Contact:
Franziska Castillo, Public Relations Manager
T: 212 660 7102 C: 917 515 5758
Email: fcastillo@elmuseo.org, press@elmuseo.org
Christy Yanis, External Affairs Assistant
T: 212 660 7100, Email: cyanis@elmuseo.org
For Immediate Release
EL MUSEO ANNOUNCES ITS 2008 SUMMER NIGHTS
LATIN MUSIC SCHEDULE
Consecutive Thursday Nights
June 12 to August 14, 7 – 9 PM
in El Museo’s Teatro Heckscher
NEW YORK, June 4, 2008 -- El Museo continues its crowd pleasing summer music series this year with concerts held every Thursday evening at 7 PM, June 12 through August 14. This year’s program, thematically organized in two parts, begins by honoring Latina musicians and then continues by showcasing audience pleasing favorites, from salsa to hip hop to romantic trios.
Women on the Verge, June 12 through July 10, will feature ground-breaking new work by leading Latina singer-songwriters. Cutting-edge musicians such as Sabrina Lastman and Lucia Pulido combine elements of traditional South American musical forms with other contemporary genres to create their own inimitable sounds. (See detailed list below).
El Museo’s Target Free Latin Nights Concert Series, Noches Latinas, will continue July 17 through August 14 and will feature Latin big band, Colombian urban folk, tango, Latin hip hop and more.
Typically held in El Museo’s outdoor courtyard, this year’s concert series will take place in El Museo’s 599-seat Heckscher Theater while the courtyard undergoes renovation. All of the concerts are free and open to the public. Location: 1230 Fifth Ave. (Between 104th and 105th Streets), New York, NY, 10029.
WOMEN ON THE VERGE
June 12 through July 10
June 12: Marta Gomez, Sofia Koutsovitis
June 19: The Lucía Pulido Ensemble
June 26: Sofia Tosello, Sabrina Lastman
July 3: ¡Retumba!
July 10: Cecilia Villar Eljuri, Xiomara Laugart
El MUSEO’S TARGET FREE CONCERT SERIES: LATIN NIGHTS/NOCHES LATINAS
July 17 through August 14
July 17: Night at the Palladium with the Chino Nunez and Friends Orchestra
July 24: Freestyle Urban Night and Hip Hop
July 31: Irresistible Tango with Tito Castro
August 7: Celebrate Colombia! Folklore Urbano with Pablo Mayor
August 14: Noche de Trios with Junior Gonzalez y su Trio Los Borincanos & Eddie Alicea y su Trio de Epoca
Women on the Verge
June 12 through July 10 * Performances begin at 7 PM
June 12
Marta Gómez and her group will perfom original compositions blending Caribbean and Andean melodies with jazz and pop, taking traditional South American indigenous folk music into a hip new realm. With more than 70 original compositions, Marta explores a wide range of genres, including Colombian cumbias and bambucos, Argentine zambas, Cuban sones and Peruvian landos, adding catchy refrains that reach across language and cultural borders.
Sofia Koutsovitis belongs to a new generation of musicians who imaginatively explore the connection between jazz, contemporary music, and the rich musical traditions of South America. An active vocalist, composer and arranger, her primary musical project to date, the Sofia Koutsovitis Group, is grounded in traditional South American rhythms such as chacarera and zamba from Argentina, Afro-peruvian festejo and lando and various Brazilian genres that merge organically with sophisticated modern harmonies and exploratory improvisations. Renowned jazz artist Danilo Perez praises Sofia for her ability to “combine the best of her Argentine roots with the skills and passion” needed to update these works for a new audience.
June 19
Carnegie Hall's Neighborhood Concert Series Presented by The Weill Music Institute in collaboration with El Museo del Barrio
The Lucía Pulido Ensemble
Lucía Pulido is a Colombian singer with one of the richest voices on the international music scene today. She has mined the musical traditions of her native Colombia and other Latin American countries in an ongoing search for a distinct, experimental sound. With a background in Colombian music, jazz, and the "Nueva Canción"(New Song) genre, Lucia is now developing an experimental project based on Latin American traditional songs with Argentinean guitarist Fernando Tarrés; and a new project titled “América Contemporánea – um Outro Centro” with Brazilian pianist Benjamim Taubkin. Lucia performed regularly at El Museo del Barrio a decade ago at the inception of El Museo’s concert series. At that time she was relatively new to New York and established her roots here, in El Barrio. Today, she travels internationally, and has been described The New York Times as an artist that “holds on to the rawness of the original melodies while giving them a sophisticated new context.” Neighborhood Concerts are generously support by the New York City Council and the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs; and by The New York State Council on the Arts. Additional support is provided by the Max and Victoria Dreyfus Foundation.
