Grupo Riken has been performing in the Tucson area since 2009. They specialize in folkloric music from the Caribbean and Latin America. Genres like the Cuban bolero, Puerto Rican jibaro music and plena, Latin jazz, salsa, and bossa nova. The group's unique sounds come from folk instruments like the Puerto Rican cuatro, guitar, Peruvian Cajon, Afro-Caribbean percussion bongos, and congas, accompanied by the guitar. Riken derives from the name given by the indigenous Tainos in Puerto Rico, the island of Boriken.  Grupo Riken has participated in local music festivals such as the Tucson Meet Yourself and Tohono Chul’s Sunday in the Garden concert series since 2015. They released their first CD, De aqui pa’ allá 2016.

  • Alexis Rivera

    Alexis's love for the guitar and composition began age of 15. He took classical guitar lessons at the Conservatory of Music of Puerto Rico, and continued in private lessons with his Conservatory professor, Eduardo Flores. While in college, he formed a ska/punk band named Mar de Tierra, in which he played the electric guitar and was the main songwriter.

    After graduating from college, Alexis moved to Tucson, Arizona, where he continued his private classical guitar lessons at the University of Arizona under Dr. Jorge Pastrana. He played the guitar for a local samba band named Sambalanço. He performed as a session guitarist for three shows of the Reveille Men's chorus. Around 2005, he formed the Latin rock project Sesion VI. The song Estamos Solos was featured in the Puerto Rican Latin rock compilation album Rocka y Rollo (2006). He has also collaborated as a producer for local artists.

    Around 2010, Alexis joined Grupo Riken playing the Puerto Rican cuatro. The group has performed in multiple festivals in the Tucson and Phoenix area. Alexis also played the cuatro with the Tucson Guitar Orchestra on various occasions. Alexis has always enjoyed composing for classical guitar, as well as rock and electronic music.

  • David Pérez

    David Pérez (percussion). Originally from Mexico City, he studied congas with a Cuban teacher, which gave him a deep understanding of Caribbean music such as salsa, boleros, and guaguancó. He has performed with multiple groups and is an active member of Vox Urbana. Vox Urbana is a seven-piece band combining Latin-based sounds with stories and experiences in the Arizona/Sonora border region. The bi-national band is based in Tucson, Arizona, and has been creatively narrating stories of the border community since 2010.

  • José Luis Puerta

    José Luis Puerta (guitar), a Native of Puerto Rico, has been an active Board Member of the Tucson Guitar Society since 2009. He has been the Director of Education and the Tucson Guitar Society Orchestra conductor since 2013. He has performed in Canada, Spain, the United States, Mexico, and Puerto Rico as a soloist and ensemble artist. He finished his Doctor of Musical Arts degree at the University of Arizona and teaches and performs in the community.