer) and Juan Valdez (Piano and arrangements).

That was a moment when Merengue was in its best shape, dominating the airwaves and getting full houses in all night clubs in the area of NY, NJ and Connecticut. Also, in Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic and all of Latin America.

This song is a classic that until today, allows Aramis Camilo to capitalize on its fame and be on stage in various countries. He had lots of hits from the 80s that became a part of the Golden Years of Merengue.

He definitely contributed to making some Merengue For Ever!!!


Enjoy!



Downtown

Merengue For Ever With Michael Jackson''s Billie Jean

Merengue is quite possibly the musical style with more flexibility in terms of accepting variations from other styles and its incorporation into other rhythms.

Here's a rendition of Michael Jackson's Billie Jean we found on YouTube, it's very well put together.

The addition of Merengue elements, such as the beat and the saxophones, while simplistic, it certainly does justice to the original song since there's not much more that can be done (musically) to improve on such a masterpiece.

The video editing also enhances the entertainment value of this remix.

Enjoy!



Merengue For Ever!!!

Merengue For Ever Presents: Juan Luis Guerra's "El Farolito"

Today we are in the mood to introduce this Merengue by Juan Luis Guerra.

El Maestro from the Dominican Republic has imprinted his legacy in the history of Tropical Music (Merengue, Salsa, Bachata, etc.) and we don't know how far he's gonna go, but it seems as if he's still onto bigger things beyond Merengue.

This selection is titled "El Farolito" from is 1994 album "Fogarate'.

This is a style of Merengue called "Tipico", which is actually derived from the most primitive type of Merengue which depended from the 3 basic instruments: Tambora, Guira and Accordion.

Here, Juan Luis brings an intense Merengue, really strong in its percussion, all laced with his refined arrangement and unique singing style.

The arrangement includes a great accordion execution (non-stop throughout the song) by Francisco Ulloa, one of the Dominican legends in "Merengue Tipico". At 1:55 you can enjoy what is called "Jaleo de Acordeon" (From the word "Jalar" or "To Pull"), followed by the inclusion of Saxophones, Bongo and Synthesizer.

The chorus from the 440 Band adds depth to the overall experience of listening to a Merengue of this kind.

This is certainly one of the most memorable songs in JLG's prolific career.

And of course, it qualifies as a Merengue For Ever!!!

Enjoy!



Downtown

Rihanna - Please Don't Stop The Music (MERENGUE VERSION)

How cool is that? Most people know that Merengue is adaptable to any kind of music without losing its flava. This is a nice remix from the song "Please Don't Stop The Music" by Rihanna. It was made in the Dominican Republic.

Very refreshing song, I played it in all summer my picnics so far, and kids and adults like it.

Here it is: MERENGUE FOR EVER!!!




Pop Superstar Rihanna

Merengue For Ever With La Gran Manzana From NYC!

In the 80s, this Merengue Band called "La Gran Manzana" (The Big Apple) introduced a Merengue style that evolved and gained fans in Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, South America and many cities in the U.S., mostly in New York.

The band was directed by pianist/arranger/singer Henry Hierro and Lead Singer Victor Roque. We remember them in all NYC night clubs looking as the most elegant and expensive-looking band of their time.

The band manager and mentor was the late impresario Leonardo Morantin. This song is titled "Mentirosa" from their 2nd album edited in 1985.

This was the 1st song from La Gran Manzana to get airplay in the DR, the one that ignited the fame they still have, even after the band went through changes and the leaders separated.


La Gran Manzana certainly made some good Merengue For Ever!!!

Enjoy:



MERENGUE FOR EVER!!!

Merengue In Saturday Night Live (The Manuel Ortiz Show)

The gifted comedian Fred Armisen is the host of The Manuel Ortiz Show, a recurrent segment in Saturday Night Live, which spoofs what happens in the TV made in the Dominican Republic.

It's easy to find many Dominican show hosts that kill lots of airtime dancing and singing during their shows.

This situation is brilliantly exploited here, in a very funny way. The reality of the situation is that no one can resist listening to Merengue without dancing to it.