June 26
Sofia Tosello belongs to an exciting new group of South American artists who blend traditional rhythms with a funky and sophisticated New York sensibility. Hailing from Cordoba, Argentina, Sofia has the unmistakable imprint of the tango, the chacarera and zamba. We also hear reflected in her voice an impressive range of sounds including “world” jazz, bossa nova, and Nueva Trova. Sofia sees herself as a border-crosser, not bound by any one genre.
Sabrina Lastman
A vocalist and composer born in Montevideo, Uruguay, Sabrina fuses Afro-Brazilian, Spanish, classical and traditional Jewish music with avant-garde jazz. Since moving from Jerusalem to New York in 2005, she has performed locally at Carnegie Hall, the New York City Classical Guitar Society, Queen Sofia Institute and Martin E. Segal Theatre, among others. She has also toured in Israel, and Uruguay, where she presented work from her new album The Folds of the Soul, out this year on independent label Perro Andaluz.
July 3
¡Retumba! is a multi-ethnic all-female music and dance ensemble founded in March 1981 in celebration of Women's History month. Fusing traditional rhythms and ancient melodies with modern interpretations, ¡Retumba! bases its work on the historic meeting of African and European sounds in the Americas and the Caribbean, with a particular focus on the music of Puerto Rico, Cuba, The Dominican Republic, Haiti, and Brazil.
July 10
Cecilia Villar Eljuri
Ecuadoran Latin and World-beat phenom Cecilia Villar Eljuri’s latest release titled “En Paz” melds the music of Cecilia’s heritage with honest lyrics and powerful dance-inciting rhythms. Sung primarily in her native language of Spanish, this may be Eljuri’s most raw and passionate album to date.
Born in Ecuador, Cecilia is the daughter of legendary radio, theatre and television pioneer Paco Villar and composer Olga Eljuri de Villar. In the creation of En Paz, Cecilia tapped into her parents’ artistic legacy and Ecuadorian heritage by traveling to her homeland during the writing stage, greatly impacting the direction of the album. What unfolds on En Paz are rock-tinged songs with hook-driven melodies, complimented by confident lyrics. On Sombra Negra, Eljuri delivers sultry, urgent vocals backed by growling guitar licks. Another song, Una Ola, one of the first tracks written for the album, reflects on memories of a dear friend. Eljuri describes the powers of the ocean and how a single wave can sweep you away into bliss. "... a sound that electrifies Latin styles...This is rock/dance music at its best." —BILLBOARD Magazine
Xiomara Laugart
For many years in Cuba, powerful, raw songstress Xiomara Laugart (a.k.a. “La Negra”) was muse to artists in the “Nueva Trova” movement, and shared stages with the likes of Pablo Milanes, Silvio Rodriguez, and Raul Torres. After immigrating to the United States, Xiomara became the lead vocalist in Yerba Buena, and recently played Celia Cruz on Broadway, singing the Cuban legend’s classic songs so authentically, older audience members were regularly moved to tears. Over the course of her career she has recorded and/or performed alongside some of Latin music’s most legendary musicians, including Albita, Omara Portuondo, Jacky Terrasson, Omar Sosa, Gonzalo Rubalcaba, Dave Valentin, Isaac Delgado, Carlinhos Brown, Arto Lindsay, Roy Hargrove, Ron Blake, and many more.
