Last week you may have seen a little video we posted featuring the legendary Eddie Palmieri, one of the greatest Latin Jazz pianists of all time.  We were so excited to get the video up that we didn’t post the images at the time, and I am so excited to share a few of those with you today.

But I also have a confession to make.  I, Ann Oleinik, am a salsaholic.

No really, I’m serious.

It all started back when I was in college, and I don’t want to admit how long ago that was.  I’ve been a musician my whole life.  I grew up playing piano, and even started out college as a piano major at UIUC.  But something happened when I got introduced to Latin music.  Where I had spent my life in concert halls filled with people who hardly looked at each other, here was a world where people held parties in their homes and actually danced and sang together, for fun.  I felt like I found something that had been missing for my entire life.  Like I never knew what living was before. Something clicked.  Something that said, this is how life should be.

I think we all have these moments at some time or another.  Moments where we discover our great passions, where the world shifts slightly around us to show us the great potential that lies inside ourselves and all around us.  If only we could see it, we could harness all that the universe has to offer.

Discovering salsa was one of those moments for me.  Together, my dear friend Sarika and I set  out to conquer the world, one beat at a time.  We discovered hidden alleyways within ourselves, our hunger for the music taking us beyond our old selves, beyond our fears, doubts, and limits.  Taking us to new dreams, new possibilities.  We shed the girls we were, and set out to define what young womanhood would be.

The first salsa album I bought happened to be a good one.  It was a mix (this was before iTunes, so you had to buy the whole album!) with Celia Cruz, Tito Puente, and Eddie Palmieri.  And we played it incessantly.

Eddie Palmieri is legitimately a legend of Latin music, and also one of my personal idols.  So it was a great honor to photograph this show.  Now go check out his music and enjoy!

 

Eddie has a huge, infectious smile.

At one point Eddie stood up and clapped the clave with the audience.  So great.

Eddie sings with great passion, even when there are no words to sing.

 

Check out our video from the show here: https://annkam.com/2012/04/1576/

This show, at Mayne Stage, featured Eddie Palmieri and the Bryan Lynch Quartet.  You can purchase their album, Simpático,  here.

To learn about more concerts featuring amazing musicians from around the world, check out Sound Culture Chicago.