Goza Latin Band's Press Kit includes the ensemble's bio, high resolution photos and logos, personnel list, repertoire, media clips and testimonials.
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We are pleased to present to you GOZA - an engaging Latin musical ensemble comprised of Connecticut’s most seasoned and versatile musicians.
GOZA (Spanish for Joy) performs exciting music and dance rhythms from Latin America, Brazil and Spain with guitar, violin, horns, Latin percussion and beautiful, romantic vocals.
Goza rhythms include: samba, salsa, bachata,rumba, cha-cha, cumbia, flamenco, tango, and bolero
Covers include many Latin standards plus music of Jobim, Tito Puente, Gipsy Kings, Buena Vista, Selena, Beatles, Santana, Stevie Wonder, Van Morrison, Guns & Roses and many originals.
Goza has performed multiple times at the Mohegan Sun Wolfden, Hartford First night, Wadsworth Atheneum, Elizabeth Park, River Camelot Cruises, festivals, colleges, libraries and clubs throughout New England plus hundreds of weddings and similar functions.
Regular performances in the Hartford area include venues such as: Casona, Chango Rosa, La Tavola Ristorante, Arthur Murray Dance Studio and Elizabeth Park.
Also please call or email Dave Giardina at (860) 568-1172. dave@davegmusic.com
We look forward to hearing from you!
Dave received his B.A. from St. Anselm College, He has also studied at Longy School of Music. With roots in the sixties folk- rock culture, Dave studied classical guitar with Sharon Isbin and Philip Defremery, Jazz with Sal Salvador and Bob Kobus and Flamenco with Mario Escudero and Paco Pena (Spain). He also played in master classes for John Williams, Manuel Barrueco, Ben Verdery, Abel Carlevaro, and Oscar Ghiglia. He has been teaching for many years on the faculties of Trinity, St. Joseph and Manchester Community Colleges, as well as privately.
Dave is an award recipient member of the CT Commission on Culture and Tourism, he has performed extensively throughout the Northeast at schools, bandshells, major festivals, First Nights, clubs and both Connecticut casinos as a soloist and with ensembles he has formed such as Fiesta del Norte, Bamboleo, Goza, and the Typsy Gypsys.
His compositions are featured on two releases by the CT Classical Guitar Society of which he is a founding member and Artistic Director. His latest release, Fiesta Grande, features music of Mexico.
Website: www.davegmusic.com
Dulce Santana was born in Caracas, Venezuela. Ever since she can remember, music was a part of her upbringing, as she comes from a very artistic family. She moved to the United States at a young age and has performed extensively throughout the United States.
Her voice is mesmerizing and her music is touching. She writes and sings in English and Spanish. Dulce has a creative and innovative style that ranges from Jazz, Latin Jazz, ballads, salsa, and pop. Her voice is powerful and somehow intimate, sultry and sensual; and while her music is diverse, it is always filled with genuine sentiment.
Her self-produced CD entitled "Forever", showcases the exquisite flavor of her original compositions which has received extensive radio airplay throughout the United States and South America.
In addition to singing, Dulce is also an accomplished author and illustrator of children’s books.
Karina Hernandez was born and raised in Mexico City, Mexico. At the age of 8, she attended the prestigious music school Escuela Nacional de Musica de la UNAM. There she began her violin studies along with voice and music theory lessons. At the age of 19 she joined the Orchestra and Chorus of the Marines of Mexico.
In 2000 she moved to the United States and resided in Maryland. There she joined Mariachi Las Americas (a group that had the privilege of performing for former President Bill Clinton). During 2002 she moved to Connecticut where she shortly became a member of Fiesta del Norte and Mariachi Connecticut. During her first years as a member of Fiesta del Norte she participated in important events such as Arts and Ideas in New Haven and performed at various universities, libraries, and venues throughout New England. In 2009, she joined The New Britain Symphony and The Connecticut Orchestra Valley, where she led the second violin section for two concert seasons.