El MUSEO’S TARGET FREE LATIN NIGHTS CONCERT SERIES: NOCHES LATINAS
July 17 through August 14 * Performances begin at 7 PM
July 17
Night at the Palladium with the Chino Nunez and Friends Orchestra
In 2005, after 35 years in the business, Chino launched his solo career to widespread acclaim with the highly anticipated release of his debut album “It’s SHOtime”. The CD remains on the top radio playlists, has received countless recognitions and numerous tracks have been selected for Salsa compilations all over the world. “Homenaje Al Bailador” was selected for a soon to be released film, “Padre Nuestro,” distributed by Cinergy Pictures. His latest CD titled “Doctor Salsa” was produced in his studio and was released in October 2007.
Chino received a Grammy in 2004 as a member of the Spanish Harlem Orchestra for the album “Across 110th Street” for which he arranged “Te Cantare”. The list of musicians with whom he’s worked reads like a Who’s Who of Latin music, and includes Tito Puente, Celia Cruz, Ray Barretto, Hector Lavoe, El Gran Combo De Puerto Rico, Tito Nieves, Oscar DeLeon, Tito Rojas, Gilberto Santa Rosa, Victor Manuelle, Jerry Rivera, Ruben Blades, Johnny Pacheco, Louis Ramirez, Adalberto Santiago, Ismael Miranda, Cheo Feliciano, Larry Harlow, Yomo Toro, Luis Perico Ortiz, Domingo Quinones, La India, Marc Anthony, Brenda K. Starr, Michael Stewart, Jimmy Bosch, Frankie Vasquez Y Los Soneros del Barrio, Ernie Acevedo Y Su Conjunto Imagen, Rafael DeJesus Y Su Orquesta, Conjunto Clasico, and Danny Rivera, among others.
July 24
Freestyle Urban Night, presented in collaboration with Blue Entertainment, features up-and-coming rapper Nick Diddy aka TALENTINO. Billed as a Dominican Sean Combs, Talentino was a high school classmate of nuevo-bachata stars Aventura, and an early promoter of Uptown neighborhood parties for the NYC-raised “Dominican York” generation. He’s a multi-tasking perfomer who has appeared in several indie films, while performing his music in New York and the Dominican Republic, acting as a hype-man for numerous parties, and hosting an internet radio show on www.urbanlatinoradio.com. He released his first album, “The Talent Show,” this year.
Other musicians featured include emcees and singers Nayobe, Soave, and Young Quest.
July 31
Irresistible Tango featuring Tito Castro.
Irresistible Tango will transport audiences through a 105-year journey of one of the world’s most captivating music and dance genres while honoring many of the genre’s legendary greats such as Eduardo Arolas, Anibal Triolo, Enrique Santos Discepolo and the world famous Carlos Gardel, among others. The dynamic ensemble features Sofia Tosello (lead singer), Maurizio Najt (piano), Franchinito Iwaki (violin), Tomas Lacroze (bass) and Tito Castro (bandeon) and guest dancers.
Born among nostalgic working-class Italian immigrants in Buenos Aires in the late 1800’s, tango is an intricate dance of passion, elegance, grace, and speed. It is intensely improvisational, with a rich history. In its infancy, tango was danced solely among the men as a means to perfect the complicated steps and to compete for the attention of the few available women. Later, of course, it became a partner dance, reaching its pinnacle in the 1940’s. After many ups and downs, it is once more an integral part of Argentine culture, both in its salon (social) and exhibition (theatrical) forms. It is equally popular amongst Hispanic and crossover audiences, with a very large following in many parts of the United States, Europe, Japan, Mexico and Latin America. (For more information on tango’s history: tanguero.com)
Aug 7
Celebrate Colombia! Folklore Urbano featuring Pablo Mayor
“Folklore Urbano performs material that is authentic and refreshing, due in no small part to Mayor's amazing way of synthesizing jazz with Colombian folkloric music, taking Latin music to an entirely new dimension.” -- Vicky Sola, Latin Beat Magazine
Aug 14
Noche de Trios
Junior Gonzalez y su Trio Los Borincanos and Eddie Alicea y su Trio de Epoca
Popular in Puerto Rico, Mexico, and Cuba, among other countries, música de trios typically features vocalists singing story-telling music of lost love, honor, and nostalgia, while playing lilting guitar melodies.
Originally from Ponce, Puerto Rico, Junior Gonzalez (writer/composer) is director of Trio Los Borincanos. Mr. Gonzalez has worked in New York City for over thirty-five years and has directed 5 musical trio but has reached greatest acclaim with his own, Trio Los Boricanos.
