1	Music Cecilia Noël, a rising leading lady of salsa; Irene B and Choco Orta bring their own style; Chayanne talks about life. read more...
2	Film & TV The new adventures of Yasmin and Crash; Oscar Nuñez outside The Office. read more...
3	Books Two top broadcasters share their insights. read more...
4	Ask Julie It’s time to reorganize your finances. read more...
5	Calendar Noteworthy Hispanic events around the country in May. read more...
6	Picture This The first Latina astronaut reaches for the stars. read more...

Welcome to her Show

A new leading lady of salsa, Cecilia Noël claims her rightful spot in musical hierarchy with the release of her new album, which mixes classic favorites with
salsa dura.

By Diana Montané

Every once and a while an artist emerges fully formed, seemingly with no past. Like a shimmering vision of a Latina Venus on the half-shell, diva Cecilia Noël seems to have appeared miraculously out of nowhere with her new tropical album A Gozar! But this is not the case; Noël has been making music in the U.S. for decades, and in her native Peru before that. As a vocalist she combines all the joy and sound of Celia Cruz with the sass of La Lupe, glamour of La India, independence of Albita, sexiness of Tina Turner, and the soul of Aretha. Comparisons aside, she stands to be judged on her own merits: composing, interpreting, band leading, entertaining and basically being the life of the party.
Hers has been a long, if steady, journey with plenty of struggle and pitfalls. Descended from Belgian, French, Portuguese and Inca ancestry, Noël and her siblings were convinced growing up that their white-bearded grandfather was Father Christmas, because as an older man he would help make toys for poor children (their abuelito Noël was the founder of Social Security in Peru). Her maternal grandfather, Raúl María Pereira, was a famous architect and sculptor. Growing up in an “artistic, dysfunctional, insane” household with a supportive musician and costume designer mother and an “adorable and unreliable” father, she says she was always encouraged to be artistic.
At age 9, popular music entered her life. “After listening to Dámaso Pérez Prado, Tito Puente, James Brown and watching a few musicals, I announced my retirement from writing to become a musician,” she says. The funky syncopated Latin soul sound of bugalú (or boogaloo in English) also caught her ear in the 60s and 70s, a defining moment being when Willie Colón and Héctor Lavoe appeared live on television in Peru.
Another influence was Peruvian percussion master Coco Lagos and his group, Los Orates. Noël had a chance to work alongside Lagos when she was a young girl singing in La Orquesta de Carlo Berscia. Berscia was a mentor of sorts, and she says, he was “a fantastic Italian musician, who taught me how to conduct and lead a band.”
Lima in the 1960s and 1970s was a lively place for nightlife, and tropical music was popular, as were imports like rock, surf and soul. As a child, Noël had her “ears open to every sound you can imagine,” and this open-minded, eclectic approach has defined her career. As a young woman she got a taste of that spirit while working with her cousins Juan Luis and Raúl Pereira of the ground-breaking Peruvian fusion band from the 1970s, El Polen.
Coming to New York in 1980 at the invitation of jazz great Stan Getz (who heard her sing at a club in Lima), Noël taught herself English by watching late night TV. She sang in clubs, worked on demos and recorded back-up vocals on two Willie Colón albums. In addition, she studied music with Jorge Dalto and Mauricio Smith, percussion with Jerry González, and dance with Tito Puente and Jo Jo Smith. Classes at Boys Harbor and Mannes School of Music also helped.
In 1989, she moved to L.A. at the request of her friend and manager, Tom Regis, and soon married Tris Imboden, the drummer of the band Chicago. By the early 90s Noël had soaked up the artistic zeitgeist in L.A. and gathered a like-minded band of Sal-soul rebels, dubbing them the Wild Clams. They put together a dramatic live show that combined the fire and fun of her idols Brown and Prado, recording two indie albums and a live DVD.
As for romance, Noël met her second husband Colin Hay of Men At Work while in a recording studio in New York in the mid-80s; eight years later, while the two were both on the bill at a benefit concert in Topanga Canyon, they met again. After that, Hay would come to Cecilia’s shows quite often, bringing friends and dates along to see her perform.
With this new big budget release on Compass Records though, Noël will surely make the breakthrough to the wider audience she seeks. By all accounts she has topped herself, building on the achievements of each of her previous three albums, but going one step further in honing and deepening her sound, focusing her arrangements, refining the infectious mix of Latin, jazz and soul, with consistent results.
As she says, A Gozar! means “to enjoy, to feel deeply, like a beautiful orgasm.”
Looking at this new release in a career perspective, she still has the same sexy, husky voice. Her band still has its incredible musicianship—but this time around, the focus is hard-core salsa. In addition to the smoking new salsa dura romp Candela, Noël breathes new life into several covers of classic salsa, mambo and cha-cha-chá by some of her musical heroes—Ismael Rivera, Beny Moré, Ismael Miranda, Ray Barretto and Prado. In addition, she revisits some of her own signature compositions, making them harder and bigger.
For instance, Pronto Salsa, a song she first voiced in the mid-90s for a session with Afro-Cuban percussionist Francisco Aguabella, is here in all its eight-minute-plus glory as before, but this time it’s a complete makeover. Most of the arrangements come from what she calls “the fabulous mad mind” of Eric Jorgensen, her right hand man, trombonist and orchestrator. Noël also enlisted Hay to sing the backup coro (salsa chorus) on several songs.
Aside from a generous portion of hard salsa, there is also a hot Spanglish merengue, a sultry bolero, and in between, she slips in touches of timba, cumbia, Latin Hustle and bugalú. But mostly there is just full blast, straight up salsa dura.
It’s refreshing, considering a lot of women performers seem restricted by overly synthetic, sentimental material. Noël agrees: “None of that soft stuff for me. Although I sing boleros and I am a romantic, I am also a punk, a rebellious animal. Don’t expect the same thing from me. I get bored!” As she says in the final track, Everybody’s Mambo (Xtended Version): “Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to my show.”

