Los Van Van in Tokyo

Tokyo, Aug 31 (RHC) Cuban band Los Van Van is touring several stages in Japan, after 13 years of absence from the music scene in the Asian nation.

Van Van are bringing rhythm to the Japanese capital during these days, as part of the "¡Vívela! Salsa Tour 2023".

The presentations for the Tokyo public began the day before at the Blue Note club, where they performed several of their greatest hits such as "Eso que anda", "Después de todo" and "Me mantengo", among others.

Today, the group's leader, Samuel Formell, gave a talk at the Cervantes Institute on the evolution of Van Van in its more than half century of history.

The percussionist also mentioned that his father Juan Formell and drummer José Luis Quintana (Changuito), gave birth to the songo, a Cuban rhythm derived from the son montuno.

He also pointed out that Formell, by combining different instruments, created a unique format of popular dance music that revolutionized the genre in the 70s and 80s.

Next Thursday, those who follow the winners of the Latin Grammy Award for Best Salsa Album (2000) will be able to dance and sing along to their songs at the Zepp Shinyuku club, the culmination of their stay in Tokyo.

The next stops of the "Cuban Music Train" will be Nagoya and Osaka, on September 1 and 2 respectively.

The tour was scheduled for 2020, as part of the group's 50th anniversary celebrations, but was postponed due to the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic (Source:PL)