Mr. Tim Owen, World Language, treats his teaching position as an opportunity to utilize his entertainment background.

“I had always wanted to be an entertainer. One way you can do that is by being a teacher because you are the center of attention, and you have an opportunity to not only entertain but also teach about your subject matter and life lessons,” Owen said.

Emma Klancke, senior, notices how effective it is when Mr. Owen uses music in his lessons.

“The way Owen incorporates his music in the classroom really makes learning a much better experience. Singing and dancing create a more fun learning environment,” Klancke said.

Owen, an avid musician, began playing Latin music after his acting career did not pan out.

“I did acting for awhile and found that wasn’t going to get me the opportunities I wanted, so I decided to play Latin drums. I had played drums in high school and I thought, hey, I could be in a salsa band,” Owen said.

One thing led to another and Owen was invited to be in a band. Shortly after that, he started his own band, Salsabrosa.

“Salsabrosa is a ten-piece Cuban salsa band, and the members are from six different countries,” Owen said. “Our lead singer is from Cuba, our electric guitar player is from Spain, our conga player is from Venezuela, our bongo player is from Columbia, our drums and timbales player is from Mexico, and our trumpet, trombone, pianist, bass player and saxophonist are all from [the U.S.].”

When Salsabrosa first started, Owen played the timbales.

“One night we were playing at a Spanish bar, and there was a Cuban fellow who told me he played drums and asked if he could sit in with the band,” Owen said. “Once he played I was like ‘Oh my god, I want him in my band,’ so I said basically ‘I’m firing myself, and I’m hiring you to be in my band.’”

Salsabrosa usually plays twice a month at the Mediterranean Café in Burnsville. Owen also recruits other local Latin bands to play at the café.

“At the shows, there are people from multiple generations, ages 18-80, from 20 different cultures. We have people speaking Russian, Spanish, English, Chinese, and Hmong. We have people representing almost all cultures in the Twin Cities,” Owen said.

When live music isn’t being performed, Owen puts on DJ music.

“My wife loves salsa dancing, and she loves preparing my DJ playlists, [but] she doesn’t like to be the center of attention. You always want to mention the band and the DJ, so I say the DJ is DJ Timowen, which is blending my first and last name,” Owen said. “It actually means steering wheel in Spanish, but it sounds cool, so I’m DJ Steering Wheel.”

Owen’s DJing and band Salsabrosa often attract a large turnout to the café.

“The number of dancers that come out to the restaurant is ridiculous. Just last week we played, and there were probably 300 people,” Owen said.

To continue his passion in Latin music, Owen is planning on going to Cuba to learn to play bongos and improve his drumming skills. Salsabrosa might feature Owen on those instruments in the future.