Biography

Ricardo Linnell & Hurricane Tumbao
(to meet the team, click here)

Ricardo’s love for salsa music and dance is deeply rooted in his ability to interpret and understand the rhythmical structures that reside within salsa. An experienced musician of the piano, percussions and guitar, Ricardo quickly picked up the rhythm and timing for salsa and tapped into the passion that he feels when hearing the music. In a short time, he has established himself as one of the most recognizable salseros in the northwest, as well as one of the premiere salsa/mambo dancers. Ricardo’s professional training includes dancing for Sabor Latino Dance Company from 2002 – 2005. In 2006 & 2007 he took a trip to New York City in the summer to take classes, dance socially and perform. His team, Hurricane Tumbao (comprised of himself, Jerome Perryman, Jennifer Celeste Blanco & Leslie Justiani) have gone from scratch in September 2006 to one of the top performing groups in the Pacific Northwest today. This is thanks to the hard work of both the past and current company members.

Ricardo’s performance history includes performances at many local, regional and national events. Here is a highlight list of places where both he & Hurricane Tumbao Dancers have performed:

Sonora Carruseles Concert w/SLDC (Portland) - 2003
West Coast Salsa Congress w/SLDC (Los Angeles) - 2003-2004
Bay Area Salsa Congress (San Francisco) - 2004
NBA Game - Portland Trailblazers vs. Houston Rockets - 2004
NBA Game - Portland Trailblazers vs. Phoenix Suns - 2004
Chicago Salsa Congress - 2005
New York Salsa Congress (final performance w/SLDC) - 2005
Puerto Rico Salsa Congress - 2006
Wish 26 Nightclub (New York City) - 2006
Northwest Salsa Congress - 2006
Vancouver Int’l Salsa Congress - 2006
1st Salt Lake City Salsa Congress - 2007 
1st Annual NW Salsa Awards, Portland, OR 2007
2nd Annual La Rumba del Barrio, Seattle, WA - 2007
9th West Coast Salsa Congress, (Hurricane Tumbao Dancers) Los Angeles - 2007
2007 Gemini Salsa Competition, (Hurricane Tumbao Dancers) Portland, OR - 2007
Salsa en la Calle, Portland, OR - 2007
X-treme Salsa Weekend, (Hurricane Tumbao Dancers) Corvallis, OR - 2007
La Rumba del Barrio, Portland, OR - 2007
Bay Area Salsa Congress, (Hurricane Tumbao Dancers) Oakland, CA - 2007 
Seattle Salsa Congress, (Hurricane Tumbao Dancers) Seattle, WA - 2007
The Big Easy Concert Club, Boise, ID - 2007
Salt Lake City Congress, (w/ Todd & Shin) Salt Lake City, UT - 2008
10th Los Angeles Salsa Congress, Los Angeles, CA - 2008
2008 Gemini Salsa Competition, Portland, OR

Upcoming performances for 2008
New York Salsa Congress, (Hurricane Tumbao Dancers) New York, NY - 2008

Competition History:
1st place 2003 Viscount Salsa Competition w/Nam - 3/2003
1st place 2005 Gemini Salsa Open w/Geneva - 6/2005
3rd place 2007 West Coast Salsa Congress “on 2″ division - 5/2007

Ricardo teaches private lessons, as well as group lessons and workshops. Please visit www.hurricanetumbao.com for details on the classes that he offers.

Notes

Classes: 

Tuesdays

Interstate Firehouse Cultural Center
5340 NE Interstate Ave. Portland, OR
Salsa Intensive “on 1″ (7-9 p.m.) This class is $200 pre-registered. The class goes from August 19th - November 11th. (See pictures on the class schedule page!)