MUSIC | FRIDAY, OCTOBER 9 | 8 PM (DOORS AT 7:30) | $15
Salsa Meets Jazz: A Tribute to the Village Gate
An Official Event of the Rising High Arts Festival
Caribe is coming to FUSION | 708 as part of the annual Rising High Arts Festival on Friday, October 9, at 8 PM (Doors at 7:30 PM).
Step into the spirit of New York’s legendary Village Gate for a special evening celebrating the groundbreaking Salsa Meets Jazz series and the extraordinary music created when giants of jazz and Afro-Caribbean music shared the same stage.
The Village Gate became a legendary meeting place where musicians crossed musical boundaries and created unforgettable collaborations, pairings such as Dizzy Gillespie and Tito Puente, Sonny Stitt and Eddie Palmieri, Dexter Gordon and Machito, Michel Camilo and Papo Lucca and many others. These encounters produced a unique musical language built on salsa, Latin jazz, improvisation, descarga and rhythmic conversation.
Tonight, that spirit comes to Albuquerque.
Caribe, Albuquerque’s newest Caribbean music ensemble led by percussionist Arnaldo Acosta, will explore the sounds and rhythms at the heart of this tradition, drawing from Cuba, Puerto Rico, and the Dominican Republic and blending salsa, merengue, bachata and Latin jazz into a performance made for both listening and dancing.
Joining us as MC for the evening is acclaimed author and journalist T.J. English, author of Dangerous Rhythms: Jazz and the Underworld. English is currently on tour for his latest book, Blood in the Desert: The T. J. English Reader, bringing another dimension of storytelling and history to an evening rooted in New York’s musical past.
This is more than a tribute to a famous club or a legendary concert series. It is a celebration of the music that happened when extraordinary musicians were given the freedom to meet, listen, improvise, and create together.
One night. One stage. Salsa meets jazz.
The spirit of the Village Gate lives on in Albuquerque.
Tickets are $15.
Free parking is available in FUSION’s main lot, in our lot next to Burger King on Lomas, and is also free along 1st Street after 6 PM (more parking info + map available here).
ABOUT CARIBE
Caribe is Albuquerque's newest Caribbean music band, bringing the sounds of salsa, bachata, merengue, and Latin jazz to New Mexico stages. Founded by band leader and percussionist Arnaldo Acosta, the ensemble draws on the traditions of Cuba, the Dominican Republic, and Puerto Rico, blending decades of musical experience into a sound built for dancing.
The band pairs Acosta's percussion with Lester Reinier Gonzalez on keyboard, Carlos Valera on bass, Ariadna Chavez on flute and vocals, and Nicolas LeBron on congas. Whether it's a packed dance floor or a private event, Caribe delivers a high-energy, authentic Caribbean sound that's quickly becoming a fixture of New Mexico's Latin music scene.
Quality bar service will be provided by Safe House Distilling Co. and Teller Genuine Vodka. Click here for some nearby dining options.
The Rising High Arts Festival is possible thanks to the support from:
