Aurora is a journalist, historian, artist, and cultural activist she is the quintessential Nuyorican born and bred in the City. She attended Lehman College and Columbia University under scholarship. At the cutting edge of Latino identity, Aurora writes on culture and music for the Daily News and produces concerts and artistic showcases in New York City. Since 1974, she has published thousands of articles for mainstream and ethnic publications. Since 1987, she runs her own public relations and cultural marketing firm.
Improve your outreach programs by understanding
how Latinos see themselves – listen to
“Latino Identity and Situational Latinidad ” audio recording
Presenters Diana Rios and Ph.D., Federico Subervi, Ph.D.
Find out
• Who is Latino
• Assimilation, acculturation and pluralism
• Hispanic culture dynamics affecting Latino
• Role of Latino identity
• Three factors that contribute to Latino identity
Aurora cut her teeth in the music industry as the first woman editor of Latin New York Magazine in 1973 and the first woman music correspondent for Billboard Magazine in 1975 covering the Latin music and R&B scene. She was the first to write about Puertorican folk music in the publication highlighting the Fiestas de Loiza Aldea and an interview she did with Don Rafael Cepeda in 1977.
She appears with the late Tito Puente in the Edward James Olmos docudrama Americanos: Latino Life in the U.S.; on the Bravo documentary Palladium: When Mambo Was King; and on the accompanying film for the newly opened Smithsonian Exhibit LatinJazz, La Combinación Perfecta speaking on the history of Latin music.
She wrote the foreword and edited ¡Salsa Talks! A Musical Heritage Uncovered, a book on Latin music. She teaches History of Latin Music at City Universities of New York (CUNY). She finds time to write songs, dance, and play the cuatro (ten string) and pandero.
To listen to the interview, scroll down until you see “Podcast” on the right hand side, then select “HMPR Aurora Flores,” click on the play button below or download the MP3 file to your iPod or MP3 player to listen on the go, in your car or at home. To download it, click on the arrow of the recording you wish to copy and save to disk. The podcast will remain listed in the March 2008 section of the podcast archive.
Photo: Jerry LaCay
Video: Ed Rodriguez, Diesel Media
New York Latin band Zon del Barrio recently released its debut CD, “Cortijo’s Tribe” with the help of Emusica Records and Barrio Zone Productions. The Spanish Harlem group describes its style as structured on a solid foundation of Afro-Caribbean rhythms with a New York twist and a celebration of Afro-Antillian music.
Led by Latin music historian, writer, composer and musician Aurora Flores, Zon del Barrio’s Cortijo’s Tribe: La Tribu de Cortijo relies on Afro-Puerto Rican music veterans Yomo Toro, the King of the cuatro (the national 10-stringed guitar of the island) and Sammy Ayala, Cortijo alum, singer and songwriter. Hector “Papote” Jimenez, a native New Yorker, is the youngest addition to the band.
Zon del Barrio is a play on words for the musical genre son of Latino communities. Produced by musical director David Fernandez, the CD blends dance rhythms of Cuba and Puerto Rico within a New York setting. According to promotional materials it includes elements of jazz, R&B, hip-hop, funk and reggaetón, raw street plenas and bombas. Cortijo’s Tribe follows the production style of salsa artists Al Santiago whose approach is said to have paved the way for the Fania music explosion of the 1970s.
Zon Del Barrio has shared the stage with Spanish Harlem Orchestra, Oscar D’Leon, Bobby Valentin, Michael Stuart, Larry Harlow, Jimmy Bosch, Andrea Brachfeld, La India, and Chembo Corniel. The band has appeared on Univision during the Latin Grammy Awards, on the morning show “Despierta America” on Telemundo, Fox 5, Manhattan Neighborhood Network and the Vic-Fezensac Salsa festival in Toulouse, France; the Howl Festival in the Lower East Side, the Orchard Beach Salsa Concert Series, the Half Marathon in Battery Park, The River to River Festival, and the Borgata Hotel & Casino in Atlantic City.
Presenter Cesar Melgoza, managing director, Latin Force Group
Find out about
• How demographic, social, political and economic factors affect Latinos
• Number of Hispanics in U.S.
• Hispanics as a percent of the mainstream population
• Number of Puerto Ricans in Puerto Rico
• Hispanics, including Puerto Rico, as a percent of U.S. mainstream
• Number of Asians and African Americans
• Estimated size of Hispanic market by 2012
• Percentage growth of new Hispanics per year
• Number of counties where Latinos are majority
• Areas of significant Latino growth
• Area of U.S. with a 950 percent Latino growth
• Role of acculturation
• Hispanicity segmentation
Following is a list of 2007 podcast guests in alphabetical order and links. Two listings for the same person are not in error. They indicate more than one interview.
Xenon Pictures, in association with Lionsgate Home Entertainment, recently released the telenovela Maria la del Barrio on DVD. The Spanish language soap is part of a three part series in actress Thalia’s Maria Trilogy. The other serialized program, MariMar, was released earlier this year and the third part, Maria Mercedes, is due for release on DVD this summer.
Some fans consider that this series launched the famed Mexican soap actress into international stardom. Maria la del Barrio was also the first starring role for Fernando Colunga, described in promotional materials as the only actor to have starred in five successive hit telenovelas. Maria la del Barrio also stars actress Iran Eory and Itati Cantoral, whose portrayal of the evil Soraya earned her the 1996 TVyNovelas magazine award for Best Villain.
“Beyond the 30 Second Spot” audio recording
Listen to a 105-minute discussion
Panelists Ivan Cevallos, Hunter Heller, Kitty Kolding and Cynthia Nelson
Our panel of national experts discuss
• Challenges of measuring the impact of the 30-second ad spot
• Innovative tools are useful to reach Latinos
• Changes in marketing to Hispanics
• On which market segment are the changes most relevant
• Effects of technology and time shift on consumer behavior
• Role of multi-screens
• Getting started
• Tips for marketing professionals
Filmed in Las Lomas de Chapultepec in Mexico City, Maria la del Barrio was written by Ines Rodena (Marimar, Marisol) and directed by Beatriz Sheridan (La Intrusa, La Usurpadora). The soap opera like series aired initially on prime time in 1996 in the United States and 119 other countries.
In Maria la del Barrio, María Hernández (Thalia) is a poor and beautiful 15-year-old girl, forced to scavenge food to support herself and her elderly godmother. When her godmother dies, she goes to live with the wealthy Don Fernando de la Vega (Ricardo Blume). While she lives there she is resented by his new wife, Victoria (Eory), and her niece, Soraya (Cantoral).
María falls in love with the handsome but drunken son of the house, Luis Fernando (Colunga), arousing the jealousy of Soraya. He falls in love with her as well and asks her to marry him. Their happiness is cut short when a misunderstanding separates them. In her grief María gives up their child for adoption. although Luis Fernando returns and they adopt a child together she maintains hope of one day finding the son she gave up for adoption.
The 3-disc DVD set of Maria la del Barrio, with 12 hours (700 minutes) of content, is in Spanish with English subtitles. It is rated TV-PG. Maria la del Barrio has a suggested retail price of $24.98.
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on DVD
