Monthly Cuban Rumba Community Jam
About
Every third Sunday of the month in our Lounge! * Join us for a Cuban Rumba Community Jam that has been held at La Peña for decades! Led by Cuban percussionist Einar Leliebre. Time: 3pm – 5:30pm. Free / donations encouraged Family-friendly event Rumba practitioners of all levels are welcome to bring your instruments if you have them! Every 3rd Sunday, with some exceptions* *Dates may occasionally vary. Make sure you check our calendar for the most updated schedule. This is a community-led event. For questions, contact einarleliebremusica@gmail.com Cuban Rumba is an ancestral Afro-Caribbean musical tradition with deep spiritual and cultural roots. Rumba practitioners of all levels are welcome to join, and we encourage the community to honor this cultural heritage by following the guidance of the experienced musicians, teachers, and cultural bearers leading this gathering. History of Afro-Cuban Rumba in the Bay Area: Since the early 1980s, the Afro-Cuban rumba community has gathered in the East Bay to preserve the traditional folkloric music of Afro-Cuban Rumba. Sparked by organic drum circles led by Oakland percussionist Harold “Butch” Haynes at UC Berkeley’s Sproul Plaza, these gatherings became a vital space for learning, cultural exchange, and community building among Afro-Cuban rumberos and local musicians. In the mid-1990s, Puerto Rican musician and educator Yaya Maldonado established a consistent monthly rumba gathering at La Peña. Leadership later passed to Bruce Williams, and today the tradition is carried forward by Einar Leliebre, continuing a decades-long legacy of cultural preservation, exchange, and connection between Bay Area musicians and Cuban culture bearers.
