Music of the Americas: Solos and Ensembles

Monday, May 9, 10 a.m.

Betsayda Machado and Parranda El Clavo are back with another traditional piece, "Tambor Veleño."

Tuesday, May 10, 10 a.m.

Brazilian guitarist João Camarero performed to a sold-out house in 2020, only a few weeks before quarantine began. At the time, he had just released Vento brando. The recital, which also included guest João Luiz, was dedicated to the album's tracks.

From his home in São Paulo, he sent us this version of João Pernambuco's "Interrogando."

Wednesday, May 11, 10 a.m.

Editus, composed of Ricardo Ramírez and Edín Solís, is back on En Casa with another original piece by Solís named "Danzón."

Thursday, May 12, 10 a.m.

Pianist, composer, and educator Arturo O'Farrill was born in Mexico and grew up in New York City. His professional career began with composer Carla Bley, and he continued as a solo performer with a wide spectrum of artists including Dizzy Gillespie, Lester Bowie, Wynton Marsalis, and Harry Belafonte.

In 2007, O'Farrill founded the Afro Latin Jazz Alliance, a non-profit organization dedicated to the performance, education, and preservation of Afro-Latin music. In December 2010, Arturo traveled with the original Chico O’Farrill Afro Cuban Jazz Orchestra to Cuba, returning his father’s musicians to his homeland. Arturo has performed with multiple orchestras and bands including his own Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra and Arturo O’Farrill Sextet, as well as other orchestras and ensembles in the United States, Europe, Russia, Australia, and South America. Arturo has written original music for dance groups, including Ballet Hispanico, the Malpaso Dance Company, the Alvin Ailey Dance Company, and the Evidence Dance Company. He has also received commissions from Meet the Composer, Jazz at Lincoln Center, The Philadelphia Music Project, The Apollo Theater, Symphony Space, the Bronx Museum of the Arts, the Young Peoples Chorus of New York, Columbia University, and the New York State Council on the Arts.

O'Farrill has recorded countless albums and received several Grammy Awards for composition and jazz. In 2019, he was Artist in Residence for The Greene Space in New York City, for which he created a four-concert series including a newly commissioned composition. His 2020 weekly concerts series with the Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra was included in The New York Times' list of 10 Best Quarantine Concerts. Arturo is a professor of Global Jazz Studies and the Assistant Dean for Equity, Diversity and Inclusion at University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). From his home in California, he sent us two pieces. Today, we will share Ernesto Lecuona's classic "Siboney."

The MetLife Foundation Music of the Americas concert series is made possible by the generous support of Presenting Sponsor MetLife Foundation.

The Spring 2022 Music program is also supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council, by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature, and by the Howard Gilman Foundation. 

Additional support provided by iShares and The Augustine Foundation.