Descarga was formed in the summer of 1992 to fill a void in the local music scene for Tucson's Latin community. Originally formed as an all-instrumental sextet by Homero Ceron (now principal percussionist of the Tucson Symphony), the group mainly played Latin Jazz. In the summer of 1992, Rafael Moreno (vocals) and Amilcar Guevara (piano) joined the band. The repertoire of the band began to change as original arrangements and popular Latin dance music started to become popular.

In 1994, the Tucson Jazz Society noticed what Descarga was doing and a partnership was formed combining Descarga with some of Tucson's finest jazz musicians. Under the direction of Luis Torres, the Tucson Latin Jazz Orchestra (TLJO) was born! Throughout the years, Descarga and the Tucson Latin Jazz Orchestra have performed with many of the Latin greats, such as Tito Puente, Aurturo Sandoval, Ray Oviedo, Poncho, Sanchez, Paquito de Rivers, the Afro-Cuban Orchestra, Maria Bauza, Rebecca Mauleon, Orchestra Son Mayor, Danilo Perez and John Santos. Locally, the TLJO has also performed with the Tucson Symphony Orchestra.

Since 1993, Descarga has performed in nightclubs in Tucson consistently drawing not only their large following, but also people for whom this exciting and energetic style of music is quite new. A person fortunate to hear Descarga on any given night can expect to hear the vibrant stylings of Cumbia, Merengue and Salsa. Including, Cha-cha-cha, Boleros, Samba and Bossa Nova to old Salsa standards, Latin Jazz instrumentals to fresh new favorites and, of course original Descarga compositions.

In 1998, Descarga and the TLJO recorded Rumba del Sol, a compilation of the musical highlights of both bands. This projects featured many Descarga originals along with guest artist Poncho Sanchez, Paul Horn, Renee Camacho, Tony Malay and Luis Torres. Rumba de Sol has received excellent reviews from many reputable sources, including the premier national Latin Music Catalog, Descarga.com of Brooklyn, New York, Telemundo, Univision, KUAT, KUAZ, KXCI, and the Tucson Jazz Society Newsletter.

In April 2001, Descarga collaborated with Energetic Sol to record the music for the instructional video Energetic Salsa, featuring aerobics instructor Duane Wren. This innovative video was one of the first to introduce the concept of salsa aerobics.

Descarga has grown into a twelve-piece band, including four vocals, a four-piece horn section, three percussionists, piano and bass. This ensemble as the option of shrinking into many different formats. For example, it can be an eight-piece Salsa band with drum set, or a Latin Jazz Quartet, or just a small instrumental group playing jazz standards, much like its original concept.

The future of Descarga is bright. With the musical direction and arrangements of Mike Wilkinson, original compositions and arrangements by Amilcar Guevara and the artistic contribution of Rafael Moreno. Descarga will continue to grow and thrive in the Tucson Latin Dance Scene.

Descarga Personnel
Lead Vocal/Band Leader, Rafael Moreno
Back-up Vocals, Renya Moreno & Monica Jasso
Lead Trombone/Musical Director, Mike Wilkinson
Tenor Saxophone, Kelland Thomas
Trumpet, Michael Harrison
Trombone II, Andrews Thompson
Piano, Rob Reserrar
Bass, Dave Welton
Timbales, Abel Valentino
Congas, Eddie Caro