The Last Mambo Trailer
Director's Notes
“The Last Mambo” was inspired by my first trip to Havana in 1995, a city overflowing with conservatories, theaters and museums devoted to their music and dance heritage. My conversations with Olav Alén Rodriguez, a renowned Cuban ethnomusicologist, convinced me to explore and document Bay Area Latin music history.
What is unique about our story? Wayne Wallace, composer, trombonist and musical director of “The Last Mambo” said it best about the Bay Area music scene: “Everything we do here artistically is a hybrid. There is no one Cuban community, Dominican community or Puerto Rican community. We have the possibility for creating fresh new music here because nobody has to stay in any one camp.”
While making this film, I discovered that for over 60 years Bay artists have freely cross-pollinated, collaborated and created our unique brand Afro-Latin music. My research also revealed how this network of performers and audiences have been dedicated advocates for racial integration and social empowerment.
But Afro-Latin music and dance is a fragile, transient art form. Since 2005 Jelly’s and dozens of salsa clubs have been forced to close. The demise of Latin music venues is the aftermath of the dismantlement of this diverse communities, bulldozed by soaring real estate prices, sprawling gentrification and the changing social demographics of the current tech boom. “The Last Mambo” celebrates the community’s struggle to survive through fearless creativity, heartfelt dedication to music education and undaunted advocacy for the empowerment of communities of color. “The Last Mambo” embodies hope, solidarity and resilience in the face of inescapable social change. The film encourages people in every city to appreciate and applaud their local talent and document their own Afro-Latin music heritage.
"The Last Mambo" is an optimistic documentary that showcases Bay Area Afro-Latin music as a potent social force that brings together our multi-cultural network of performers and participants, embodies cultural preservation and promotes artistic expression and education.
Love the dance, live the music.
Rita Hargrave
The Last Mambo Unfolds in Six Chapters
Chapter I — Our Roots
Chapter 1 explores the variety of AfroLatino rhythms, sounds and movement styles that make up the Bay Area Latin music community.
Chapter II — From the Homefront
Chapter 2 highlights how after WWII the growth of California’s Latino community inspired Merced Gallegos to launch the Bay Area Latin music scene at Oakland’s Sweets Ballroom. His Sunday afternoon dance parties known as tardeadas both brought together a culturally diverse community and introduced the Bay Area to top notch Afro-Caribbean entertainers from the U.S. and Latin America.
Chapter III – Mambo Sessions
Mambo Sessions profiles how the 1950’s national fascination with Mambo inspired West Coast music pioneers Cal Tjader and Carlos Federico (Panamanian born) to gave birth to fearless blends of Afro-Cuban percussion and jazz styling. Tjader’s Modern Mambo Quintet and Federico and his Panamanians created cutting edge sounds that brought together people of all ethnicities and nurtured a communal experience and atmosphere of social connectedness that flowed between musicians and their audiences.
Chapter IV — Cesar Rules
Cesar rules profiles the era of 1960-1980’s’s when Cesar’s Latin Palace was the mecca for Bay Area Latin bands. This San Francisco nitespot opened its doors to internationally known icons such as Eddie Palmieri, Ray Barreto,Tito Puente and Celia Cruz. This period also marked the emergence of Mission Cultural Center in San Francisco and La Pena in Oakland, vibrant community centers which provided workshops, classes and performance spaces. Teacher/performers like Carlos Federico and John Santos provided their audiences with lectures about the social and historical background of Afro-Caribbean music and expanded their understanding and appreciation of the art form.
Chapter V — Salsa Explosion
Salsa explosion profiles the 1980’s-2000 period and focuses on how the hard driving dance grooves of bands lead by veterans like Benny Velarde and Pete Escovedo, the influx of Cuban musicians and dancers helped expand the salsa community. Bay Area salsa clubs, ballrooms and dance studios became vibrant sources of popular dances styles (mambo, salsa, rueda) but also folkloric Afro-Cuban music styles.
Chapter VI — Millennium Salsa
Millennium Salsa profiles community from 2000 forward and highlights how even though the nightclub Salsa scene waxes and wanes pivotal people keep pumping life into the scene. This segment illuminates how music education and outreach are key to building community and insuring the future of the art from.
Six time Grammy nominee John Santos reflects. “There’s a lot of young people, people of different ages that have taken an interest in the history of the music, what it means to our community, and that how it relates to other music and communities. That is a real foundation and root that can be built on.. I think that’s one of the reasons that has supported the scene to be as rich as it is in terms of artistic availability and artistic creativity.’
PROLOGUE
The salsa and Latin jazz community in the San Francisco Bay Area was created and experienced by participants from diverse cultural and artistic backgrounds. This segment highlights how the unique cultural/ethnic backgrounds of San Francisco Bay Area dancers, musicians and DJ’s and shape their artistic approach to salsa. The community’s bands draw inspiration from New York-style salsa, funk, jazz and folkloric and popular music genres from Cuba, Puerto Rico, Peru and Uruguay. San Francisco Bay Area dancers pepper their salsa patterns with touches of hustle, lindy hop, tango, hip hop and Afro-Cuban folkloric dances.
The Last Mambo is celebration of Salsa/Latin Jazz as a dynamic source for information, creativity and community building. This is a rare opportunity for you to learn about Afro-cuban musical legends, honor their legacy and play a vital role in the making of this thought provoking, entertaining film.
Your tax-deductible gifts will pay for post-production and make this film project a reality. We can raise the money that we need with the help of supporters like you.
Join "The Last Mambo" gang and connect with the passionate community that loves Afro-Cuban music and dance. I know you will enjoy seeing” The Last Mambo” as much as I have enjoyed making it.