I will be playing Thursday Jan. 25th, Feb. 1st and Feb. 8th, at South Maui Gardens …No cover, great food (really the best food trucks on the island!), fantastic setting! Hope to see you there! 6-8 pm.

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Demo of solo looping on Pacific Whale Foundation

New bachata “Solo Ronroneo” dedicated to my stolen and then returned gatita. 
Big mahalo y gracias a Sandra Rodrigues for her feline prowess!! super bella.

RIO RITMO

I was traveling throughout the Caribbean in the 90s and I deepened my  love with the rhythms and the history of the region. Around the same time my father passed and I journeyed into the phase of my life of deep introspection and the quest for a better understanding of life and sound and rhythm was a big factor in learning basically the path to becoming a man. To see the seeds of rhythm and sound travel like a diaspora across the world carried by multiple cultures like a sacred treasure of humanity created much of the wonderment that guided the formation of the Rio Ritmo band. Basically the band started in 1997 and began playing out by the summer of the next year. Over time a repertoire of many of the Afro-Carribean/Latin rhythms such as Salsa/son, Chachacha, Boogaloo, Merengue, Bachata, Cumbia, Samba, Samba Reggae, Bolero and even Timba Cubana was created  and deep friendships were formed and magical experiences of this River of Rhythm began to birth.  

The music has been a treasure and often is what brought the band to discover parts of the island and people we otherwise probably never would have had the blessing of knowing. The band grew over time and there is a long history of great musicians who have been a part of the Rio Ritmo experience. To those who are still with the band and those who may not be presently with the band I am so grateful to have had a life where we were able to play music together. I hold these years very dear from the humble beginnings playing on the corner of Makawao and Baldwin Avenues at the Makawao Cafe sunday brunches to the long fun run of friday nights across the street at Casanova Restaurant and Night Club. For years there people would come from all parts of the island-even Hana and Kapalua just to dance with us on friday nights and it was truly one of the bright lights of our history together. I have a deep nostalgia of that time as a young musician being mentored by the older brothers in the band…learning about music and groove and dance and really life itself as to develop such a powerful means of flying with other people merely by sharing the soul of music on a bandstand and the synergy of people finding their place in the spectrum of rhythm by dancing with and to us. I thank all of you who were there during those hallmark years and I look forward to continuing this dance with all of you …as musicians, as dancers and as listeners.  Mahalo, gracias, obrigado….Thank you so very much for receiving this music past, present and future. 

The Rio Ritmo band is versatile in configuration and instrumentation varying from 5 piece to 10 piece band with horn section and full rhythm section depending upon the event’s needs.

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