Una Noche Con Ruben Blades

Salsa and jazz joined forces on a night with Rubén Blades

-NYC-

Carlitos Padrón describes his participation in the concert Una noche con Rubén Blades in collaboration with the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis as one of the most significant steps of his career. The event took place at the Rose Theatre in New York City at the end of 2014, where the salsa giant performed, over three consecutive days, his greatest hits in a repertoire that fused the flavor of salsa with the elegance of jazz.

Led by bassist and musical director Carlos Henríquez, the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis welcomed a very special guest to their Manhattan stage: singer, composer, actor, and activist Rubén Blades, a nine-time Grammy winner. It was a historic concert featuring talented musicians from both the jazz and salsa genres, with percussionists Bobby Allende, Marc Quiñones, and Carlos Padrón, as well as singer Eddie Rosado at the forefront.

Ruben Blades

Together with the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra in a concert that fused Afro-Latin culture with jazz standards in New York City.

Una Noche con Rubén Blades delighted the audience with the most distinctive compositions of the renowned Panamanian artist, including "Pedro Navaja," "Ligia Elena," "Patria," and "El Cantante," as well as standards like "Too Close for Comfort" and "Begin the Beguine." These salsa classics, reinterpreted during the concert, became an elixir of sound and musicality, turning each piece into a musical gem.

The jazz master Wynton Marsalis amazed the audience with each of his musical solos, transforming the songs performed by the great Blades into rhythms of salsa and jazz. It is important to note that the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, directed by Wynton Marsalis, is made up of 15 of the best soloists, ensemble players, and arrangers in contemporary jazz.

Marsalis is considered one of the most influential jazz musicians of the last twenty-five years and one of the greatest trumpeters in history.

This concert received glowing reviews and was praised by everyone present, who expressed feeling honored to witness such a level of genius—a team effort that resulted in this masterful performance, filled with Caribbean nuances, rhythms, and jumps, but with the swing of jazz.

As a fun fact, this show was streamed live online worldwide for free, in high-definition audio and video.

Lic. María Mariña