Felix Contreras
Felix Contreras is co-creator and host of Alt.Latino, NPR's pioneering radio show and podcast celebrating Latin music and culture since 2010.
In addition to his post behind the mic, Contreras programs music from the Latin diaspora for the acclaimed Tiny Desk concerts and hosts a weekly Instagram Live interview with a wide-ranging roster of guests.
A knowledgeable international ambassador for Latino heritage and arts, "Tio Felix '' travels extensively in search of new talent and new music and captures important legacy performers in jazz and Latin genres. Various national and international publications have quoted his expertise on the contemporary influences of Latin culture, music, and media.
His a recovering TV journalist whose first post at NPR in 2001 was as a Producer/Reporter for the NPR News Arts Desk. He is also NPR's resident Deadhead and performs around the DC area with his Latin music Beatles cover band, Los Day Trippers.
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Hear re-imagined pre-Colombian music and arias from the jungles of Brazil and beyond, chosen with the help of Tom Huizenga from NPR Music's Deceptive Cadence.
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Alt.Latino talks to a bandleader with deep roots in Cuban music and a role in current events. O'Farrill just released a new album called Cuba: The Conversation Continues.
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A member of the Count Basie and Duke Ellington Orchestras, Terry also enjoyed a long freelance career which included jazz education and a featured slot in NBC's Tonight Show band. He was 94.
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The beloved musician had a slight frame, an almost feminine voice and a late revival after a promising start and years of neglect.
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It's hard to imagine a musical career that included musicians as varied as Charlie Parker and Carlos Santana. But such was the resumé of Armando Peraza after almost 70 years of making music.
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O'Farrill's new album transforms big-band Latin jazz into something familiar, but with a new look. Its music moves forward in a subtle and graceful way that's likely to have a lasting impact.
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Traditional flamenco is a singer's art, born in the cradle of Roma culture in Spain. De Lucia was neither a singer nor Roma, which makes his accomplishments all the more extraordinary.
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Latin jazz works best when the musicians involved are as fluent in Afro-Cuban rhythms as they are in the deep grooves and advanced harmonics of bebop. A man with a powerful interest in both the past and the future, Arturo O'Farrill has that pedigree in his DNA.
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Concha Buika's voice doesn't come from inside her petite body: It comes from Africa, and from the past with obvious traces of flamenco.
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As the host of a weekly public radio program pairing conversation and duet performances, McPartland brought many jazz greats to an audience of millions. For more than 40 years, she offered an intimate perspective on the elusive topic of improvisation.