Remember, everyone in The Manuel Ortiz Show is supposed to be playing a Dominican.

This is a sketch from the show that aired on NBC as a rerun on Saturday June 19, 2010.



Footage courtesy of NBC TV Network

Merengue For Ever!!!

A Merengue Concert To Remember

This video is a freelance video report produced by Lorenzo Fenix about a great Merengue Concert held at Shea Stadium in Queens, New York on June 24, 2006. 

“Que Viva El Merengue” was one of the most memorable celebrations that took place in the old stadium used by the New York Mets, the team now plays at the modern City Field stadium, which was built next to the old one. 

Merengue Concerts have not been celebrated yet in the new stadium, which opened on Opening Day 2009.

This footage was broadcast as part of the international TV Show “Entre NY Y Quisqueya”.

Merengue is the sweetest kind of tropical music, enjoy!

 

Merengue For Ever!!!

More Merengue videos at:  http://www.youtube.com/Lorenzofenix

Merengue For Ever In The Neighborhood

In a hot summer in NYC, Merengue music provides refreshment for kids and the police...enjoy!





Merengue For Ever!!!

Merengue It's In The Air-Spring Has Sprung In The Bronx!

Enjoy some images of the beginning of Spring 2010 in a Bronx neighborhood.


The fragment of the instrumental song used in this short video is titled "Primavera", a hit recorded by the popular band director July Mateo a.k.a. Rasputin, it was released in the Summer of 1985.




MERENGUE FOR EVER!!!

Dissecting Merengue:"Gotas De Pena" By Ramon Orlando And The International Orchestra

Ramon Orlando and his Orquesta Internacional perform this song titled "Gotas De Pena".

Great lyrics, and great vocals by Feny Ortiz, who was lead singer for the band.

The overall arrangement and the execution of every instrument, are definitely superb, the band was an All Star cast at the time (Late 80s and early 90s).

Ramon Orlando shows us once again why he's regarded as one of the greatest Dominican musicians of all time who's helped shape the careers of many successful singers and musicians in the Dominican Republic.

The nice A Capella intro with Feny doing both voices, treats us to a delightful vocal performance by a humble, unassuming guy, who is, without a doubt, one of the most melodic Merengue singers in history.

This is (in all regards) one of many masterpieces from the band that set a new standard in Merengue during the 80s and beyond.

Listen by clicking on this link:http://www.twango.com/media/LorenzoFenix.public/LorenzoFenix.10004

A lotta love for Merengue!


MERENGUE FOR EVER!!!

Downtown
Bronx, NY
LaKuraShow@gmail.com

Dissecting Merengue: Bonny Cepeda

Here is a popular masterpiece made by Bonny Cepeda titled Asesina.

The song was released in the summer 0f 1986.

Asesina: a one-of-a-kind Merengue performed and arranged by Bonny Cepeda a.k.a El Maestro Joven (The Young Master). He earned this nickname because of his brilliance, old Merengueros were quick to recognize his talent and peculiar style.

Note the nice intro sung in English and Spanish, something not many have done successfully like Bonny.

In the world of Merengue, that is.

The musical arrangement is unconventional since at the time Dominican merengueros were not using synthetizers as skillfully as Bonny Cepeda.

He's also the lead singer in this piece, his brother Richie helped in the chorus, as usual.

These two brothers were practically inseparable, they were a winning formula in music-making.

The mambos and overall music for this song make it memorable because this guy really crafted a good product which had a nice welcome by the industry and the people.

He became extremely popular and received a lot of airplay in DR, PR, the U.S. Central, South America and Europe.

Bonny Cepeda is a legend in the history of Merengue, his contributions have been invaluable, many other singers and band directors relied on him for arrangements that helped many Merengue songs become hits in the 70s, 80s and 90s.

Among them we count Fernando Villalona, Wilfrido Vargas, Los Kenton, etc.

Merengue For Ever salutes Bonny Cepeda and recognizes his talent and the quality of his work.

Pieces like this one make us proud of our music, just because MERENGUE IS THE RITMO PATRIO OF ALL QUISQUEYANOS.

