WHO WE ARE
As a company, we provide a variety of music services, the main one being the creation and production of Latin Sheet Music, MIDI Arrangements and Instrumental Backing Tracks.
Although we provide sheet music for a Latin Music genres, our primary focus is Afro-Latin Popular Music, more specifically Salsa and Timba. This is the music we grew up listening to and we have had the honour to study with some of the top musicians in the industry. We have years of experience as performing musicians as well as working as composers and arrangers and our goal now is to make authentic latin sheet music available to musicians interested in developing a deep understanding of these genres. Whether you are part of a professional band, work in the educational sector with school ensembles or simply a passionate hobbyist, we definitely have something for you. Our selection of charts includes many rare pieces, hard to find elsewhere. From the best All-Time Classics to modern day hits, here you are sure to find exactly what you are looking for.
Our Story
We decided to share with you a short story which lies at the root of why we decided to do what we do.
Salsa, Timba and Popular Latin Dance Music in general is a worldwide phenomenon whose popularity has been rising steadily since the ’60s, when it was originally developed. It is fair to say that a large part of this global interest lies on the “dance side of things” with thousands of people around the world keen to join salsa dance classes and similar events.
This is however, not the only way of venturing into world of latin music: these infectious rhythms have inspired the hands of musicians as well as the feet of the dancers.
Throughout history, Popular Latin Dance Music has long struggled to be recognized officially by music institutions and up to this day, despite its complexity and refinedness, it has not yet found a an official spot in Conservatoires. It was born and developed in the streets of the barrios (neighbourhoods) of the Spanish- Speaking Caribbean and New York City. In Cuba, during the 90’s , Conservatoire-trained musicians revolutionised the genre introducing elements of Classical music and Jazz as well as North-American Music but in spite of this, Sheet Music and Transcriptions are very hard if not impossible to find. This makes it very hard for aspiring Salsa and Timba musicians to gain a deep and comprehensive understanding of the technical details of the genre.
With regards to the Timba genre, there is also another reason behind the lack of learning materials and this is where it gets interesting as it comes as a direct consequence of the Political and Economical situation in Post Revolutionary Cuba.
After the Revolution, Cuba entered a period of Economic Crisis and there wasn’t much earning potential as far as recorded music, additionally economic reforms to music recording and contracting meant that records didn’t play an economically significant roles in musicians’ lives. Musicians earned their bread and butter mainly by playing live gigs. Bands quickly realised that focusing all of their efforts on live performances was the way forward. Anyone who has been to a Timba gig will have realised that the live version of the songs played is often much longer than the recorded version you listen to on CDs or Itunes. This is because Live Timba is more than just a performance: It’s an Interactive Experience between the Band and the Audience. The Band assesses the vibe of the audience and creates arrangements on the spot extending the performance through improvisation and moving between different sections through the use of what became known as gears until it feels that the audience has received a satisfactory “Dose” of the tune in question.
LIVE PERFORMANCE VS RECORDED VERSION
In order for musicians to orchestrate live arrangements perfectly, keeping in mind we are dealing with some of the most complex rhythms and metric structure known to man, their level of preparation has to be unbelievably high. The bare minimum being knowing their individual instrumental parts by heart. Since arrangements were created on the spot, the absence of detailed sheet music becomes obvious.
This is the reason why we decided to share our knowledge of the genre, gathered over the years from personal study, street performances, live gigs, interaction, guidance and teaching from professional artists, with you.
Our arrangements will shed light on the underlying mechanics of how Popular Latin Dance Music orchestration works, providing a clear and professionally presented version of the musical knowledge that took Popular Latin Dance Music from the barrios to the most important stages and dance floors present in the world today.