Any Salsa Players (or Latin Music) Advice for a young player

[casivake718]

I want to get into Salsa or Latin music in general. Anyone here play this genre? Any method books you recommend? I currently use Arbans, Clarke, Caruso and Schlossberg. Are these good for Salsa/Latin, or are there other books/methods I can play?

[Benge.nut]

Salsa is born in NYC combining jazz and Afro-Cuban rhythms.

Learning to play in the Salsa style is just like any other trumpet method, but the rhythms are more tricky.

I don't know who you listen to, but the Nuyorican scene from the 70s is my favorite genre of Salsa. Hector Lavoe, Willie Colon, Fania All Stars, Celia Cruz and Johnny Pacheco, and modern stuff in that traditional vein would be Marc Anthony.

Listening to those rhythms and absorbing them will help with your Latin playing vocab. If you try and transcribe some solos, you'll find they are often just two chord vamps, and very simple lines in the solos. The rhythm is often more important than the notes in these simple solos and forms.

[Benge.nut]

Latin or Latin jazz is a much larger spectrum.

The most complex and beautiful in my opinion is Brazilian music. Bossa and sambas. Anything Antonio Jobim is where I'd start.

Or some Latin jazz/rock that every trumpeter should experience...a little on the light side is Chuck Mangione.

Then there's cunbia, merengue, bachata, and the list goes on and on with different Latin styles.

But maybe start with some salsa, bossa and samba and some Chuck Mangione.

[casivake718]

I mosyly listen to Machito and Tito Puente. Cuban salsa is my prefered style but I will also listen to Columbian salsa.

[Benge.nut]

[Robert P]

[Benge.nut]

[Robert P]

[deleted_user_680e93b]

if you want to hear some killer latin trumpet, listen to Masterpiece, a collaboration of tito and eddie palmieri. The trumpets are, David "Piro" Rodriguez*, John Walsh, Nelson Jaime, Ray Vega, Tony Lujan. It's incredible.

regards,

tom

[Benge.nut]

[casivake718]

[casivake718]

[deleted_user_680e93b]

[Bill Ortiz]

More important than any book on Salsa and Afro-Cuban music is to engage in a lot of listening to as much music of the idiom, just like learning jazz. You don't learn art from a book, at least not by itself.

As a section player, with listening you will pick up much about phrasing-not only from listening to the horn section, but also the singers. As a soloist, there is a vocabulary that is commonly used, just like jazz. This vocabulary is made up not only of licks by trumpet players that are part to the style, but also melodies from folkloric music such as rumba and compasa, and melodies used in religious/Santaria music. Many of these melodies are used by latin trumpet players in their solos. On top of this, understanding how the phrasing works with clave is important-this again can be picked up by listening to singers when they are in the chorus/coro and improvised/pregon sections of the song-after the verses into the open sections. These singers mostly sing in clave. Taking a couple of percussion lessons and understanding how clave works is very helpful for the serious student of Salsa and Latin Jazz. I would also add that Salsa can be as sophisticated as jazz-in addition NY Salsa is often as much Puerto Rican as Cuban. Above all enjoy the journey!
_________________
'56 Martin Committee Deluxe #2 trumpet
14B Schilke mouthpiece
Couesnon Paris flugelhorn
Bob Reeves Sleeves and PVA

[giakara]

[Bill Ortiz]

In regards to getting a shallow mouthpiece, one of the greatest trumpet players in the history of latin music, Alfredo "Chocolate" Armenteros hardly ever played above a F above high C, if ever.

I've played latin music most of my career but use a mouthpiece with about a 3C depth depth (Schilke 14B). The players I've seen in Salsa and latin music have used a variety of cup depths, just like other styles.
_________________
'56 Martin Committee Deluxe #2 trumpet
14B Schilke mouthpiece
Couesnon Paris flugelhorn
Bob Reeves Sleeves and PVA

[robbo]

I played in a latin (primarily Salsa) scene for about 12 months, and has been the most fun I've had with my trumpet playing career.

I don't imaging there's any method book. No one should tackle any technical style without the books as you mentioned (Arbans etc). Otherwise really just lots of experience. I'd grown up laying in brass bands, swing bands, brass ensembles, dixieland bands etc and it all contributes. (I even took up salsa dancing lessons I loved it so much!!).

Overall I feel you need the technique to sound comfortable, and the musical awareness so sound relaxed in a quite frantic style.

Good luck, I envy you !!

If any readers are relaxing with some browsing, here's a salsa tune I wrote inspired by a band I played in you might like to have a listen to.

http://pigletmusic.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/Mambo-Jambo.mp3

Rob
_________________
Currently staff arranger for the band of the South Australia Police.
Berklee College of Music, Elder Conservatorium Adelaide, Australia.
For some great trumpet and band music please visit piglet music.com. Grab some free music there!

[Benge.nut]

As another poster mentioned, the heartbeat of salsa music: the clave

I used to have a hard time reading a lot of rhythms as a youngster playing Latin music. Reading in cut time helped a lot, but I'd still stumble.

It wasn't until I'd really understood and felt the clave while reading did I really get the feel for reading and style. How and when to lay back and when to push.

Also I had a friend that turned me on to playing auxiliary percussion like congas, bongos, and the bell. Feeling the clave and cascara and being able to play some simple rhythms on aux percussion really turned things around.

Also when a gringo in the band is able to groove on some aux percussion on a gig, you'll turn some heads and get approval from the guys in the band fast!! Plus sometimes just standing there trying to awkwardly dance a bit while waiting to play can get boring having some percussion toys can ease those awkward moments if like me...you just can't dance no matter how hard you try.

[kehaulani]

[bamajazzlady]

Stay away from the drugs and booze as they are disadvantageous to being a musician.
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"Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending." - Maria Robinson