With Latin, jazz and salsa on the program for the evening, an enthusiastic crowd packed Maurice Gusman Hall Thursday night to enjoy a variety of big band hits by the Salsa Orchestra.
Since 1993, the 12-piece orchestra, with more than 20 musicians, nine vocalists and 60 band charts has brought its flavor of Latin music to South Florida. The University of Miami Salsa Orchestra is led by director, composer and arranger Alberto de la Reguera.
Reguera has won many awards, including Musical Director of the Year in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
The performance included guest artists Alexander Pope Norris, Dante Luciani and Ruben Trillo. These professional singers and musicians have traveled the world performing with various artists from Frank Sinatra to Natalie Cole.
Nine singers, four female and five male, lined the front of the stage with the orchestra behind them. The girls wore bright, festive dresses that swayed with their entertaining dance moves, and the guys were in white guayabera shirts (traditional Cuban attire). Their salsa steps complemented their voices. Their feet never stopped moving throughout the entire performance.
Cristina Flores, a sophomore in the School of Music, and first time singer with the band, displayed smile and enthusiasm throughout her performance.
From the sultry Spanish solos to trombone solos, saxophone and drums, band members had a chance to show off their skills to an applauding audience.
The festive d