Kikita, the Luckiest Girl in the World, Sees Ruben Blades in Concert

I very well may be the luckiest girl in the world.

I'm sure there are other girls that think that, but I bet I can make a pretty good case for being the luckiest.

(This is Kikita, by the way, Marta's eldest daughter. <-- That alone makes me pretty lucky, but that's not important right now ;-D)

A little over a week ago, my timbales teacher told me to look up an Eddie Palmieri song and listen to it as much as I could stand because he was going to teach it to me. Of course, in my hunt for the song in question, I remembered a whole bunch of OTHER Eddie Palmieri songs I love.

A few days after my Palmieri moment, Mami sent me a text message. The nice people at Al Punto had offered her two free tickets to see Ruben Blades the following Wednesday, but she was going to be on vacation and would I like to go? And, if I DID want to go, did I have someone I could take with me?

ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!?

What you might not know is how much I LOOOOVVVEEE Ruben Blades.

I think his voice is like a fine summer wine. Light, sweet, smooth and delicious. (No, I don't drink a lot of wine, but if Ruben Blades' voice WAS a wine, I'd drink it every day.)

I immediately called my OTHER timbales teacher (the one who is just showing me what he knows because he's nice) and, like me, there was no way he'd say no to an invitation to see one of best in the business.

Ruben Blades was playing at the Hollywood Bowl. I'd never been to the Hollywood Bowl, but was instructed to take a picnic and that every seat is an experience.

There could be no sounder advice.

I stopped to get pan con lechón from my favorite Orange County Cuban restaurant, Bella Cuba and we arrived at the Hollywood Bowl with enough time to find our seats (they were AWESOME! Thanks, Al Punto!) and enjoy our sandwiches. It was perfect. 

I was so excited on Ruben Blades, I had completely forgotten about the band that would be opening for him... The EDDIE PALMIERI Orchestra!!

See what I'm saying about luck? 

Eddie started by saying, "Whether you stand up and dance or just dance in your seat: if you don't move or get involved with this band, you are not well." 

I could barely contain my excitement. Just when I thought it couldn't get any better, Eddie asked for requests and joked that he would play all those requests "next time." I was secretly hoping he would play my favorite song of his, "La Malanga" when he announced that the next song had been written by a Cuban singer/songwriter named Rudy Calzado and was called "La Malanga."

Could a girl get any luckier?!?

Yes. A girl could run in to her favorite local salsa star by the name of Chino Espinoza (of Chino Espinoza y Los Dueños Del Son) with his son Jake.

After each song, I would turn to my friend and say "We could leave now and I'd be so happy," and Ruben Blades had not even started yet! It was THAT GOOD.

Of course, it took Ruben Blades all of 10 seconds to leave me speechless. He was incredible. His voice was everything I knew it would be.

He introduced his song "Decisiones" by saying, "In 1984, this song was banned by the dictatorship in Panama. Today the dictatorship is gone, but the song remains."

As if I needed any more reasons to love him? My Cuban-American side was cheering "Yes! Dictatorships CAN be overthrown!"

Of my top three favorite Ruben Blades songs, Ruben played "Muevete" which is my second favorite and ended with his classic (and my third favorite)  "Pedro Navaja" which he started with a little bit of "Mack the Knife."

I was so happy. What a wonderful experience. What a wonderful concert. What a lucky girl I was... and, wait, what? He was going to do ONE. MORE. SONG.

Being the Luckiest Girl in the World, I knew he would play my favorite song of his, "Patria."

I couldn't stop the tears of joy and disbelief from rolling down my cheeks.

Not that I want to push my luck, but I am so looking forward to "next time." If last night was any indication of some of the upcoming events at the beautiful Walt Disney Concert Hall, then I might have to become a Professional Attender of Wonderful Music Things. I'm told this next season is going to be "Limitless" and full of surprises a la Gilberto Gil, Bobby McFerrin, and Holiday Sing-Along with Julie Andrews!

I know, right?

I am one lucky (and oh-so-happy) girl! =D

On the stage of the Hollywood Bowl (Pinch me.)

I'm going to write about the Hollywood Bowl today.

Just as a warning - this post may get all emotional and gushy (<--is that a word?) because I LOVE the Hollywood Bowl. I love it so much I want to marry it. There's going to be gushing. And photos. And videos. And more gushing. Yes. It's uber-nerd heaven.

The Bowl is just so thoroughly So-Cal-Iconic. And I am totally enthralled and in love with its rich history. I'm pretty sure my first exposure to the Bowl came from Bugs Bunny in Long-Haired Hare, where he plays Leopold Stokowski. (Yes, I'm nerdy enough to know this stuff, but that's not important right now.)

In case you've never seen it, here you go. Watch. And love.

I happen to agree with Bugs: The Bowl is "acoustically poifect." You're welcome.

Of course, one of the most magical Hollywood Bowl Moments happened in August 1964.

The Beatles came to Southern California and performed in this iconic venue. *insert teenage girl scream here*

*sigh* That's history right there. 

I'll also never forget the magical night I saw Tito Puente and Celia Cruz there. I was massively pregnant with Lucy at the time and thought my child might be a few weeks early because I started having contractions during the concert, and then I was conflicted because it was CELIA and would I really have to leave if I was having a baby? (That last factoid might have been an over-share. Or it falls under their tag line: There's a story in every seat.)

All that to say this: I love the Hollywood Bowl. It is unparalled as a concert venue and during a show you can even see the Hollywood sign peeking out from the next ridge over. It's quite magical.

So you can imagine my excitement when I was cordially invited to "the Hollywood bowl stage for a cocktail party to celebrate the upcoming summer season" by my friends at the LA Philharmonic.

