IdeaMe is an online platform, which helps creators, be they inventors, artists, or designers, among others, to finance their projects through crowd funding. Each week, the Indy features and promotes one project every week, with the aim of helping the creators finance and achieve their dreams. This week: Bandalos Chinos.
Since 2009, Bandalos Chinos has come to define the word “fusion.”
Paying tribute to the classic sounds of Argentine rock bands — the guys peg Luis Alberto Spinetta, founder of Almendra, as a tremendous musical influence — Bandalos Chinos incorporate a solid rock n’ roll beat. The gritty grunge glam of British indie rock gives Bandalos Chinos a bit of spunk, while a particularly fun and energetic pop vibe and a catchy funkadelic beat transform the band’s tunes into something truly unique.
Three years in the making, Bandalos Chinos admits to a simple beginning marked by acoustic arrangements. Over time, however, the group has explored and developed their sound into what it is today.
Five musicians make up Bandalos Chinos: Matia Verduga on drums, Palo Travaglini on bass guitar, Iñaki Colombo on guitar, Tomas Verduga on guitar and vocals, and Goyo Degano on keyboard and voice.
Degano’s voice is effortlessly smooth and rich, while the guitars’ wah-wah pedal effect projects the band’s inner classic rock.
Bandalos Chinos are in the process of recording and releasing their first album. They started recording on 11th November of last year, with Mariano Oliva. After finishing recording this past May, they are currently in the editing and mixing stages, along with the help of Sergei Grosny. But, because they lack the funds to produce the master disc and copies, they are reaching out for potential donations with IdeaMe.
In return, Bandalos Chinos are thanking donors with digital copies of their CD, tickets to live performances, and meet & greets with band members.
From dreamers and bibliophiles to grunge rockers and artists, Buenos Aires is a thriving city of culture that offers something for everyone. Of course, tango classes and Spanish lessons await the common tourist and expatriate, but we’ve scoured the city for some of the most interesting alternative workshops to try out while you’re in town. Note that though many are about working with your hands, all of these courses are conducted in Spanish, so a basic grasp of the language will help get the most out of them.
Mantra del Sur (courtesy of Mantra del Sur)
Mantras Del Sur
Walking into this bohemian, retail shop is like stepping into a multi-coloured world of love. The converted mechanics garage has a floor made from the refurbished pinewood of a boat pulled out of the Riachuelo, and crocheted clothes and home décor fill the racks and shelves. Inside, Lucia Alvaréz is not only using recycled and natural materials to make fashion eco-friendly, but she is also revolutionising a world that was formally reserved for the above-80 age group. “It’s an energy,” says Alvaréz , as she talked about her project to beautify the city by enveloping trees in crocheted blankets around Buenos Aires. The apparel designer offers technical workshops in appliqués, embroideries and patchwork for the inventive and fashionable, and will help with just about any project that involves a needle and thread.
Frequency and Duration: A weekly 2-hour class, Cost: $250 monthly + materials
Planetario de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires 'Galileo Galilei' (courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)
Planetario de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires ¨Galileo Galilei¨
To infinity and beyond! Since the South Pole faces the galactic centre of the Milky Way, stargazers and philosophers can see billions of stars more clearly from the Southern hemisphere. In addition to the clearer skies, Argentina´s proximity to the southernmost point on earth also enables an astronomer to see a greater number of circumpolar constellations like the Southern Cross and Carina. In this course offered by the planetarium, Mariano Ribas discusses the new model of the solar system, the eight planets and their moons, the “Asteroid Belt” and the threat of asteroids, the “Kuiper Belt”, Pluto and the “dwarf planets,” theories and revelations about comets, space missions, space exploration, life chances on Mars, extra-solar planets, “Hot Jupiter,” and the chances of extra-terrestrial life. And that´s just the first five classes.
Frequency and Duration: A weekly 2½-hour class, Cost: Free. Hands-on class observation with telescopes subject to favourable weather conditions.