Listen to this song and enjoy!

Asesina, by Bonny Cepeda

http://www.twango.com/media/LorenzoFenix.public/LorenzoFenix.10006

MERENGUE FOR EVER!!!

Downtown

Dissecting Merengue? Yes, I Can Do It Like Nobody Else

There have been numerous contributions to the history of Merengue that I personally think have been taken for granted by Dominicans in positions to make sure that
such thing doesn't happen, I'm talking about powerful people within the Merengue Industry.

(The "Merengue Industry", the one that rose to high levels in the 80s).

When I mentioned "contributions" made to Merengue as a whole, I'm referring to musical works made by people like Manuel Tejada, Ramon Orlando, Bonnie Cepeda (inconsistent, but always brilliant), Juan Valdez, etc. and many, many more people who added their grain of sand from many angles.

As part of our self-imposed commitment with Merengue (known as El Ritmo Patrio De Quisqueya)we'll use this blog (among other things) to explain in words, to dissect the musical and lyrical content of some of the works where the above-mentioned artists display their gifts in the shape of MERENGUE well made, long lasting, and the one still with a future.

We mean "future" in a bigger way...the world should know more about MERENGUE as a musical art form.

We are ready to start revealing anecdotes that took place in the world of Merengue and Los Merengueros.

I'm also planning to write about cool stuff that could shed some light in terms of how people have perceived (and are going to perceive, from now on) a specific Merengue song once we write about it.


I'm ready to share what I know about some memorable musicians who have shaped the international landscape with music made in a caribbean island.

Our motto is MERENGUE FOR EVER!!!

Let's start pushing in that direction by starting at the beginning.

Let's count our blessings and let's value what we have.

Which is a whole lot.

Remember this: Oye/Abre Tus Ojos/Mira Hacia Arriba/

Downtown

Freddy Beras Y Lo Que Debemos Aprender De El

El movimiento de MERENGUE FOR EVER!!! y todo aquel que participe en el debe de estar alerta a individuos como Freddy Beras y su forma de ver las cosas. Debemos ponerle atencion a cada una de sus palabras y digerirlas.

No por coincidencia ni suerte ha durado este hombre en el medio con tanta consistencia, este es un verdadero patriota en todo el sentido de la palabra. Vean esta video entrevista:


Parte 1



Parte 2



And Remember: MERENGUE FOR EVER!!!

"Downtown" Lorenzo Fenix
Host, La Kura Show (THe King Of Podcasts)
LaKuraShow@gmail.com
wwwmyspace.com/ontmedia
www.LaKura.net
917.338.4822

Buenas Noticias Para El Merengue En El 2006?

El articulo que reproducimos a continuacion fue publicado por el periodista Maximo Jimenez para el diario El Caribe de la RD, lo incluimos en nuestro blog por considerarlo una buena pieza periodistica. Creemos que Nuestro Ritmo Patrio esta en camino a la redencion, se ha avanzado un poco, pero definitivamente, hacen falta mas de todos los ingredientes necesarios para darle al Merengue mas esencia, respeto y visibilidad a nivel internacional.



Resumen 2006

El merengue que brilló

Johnny Ventura se retiró, Milly Quezada obtuvo su segundo Grammy Latino y Héctor Acosta abandona Los Toros Band, hechos que destacaron en el año que finaliza
Por Máximo Jiménez / El Caribe
Martes 19 de diciembre del 2006 actualizado a las 1:52 AM


En Altos de Chavón. El Megamerengazo estrenó escenario, en el que Julián Oro Duro recibió una gran acogida.

Johnny Ventura recorrió el país con su “Sabrosa despedida” de 50 conciertos que significaron el retiro definitivo de los escenarios, Milly Quezada obtuvo su segundo Grammy Latino, Héctor -El Torito- Acosta se independizó luego de 15 años unido a Los Toros Band y Eddy Herrera celebró su 15 aniversario en un 2006 en que estas figuras destacadas del merengue protagonizaron los principales titulares en ese renglón.

