Salsa dancers of all ages gathered to enjoy the show “The New York Salsa Festival Tour”.
After performing successfully in the cities of New York, Washington DC, Chicago, New Jersey and Miami, the select group of icons of the salsa genre offered a memorable evening at the Coliseo de Puerto Rico, which undoubtedly fulfilled the promise of celebrating a salsa festival at the same level and style of those celebrated in the Big Apple.
It is worth noting that for the first time Puerto Rico is part of the largest salsa tour with the support of the production team of BAS Entertainment and Adam Torres Concerts (ACT). The massive event that has had New York City as its main base has made history for almost four decades.
The opening act was led by one of the exponents of the new generation of salsa, the young Puerto Rican Luis Vazquez who performed the song “Salsa will not die.”
The show continued with the former member of Son by Four Angel Lopezwho captivated the audience with the transition from ballad to salsa in the hit song “A Puro Dolor.” The singer-songwriter expressed his gratitude for feeling privileged to share the stage with renowned exponents of the genre and paid tribute to Tito Rojas with the song “Nadie es Eterno,” while photos of the late Gallo Salsero were projected on screen.
The salsa party continued with the presentation of the medley of hits by the group of Puerto Rican descent that has stood out for combining salsa with reggae, DLGwhich included the songs “Move”, “All my heart”, “I love her to death” and “Juliana”.
Then, the icon of romantic salsa in the 90s took the stage, King Ruiz, With a career spanning more than 30 years and a majestic stage presence, the singer also known as “El Bombón de la Salsa” delighted the audience with “Si tepreguntan” (If You Ask), “No Me Acostumbro” (I Don’t Get Used To It) and before performing “Mi Media Mitad” (My Half Half), the Cuban singer-songwriter shared with the audience that the song reminded him of the time he lived in Puerto Rico.
Later, “The Pavarotti of Salsa” Tito Nieves She excited the public with her hits “El amor más bonito”, “Señora Ley”, “Fabricando fantasmas” and culminated with “De mí enamórate”. She was also part of the musical success, “La princesa de la salsa”, Indiabegan with the song, “Vivir lo nuestro” together with Manolito Rodríguez. India also performed impeccably with her powerful voice the songs “Mi mayor vengance”, “Dicen que soy” and “Mi primera rumba”.
The musical banquet continued with the songs “Idilio de amor” and “El gran varón” by the legendary singer and trombonist Willie Colonone of the pioneers of salsa with more than 30 successful productions. For his part, The Sonora Ponceñaan orchestra founded by Quique Lucca and which has followed the legacy of his son, the pianist Papo Lucca, included in its repertoire the hits “Yambeque”, “Boranda” and “Fuego en el 23”.
The audience stood up to receive the supremacy of “The University of Salsa”, The Great Combo of Puerto Ricowho began their show with a brief part of “La Fiesta de Pilito” and continued with “Mujer boricua”, “Me liberé” and “El caballo pelotero”. The group with a history of more than 60 years paused to invite the audience to sing Happy Birthday to the veteran musician and founder, Rafael Ithier, who will turn 98 on August 29.
They then continued their performance with their distinctive choreographies with the songs “Que le ponen salsa” and “Brujería” and, at the request of the public, they closed the musical show with “Timbalero,” which included a song by Anthony García.
The Puerto Rico Coliseum arena became a huge dance floor for the historic evening that brought together the most renowned exponents of the genre who mark different stages of the evolution of salsa. During the transitions of the salsa festival’s artists, there were brief intermissions with the animation of Joel El Intruder from the Salsoul radio station and music by DJ Carmencita Otero and DJ Lucho from New York, who interacted with the public as if they were in a large discotheque.
For more than three hours, the public sang and danced to the hits that were part of the magnificent repertoire of the thirty-eighth edition of “The New York Salsa Festival Tour.” The event featured more than 15 musicians on stage, including the respective orchestras of La Sonora Ponceña and El Gran Combo. Among the attendees were people who traveled from New York to enjoy the salsa festival tour, which will continue its tour through Los Angeles, California and Orlando, Florida.
