Glasto Latino
Welcome to Glasto Latino, Glastonbury’s Latin Corner, famous for bringing authentic Latin culture and parties into the Somerset fields.
Every night, after the big stages finish (earlier on Weds and Thurs), it’s party time! The very best international bands, followed by Latin DJs and our in-house Glasto Latino dancers getting the crowds wild until the small hours.
And in the daytime, come learn the moves – this year our usual offering of classes in Salsa and Reggaetón has been expanded, with top instructors teaching Bachata, Brazilian Funk and Samba. It doesn’t matter if you haven’t waved a toe before, we will show you how!
Plus once a day, join in the carnival as it processes around the West Holts Field.
You know you want to…
Havana D’Primera – Friday night
Friday night brings you one of the very top acts in Cuba, Havana d’Primera. Since their foundation nearly twenty years ago, charismatic trumpeter and vocalist Alexander Abreu’s 16-piece ensemble have packed out concert halls and festivals around the world, have been nominated for multiple Grammys, and continue to go from strength to strength, winning awards and accolades with every new release.
Interactivo de Cuba – Saturday night
Another leading act from the island of music, Interactivo, founded by keyboard maestro Roberto Carcassés, are the main name associated with the “alternativo” wave which transformed the Cuban scene a decade ago. Mixing new forms such as hip-hop, funk and jazz into the already rich Cuban tradition (son, salsa, timba etc.), Interactivo also features a fluid membership, with its core players augmented by different virtuoso players and vocalists, bouncing off one another to explore new ways of getting their audiences dancing. This will be a unique experience!
Álvarez Funk – Sunday night
Multi-instrumentalist and singer Rene Álvarez has been one of the most sought-after Latin musicians in Europe. Joining us with his 9-piece Cuban funk band, which combines his Afro-Cuban roots with North American Funk and the sounds of the historic musical bridge between West Africa and Cuba. The band launched at The Great Escape in May 2022, and went on to headline at LatinoLife, the UK’s biggest Latin Festival, where his show had 10,000 people dancing into the night.
Orchestra Mambo International – Weds and Thurs evenings
In collaboration with the original New York Fania Records, legendary DJ Lubi and superstar trombonist Jonny Enright have brought together some of the UK’s most accomplished Latin musicians, to present a tribute to the timeless music that filled the dance floors of the Upper East Side in the 60s and 70s, with music by Tito Puente, Ray Barretto, Willie Colon, Hector Lavoe, Larry Harlow and many more, as well as their own new cuts. Too new to have even done proper promo photos, all the same they have been smashing venues up and down the country with their big band full sound. Put on your dancing shoes!
Dance Classes
The daily dance programme – one-hour classes, completely suitable for total beginners – continues to expand. Once again we invite you to bust some moves with salsa, and get down and dirty with reggaetón. But his year we are adding bachata, a slower and sensual cousin of salsa from the Dominican Republic. And representing Brazil we have a mix of Brazilian Funk and Samba. Whoever you are, we have something for you!
Teachers are our residents – party animal, “La Tempesta” Nigel May; Eglis “Pilo” Cerguero from Havana, Cuba, and his partner Ilaria, who bring their unique bend of Salsa and Carnival classics; and this year’s guest, international superstar Rohan Brown, in demand all over the world for his smooth and sexy classes.
Making their Glasto debuts, are Yandy Martinez, who trained, and then taught, at Cuba’s famous Tropicana dance school, plus, from Brazil, Erica Da Silva – as well as choreographing musicals, her high-energy dance styles are becoming more and more visible at high-profile events in the UK.
And for a fiesta? Watch out for our costumed Carnival dancers processing around the West Holts field every day, picking up followers as they go, and this year joined by The Madre de Aguas, or Mother of the Waters, a legendary water serpent in Cuban folklore.
There’s nothing else like Glasto Latino anywhere in the UK – check-in early, you may stay all weekend!