• Submitted by: manso
• Arts and Culture
• 10 / 06 / 2011

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The band is already in Chelsea. José Manuel Simián. Wednesday, October 5th 2011, 2:32 PM.Aragón, whose distinctive sound is marked by the combination of vocals with the use of flute and a violin section, also distinguishes itself for its organization away from the stage.Since the band's inception, all the members, including the director, have been paid the same, a tradition instituted by its founder, Orestes Aragón.

Years, decades and centuries can go by, but Orquesta Aragón doesn't stop.The 14-member Cuban band, founded in the city of Cienfuegos in 1939, and responsible for dance classics like "El Bodeguero" and "Pare Cochero," returns to NYC next Tuesday after a seven-year absence.

In back-to-back shows at the Metropolitan Pavilion in Chelsea, the ensemble is hoping to re-create the glory days of Latin music in the 1950s and '60s by digging deep into its repertoire of cha-cha, son and danzón.

"We'll try to relive those times when the orchestra started coming to New York," says the band's musical director, Rafaelito Lay Bravo, 52, referring to gigs Aragón played in venues like the Palladium.

"There, our musicians would mingle with Cortijo y Su Combo, Tito Puente and even Arsenio Rodríguez," explained Lay, who is the son of Rafael Sr., who directed the orchestra from 1948 until his death in 1982. "That was the prologue of what in the '60s and '70s people started calling salsa."

Lay says the orchestra can also claim an important role in the evolution of Afro-Cuban music after giving "cha-cha a sound, an identity. After the orchestra played this genre, it took another turn. It was La Aragón who made it known to the world."

But Aragón, whose distinctive sound is marked by the combination of vocals with the use of flute and a violin section, also distinguishes itself for its organization away from the stage.

Since the band's inception, all the members, including the director, have been paid the same, a tradition instituted by its founder, Orestes Aragón.

"His idea was to create a family, where all the musicians had to get along," Lay says of the co-op approach. "Besides, [Aragón] didn't want to have any musical genius in the band: he wanted the orchestra to be the star."

The group, which has worked continuously since its creation, has produced a number of critically acclaimed albums in later years, including "Cha Cha Charanga" (1997), "La Charanga Eterna" (1999) and "En Route" (2001), while keeping a spot in Havana's long-running comedy radio show "Alegrías de Sobremesa."

"Playing that radio show twice a week forces you to renew your repertoire," says Lay, who joined the band when he was 20, right after graduating from college.

For Tuesday's shows, Lay promises that the band will perform some of the classics ("There's a set of songs that if you don't play them, people feel like they didn't see La Aragón") while staying away from a definite set list.

"If the dancers know how to do it, perfect," he said. "And if not, they are still going to move."


YOU SHOULD KNOW

Orquesta Aragón will play two shows - at 7 p.m. and 10 p.m. - next Tuesday at the Metropolitan Pavilion, an events venue with dancing space at 125 W. 18th St., Chelsea. The concert is technically a private event from Genco Presents, a promotion company, which means the $55 tickets have to be purchased in advance and buyers need to become members of Genco (gencopresents.com), at no additional cost.

Source: http://www.nydailynews.com/latino/2011/10/05/2011-10-05_aragon05.html