Gerardo Contino

A performance by Gerardo Contino, known as "El Abogado de la Salsa," is an exhilarating experience that combines traditional Cuban music with modern flair. Expect a high-energy show that spans the decades of Cuban and Latin American music, from boleros to modern-day salsa and reggaeton. Contino's performances are dynamic and interactive, often involving the audience in call-and-response segments and encouraging everyone to dance. His band consists of some of New York’s top Latin musicians, delivering an unforgettable musical experience filled with rhythm, passion, and charisma.

The explosive Gerardo Contino is a force to behold on stage. Mixing musical styles from his home in Cuba with the diversity of sounds he encountered when he made New York City his home, Gerardo Contino transcends traditional musical genres to create a real fusion that provokes fans into hip-shaking abandon.

Gerardo Contino is an award-winning multi-disciplinary artist, cultural producer, and philanthropist. A classically trained singer, Gerardo Contino began performing professionally in Havana, Cuba at the age of 19. Gerardo has toured the world with his music and now calls New York City home. He is the founder and director of Camino al Arte, a non-profit arts organization that connects and produces cutting edge cultural and educational opportunities for young and established artists across the United States and the Caribbean.

A versatile singer and bandleader, Gerardo has performed with Cuban and American salsa, jazz, and big orchestra bands. In Cuba, Gerardo was lead singer for NG La Banda, the legendary timba and jazz band directed by Jose Luis Cortes. In the United States, Gerardo was a lead singer for the Max Weinberg Orchestra and Grammy-award winning Larry Harlow's Latin Legends Band. Gerardo has also acted and performed opera, most notably in the Peak Performances’ Hatuey: Memory of Fire, a Yiddish-Cuban opera production.

Gerardo created and directed Los Habaneros, which went on to become the 2015 "Best Band in Manhattan" (WNYC/NPR), and the 2017 "Best Cuban Dance Band" (NY Latin Culture Magazine). With Los Habaneros, Gerardo has performed at The Kennedy Center for the Arts, Lincoln Center, Brooklyn Academy of Music, top music venues in New York City, and numerous festivals in the United States and around the world.

As a cultural producer and community organizer, Gerardo has created multi-disciplinary public artistic productions in the U.S. and Cuba. He received the Manhattan Community Arts Fund for his productions in 2014, 2015, and 2018. Gerardo has also been a board member of the National Council for the Traditional Arts since 2020.

In addition to his musical career, Gerardo is a graduate of the University of Havana with a law degree and holds a Master's in Law from the Benjamin Cardozo School of Law, Yeshiva University, where he specialized in Intellectual Property and Entertainment Law.

Instruments/Equipment we need:
• Keyboard
• Bass amp
• Four vocal microphones (Lead singer; mic for keyboard player for chorus; mic for
congas player for chorus, mic for timbales player for chorus)
• Two microphones for the Congas
• Three monitors
What we’ll bring:
• Congas
• Timbales
• Bass