icente Zumel (Barcelona, Spain, 1952), homeopath, Director, Host and Dj of “La Hora del Blues” has a wide knowledge on the blues world.

He fell in love with the blues when he was 18 years old and, as the years have been passing by, he has acquired a deep experience on the blues field that has let him do a blues radio show in Radio PICA in Barcelona since November 1981 and a collection of more than 6.000 blues records.

In other blues fields, he has collaborated as reporter and photographer in national and international blues magazines, some unfortunately disappeared such as Quartica Jazz, Solo Blues, Rocks Musiczine, Ritmo y Blues (Spain) or Blues Forum from Germany and other that are still published such as Living Blues (USA), Blues Matters! (United Kingdom), Real Blues (Canada), Big City Blues (USA) or Il Blues (Italy). He has also collaborated in some books such as The Ecyclopedia Of The Blues (Edward Komara-Routledge, two volumes) or Una Historia de Radio PICA-25 Anys A Contrapel (Ed. Mar Blava, Spain). For more information about different articles go to
Blues Bibliography Database

and write Vicente Zumel into the searcher. Some of his old pictures can be find in the University of Mississippi Blues Archives http://clio.lib.olemiss.edu/cdm/search/collection/bluesphoto/searchterm/vicente%20zumel/order/nosort

He has also helped in the organisation of international blues festivals in Catalonia -Figueres, Valls, Reus, Hospitalet (that broadcasted among others such great artisls like John Mayall, Koko Taylor, Lttle Charlie & The Nightcats, John Hammond, Carey Bell, Pinetop Perkins, Willie ‘Big Eyes’ Smith, Jimmy Rogers, Big Daddy Kinsley, Luther Johnson Jr, Kenny Neal, Little Willie Littlefield, Mick Taylor, Albert Collins, Luther Allison, Phillip Walker, etc).. He has been musical blues advisor at the Blues, Gospel and Jazz Festival that takes place in Roses (Girona) in the middle of July and now he collaborates with Santa Blues Festival of Tenerife. As a harp player, he has been one of the first Spanish musicians who formed a Spanish blues band.

Leading the Harmonica Zumel Blues Band he has travelled all over Spain doing gigs in the most important blues events or backing well known blues musicians such as Memphis Slim, Champion Jack Dupree, Louisiana Red or Johnnie Mars among others and even sharing the stage with the legendary John Mayall. The Harmonica Zumel Blues Band has been the blues birthplace of important blues Spanish musicians, such as Ricky Gil, August Tharrats, Big Mama, Amadeo Casas, Joan Vinyals, Joan Ventosa, Sweet Little Montse or Alex A. In 1987 the band was honoured by the Blues Foundation in Memphis (USA) as one of the best non american white blues bands and, in 1990, they travelled to Lisieux, (Normandie) France representing Spain at the European Blues Festival among blues bands of France, Netherland, Italy, United Kingdom, Belgium and Germany. In 1988 they published their LP “Stratto Blues”. You can see a Harmonica Zumel Blues Band in 1987 on a song called “10 Bajo Cero” for a Spanish TV show at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vCRfap9aRyI and two more at  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vCRfap9aRyI http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A3Psi2lrRWQ, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8aJBSM4Kn4o Vicente Zumel left live music and did not play live anymore since December 31st. 1999.

For more than five years he was also in charge of programming new emerging bands and artists in Barcelona clubs La Cova del Drac and Llantiol. Besides and for about four years he has coordinated the SBB blues jams at clubs Limerik Santutxo, Shotwell, London and Monasterio.

Zumel also belonged to the Center of Black Music Research in Chicago, one of the worldwide archives in the world in afro-american culture.str

In 2009 he was nominated to the “Keeping The Blues Alive” Awards, presented every year by The Blues Foundation to recognize individuals and organisations that have made significant contributions to the blues world and was first Spanish person honoured and selected for these awards. Finally in 2013 he has been honoured with the Keeping The Blues Alive Award that recognizes the task or promoting blues along a whole life. He has been the first Spanish person to get this award
Vicente Zumel and La Hora del Blues are Blues Foundation affiliate member.

From February 2005 to March 2009, Vicente Zúmel was founder member and president of Barcelona Blues Society, a non profit organisation devoted to promote blues in our country. Among other activities, the Society did a weekly blues jam. session still running on and coordinated by Zumel. The Barcelona Blues Sociecty publshed a quartely blues magazine in Spanish, created a specialized documentary (cds & dvds) and bibliographic collection at Tecla Sala Library. Donations for the documentary collection are welcomed at La Hora del Blues. P.O. Box 12085, 08080 Barcelona, Spain. Zúmel has brought to play American and European blues artists like Louisiana Red, Little Willie Littlefield, Al Copley, Angela Brown, Rob Rio, B.B. and The Blues Shacks, Paul Lamb and The King Snakes, Axel Zwigenberger, Paul Oscher, Sugar Ray & The Bluetones or Dave Riley & Bob Corritore among others.

