Que pasa in Los Angeles

Latin Beat Magazine, May, 2003 by Rudy Mangual

This year's 5th Annual West Coast Salsa Congress is upon us, scheduled for May 21-25, 2003, at the LAX Hilton Hotel and the Hollywood Park Casino in Los Angeles. The world's best salsa dancers will be making LA their home for five days and nights. Leading up the big event is the Albert Torres Productions Salsa Dance Contest 2003 that began on March 28, 2003 at the Sportsmen's Lodge in Studio City. There will be three categories of competition: amateurs, semi-pros and professional couples. First Place winners will be presented at the West Coast Salsa Congress. Cash prizes for professionals are $1,000 (1st), $500 (2nd) and $250 (3rd). Cash prizes for semi-pros are $750, $400 and $200. Cash prizes for amateurs are $500, $300 and $150. The semi-finals Salsa Dance Party at the Sportsmen's Lodge on Friday, May 2 will feature the legendary Cuban band Orquesta Aragón. The finals on Friday, May 9 will feature Johnny Polanco & Conjunto Amistad.

Another special dance competition called Smooth Moves, sponsored by Vaseline Intensive Care Lotion and Albert Torres Productions, will take place during the Memorial Day weekend at the Hollywood Park Casino as part of the 5th Annual West Coast Salsa Congress. The competition is open to all attendees registered to the Congress by May 15, 2003.

Winners of this competition will have a chance to win a grand prize of $7,500 at the Smooth Moves finals at Lincoln Center's Midsummer Night Swing in New York City in July 2003.

This year's 25th Anniversary Playboy Jazz Festival will take place Saturday, June 14 and Sunday, June 15, 2003 at the Hollywood Bowl in Hollywood. The internationally acclaimed festival and premier jazz event will feature Al Jarreau, The Dave Brubeck Quartet, Daniela Mercury, Poncho Sánchez Latin Jazz Band, Hiroshima, Boney James, Issac Delgado, Roy Haynes Quartet, Boz Scaggs, and The Bobby Rodríguez Salsa Orchestra, among other great jazz luminaries. Master of Ceremonies will be Bill Cosby. Like every year, the Playboy Jazz Festival brings the best of a variety of jazz genres to Southern California residents with their Free Community Concert Series held throughout the month of May and early June in Beverly Hills, Watts, Los Angeles and Pasadena. Artists scheduled to perform in this series include Susie Hansen Latin Jazz Band, Frank Marocco Quartet, L.A. Multi-School Alumni Jazz Band, Jazz On The Latin Side All Stars, Victor Fields, Louie Cruz Beltran Latin Jazz Orchestra, Jon Mayer & Ernie Watts Project, L.A. Mambo Combo Latin Jazz Ensemble, Sal Cracchiolo & Melanie Jackson, and Buddy Reed, among others. For times and locations of concerts contact Nina Gordon Public Relations at (310) 276-3063.

The Hollywood Bowl's 82nd Summer Season of concerts announced their 2003 schedule, which will span from June 22 to September 14, with a pair of additional concerts on September 20 and 27, 2003. Some of this season's highlights include Global Divas IV with Natacha Atlas, Cesaria Evora, and Morcheeba (Sunday, June 29), Joião Gilberto: Boss of Bossa Nova (Wednesday, July 23), Hollywood Bowl Orchestra Noche Flamenca (July 25-27), Sounds of Brazil with Yo-Yo Ma, Paquito D'Rivera, Sergio and Odair Assad, and Kathryn Stott (Sunday, August 10) and JVC Jazz (Sunday, August 17). For more information call (323) 850-2000.

On May 6, 2003, UCLA's Royce Hall will be the site for a performance by the Afro-Cuban Ali-Stars, a multi-generational big band composed of the best musicians Cuba has turned out in the last half century.

Support live music in your neighborhood. Peace.