We had a blast playing at The Loft at City Winery for a brunch concert on Sunday. Thanks to Cristian Puig, who is from Argentina, I was inspired to try singing a chacarera for the first time. I was also vibing from my Argentinean roots on my mother's side....Chacareras have a vibrant rhythm that makes you want to clap and dance, just like flamenco! And it turns out that Guillermo Barrón, who played percussion with us, is quite a fountain of knowledge as far as LATIN American rhythms go in the extraordinary web of variants.
The more I studied this particular chacarera, which is called La Oncena (written by Eduardo Lagos & Juan Goñi), the more I came to appreciate the gorgeous poem within. My favorite verse is this one:
No me importa que no escuchen,
si no quieren escucharme;
mi cantar lo aprende el viento:
alguien habrá de heredarme.
(I don't mind that they don't listen,
if don't want to listen to me;
my song will be studied by the wind:
someone must inherit me.)
Another highlight of this show was the wine bottle with my name on it! Yes, they actually put a label with a photo that I love, taken by Darrin Reed during a performance with Sol y Sombra Flamenco Dance Company in Long Island.