Spain's first lady of R&B

By Diana Montané

Irene B, born Irene Bauzá in 1981 in Barcelona to two psychoanalysts, can attribute her success (in part) to the World Wide Web.
Her musical work first began when she was playing gigs in clubs around Barcelona, and, encouraged by her friends, she prepared a demo with three songs, titled Mi Realidad, which she was able to produce in 2005 and launch the following year. The singer had continued to work the gigs and temp as a secretary to finance the demo, when she discovered a cyber-marketing strategy.
“At first I placed [the album] for free on a Spanish website and my fanbase began to grow,” she says. “Then I found MySpace, put some songs in there and I got invites to send podcasts.” They soon appeared in Japan, Great Britain, Italy and the United States.
Now, with producer Frankie Biggz, who has remixed for Christina Aguilera, Kanye West, 50 Cent and others, she has launched her first album, Metamorphosis. Music fans can listen to the contagious single, Forgive Me Now, on iTunes and Amazon.
Irene says she grew up listening to R&B and soul in Barcelona. One favorite singer is Mariah Carey, whose vocal style Irene’s uncannily resembles. The singer recently toured London, Madrid and Barcelona. She will return to her native city on July 26 to play the famous club Jamboree.

Salsa a’la Choco Orta

Often compared to salsa legend Celia Cruz, modern day salsera Choco Orta must no doubt be pleased by the association. However this deep-throated singer, talented percussionist, creative composer and blossoming actress plays second fiddle to no one. She is also the bandleader to a 16-piece all-male band.
A native of San Juan, Puerto Rico, Orta’s sound vacillates from 1960s and 1970s-inspired classic salsa to improvisational son. Her new album Ahora Mismo ... (Sony Music Latin) pays homage to some of salsa’s first stars such as La Lupe and Cruz. At the same time, Orta’s interpretations of their hits showcases her unique style. Produced by Gilberto Santa Rosa, who also lends vocals to a couple of tracks and is a star in his own right, the album is an energetic and ambitious undertaking as Orta interprets some of the salsa divas’ well-loved tracks. Think Cucala, most famously performed by Celia Cruz.
From despairing ballads (try Con Mil Desengaños) to quick-paced uptempo numbers that perfectly reflect her improvisational and flirty singing style (especially in Ay Jose), Orta handles each one with care. Armed with an impeccable sense of pacing and musicality, Ahora Mismo builds to its climax, the final track Por Accidente. Had this been recorded on vinyl it would have been impossible to choose a Side B track. Luckily, you don’t have to.