She is a former violin and vocal teacher at Guakia School of Arts in Hartford, Connecticut. Presently Karina is attending Central Connecticut State University, studying violin with Karin Fagerburgk, formerly of the Hartford Symphony.
Jeff Taylor, a long-standing fixture in the Connecticut music scene, has performed extensively throughout the United States, Canada and Europe. Some of his notable work includes playing tenor and lead alto saxophones for the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra, a position he held for over ten years. Jeff has also performed with such musical greats as: Paul Anka, Joan Rivers, Johnny Mathis, James Darren, Joe Piscopo, Bob Newhart, Al Martino and Carol Lawrence.
Jeff holds a Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Connecticut, where he also presently serves as a private woodwind instructor and clinician at their Community School of the Arts. Some of Jeff's other teaching credits include: Greater Hartford Academy of the Arts faculty; Hartford Camerata Conservatory Jazz Ensemble Director; and adjudicator for the Northern Region Middle School Music Festival and Connecticut All-State Music Festival.
In addition to performing and teaching, Jeff is also an accomplished arranger, scoring multi-instrumental arrangements in a multitude of genres, including many of those in Goza's repertoire.
Brian has been playing trumpet since the age of nine. In high school, Brian was selected as lead trumpet for the Massachusetts Northeast District Jazz Band, under the direction of Jazz legend Herb Pomeroy; he also was chosen for the MA All-State Jazz Group. Brian then went on to attend the Berklee College of Music, studying under such notable trumpet players as Wayne Naus, Lin Biviano, Tiger Okoshi and Jeff Stout.
After college, Brian spent 4 years touring with original funk group, Rippopotamus, a group that has shared the stage with national acts such as Queen Latifah, Phish, Fishbone, De La Soul, and the Beastie Boys. Rippopotamus released five albums, wrote and performed the theme song for MTV's show, Singled Out, and were a featured act at the Montreal Jazz Festival.
He has performed and recorded with the likes of Deana Martin, Bobby Rydell, Roger Ingram, Kayvan Vega, Don Sonero and Luisito Carrion.
Website: www.trumpetbrian.com
Chris Payne was born in England and studied for his BA in violin and composition at Dartington College of Arts with a post-graduate in jazz at London’s Guildhall school of Music.
In London, as a recording session musician and performer, he worked with artists such as John Martin, Tim Garland, Claire Martin and John Paul Jones, performing at venues such as The Barbican, Wigmore Hall and Ronnie Scotts Jazz Club.
Touring Europe and the East, Chris has played virtually every genre of music, incorporating these into his own unique style.
As a composer, his work can be heard in television productions around the world
Website: www.christopherpayne.com
Asher Delerme is one of Connecticut’s most versatile and accomplished percussionists. As his formal training began in the distinguished World Music program at Wesleyan University, Delerme was already touring the United States with Abraham Kobina Adzenyah during his freshman year. While a junior, he’d make his pilgrimage to Ghana, West Africa to study Ghanaian drumming and dance, and upon graduation, he returned to his native New York City to study and perform Afro-Caribbean and Afro-Brazilian music.
As a performer, Delerme has toured the United States, the Caribbean, Canada and Asia, and also played Carnegie Hall. A former artist-in-residence for the New York State Commission on the Arts, Delerme is currently listed with both the CT Commission for the Arts Contours and Young Audiences of America programs.
Delerme has performed with luminaries the likes of Hilton Ruiz, Paquito De Rivera, Dr. Billy Taylor, Jay Hoggard, Foday Musa Suso, Marion Meadows, Pete Seeger, Jimmy Sabater and Miles Jaye, among many others. He has collaborated with singers and poets, as well as gospel, theater, dance, percussion and orchestral ensembles. His recording resume includes television and radio soundtracks, jingles and appearances on over 25 albums/CDs.
