Anyone looking for a night full of music that will keep them out their seat should get ready for Tiempo Libre.
One of America’s hottest young Latin groups, Tiempo Libre will make its way to Central Indiana Saturday, Oct. 11 for the ZBOP Gala at the Zionsville Performing Arts Center.
The annual gala is a concert designed to raise funds for Zionsville High School’s rapidly growing 500-member music program. Silent auctions and performances by popular musicians are used to help generate revenue for the school’s award winning bands.
Zionsville is a city located immediately northwest of Indianapolis in Boone County.
Jorge Gomez, Tiempo Libre’s leader, arranger and pianist, said the group is looking forward to returning to the Indianapolis area.
“We’ve been fortunate to have a lot of concerts in that city,” Gomez said, speaking from an airport in Florida. “It’s a very nice crowd… they love to dance all the time.”
Using the fun sense of humor that has become a trademark of his group’s personality, Gomez added, “It can definitely be a very cold city, sometimes it’s freezing. Everyone needs to exercise, so we hope to be able to give people exercise through good music.”
Known for energetic live performances that leave even the most reserved people dancing, Tiempo Libre plays timba music- a unique style that blends traditional Afro-Cuban beats with contemporary jazz, hip-hop, house and pop music flavors.
Gomez jokingly noted that Tiempo Libre, which in Spanish means “free time,” uses liberal doses of “joy and craziness” in its music.
“Out of our mix of music comes a sound that makes it impossible not to get up, move, dance, to abandon all your cares,” said Gomez. “It is this animating, transporting quality that makes timba irresistible. People feel the energy we present, and it’s like having a party.”
Formed in Miami in 2001, Tiempo Libre features musicians who grew up in Cuba and played in various conservatories at a time when listening to American music on the radio was outlawed by the communist regime of Fidel Castro.
Searching for more opportunity to make a decent living, the musicians arrived in Florida at different times to perform as side musicians with various artists. Seven years ago they found time to work together between their own projects and formed the group.
Since then, Tiempo Libre has appeared in concerts and festivals across the United States, as well as in places not familiar with timba music such as Asia. They performed sold out shows in Hong Kong, Malaysia and Thailand. The group has opened for a diverse range of famous performers from Celia Cruz and Arturo Sandoval to Aretha Franklin.
Tiempo Libre has also received two Grammy Award nominations- one for their 2005 debut “Arroz Con Mango”, and another in 2007 for their next release, the critically acclaimed “What You’ve Been Waiting For.”
The group’s manager, Elizabeth Sobol, who also works with other Latin artists, is tremendously proud of Tiempo Libre’s refusal to give up, even when they were told that timba would never develop a following in the United States.
“We’ve gone to places packed with people, with not a Cuban or Latino in sight, and we see people just going nuts for this music,” Sobol said. “To me it’s really proving that Cuban music is vital and evolving and there’s a huge thirst for it.”
In addition to following its busy tour schedule, Tiempo Libre is also providing music for theater productions, teaching college music classes salsa techniques and has been in the studio recording a new CD.
“We’ve been doing a lot of different things,” said Gomez. “We’ve enjoyed a lot of success and it feels good seeing people interested in what we play. It’s been a fantastic experience.”
