Chang, Nicholas (Week 5)

 

    Tito’s Gig on the Moon (p.96) is a painting created by Lomas Garza that is an ode to the New York Latin jazz musician Tito Puente who was hoping to “stay alive in the year 2000 and have the first Latin orchestra to play on the moon”. While Tito sadly passed away in 2000, Garza wanted to create an image that would make his wish come true. In the image, Puente is on the moon overlooking the Earth and is playing music for a lively party. The musicians are dressed in all white clothes and play white instruments that emanate musical energy. The music that travels from the Latin orchestra’s instruments seem to mimic the patterns on the dancers’ clothes. On the dance floor, children, elderly people, and couples dance around the moon joyously. In the background, astral windows show golden images of birds, pelicans, parrots, turkeys, swans, and eagles. The golden astral windows are meant to be a representation of the Birdland jazz club, a place that Tito and his band frequently played at that was located in New York.  The all white clothing for Tito’s orchestra seems to be a representation of an orchestra that has passed away. Especially because it was made after Tito’s passing, the white clothing could be a representation of a heavenly visit from those who have previously passed. Furthermore, when we consider the composition of the moon in relation to Earth, the moon could be a representation of a meeting place between the land of the living and heaven, with the musicians coming and entertaining the living, who are adorned with colorful clothes. To strengthen this interpretation, while there are windows with birds across the background, there is a gap in between the windows that almost acts as an entrance from the Earth for the living. The planet in the background is also turned in such a way that it shows the North American continent facing the club on the moon.