Friday, January 16th, 2015 // Blogs,General
Tiempo Libre
February 18, 2015 | Byham Theater
Classically trained at Cuba’s premier conservatories, the members of three-time Grammy-nominated Tiempo Libre are true modern heirs to the rich musical tradition of their native Cuba. The Miami-based group is celebrated for its sophisticated performances of timba music, an irresistible, dance-inducing mix of r&b, pop, jazz, and Cuban son. Tiempo Libre has introduced Cuban music to new audiences through appearances on shows such as the Tonight Show, Live from Lincoln Center and Dancing With the Stars and concerts worldwide including performances at Tanglewood, New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, The Playboy Jazz Festival at the Hollywood Bowl, Jazz at Lincoln Center, Hong Kong’s Kwai Tsing Theatre and Tuscan Sun Festival in Cortona, Italy. Tiempo Libre collaborated on “Para Ti” with violinist Joshua Bell for his At Home with Friends album and frequently plays with leading orchestras. The band recently released My Secret Radio on Sony Masterworks, previous albums Bach in Havana (Sony Masterworks), Arroz Con Mango (Shanachie) and Lo Que Esperabas (Shanachie) were nominated for Grammys.
Tickets and more info: http://trustarts.culturaldistrict.org/production/43196/tiempo-libre#tab=buy_tickets&performance=43216
Friday, January 16th, 2015 // Blogs,General
ANTIBALAS & ZAP MAMA
PERFORMING FIRST-EVER UNIFIED NATIONAL TOUR
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 4 | BYHAM THEATER | CULTURAL DISTRICT
Pittsburgh, PA— The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust presents two world music trailblazers in concert on Wednesday, February 4, 2015 at 7:30pm at the Byham Theater, located at 101 Sixth Street, downtown Pittsburgh.
The concert will bring together the premier afrobeat band, Antibalas, in a collaborative tour with Zap Mama, Marie Daulne’s international polyphonic vocal group, that returns for their first US tour since 2009.
Antibalas, founded in 1998, evolved out of the same Brooklyn-based musical nucleus as Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings, and emerged onto the world music scene around 2000. After years of heavy international touring the band rose to greater prominence in 2007 for its role in the musical direction of the Broadway musical FELA!
About the Artists
Antibalas (Spanish for “bulletproof”), is a Brooklyn, NY based big band inspired by the golden age of West African and Afro-Caribbean musical styles of the 1970s as well as the jazz and improvised music traditions of their native New York. Members of Antibalas are sought-after session and touring musicians, regularly recording and performing with a spectrum of artists including the Roots, TV on the Radio, Jovanotti, Arcade Fire, Allen Tousaint, David Byrne and St. Vincent, Angelique Kidjo, and Betty Lavette.
Zap Mama, is an all-female troupe of afropop vocalists based in Europe who first created a sensation in the US world music scene in 1991 with their critically-acclaimed self-titled release on David Byrne’s Luaka Bop label. Marie Daulne, known worldwide as the creative force behind Zap Mama, redefines the word “vocalist” by creatively expressing sound and storytelling through tone and pure voice. Melding afropop and with American and European urban music using ethnic polyphonic vocal structures, Zap Mama is a world-music revue that can transport the listener around the globe in the course of a song.
Tickets and info: http://trustarts.culturaldistrict.org/production/43189/zap-mama-and-antibalas
Saturday, January 3rd, 2015 // Events,News
In addition to songs by artists with shows in Pittsburgh and songs from new releases, our January playlists will have the following themes:
January 2 – On the first show of 2015, we will play music by folks who departed this life in 2014.
January 9 – Next weekend will be the Golden Festival in Brooklyn, which features “live Balkan, Roma (‘Gypsy’) music and beyond.” On the 9th, we’ll have our own mini-festival, playing music by bands that will appear this year at the Golden Festival. (See: http://goldenfest.org/)
January 16 – No show; I’ll be in Brooklyn.
January 23 – Anything goes!
anuary 30 – Guitar greats.
