Las Canelas was a Dominican all-female merengue orchestra promoted by Johnny Ventura in the mid-1980s. Its sole original album, «Hot Stuff» (1985), was issued on «Rico Records» with Ileana Reynoso as lead singer and Janina Rosado as pianist and musical director. The group performed in New York at the 1986 «Carnaval del Merengue».

Origins and personnel

Ventura managed the group and invited Rosado, who had already played with «Orquesta Constelación» in Santiago Rodríguez, to serve as musical director. Reynoso joined after singing with Las Chicas del Can. Both groups belonged to the rise of women's merengue orchestras in the 1980s, although their paths were distinct.

«Hot Stuff» and live performances

The original «Hot Stuff» LP (Rico Records, RCSLP 904) contained eight merengues: «Tu compañera», «De aquello ná'», «A mi amiga», «Canta conmigo», «Francisco el hombre», «Hipocresía», «Mi hombre» and «San Antonio». The remastered digital edition has ten tracks, adding «Siboney» and «No Hay Razon» as bonuses. From 8 to 10 February 1986, Las Canelas appeared at the «VIII Carnaval del Merengue» at New York's «Felt Forum», on a bill that included Ventura and Fernando Villalona. A television performance of «Siboney» also survives.

Legacy

The project lasted about a year. Rosado subsequently joined Ventura's orchestra and later Grupo 440, led by Juan Luis Guerra. The original album, its two bonus tracks and surviving video preserve the work of a short-lived group that brought together Reynoso's singing and Rosado's musical direction.