Following their breakup in March, members of Orquesta de la Luz, a Japanese salsa band that has gained unprecedented fame overseas, reunited earlier this week to enjoy their last moments of glory together at home.
Some 2,000 fans, including Latin Americans from Bolivia, Costa Rica, Colombia, Cuba, Peru and Puerto Rico, gathered to see the celebrated 12-piece band perform at its final concert in Tokyo. During their farewell performance, the band played a series of hits, including "Salsa no Tiene Frontera" ("Salsa Has No Borders") and "Salsa Caliente del Japon" ("Hot Salsa From Japan"), songs whose positive messages have struck a sympathetic chord in the hearts of Latinos here and abroad.
While Orquesta de la Luz's salsa rhythms have earned the band worldwide acclaim, it is such messages that have earned them, among other distinctions, a United Nations Peace Medal for "contributing to world peace through music." Among the audience at the group's final show were seven officials from the Cuban Embassy in Japan. Embassy Counselor Pedro Monzon said he couldn't miss the last opportunity to see them perform live.