2005 Second Annual Latin Jazz Festival
2005 Press Releases
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MEDIA CONTACTS: David Perry/Barbara Webb - David
Perry & Associates
(415) 693-0583
Yerba Buena Comes to Yerba Buena!
SECOND ANNUAL LATIN JAZZ FESTIVAL
IN YERBA BUENA GARDENS
Sunday, October 2, 1-4 pm
San Francisco, CA. September 6, 2005. The 2005 Yerba
Buena Gardens Festival presents a free afternoon concert
of high-octane, sizzling Latin music in Yerba Buena
Gardens, Sunday, October 2 from 1 to 4 pm.
The Festival will feature Yerba Buena - New York's premier
urban salsa funk band; the exciting new Zarate/Pollace
Project; and the Latin Jazz Youth Ensemble.
New York's Latin-funk collective Yerba Buena came together
as the brainchild of producer Andres Levin. Sultry and
sassy, the music of Yerba Buena is an exhilarating blend
of African-rooted Latin music with hip-hop, boogaloo,
Motown soul, reggaetón, Nigerian Afrobeat and
a dash of Middle Eastern themes played by an international
crew of star musicians that represent the sounds of
the New York city streets. Yerba Buena's new critically
acclaimed Album Island Life, the #1 selling Latin album
on iTunes, has been called "masterful," "truly
stellar," and "nothing short of breathtaking."
Jon Pereles of the New York Times says, "…Yerba
Buena merges a come-on and a credo in "Bilingual
Girl," singing, "Two tongues are better than
one." Andres Levin, who leads the band, means that
in every sense: erotic, political, intellectual and
comic…" The ensemble's debut album President
Alien was nominated for a Grammy and introduced Yerba
Buena's ambitious eclecticism. Besides Levin, core members
of Yerba Buena include vocalists CuCu Diamantes, Xiomara
Laugart, El Chino, percussionist/vocalist Pedrito Martinez;
bassist Sebastian Steinberg; and drummer Skoota Warner.
Linda Lucero, Artistic Director of the Yerba Buena Gardens
Festival said, "It has been my dream to bring Yerba
Buena to Yerba Buena Gardens! This concert is a dream
come true!"
The Zarate/Pollace Project plays "global jazz."
Abel Zarate, who plays guitar, is well known on the
Bay Area music scene for his contribution to the Latin-rock
band Malo. Abel has also recorded and performed with
Coke Escovedo and Willie Bobo. Throughout his career
he has performed at the Hollywood Bowl and Madison Square
Gardens as well as the Montreux and Newport Jazz Festivals.
Michelle Pollace, who plays keyboards, studied jazz
and classical piano, as well as Indonesian gamelan at
San Jose State University. After college she performed
numerous concerts and recorded two CDs with Lou Harrison's
internationally acclaimed Gamelan Si Betty. She also
performed as keyboardist and bassist in projects that
ran the gamut of country, folk, blues, jazz, grunge,
and Latin rock. Zarate/Pollace are joined by Curtis
Ohlson, bass player, who has played and recorded with
Ray Obiedo, Ray Charles, Pee Wee Ellis, Brian Melvin,
and Bernie Krause; Paul van Wageningen, drummer, who
first played with Abel in the R & B band The Force
in the mid-70s; and Michael Spiro, percussionist, who
is an internationally recognized recording artist and
educator.
The Latin Jazz Youth Ensemble is a youth performance
group whose ages range between 12 to 17. Directed by
musician/composer/arranger John Calloway, the group
was founded to motivate young people to play Latin Jazz
and to act as role models for young musicians. The group
has performed at Masonic Auditorium, Oakland's Day of
the Dead Festival, San Jose Jazz Festival, Lafayette
Jazz Festival, and San Francisco Carnaval. It was chosen
as one of the top youth performance groups in Northern
California in the 2004 Youthquake competition.
The Latin Jazz Festival in Yerba Buena Gardens is presented
in association with Latino Entertainment Partners, an
organization that was formed by Bill Martinez, Arturo
Riera and their families in 1999 to promote Afro-Cuban
Music in the Bay Area. LEP has presented some of the
most important Cuban and Puerto Rican groups of our
day including Los Van Van, NG La Banda, Sierra Maestra,
Vocal Sampling, Chucho Valdes, Eddie Palmieri, Cubanismo,
Maraca y su Otra Vision, and Timbalaye.
The Yerba Buena Gardens Festival, which takes place
from May through October, features over 150 events,
including classical and jazz concerts, opera, performance
art, international music concerts, dance performances,
children's programs, theater, visual arts, puppet shows,
cultural festivals, and special events.
All performances and events are free and open to the
public, drawing an audience of San Francisco and Bay
Area residents, tourists, and convention attendees that
numbers more than 100,000 each year.
Free Artistic and Cultural Programming in Yerba Buena
Gardens is made possible through the generosity of The
San Francisco Redevelopment Agency; The Creative Work
Fund; The Bernard Osher Foundation; The James Irvine
Foundation; The JPMorganChase Foundation; The National
Endowment for the Arts; The San Francisco Foundation;
The WA Gerbode Foundation, The William & Flora Hewlett
Foundation; The Zellerbach Family Foundation; and individual
contributions. We gratefully acknowledge pro-bono contributions
from MJM Management Group; Steefel, Levitt, and Weiss;
Latino Entertainment Partners; LaserCom Design; Moisa
& Associates; Pro Piano; The San Francisco Marriott;
Sony-Metreon; San Francisco Chronicle; San Francisco
Downtown Magazine; and San Francisco Bay Guardian.
Yerba Buena Arts & Events, producer of The Yerba
Buena Gardens Festival is located at 760 Howard Street,
San Francisco, CA 94103. Phone (415) 543-1718; Fax (415)
543-1755; website: http://www.ybgf.org
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Additional Information Links
Festival Calendar
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Destani Wolf |
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Artists Guild John Handy |
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Grind 4 the Green |
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9
TODCO Poets |
10 |
11
Bayonics |
12 |
13
Carne Cruda & Santero |
14 |
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Public Notice |
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Yerba Buena Gardens Festival
produced by Yerba Buena Arts & Events
760 Howard Street
San Francisco CA 94103
Phone: 415 543 1718
Fax: 415 543 1755
info@ybgf.org
www.myspace.com/ybgfestival