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Bio
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About The Band
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| Plena Libre’s core lineup includes seven musicians: Founder, composer, arranger and bassist Gary Nuñez, whose entire career has been devoted to preserving and developing Puerto Rican music with ensembles such as Moliendo Vidrio, Caribe Jazz and currently, Plena Libre. Israel Velez is the son of one of Pleneros de Quinto Olivo’s original members. He was raised in the plena and is one of the top requinto -- the highest pitched pandero, and an instrument used for soloing -- players in Puerto Rico today. Victor Muñiz is a master plena singer, looked up to by the new generation of singers for style, creativity, and approach to singing traditional plena. Conga player Gina Villanueva has been playing plena since the beginning of her career and is also one of the few female conga players in Puerto Rico. Brothers Keyvan Vega (singer and trumpet player) and Kevin Vega (percussion) and also singer Kali Villanueva represent the new generation in Plena Libre. In addition to Plena Libre’s tremendous lineup of musicians and singers, ¡Estamos Gozando! features some of the best soloists in Latin music, adding new colors and excitement to the recording. Cuban virtuoso violinist Alfredo De La Fé jams over the trombones in Toruellas’ Olvidalo; bongocero Roberto Roena, pianist Luis Marín and trumpeter Charlie Sepulveda jazz up Mon Rivera’s Lluvia Con Nieve; and William Cepeda, trombone player and heir to the Cepeda dynasty, solos over grandfather Rafael Cepeda’s Juan José. |
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