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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The Chilean vocalist and her orchestra's combination of Mexican folkloric and European chamber music make for a musical and visual treat. -
Known affectionately as El Judio Maravilloso, "the marvelous Jew," the Brooklyn-born pianist, arranger, producer and activist helped to popularize the music that would become known as salsa.
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The new single from Cuban funkmeister Cimafunk, featuring Parliament's George Clinton, is the perfect soundtrack for an end-of-summer front porch party (properly masked, of course).
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The Austin-based rock band is nominated for the album and record of the year at next year's Grammys. See why in this Tiny Desk quarantine concert.
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The Cuban percussionist brought the rhythms of Havana to New York's jazz clubs in the 1940s and never stopped performing.
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Two members of Brazilian musical royalty unite for a special Tiny Desk quarantine performance (and a heck of a view).
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An indomitable musical culture survived the tragedy of the international slave trade. Alt.Latino captured a weeklong celebration featuring artists Trombone Shorty, Tank and the Bangas and Cimafunk.
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Sometimes the musicians who visit Alt.Latino prefer to express themselves in Spanish. Founders of the genre-busting Cuban band Sintesís share their love of Freddie Mercury and santería.
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Can you hear the cha-cha-cha in "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction"? Or the mambo in "What I'd Say"? Dive into early rock and roll's Cuban DNA.
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Santana's debut album was released on this day 50 years ago. NPR's Felix Contreras considers it a game-changing moment in the marriage of Afro-Caribbean rhythms and rock 'n' roll.
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Piña mined the traditions of cumbia and expanded the limits of the accordion.
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The song "Afilando Los Cuchillos" was a major feature during the protests in Puerto Rico that led to the resignation of Gov. Ricardo Rossello last week.
