Along for the Ride
Contact: Javier Arjona
E-mail: jarjona@lbcc.edu
Web site: http://www.myspace.com/along4dride
Bio: Along for the Ride is a group of musicians from Latin America and the United States that fuses jazz, bossa nova, samba, and other Latin genres. The band’s arrangements of standards and original compositions mirror this fusion, enriched by the beats, harmonies, and sensual cadences of the American jazz and the Brazilian samba. Its past festival performances include the Hollywood Forever Cemetery’s Day of the Dead Celebration, the Seabird Jazz Lounge, and the BB King’s club. The band also fosters the “Sin Mura-Jazz” dinner and concert summer events in the city of Long Beach. Along for the Ride recently released its album “Cromático” and is currently working on a second CD.
Instrumentation: Drums, Bass, Percussion, Piano, Acoustic and Electric Guitar, Saxophone/Flute/Piccolo, (2) Lead Vocals
Number of Musicians: 4-8
Dafni Amirsakis
Contact: Dafni Amirsakis
E-mail: dafni@dafni.us
Web site: http://www.dafni.us
Bio: Dafni’s music is an eclectic mix of Americana, country, and jazz with a hint of 1940s flair. Pasadena Weekly music critic Bliss noted that her “snappy syncopation and instrumentation owe obvious debts to Billie Holiday and Madeleine Peyroux, [harking] back to bygone eras with her dreamy soprano and sweetly romantic songs.”
Instrumentation: Lead Vocals, (2) Guitars, Drums, Upright Bass
Number of Musicians: 1-4
Arpa y Aulos
Contact: Andrea Puente
E-mail: arpapuente@yahoo.com
Website: http://www.arpayaulos.com
Bio: Arpa y Aulos mixes a repertoire that goes from Renaissance to pieces written by U.S. and Latin American composers especially for them. The group specializes in concert-lectures in both English and Spanish and has given numerous concerts for the Latino community in Los Angeles.
Instrumentation: Harp and flute.
Number of musicians: 2
Acoustic Jazz Quartet
Contact: Zac Matthews
E-mail: zacm@mac.com
Website: www.acousticjazzquartet.com
Bio: The Acoustic Jazz Quartet's contemporary acoustic jazz blends sophisticated original compositions and treatments of classic jazz repertoire.
Instrumentation: Saxophone, guitar, bass and drums.
Number of musicians: 2-5 (usually 4)
Additional Equipment Available: P.A. system
AC Timba Jazz Project
Contact: PJ Oliva
E-mail: book@lucumiyque.com
Website: www.lucumiyque.com
Bio: Latin Jazz Artists of the Year in the 2004 Long Beach Jazz Search Competition; Latin Jazz Network's Top 20 Recording artists of 2003 and #1 on the 2003 World Music Charts - Berlin. "Exceeding boundaries, bridging cultural gaps and innovative concepts are all in a day's work for (AC Timba Jazz Project)." - Tomas Peña, Latin Jazz Network.
Instrumentation: Congas/percussion, piano, bass, drums/timbales, clarinet/flute, trumpet, trombone, and vocals.
Number of musicians: 5-8
Additional Equipment Available: P.A. system
Francisco Aguabella and his Latin Jazz Ensemble
Contact: Orna Rachovitsky
E-mail: ornarock@gmail.com
Website: www.franciscoaguabella.com
Bio: Master conguero Francisco Aguabella has played with the likes of Dizzy Gillespie, who called him "The John Coltrane of the Congas," Tito Puente, Frank Sinatra, Eddie Palmieri and Carlos Santana. His style of Latin Jazz fuses traditional Afro-Cuban rhythms with salsa, mambo, cha-cha-cha, contemporary rhythms and traditional jazz. He also performs Afro Cuban folkloric music with dancers and singers.
Instrumentation: Congas, timbales, saxophone (also flute), trumpet, trombone, piano, bass and vocals. Sometimes additional percussion is added (bongos.)
Number of musicians: 7-8
Aztec Stories
Contact: Michael Heralda
E-mail: aztecstories@aztecstories.com
Website: www.aztecstories.com
Bio: Aztec Stories incorporates musical performance with spoken word and interactive audience participation to share the culture of ancient Mexico and the indigenous world of the Mexika (meh-shee-ka)/Aztecs. The stories, ballads, and narratives presented in this program are all true and based on documented accounts. Many handmade reproductions of indigenous instruments are used and shared throughout the presentation.
Instrumentation: Tlapitzalli (flutes), huilacapitztli (ocarinas), chichtli (whistles), ayacachtli (shakers and rattles), tzcahauztli (rasps), bubalak (Mayan gourd water drums), gourd trumpet, ayayotls (shakers wrapped around the ankles), atecocolli (conch shell trumpet), teponaztli (two-toned wood drum), ayotl (turtle shell drum), frog shell (produces the sound of a frog), singing stones (oldest instrument in the world), chikauaztli (rain stick), xiuhkoatl (fire stick - makes the sound of crackling fire), and guitar.
Number of musicians: 1-6
ADAAWE
Contact: Ms. Joselyn Wilkinson
E-mail: joselyn@joselynwilkinson.com
Website: www.adaawemusic.com
Bio: ADAAWE is comprised of seven dynamic women creating rich organic music of the voice and drum. These diverse, skilled percussionists and vocalists come from all over the world, and their music is an international fusion of African music and rhythms, R&B/pop vocals, arresting Gospel vocal harmonies, and funky original creations.
Instrumentation: Drum set, conga drums, djun-djun drums, djembe drums, cajon drums, shekeres, bells and 5 vocals - lead and background.
Number of musicians: 5-7
Arohi Ensemble
Contact: Paul Livingstone
E-mail: zpaulz@gmail.com
Website: www.tanpura.com
Bio: The music of the Arohi Ensemble is indebted to the deep classical and folk traditions of India, the Middle East, Macedonia, Spain and Brazil. Playing creative world music through original compositions and improvisations, Arohi combines these diverse rhythms, moods and melodies in the spirit and freedom of American jazz. Members of Arohi play traditional and contemporary innovative instruments designed to stretch the boundaries of new world music. Arohi means "ascending melodic movement."
Instrumentation: Sitar, fretted and unfretted guitar, requinto, flutes and world winds, cello, tabla, ghatum, drums and sometimes Indian violin.
Number of musicians: 3-6
Additional Equipment Available: P.A. system
