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Edgardo Cambón
Lead Vocalist, Congas, Composer
and Band Leader
Born in Uruguay in 1960, Edgardo moved to Europe in 1982 where he toured and performed with well known Swedish group, "Latin Lover." In Amsterdam, Holland, he began studying the difficult coordination of drumming and singing simultaneously, performing with the local bands "Evolution 2000", "Rubén Salas Orquestra", "Salsa Charanga" and his own group "Bululú". In 1985, he joined French percussionist, band leader Henry Guedón’s Latin Jazz band and traveled throughout Europe and Africa, sharing the stage with the great trombonists Glenn Ferris and George Lewis and pianist Eddy Martinez.
After moving to San Francisco in 1987, he formed "Candela." Traveling to Cuba, he studied with master drummers Jose Luis "Changuito" Quintana, Justo Pelladito and Vizcaino Guillot and has participated in the Havana Jazz Festival and the Benny Moré Festival. He has sung and/or played with such artists as Jesús "Chucho" Valdez, Rebeca Mauleón and "Round World", Mark Levine, Andy Narrel, Keith Terry and "Crosspulse," "Sol y Luna Band," Carlos Santana, Jackie Rago, Michael Spiro, John Calloway, "Los Compas," and vocal group "So Vo Só," among many others. He has taught at UCLA, UCFRESNO, UCBERK., and given workshops in many cities in U.S.A, Southamérica and Europe.
He teaches percussion at Folsom State Prison, a maximum security Institution where arts are a part off the rehabilitation program.
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Omar Ledezma
Bongó, Timbales and Vocals
Born in Caracas Venezuela, Omar has been taking the Bay Area by
storm with his percussion-vocals skills and his
professionalism.
After graduating at one of the most prestigious Law Schools in
Caracas, Venezuela, Omar packed one bag and one drum to begin
his move to Boston, Massachusetts while making a passionate
commitment to study at Berklee College of Music.
There he collaborated with major percussionists such as Nicki
Marrero, Gerardo Rosales, Giovanni Hidalgo and Fausto Cuevas
among others.
Besides “Candela” Omar is featured in many local
Bands such as Orquesta América, La Moderna Tradición,
La Verdad, Jackie Rago and the Venezuelan Jazz Project
and many more. Omar brings a new and refreshing energy to
Candela’s percussion section.
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David Belove
Bass
Currently a member of John Santos' Machete Ensemble, Wayne Wallaces' Rhythm & Rhyme, Grupo Sol y Luna, Pastiche, Joyce Cooling and The Jay Wagner Band among others, David is one of the most sought after bass players in The Bay Area. His command of Latin bass language brought him to perform and record with Orquestra Candela, Conjunto Cespedes, Claudia Gomez, Orquestra Batachanga, The Machete Ensemble, Ray Obiedo, Cañoneo, Grupo Sol y Luna, Francisco Aquabella, Pete Escovedo, Ignacio Berroa, Armando Perazza, Tito Puente and Viva Brasil among others.
His Jazz credits are equally impressive having collaborated with master drummer Max Roach, the late Dizzie Gillespie, pianist Mark Levine, saxophonist Joe Henderson and Pat Metheny.
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Jeff Cressman
Trombone, Musical Director
and Arranger
Currently a member of Carlos Santana's horn session, Jeff has performed a wide variety of musical styles with such groups as the Four Tops, Rickie Lee Jones, Tito Puente, Poncho Sanchez, Israel "Cachao" Lopez, Francisco Aguabella, Daniel Ponce, "Chocolate" Armanteros, Sheila E., Pete Escovedo, Peter Apfelbaum and the Hieroglyphics Ensemble, Kamikaze Ground Crew, Jai Uttal and the Pagan Love Orchestra, Jon Jang and the Pan-Asian Arkestra, the Machete Ensemble, and the Full Faith & Credit Big Band, and most recently the widely acclaimed Latin Jazz group "Que Calor."