Trio de Epoca was formed in the Bronx in 2005. Eddie Alicea, lead vocals, is the trio’s director. Junior Luciano, plays first guitar and is the trio’s third voice, Rafael Cabrera, from the Dominican Republic is the second guitarist and the trio’s second voice. The trio is accompanied by Tony Sanchez on percussion. El Trio De Epoca is highly regarded in Nueva York and beyond its hallmarks is their rich and varied repertoire of classics.
Funding for Summer Nights:
Major funding for El Museo is provided by Altria, the Altman Foundation, American Express, the Charina Endowment Fund, Steven A. and Alexandra M. Cohen Foundation, the Jacques and Natasha Gelman Trust, Time Warner and the Wallace Foundation. Programs are made possible, in part, with public funds from the National Endowment for the Arts, New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, and the Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation (UMEZ).
Performing arts programs are supported by a generous grant from Time Warner. Target Free Latin Nights/Noches Latinas is made possible by Target. The Summer Nights concerts are possible with public funds from the New York State Council on the Arts, a state agency.
Media Sponsors: El Diario La Prensa; El Especial/Especialito, Latin Week NY; Remezcla.com.
El Museo’s Galleries are currently closed for renovation:
El Museo’s galleries will close for renovation on May 19, 2008 and will re-open in the fall of 2009 (exact date TBA). In the interim, El Museo will continue to host its acclaimed public programs and art education activities in its third floor educational workshop spaces and its black-box theater, as well as special events such as El Museo’s Target Free Summer Evening Concerts in its own Teatro Heckscher. Please visit us on-line at www.elmuseo.org for updates. Alternately, please email Franziska Castillo at press@elmuseo.org to request a detailed list of summer programs and updates on special events.
About El Museo del Barrio
El Museo del Barrio is New York’s premier Latino cultural institution, representing the diversity of art and culture in the Caribbean and Latin America. As one of the leading Latino and Latin American museums in the nation, El Museo continues to have a significant impact on the cultural life of New York City and is a major stop on Manhattan’s Museum Mile as well as a cornerstone of El Barrio, the Spanish-speaking neighborhood that extends from 96th Street to the Harlem River and from Fifth Avenue to the East River on Manhattan’s Upper East Side. El Museo was founded in 1969 by artist and educator Raphael Montañez Ortiz in response to the interest of Puerto Rican parents, educators, artists and activists in East Harlem who were concerned that their cultural experience was not being represented by New York’s major museums. In 1994, corresponding to substantial local and national demographic changes, El Museo broadened its mission to present and preserve the art and culture of Puerto Ricans and all Latin American and Latino communities throughout the United States.
El Museo’s varied permanent collection of over 6,500 objects from the Caribbean and Latin America includes pre-Columbian Taíno artifacts, traditional arts, twentieth-century prints, drawings, paintings, sculptures and installations, as well as photography, documentary films and video. Through the sustained excellence of its collections, exhibitions, publications and bilingual public programming, El Museo reaches out to diverse audiences and serves as a bridge and catalyst between Latinos, their extraordinary cultural heritage, and the rich artistic offerings of New York City.
El Museo del Barrio is located at 1230 Fifth Avenue between 104th and 105th Streets and may be reached by subway: #6 to 103rd Street station at Lexington Avenue; #2, #3 to Central Park North/110th Street station or by bus: M1, M3, M4 on Madison and Fifth Avenues to 104th Street; local crosstown service between Yorkville or East Harlem and the Upper West Side in Manhattan M96 and M106 or M2.
El Museo’s galleries will be closed for renovation from May 19, 2008 to the fall of 2009. To learn more about El Museo’s cultural offerings and public programs during the construction phase, please visit our website at www.elmuseo.org or call 212-831-7272.
For further information, the public may visit www.elmuseo.org. To be placed on El Museo del Barrio’s public programs mailing list, the public may call (212) 831-7272, ext. 100 or send an email to info@elmuseo.org. Journalists and members of the media should contact Franziska Castillo at (212) 660-7102 or via email at press@elmuseo.org.
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