Matt Dwonszyk is an upcoming acoustic bass player from the Hartford, CT area. Starting on the electric bass at the age of eleven, Matt grew up playing numerous styles of music stemming from rock and roll. When he entered high school he was fortunate to attend the Academy of Performing Arts in Hartford where he began studying jazz with teachers such as Jimmy Greene, Kris Allen, Paul Brown, and Doug Maher. Through friends at the Academy, Matt started attending the Artist Collective founded by the great Jackie McLean. He soon started gigging around the Hartford area and was called to perform in Russia through the Academy of the Arts. Matt then started performing with Ed Fast & Conga-Bop where he was exposed to Latin music. He continues to perform with Ed Fast and is now attending the Jackie McLean Institute of Jazz at the Hartt School of Music where he is studying with Professors Nat Reeves and Steve Davis. Matt has performed with Harold Maybern, Larry Willis, Steve Nelson, Dr. Eddie Henderson, John Farnsworth, Steve Davis, Arron Goldberg and many other musicians throughout the area.
Recently Matt has formed his own group called the New Unity Band where his original compositions and arrangements are featured. He maintains a busy gig schedule and plans to move to New York after he finishes at Hartt.
Website: www.mattdwonszyk.com
Fabio Mateus is a native of Bogota, Colombia where he studied at the Conservatory of Music from the Universidad Nacional de Colombia. At the Universidad Nacional, he specialized in music pedagogy as well as classical flute. Fabio has performed with various ensembles such as Senda Nueva, Son de Siempre and Atacama Ensemble. He is an outstanding and versatile musician, being proficient in instruments such as bass, guitar, flute, saxophone and quena. Fabio is also an accomplished singer.
Abrázame *
Contigo Aprendi
Reloj
Quizás, Quizás *
Sabor a mi
Solamente una vez
Besame Mucho
¿Quién Será? (Sway) *
La Paloma
Sombras Nada Mas
Malagueña
Si Nos Dejan
Ojos Verdes
Oye Como Va
Entre do Aguas
Rio Ancho
Faena *
Quiero Saber
Tres Notas
Night in Marrakesh
Jardin
La Vida es un Carnaval
Hotel California
Compadre Pedro Juan
El Tigaron
La Cubanchera
Mueve La Cintura
Goza
Viva Cepeda
Home Cookin
Chucho
A Night inTunisia
Caravan
Song for Maura
Brussels in the Rain
Autumn Leaves
Perdido
Song for My Father
Little Sunflower
Naked if you Want To
Alonso
Guateca City
Guataca
Softly as in a Morning Sunrise
Nica's Dream
Spain
Come Candela
Sudden Samba
Days of Wine and Roses
La Fiesta
Tin Tin Deo
Enamorado
In Flight
Briancito
Nuages
Swing 42
Coquette
Dinette
Minor Swing
Pent Up House
Cantina
Moondance
My Guitar Gently Weeps
Don't You Worry
Golden Lady
Hotel California
Light My Fire
La Bamba
Guantanamera
Tequila!
Oye Como Va
Corazon Espinado
Black Magic Woman
Europa
Evil Ways
Bamboleo
Quiero Saber
I Will Survive
Mi Vida es un Carnaval
Kumbala Maldito
Triveni
Killing Me Softly
World is a Ghetto
Long and Winding Road
...And I Love Her
Sweet Child of Mine
La Cumparsita
Adios Muchachos
El Choclo
Por Una Cabeza
Uno
A Media Luz
Volver
Don't Cry for Me Argentina
Habenera from Carmen
Favela
Girl from Ipanema *
Wave
Chega de Saudade
Desafinado
Black Orpheus
Felicidade
Agua de Beber
Latin Lovers Bosco
Blue Bossa
Saco Samba
Saki Samba
Samba de Amor
Samba de Orfeo
Double Rainbow
Batucada
Lamentos
So Many Stars
Mas Que Nada
Out of the Fog
Cachita
Sabor
Philly Mambo
Moliende Café *
I Will Survive
Embrujo de Amor
Mueve La Cintura
Goza
La Negra Tomasa
Come Candela
El Cuarto de Tula
I Will Survive
Embrujo de Amor
Songs underlined with an asterisk * are audio samples. Click to take a listen.