No sólo Héctor Acosta alcanzó la libertad que había acariciado desde hace varios años, sino que Los Hermanos Rosario también fueron noticia luego que un tribunal de Puerto Rico fallara a su favor para iniciar así una carrera fuera del sello Karen Récords, propiedad de Bienvenido Rodríguez.

Y si de recientes iniciativas que se gestaron en el 2006 para impulsar el ritmo, justo es destacar la segunda versión del certamen “¡Qué viva el merengue!”, que produce la conductora Jatnna Tavárez, y que este año tuvo como ganador a Tony Fox, que se prevé debutará con su orquesta y nuevo álbum durante el próximo 2007.

Las principales orquestas merengueras, además, se mantuvieron activas durante todo el año, sobre todo engrosando las ofertas del Festival Brugal del Merengue, en sus dos versiones, celebradas en Santo Domingo y en Puerto Plata.

Otro nombre que brilló en el 2006 fue el del inquieto empresario Luis Medrano, que con su controversial Megamerengazo se armó de valor para llevar más de 10 orquestas al desafiante escenario Altos de Chavón, donde merengueros de diferentes generaciones y géneros tuvieron la oportunidad de subir al anfiteatro más codiciado por los artistas locales.

Del otro lado del río, el Shea Stadium de Nueva York sirvió nuevamente de escenario para un espectáculo con las principales orquestas dominicanas, Johnny Ventura hacía lo propio para despedirse de sus fanáticos afincados en la gran urbe; y El Caballo se enfrenta con ejecutivos de La Mega, a la cual pidió más apoyo para el merengue. Así andubo el ritmo en el 2006.

Discografía
Mientras Juan Luis Guerra aplazaba para el 2007 su esperado álbum, Héctor Acosta (Sigo siendo yo) y Toño Rosario (En vivo) se citan en el selecto grupo del género que estrenaron álbum en el año.

En cuanto al merengue de calle, Julián Oro Duro fue el rey indiscutible, con un año que difícilmente pueda superar, Omega y Mambo Violento también brillaron con su propuesta popular y Tulile, en el último tramo del 2006, hizo de la suya vistiéndose.

Ellos fueron noticia

Johnny Ventura
Una trayectoria de 50 años y muchos éxitos
No es la primera vez que el merenguero dice que se retira de los escenarios. Pero ahora, parece que es la definitiva, en un año en el que recibió su segundo Grammy Latino, esta vez uno concedido por su trayectoria.

Milly Quezada
Aún sigue siendo la Reina del ritmo
Además de brillar en la ceremonia del Grammy Latino 2006, la artista también sumó su segundo gramófono por su álbum MQ, manteniendo así el título indiscutible de la Reina del Merengue. Esa es Milly.

Héctor Acosta
Abandona Los Toros Band y va “solo”
El Torito demostró que era la figura única de Los Toros Band. Tras un largo conflicto por más de un año con los hermanos Díaz, Acosta debuta en mayo con su orquesta y saca un álbum que lo mantuvo en la cima.

Hermanos Rosario
Ganan litigio que los liberó de Karen
Luego de Juan Luis Guerra, Los Rosario eran los artistas más importantes que aún seguían en el catálogo de Karen Récords, del cual finalmente se separaron este año. Preparan álbum que saldría en el 2007.

Eddy Herrera
Celebró su 15 aniversario
El Jet Set sirvió de escenario para el concierto que ofreció el merenguero para celebrar su 15 aniversario. Con una posición sólida en el mercado, Herrera también ganó terreno en el mercado venezolano.

Sergio Vargas
Un merenguero que también legisla
Vigente como todo artista establecido -aunque ha descuidado la parte discográfica- Sergio Vargas se juramentó como diputado (PLD), tras ganar un escaño en el Congreso por su natal Villa Altagracia.


Excelente trabajo de Maximo Jimenez.


Solo nos queda añadir: MERENGUE FOR EVER!!!


Lorenzo Fenix
Host, La Kura (The King Of Podcasts)
LaKuraShow@gmail.com
www.Myspace.com/ontmedia
www.LaKura.net
www.LorenzoFenix.Podomatic.com
917.338.4822