"Happy birthday, Taka Taka, you are now zero. On the Day of the Dead. Now let's have some fun!" shouted the leader of the Williamsburg Salsa Orchestra as the band ripped into a sizzling set of Latin dance music. Quick to respond were several hundred guests dressed in striking "funeral chic" masquerade befitting the Mexican holiday and quaffing the high-end mescal, Oseki saki and Sapporo beer flowing freely. Dozens immediately grooved into their sexiest salsa moves, watched approvingly by the festive day-glow skulls and funeral masks that twirled on strings hung from the rafters.

The Morrison Hotel Gallery celebrated its 10th anniversary on October 13, 2011, with a music-and-photo fusion bash at New York’s Cutting Room nightclub.

Los Angeles area drummers, students, and funk music fans had an extraordinary opportunity to get an up close view of one of the world’s most prolific musicians from New Orleans. Stanton Moore, the brilliant master of the skins, and founding member of Galactic, brought his Stanton Moore Trio to the Mint for a Wednesday nights residency in July 2011. To add a cherry to the proverbial sundae, Moore gave free drum clinics before each of the Mint gigs. Twenty to forty aspiring drummers, and those just interested in seeing Moore’s incredible technique up close, attended each of the free sessions. Robert Walter, a wizard on the Hammond B3 organ, was a member for all of the Mint gigs, while a different guest joined the trio for each of the four shows.