He has performed at the Berlin Jazz Festival, Verona Jazz Festival, Freiburg Music Festival, Leverkusener Jazz Festival and at the Blue Note clubs in Fukuoka and Osaka, Japan. In North America, he has taken part in the Discovery Jazz Festival (Burlington, Vermont), Dance Theater Workshop in New York, the Vancouver (B.C.), Monterey, Concord, Russian River, San Jose, Palo Alto and Oakland Jazz Festivals and the Earshot Music Festival in Seattle.
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Sandy Cressman
Singer
Sandy has been an active and versatile vocalist locally and internationally. She began her recording career with the highly acclaimed vocal trio “Pastiche”, with whom she toured internationally in support of two CD’s, “That’s Re Bebop” and “Remember That”.
Her skill at harmony singing along with a gift for languages has lead her to become a valued session singer in the latin jazz and world music scenes. She has recorded and performed with Pete Escovedo, Ray Obiedo, Sheila E. and Rebeca Mauleon as well as recording numerous commercials and film scores. Her debut CD, “Homenagem Brasileira” (Homage to Brazil) is available on A Records of Holland.
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John Gove
Trombone, Composer
and Arranger
John Gove earned a Masters degree in jazz performance and composition at the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York. After an 18-month tour with the Broadway show “Starlight Express”, he moved back to the San Francsico Bay Area and began his career as a freelance performer and composer.
John is currently Director of Jazz Ensembles at Foothill College and plays with a variety of local San Francsico Groups including the Josh Jones Latin Jazz Ensemble. The Fabulous Hedgehogs, and, of course, Candela.
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Bob Karty
Piano
Bob has performed with most of the top bands on the Bay Area salsa/Afro-Cuban scene. In addition to his work with Candela, he is an original member of Orquesta La Moderna Tradición, with whom he has recorded two critically-acclaimed CDs of classic Cuban dance music and performed at major festivals throughout the US. He recorded his latest CD with Avance (with Santana percussionist Karl Perazzo) and has appeared with the Pete Escovedo Orchestra. He also performs and teaches jazz. He is on the faculty of The Jazz School in Berkeley, where he teaches a popular class in salsa/Afro-Cuban piano, as well as jazz piano and music theory. Bob was born and raised in St. Louis, MO, where he began classical piano lessons at age 5 at the St. Louis Institute of Music. He holds a BA in Biology from Reed College.
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Eric Rangel
Percussion and Vocals
A multi-talented performer, Eric has played in the San Francisco Bay Area for the past twenty years with bands such as Orquestra Candela, Benny Valarde, Cesars Latin All-Stars, Orchestra Radiante, Orchestra Romance and Orchestra Avance to name a few. He is co-founder and currently performing with Orchestra Salsa Caliente which is one of the longest playing Latin bands in the Bay Area. He is also a private instructor and a teacher of percussion at the Mission Cultural Center in San Francisco, a breeding ground for many upcoming young artists.
His recording credits include The Johnny Nelson Orchestra, The Machete Ensemble, Claudia Gomez, Bill Joslin, Richard Olsen, Orchestra Salsa Caliente and the soon to be released album with Conjunto Cespedes. Eric leads his own salsa band Orquestra "América." |
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Martin D. Wehner
Trombone
and Arranger
Martin has been playing professionally since age 12. He attended the Berkeley College of Music, and has lived and performed in Europe, Canada, Japan, Australia and the US.
He’s worked with Dizzie Gillespie, Joe Henderson, Carlos Santana, Boz Scaggs, The Temptations, The Four Tops, Dr. John, Carla Thomas, Clarence Clemons, The Mingus Epitaph Orchestra, Benny Carter, Xavier Cugat, Pete Escovedo, Sheila E., Queen Ida, Otis Clay, Phil Woods and Kenny Wheeler among others.
In addition to Candela, he is a member of several groups including Candela (Salsa), Kotoja (Afro-Beat), Johnny Necturne Band (R&B), and The Ruby Salvihi Big Band. Martin also leads his own big band and a hip hop funk group, Funkbone. |
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