He has also collaborated with Bad Music Blues in the organisation and bringins artists like Bob Margolin, Dave Specter & The Bluebirds or Nathan & The Zydeco Cha-Chas….

Vicente Zúmel has organized different combos formed by SBB associated musicians coming from different blues bands. All these combos became very popular and were asked to play every year in some blues festivals like Festival de Blues de Reus, Festival de Blues de Cerdanyola, Festival de Jazz de Terrassa, or Fiestas de la Mercè. For four years he was in charge of Thursdays weekly blues jam sessions at Club El Monasterio in Barcelona, snd know he is in charge of Fridays blues jam session in Cafe da Madeira, Barcelona.

Vicente Zumel is also a staff member of Austrian magazine, Blues Art Studio www.bluesartstudio.at. He also is a staff member and writes on the monthly on-line magazine “Distrito Jazz” where he collaborates in the “Off Jazz” section.

Now he and Roser Blues coordinate blues and other related styles shows held at the Museo Europeo de Arte Moderno in Barcelona.

In 2020 he has published his first book “Blueseras, Rockeras, Souleras… 365 reseñas discográficas. Un disco para cada día del año”.

He is also compiling an extensive book of all times black  music anniversaries.

In his Facebook page he regularly publishes docomented articles about blues history, Afroamerican dances and other articles related with blues world.In 2020 he was honored with the Big Bill Broonzy Award by Barcelona Blues Society for his lifelong support to blues. More information https://societatbluesbarcelona.org/es/la-hora-del-blues-premio-big-bill-broonzy-2020/

To do all these activities Vicente Zumel has always had Mrs Zúmel (Roser Infiesta Valls) help, support and collaboration who, on her turn, is Board Member of the European Blues Union EBU

An interview with Vicente Zúmel at http://blues.gr/profiles/blogs/musician-journalist-broadcaster-vicente-zumel-talks-about-the?xg_source=activity

Roser Blues, together with her husband Vicente Zúmel, have a wide knowledge on the blues world. Since she was a teenager and as the years have been passing by, she has always loved and been involved on the blues field.

She helped in the organisation of international blues festivals in Catalonia like Figueres, Valls, Reus or Hospitalet, that brought to play for the first time in Spain musicians like Louisiana Red, Hubert Sumlin, Luther Allison, Koko Taylor, Little Charlie & The Nightcats, John Hammond, Carey Bell, Albert Collins, or Pinetop Perkins among others. They have also collaborated with some national and international blues magazines, writing articles or taking pictures.

From 1985 to 1999 she has been manager of his husband band “Harmonica Zumel Blues Band”, one of the first Spanish blues bands, and she travelled all over Spain for gigs in the most important national blues events and festivals.

She has been founder and board member of Barcelona Blues Society and, from February 2005 to March 2009, she did secretary and communication with affiliates tasks, as well as organising blues events and venues with local and international artists like Bob Margolin, Sugar Ray & The Bluetones, Rob Rio, Paul Oscher, Barrelhouse Chuck, Mississippi Heat, Bob Corritore or Dave Specter.

She has and still collaborates with La Hora del Blues radio show, hosted by Vicente, the pioneer Spanish blues radio program (30 years on air and now the eldest blues radio show in Spain), and in La Hora del Blues website. She regularly translates to English blues cds reviews (she has done about 5.000 till now) and gather a collection of more than 6.000 blues records. She keeps updated La Hora del Blues website with reports, pictures, news and also runs the section Spanish blues gigs calendar that includes all blues gigs in Spain. Since 1983 our playlist is regularly submitted to Living Blues Radio Chart. Information from La Hora del Blues monthly arrive to more than 1.200 international record labels, more than 3.500 blues related people, managers, blues societies, magazines, musicians and fans all over the world, as well as the majority of blues involved people in Spain. La Hora del Blues belongs to The Blues Foundation in Memphis.<<

Since March 2011 she is Board Member of the European Blues Union, a non-profit organisation which main purpose is to preserve and develop blues in Europe.<<

She has also developped a new interest in blues field: blues artists pictures. Her pictures have been included in some collective exhibitions, as well as the Blues Expos organized by The European Blues Union. Her photo exhibition entittled “Faces of Blues” has been includede in thew Alicante Blues Festival.<

Also she has given a lecture in two editions of “Verano Se Escribe Con Blues” organized by the Torrente Ballester Library in Salamanca and in Tecla Sala Library in Hospitalet de Llobregat (Barcelona)

In 2013 until 2016 she hosted an Internet blues radio show “Black Cat Blues” in Radio Tube Live

In 2020 she was named Ambassador of Blues in the Garden Festival in Romania.

In 2020 she was honored with the Big Bill Broonzy Award by Barcelona Blues Society for her  lifelong support to blues. More information at https://societatbluesbarcelona.org/es/la-hora-del-blues-premio-big-bill-broonzy-2020/

In 20 January 2024 she was elected President of the Barcelona Blues Society.

Here an interview with Roser Blues.