Torcuato's party. July 9, 2006
Torcuato adding a little extra kick to the sangría. :-) July 9, 2006 7:19pm
My guitarist friend Torcuato Zamora celebrated his birthday last night. His age? As he describes it: "35...on each leg!" :-)
It was a good mix of flamencos and other nice people getting together to show their love for a very generous and down-to-Earth kinda guy. Incidentally, Torcuato was one of the people who inspired me to quit my well-paying but boring office job to become a full-time flamenco guitarist!
Anyway, this is the second blog posting for the day and I got a lot of website updates to get to, so I'll keep the commentary very brief. Enjoy the pics!
Pam de Ocampo, Claudia, Mariya, Miguelito and Anna Menendez. July 9, 2006 7:55pm
Like it or not, it's a fact of life that at parties like this flamencos eventually gather into their respective cliques. Still, it's been one of my personal resolutions to be more sociable and circulate. Eventually though I came back to my clique (see above pic). Seated along the back wall is yours truly with a few of the very talented beautiful dancers that I currently perform with most frequently in the local tablaos.
Katie, Torcuato and Katherine. July 9, 2006 8:16pm
Karina Valverde, Miguelito and Nikki sittin' on the stage. July 9, 2006 8:38pm
Estela Velez and Aref. July 9, 2006 8:47pm
Linette bringing out da birthday cake for Torcuato. July 9, 2006 9:05pm
Speech. July 9, 2006 9:07pm
It was a Sunday night, and a lot of people had to get up early Monday to go to work. So after the speech, a small contingent of guests got up, wished Torcuato a happy birthday and said good night...
Ramona and Darrylé. July 9, 2006 9:17pm
There was still quite a large number of guests remaining. So after a brief lull, people were asking when the inevitable flamenco jam session was going to start. After all, we had a stage, lights and sound system set up.
Mariya, Sonia, Juan del Valle and Nora López in Sevillanas. July 9, 2006 10:21pm
Pam, Sonia and Sarah McKenney in tanguillos de Cádiz. July 9, 2006 10:31pm
Little Mariana and Estela in Sevillanas. July 9, 2006 10:51pm
Mariya in tientos. July 9, 2006 10:57pm
Estela and little Mariana in tangos. July 9, 2006 10:59pm
Mariana had just come from the Gipsy Kings concert at Wolf Trap earlier in the evening. During the show if you saw a little girl onstage, that was her! July 9, 2006 11:00pm
Mariana and Estela. July 9, 2006 11:04pm
Las Sonias: hija, madre y abuela. July 9, 2006 11:10pm
Juan del Valle, Natalia Monteleón, Nora López, Ceci and Mariya. July 9, 2006 11:12pm
Torcuato and Miguelito. July 9, 2006 11:18pm
On the way home, I just happened to run into my housemate Vicky on the same train. Even though we live in the same house, our schedules are so different that I hardly see her. I just learned that she teaches salsa and mambo at Habana Village in Adams-Morgan so if see her in class (Wednesday and Saturday nights), tell her you're a friend of Miguelito's. Who knows? Maybe you'll get a discount. Hehe.
Anywayz, happy birthday Torcuato!