Simply Chayanne

With so many successes under his belt, the pop icon from Puerto Rico takes a moment to reflect on his long career, happy family and what’s to come.

By Soledad Gimenez

It’s 11 a.m. on a Sunday morning in Miami, and Puerto Rican pop legend Chayanne is arriving to our appointment at the Jim McClean Golf School at the Doral Golf Resort and Spa.
“What could be better than this?” Elmer Figueroa, known to the world as Chayanne, asks appreciatively. His trademark smile and friendly air effectively break the ice as he prepares for an afternoon of golf with his son Lawrence, his partner as he calls him.
After recording 20 albums, starring in numerous telenovelas and even acting in film, this soulful Puerto Rican continues moving forward. An icon in the music business, he is as well known for his winning charm as he is for his No. 1 hits. During the afternoon on the green, Chayanne discusses his successes, what gives him satisfaction and his life now.

Hispanic Magazine: Outside of the music industry, what makes you happy?
Chayanne: My family makes me very happy and I’ve put them on a pedestal. I love them, as I do my real friends for whom I have true affection. The only thing I hope for is that they will always tell me the truth, and that they will never lie to me simply because they want to be in my circle.

HM: How do you define a genuine person?
C: That’s a test of time. I open the door and trust a person until that person proves to me that I shouldn’t. But I’ll give you the opportunity because I believe this is how friendships begin.
HM: What makes you cry?
C: The suffering of others, child abuse, hunger. There are many things that affect me, whether personally or from afar. And I always try to contribute what I can.

HM: How does a Latin American artist make it in the U.S. market?
C: We have to give the U.S. market some time. It’s a very big country with a huge Latino community. When I started, the market was quite narrow. It grew person by person and little by little. Now there are more promotional vehicles, and a person who wants to be a musician has many options. But at the same time, the public is the judge and they can you take or leave you.

HM: What is it that pushes you continue performing so often and without stopping?
C: It’s the many years of work and the great deal of respect that I have for the public. The preparation before a concert is extensive and there are some long hours. I rehearse a lot. Before going on tour, we rent theaters and put on the entire show before the public sees it and rehearse it all the way through. [During showtime] I enjoy the audience reaction when they sing a song with me. Then, I feel total synergy.

HM: Is there a song than never fails you and that you know will guarantee a good show?
C: It’s never guaranteed, but Dejaria Todo, Salome and Torero are songs that hit. Anyway, I am lucky enough to be able to name several.

HM: Do people ever overwhelm you?
C: Not at all. I know that if I leave the house it’s possible that I could pass someone who might ask me for a photo or an autograph, and I’m very flexible about this because I put myself in the other guy’s shoes. And, it’s always love that they give me.

HM: Do you have superstitions or rituals before going on stage?
C: I don’t talk about that [laughter]. My superstition is that the public be there. But, I don’t think ill of anyone who needs them.

HM: After all these years of success is there anything you would still like to accomplish?
C: I have a lot of dreams, many projects ahead and proposals that emerge as I go along. I have a beautiful career with albums that have come out and others yet to come. One of my goals is to feel personal growth with each album that we launch and to be happy with what we are creating, and most importantly, to always feel hungry for more.

HM: After a great 2008, what do you have scheduled for the rest of 2009?
C: After the great success of Gabriel on Mega TV and in the more than 25 countries it has aired on since, we have to restart.

HM: What do you think I should name this article?
C: I think it should be Chayanne ... simply Chayanne.

Star-ography

Chayanne has a wealth of albums, films, tv shows and tours under his belt, here are some of our favorites.
Album: Chayanne (1988)
Why: It’s an instant classic.
Album: Tiempo de Vals (1990)
Why: Gave girls their first love song.
Album: Atado a Tu Amor (1998)
Why: It won hearts and a Grammy nom.
Movie: Dance with Me (1999)
Why: Showcases the singer’s dance chops.
Album & DVD: Grandes Exitos (2002)
Why: A master compilation of favorites.
Album: Mi Tiempo (2007)
Why: It goes back to his pop ballad roots.
TV: Gabriel (2008)
Why: The beloved icon tackles the dark side.
Album & DVD: Chayanne Vivo (2008)
Why: Proves after 20 years, he’s still got it.