Latin Piano Workshop Details

AT LONDON RECORDING STUDIOS THE PREMISES:

Salsa and Latin Piano Workshop

With Alex Wilson at The Premises Studios

November 19th – 22nd  2010

This intensive new 4-day course is based in one of London’s favourite recording studios and will provide the participant with the essential tools to write, arrange and perform Salsa and Latin music.  Uniquely, it leads into a recording session providing each student with a professional recording of a piece of their choosing with a top Latin rhythm section.

During the first 3 days of the workshop we will look at the key traditional styles that fall under the Salsa umbrella and how to interpret them on the piano.  We will move on to looking at the playing styles of significant pianists in the genre with study examples. This will lead into classes in soloing in different contexts and finally we will look at how to write and arrange for your own ensemble. Course members will get a unique opportunity to try these concepts out with a top Latin rhythm section and the week will culminate in each member and the rhythm section recording their own piece in Studio A at the Premises Studios whose clients past and present include the Buena Vista Social Club, Satin Singh, Bosco D’Olivera, Roberto Pla, and Airto Moeira.

Alex Wilson is a BBC award winning pianist, composer, arranger and producer as well as working internationally as a piano tutor.  With years of experience in playing and teaching he brings his own passion and in-depth knowledge of this style to all his sessions and imparts this enthusiasm to all his students.

Dates:  19th – 22nd November

Times: 11am – 5pm

Price: £395.00

Location: The Premises Studios, 209 Hackney Rd, London E2 8JL.

www.premisesstudios.com
www.alexwilson.net

Topics Covered:
The Source – Cuban Son
The Cuban tres (guitar) – the father of the piano montuno
Traditional son structure and how the piano fits in
Key Rhythms – The Building Blocks
Son, Danzón, Cha Cha Cha, Mambo, Charanga (Pachanga)
Bomba & Plena from Puerto Rico
Salsa Piano Styles
The Puerto Ricans: Papo Luca, Eddie Palmieri, Sergio George
Cuban Pianists: Peruchin, Cesar ‘Pupy’ Pedroso, Iván “Melón” Lewis
Merengue piano
Cumbia piano
Soloing In Cuban Popular Music, Salsa and Latin Jazz
Writing and Arranging for an Ensemble
Writing for the percussion section
Horn arrangements
Working with the bass player
Vocals
Incorporation of non-Latin styles
No nonsense copying & rehearsing – how to effectively communicate with other musicians

Recording Session:

Each student will be given a slot in the recording studio with the rhythm section to record a tune of his or her choice.  This track will be mixed and mastered and sent out to each student after the course.  There will also be options to purchase a compilation of all the tracks recorded and to purchase the data files, which can be used at a later date to add vocals, brass or any other instrument or to simply remix.