Blog

Gregorio Uribe Big Band and his Cumbia Universal

Gregorio Uribe Big Band and his Cumbia Universal

Cumbia Universal! Gregorio Uribe Big Band Boston CD release celebration that will make everyone dance at the rhythm of cumbia, jazz and funk music. Colombian Big Band leader, Gregorio Uribe, is one of the most promising artists in New York City’s Latin music scene, and was named one of the “100 Most Successful Colombians Abroad” by the government of Colombia in 2...

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Arts and Music Come Together at Villa Victoria

Arts and Music Come Together at Villa Victoria

This past Friday, October 2nd, we had the honor of hosting two of Puerto Rico’s most promising artists at Villa Victoria Center for the Arts. It was a memorable night, as attendees got to experience arts and culture in two very different forms. First we hosted the art exhibition, “A Happy Ending,” featuring multimedia pieces by Edgardo Larregui, then the highly anticipated indie singer, MIMA, made...

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Edgardo Larregui: Art and Culture with a Purpose

Edgardo Larregui: Art and Culture with a Purpose

Artist, Edgardo Larregui, originally from Bayamón, Puerto Rico, aims to capture themes from his country’s experiences with his pieces. He studied his craft in the Escuela de Artes Plástica de Puerto Rico, where many other renowned artists have graduated, including Silia Sánchez whose artwork has also been exhibited at our gallery. Currently, Larregui’s exhibition, “A Happy Ending” is on display at...

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MIMA Recital: The Essence of Puerto Rican Music with an Instrumental Twist

MIMA Recital: The Essence of Puerto Rican Music with an Instrumental Twist

Yarimir Cabán, better known as MIMA within the Puerto Rican music scene, is setting the tone where the country’s vanguard music style is concerned. Her pieces, more than songs are poetic expressions with influences from folklore and her typical homemade style. Always exploring new sounds, MIMA is working on her third CD, which will be as different from the second as the second was from the first. ...

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Celebrating a Milestone: Inauguration of Renewed Community Spaces

Celebrating a Milestone: Inauguration of Renewed Community Spaces

At IBA we strive to provide our community with the opportunities they deserve. We believe that a clean and comfortable environment plays a key role in their quality of life, so it was very exciting to announce that after one year of renovations our community spaces were inaugurated on July --. Through these spaces, we will continue providing resident services, youth and workforce programming, acti...

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“Así es Puerto Rico” with Luis Germán Cajiga

“Así es Puerto Rico” with Luis Germán Cajiga

The great Puerto Rican artist, Luis Germán Cajiga, honored us by exhibiting his paintings in our gallery and shared with our community part of his history, the beginnings of his art, and some of the wisdom he has gained during the past 80 years. ...

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Volunteer in Boston this Summer

Volunteer in Boston this Summer

During the summer months many of us have more free time, but not a lot of things to do. This time of year is a great opportunity to become more active and lend a helping hand to your community. For this reason we decided to come up with a list of places you can volunteer during the summer. We wanted to give you some ideas of all the great contributions you can make by giving a little bit of your ...

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NG2 Talks About the Future of Salsa

NG2 Talks About the Future of Salsa

The popular salsa duo, Norberto Vélez and Gerardo Rivas, who form NG2 will have the stage at Festival Betances. Their music will light up our festival and the streets of Villa Victoria. For the last ten years, NG2 has shaped and redefined the salsa genre as we knew it. We had a chance to talk to Gerardo, son of Jerry Rivas, famous singer from 40-year-old Puerto ...

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Artists and Dreams in Common: Interviews at La Galería

Artists and Dreams in Common: Interviews at La Galería

One of our missions at IBA is to give opportunities to individuals to fulfill their dreams. This is precisely what our current exhibition at La Galeria is about, “Emerging Latino Artists” features 13 talented artists that have just started to make their mark in the industry. We wanted to give their audience a chance to find out more about their craft and about themselves, so like we do with every...

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Exclusive Interview with Betances Headliner, Mambo and Swing

Exclusive Interview with Betances Headliner, Mambo and Swing

Festival Betances is only a few weeks away and we couldn’t be more excited! Every year we bring local and national bands to play our community’s music, and this time it is no different. Mambo and Swing, one of our Betances headliners, is a Merengue, Salsa and Bachata band based Boston. “Betances actually focuses on the community. It’s about the history, and bringing people together.”...

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IBA’s Youth a Motivation for our Community

IBA’s Youth a Motivation for our Community

We know that the future of our community is in the hands of our youth. They are the ones who will be responsible to carry on the legacy of change and to keep on shaping the world in a positive way. At IBA we strive to let them know that we support them, and want to give them the opportunities they deserve. Our Youth Development Program is about empowerment, it is a place for young people to come ...

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Mother's Day: Our Moms, the Strongest Connection to our Roots

Mother's Day: Our Moms, the Strongest Connection to our Roots

As Latinos, we love to gather around a good meal, and share much more than food. No matter what part of Latin America your family is from, food is a staple that brings us together. And nobody makes it better than our moms. This is why this Mother’s Day we want to honor the role Latina mothers have taken on. We come from so many different places, many moved in search of a better life for th...

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Proud Mother on IBA's Bilingual Preschool and her Children

Proud Mother on IBA's Bilingual Preschool and her Children

Jennifer Velasquez has been involved with IBA’s bilingual preschool for the past five years. First with her daughter Neveah who graduated and went on to the school system and now with her younger daughter Jayna. We sat down with her, as she came to pick up one of her daughters, to talk a little bit about their experience. Jayna couldn’t put down her book about trains, making her mother laugh as s...

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Two Women Artists with Unique Perspectives about Life

Two Women Artists with Unique Perspectives about Life

Two artists are currently showcasing some of their artwork in the “MUJERES: Poetic Revelations of our Lives” exhibit in place until April 22. Both Nora Valdez, from Argentina and Silvia Lopez Chavez, from the Dominican Republic discovered art at a very young age. Valdez studied in an academy of the arts since she was 12 and Lopez Chav...

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Honoring Women's Day, through the History to the Present

Honoring Women's Day, through the History to the Present

IBA is an institution that honors women. We strive every day to put women back into the workplace by giving them support and education, providing programs for single mothers who are looking for a job and offering day care for their children as part of our College and Workforce Development options. The truth is, women have always been a part of histor...

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