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Mambo Kings/Richard DeLaney

About Me

Rochester's own MAMBO KINGS, together since 1995, are enjoying great success as Upstate New York's foremost Latin jazz ensemble, and have rapidly earned a national reputation for their explosive blend of Afro Cuban rhythms and jazz improvisation. Since their orchestral debut in 1997 with the Rochester Philharmonic and Conductor Jeff Tyzik, Mambo Kings have appeared at the Bravo! Vail Valley Music Festival and in Pops concerts with orchestras in Baltimore, Vancouver, Detroit, Dallas, Naples (FL) and Portland (OR), among many others, performing original compositions and arrangements by pianist Richard DeLaney. As a quintet, Mambo Kings have appeared as featured soloists at the Xerox Rochester International Jazz Fest, the Music In The Mountains Festival in Durango, (CO), the Lewiston (NY) Jazz Fest and most recently, the 2017 Big Sky Arts Fest in Bozeman, MT. The 2017 season included return performances with the Vancouver (BC) and Dallas Symphony Orchestras. The 2018 season featured shows with the Spokane and Louisville Symphonies, the Rochester Philharmonic and the New Jersey Symphony. The 2019 season featured performances with the Alabama Symphony, a sold-out concert with the Grant Park Music Festival in Chicago and a show with the Des Moines Symphony. Mambo Kings released their third self-produced recording, Nostalgia, in July of 2008. Nostalgia, along with their previous releases—Live! (2005) and Marinera (2003) —continues to receive radio airplay throughout North America and Puerto Rico. For more information, visit the band's website at www.mambokingdom.com

My Jazz Story

I love jazz because... I was first exposed to jazz... I met [musician name]... The best show I ever attended was... The first jazz record I bought was... My advice to new listeners... Or whatever else you have in mind.