Foxwoods Resort & Casino
Mashantucket, CT
Mohegan Sun Casino
Uncasville, CT
Saint Francis Hospital
Hartford, CT
Eastern Connecticut Health Network
Hartford, CT
Six Flags Amusement Park
Agawam, MA
Durham Fair
Durham, CT
Atria at Hamilton Heights
West Hartford, CT
Tumblebrook Country Club
Bloomfield, CT
Danversport Yacht Club
Danvers, MA
Saint Clements
Portland, CT
Hartford Marriott
Hartford, CT
Hartford Canoe Club
East Hartford, CT
NBC 30
Hartford, CT
The Society Room
Hartford, CT
Boston Park Plaza
Boston, MA
Amarante's Sea Cliff
New Haven, CT
Connecticut Hispanic Bar Association
Hartford, CT
New Haven Lawn Club
New Haven, CT
Orange Cigar
Orange, CT
Wadsworth Mansion
Middletown, CT
International Tennis Hall of Fame
Newport, RI
Casona
Hartford, CT
Barracuda Bistro & Bar
New Haven, CT
Compari's Ristorante
Springfield, MA
Cuban Revolution
Providence, RI
Lucky Lou's
Wethersfield, CT
Rooftop 120
Glastonbury, CT
J's Crab Shack
Hartford, CT
Vazzano's Four Seasons
Stratford, CT
Nadim's Restaurant
Springfield, MA
Mattabesett Canoe Club
Middletown, CT
Tequila's
Old Saybrook, CT
Storyville
Boston, MA
Tango Restaurant
Glastonbury
Bamboleo Restaurant
Glastonbury, CT
Shish Restaurant & Lounge
West Hartford, CT
Village Pizza
Bloomfield, CT
Prospect Cafe
East Hartford, CT
La Kerencya
Hartford, CT
Laetus Restaurant & Lounge
Hartford, CT
China Grill Restaurant
New York, NY
Manchester Community College
Manchester, CT
Eastern Connecticut State University
Willimantic, CT
Tunxis Community College
Farmington, CT
Williams College
Williamstown, MA
Assumption College
Worcester, MA
Keene State College
Keene, NH
Fairfield University
Fairfield, CT
Capital Community College
Hartford, CT
Neighborhood Music School
New Haven, CT
Smith Middle School
Glastonbury, CT
Haverhill High School
Haverhill, MA
SUNY
Cobleskill, NY
Smith College
Northhampton, MA
Wadsworth Atheneum
Hartford, CT
Hartford Public Library
Hartford, CT
Mark Twain Museum
Hartford, CT
Simsbury Library
Simsbury, CT
Silas Bronson Library
Waterbury, CT
New Britain Museum of American Art
New Britain, CT
Bronx Museum of the Arts
Bronx, NY
Westport Library
Westport, CT
Milford Library
Milford, CT
Levitt Pavilion for the Performing Arts
Westport, CT
Shoreline Arts Concert Series
Guilford, CT
Kenney Memorial Center
Old Wethersfield, CT
Windsor Art Center
Windsor, CT
International Festival of Arts and Ideas
New Haven, CT
The Flurry Festival
Saratoga, NY
Elizabeth Park Concert Series
West Hartford, CT
One World Market
Hartford, CT
Willimantic Street Festival
Willimantic, CT
International Beer & Food Festival
Danbury, CT
Trumbull Arts Center
Trumbull, CT
Rockwell Park Concert Series
Bristol, CT
Envisionfest
Hartford, CT
Riverfront Recapture Concert Series
East Hartford, CT
One World Market
Hartford, CT
La Tavola Ristorante
Waterbury, CT
Barcelona Restaurant
West Hartford, CT
The Flying Monkey Grill & Bar
Hartford, CT
—G. Trilla
Haverhill MA Public Schools
— J. Bell
Cromwell, CT
— P. Zerra & M. Garcia
Providence, RI
— K. Goyco
CHBA
— T. Kittle
Old Saybrook, CT
— M. Malone
New Haven, CT
— D. Miller
Albany, NY
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