The rhythms of plena were almost forgotten by the early 1990s. Salsa was king in contemporary Puerto Rico; plena was old-fashioned music that used to be played by workers in the island's sugarcane fields. But bassplayer Gary Nunez hadn't forgotten those homegrown rhythms. In 1994 he started a band called Plena Libre. His group helped lead a revival of the old rhythms, giving them a contemporary twist. But the traditional rhythms of plena remain the foundation, even in a song about a cellular phone. Plena Libre scored a series of hits on Puerto Rican dance floors, has collaborated with Puerto Rican masters like Eddie Palmieri, and was nominated for a Grammy award in 2001. As in all the pieces in David Schulman's CPB-supported Musicians in their own words series, the story is told through a mix of the performer's voice and music. There is no reporter's voice heard, allowing the feature to be seamlessly incorporated into station news, talk, or music programming. Scripts for intro and outro are attached, and may be edited at will. This piece also works well pegged to local performances. This piece debuts on PRX. It includes some material heard in a July 25, 2004 feature on All Things Considered.

The rhythms of plena were almost forgotten by the early 1990s. Salsa was king in contemporary Puerto Rico; plena was old-fashioned music that used to be played by workers in the island's sugarcane fields. But bassplayer Gary Nunez hadn't forgotten those homegrown rhythms. In 1994 he started a band called Plena Libre. His group helped lead a revival of the old rhythms, giving them a contemporary twist. But the traditional rhythms of plena remain the foundation, even in a song about a cellular phone. Plena Libre scored a series of hits on Puerto Rican dance floors, has collaborated with Puerto Rican masters like Eddie Palmieri, and was nominated for a Grammy award in 2001. As in all the pieces in David Schulman's CPB-supported Musicians in their own words series, the story is told through a mix of the performer's voice and music. There is no reporter's voice heard, allowing the feature to be seamlessly incorporated into station news, talk, or music programming. Scripts for intro and outro are attached, and may be edited at will. This piece also works well pegged to local performances. This piece debuts on PRX. It includes some material heard in a July 25, 2004 feature on All Things Considered.