Wait! Did that say "to the Hollywood Bowl STAGE??"

The evening was beautiful in that perfect Spring-evening-in-Southern-California way.

It's always surprising to me that the Hollywood Bowl is in such an accessible spot. "Yay! We're here!"

And to my everlasting delight, the party was ON. THE. HOLLYWOOD. BOWL. STAGE!

Someone pinch me.

So, I start hyperventilating just a little as we walked on to the stage.

The restaurants in the Bowl venue were all beautifully represented. My particular favorite is the Rooftop Grill. Of course, when you go to an event at the Hollywood Bowl, you must plan on arriving early and either bringing or pre-ordering a picnic. The picnic is  a mandatory part of the magic of the experience.

So it was that I found myself with Lucy. Having a picnic. At the Hollywood Bowl. ON THE STAGE. (I may just have to frame this one.)

Wait! Is that Gustavo Dudamel? The conductor of the LA Philharmonic? I may or may not have knocked over a few people to get to him. (My nerdiness knows no bounds.)

He is from Venezuela, and I briefly spoke to him in Spanish (of course) and told him I was Cuban, at that exact same moment a musical piece was playing written by a Cuban. Full disclosure: He was the one who pointed that out. I was in Star-struck Super Fan mode.

"Hola, Maestro! You are my biggest fan!"

Okay, maybe I didn't say exactly that, but I was excited and tongue tied and thrilled to be in the presence of such greatness. By the way, if you live in Los Angeles or the surrounding areas and want to experience classical music in the most engaging way, do yourself a favor and go see Gustavo Dudamel conduct the LA Phil. Seriously.

Let me take a moment from documenting my craziness to tell you about the awesomeness that can be found at the Hollywood Bowl over the summer.

They have THE BEST program for kids called Summer Sounds. I have a friend who religiously takes her kids every summer and swears it's the best thing in town. Watch this:

You can thank me later.

There's way too much fabulousness for me to list here in this one post (please click here for more information) but let me just tell you that we are already looking forward to John Williams (right?!), Ruben Blades (yes, please!), and Placido Domingo, and perhaps even the Grease Sing-a-long. (I have very ecclectic taste in music, okay?)

Did I mention we were standing on THE SAME STAGE where all this amazingness will take place?

I was completely giddy thinking of all the times I had been here and all the amazing acts that have stood on this very stage. So I gushed to Lucy (much like I'm doing to you now) and sighed and laughed out loud. And I pointed to the different seats I had occupied and of course, I told her once again the story of when I thought she might be born prematurely in this same spot because I just couldn't bear the thought of leaving this magical place in the middle of a show.

And then she turned to me and said, "I didn't get it until just now."

Summer can't get here soon enough.

{A special thank you to the Hollywood Bowl, the LA Philharmonic, and alPunto Advertising for a magical evening.}

Classic.

My dad and most of the Verdés side of the family grew up playing multiple instruments. He loved, loved, loved any kind of music, but was an afficionado of classical and played both the piano and the cello.

As much as I love my salsa music, oldies, and classic rock, I love listening to classical when I'm working on an art project. I think it soothes the nerves and helps me relax enough to tap into my right-brain creative self.

So you can imagine my delight when I received an invitation to visit the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles to hear the LA Philharmonic (that's the LA Phil to us cool people) perform Mendelssohn's Mystical Landscapes. This concert is part of their Toyota Symphonies for Youth series at the hall.

The LA Phil advertises this family-friendly series as one that makes symphonic music come alive for kids.

From the LA Phil website:

When the young Felix Mendelssohn sets out on his first adventure to Scotland, his beloved sister Fanny is heartbroken that she has to stay home. Fanny breathlessly awaits Felix's letters, which sometimes include lines of new music. And through his music -- inspired by crumbling castles, lively bagpipes, violent ocean waves, and the enchanted Fingal's Cave -- Fanny is transported to her brother's side. If we really listen, we get to go to these mystical lands, too.

The ultimate family event, combining fun and fantasy, makes the LA Phil part of your child’s wonderful world. Led by the LA Phil’s Dudamel Conducting Fellows and directed by theater artists, this series of captivating orchestral concerts will give your children (ages 5-11) the opportunity to create memories they’ll never forget.

My "youths" are 15 and 18, but they were completely delighted (as I was) with the entire program.

Before the concert there were art, dance, craft, and storytelling workshops.

But our hands-down (hands-on?) favorite was the Instrument Petting Zoo where the kids were encouraged to touch and play (Hey! That works on two levels!) with the musical instruments.

The Walt Disney Concert Hall is that crazy, space-age, jaw-droppingly-beautiful building in Downtown Los Angeles.

It would be worth a trip to LA just to experience the magic and majesty of the place.

But the music. Ah, the music...

My kids were definitely the two oldest at this event, but they're both musicians so they were able to appreciate the beauty of it all. They were captivated by the program, by the hall, and of course, by the Instrument Petting Zoo. ;-)

Could this boy look any happier?

Mendelssohn's Mystical Landscapes will be performed again this coming Saturday, November 12th, 2011. Click here for details and tickets.

We are already making plans to return for other events at the hall - Hello, Handel's Messiah Sing-along (!) Extra coolness points - the concerts are awesomely affordable for families.

And the exposure to such beautiful music in such an amazing setting definitely impacted us personally.

Jonathan: "Mom, I might need to get a violin."

See what I mean?

{A special thank you to the Walt Disney Concert Hall, the LA Phil, the Toyota Symphonies for Youth, and alPunto Advertising for the wonderful musical memories.}