Besos de Vidrio (Photo: Natalie Schachar)
Besos de Vidrio
For the not-too-clumsy hobby searcher, glass art beckons. Although the form is lesser known than its cousins, sculpture and ceramics, this branch of decorative arts has been around since Roman times and is now available to anyone in Buenos Aires who would like to continue on the neo-classical tradition. Surprisingly, glass can be moulded on an artist’s whim, and a weekly workshop details how to cut, polish, shape and colour any lustred surface. Tiffany lamps, mirrors, accessories— if it has vitreous properties you can probably make it here.
Frequency and Duration: A weekly 2-hour class, Cost: $200 monthly + materials
Olivos Custom Guitars (Photo: Diego Espinosa)
Olivos Custom Guitars
Forget Les Paul and Fender Stratocaster – here you can build our own guitar. Starting from a template that allows the form of a guitar to be replicated onto wood, and then using scaled diagrams, Lucas Rodriguez Fontán walks his students through the entire electric guitar and bass making process. From calibrating the neck to wiring circuits and inputting the bridge and tailpiece systems, Fontán assures that both beginners and techies can build and design their own instrument. Depending on how much time is invested, the instrument-maker estimates that it typically takes between six and eight months to finish a guitar and costs a little under US$1000 total for all the materials and the course.
Frequency and Duration: A weekly 4-hour class, Cost: $450 monthly + materials
Jorge Luis Borges (courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)
Understand and Enjoy Borges I and II
In the intricate world of Jorge Luis Borges, animals, memories, dreams and myths coalesce in surrealist circles to form some of the best fiction ever written. The Argentine essayist, short-story writer and poet mastered the narrative form, but also altered it forever by reassigning conventional notions of space and time and interweaving realistic mysteries and profundities into his fantastical works. Through the workshop, Alicia Ardila interprets the profuse symbolism found in the texts and essays, guides readers through Borge’s complex use of language, and assures that the universalist, philosophical ideas of the author become more accessible to all.
Charly García in concert in Santiago, Chile in 2009. (Photo: Christian Córdova)
Charly García (Carlos Alberto Garca Moreno), born 23rdOctober 1951, is one of the key figures in contemporary rock music here in Argentina. Talented singer, songwriter, pianist and keyboardist, Charly has had a long and successful career with over 30 albums, but not without his fair share of hiccups.
Entering the business in 1972 in a duo American folk rock style band with Carlos Alberto ‘Nito’ Mestre, his rocky career began. His original band members never showed up to their first ever gig, in avertedly creating the duo ‘Sui Generis’ with which he recorded three albums. But after the release of ‘Vida’, ‘Confesiones de Invierno’, and ‘Pequeñas Anécdotas Sobre las Instituciones’, the duo separated for various reasons and Charly began afresh, recording the album ‘PorSuiGieco’ with other Argentine acoustic rock legends.
His fame spiralled during the upcoming years with various bands until 1980, when he began to pursue a solo career, composing his own albums and writing soundtracks to films.
Notably, his success was accelerated during the Falklands War when all music in English was forbidden. One of his many songs of the time was called ‘No Bombardeen Buenos Aires’, which he performed to a backdrop of a city being destroyed by missiles, entering the stage in a pink Cadillac.
Playing alongside the likes of Bruce Springsteen, Tracy Chapman and Sting in 1988 at the Amnesty International tour, his legend status was defined.
But trouble started to brew, during the launch of his next album ‘Filosofía Barata y Zapatos de Goma’, Charly was put on trial for “insulting national symbols” in an LP that toyed with the Argentine National Anthem.
Not long after, in 1991, the star became heavily involved in drugs and newspapers publicised his close encounters with well known Pastor Carlos Novelli, director of a rehabilitation programme, as well as a serious overdose, which had led to his institutionalisation. But Charly took it on the chin and incorporated recent events into his music, mimicking them by entering his next concert in an ambulance.
Scandal after scandal, Charly was admitted to several detoxification clinics. But his problem never stopped him from producing music. In 1994, he produced a much anticipated rock opera, entitled ‘La Hija de la Lágrima’, and a year later, he played at the international song festival in Mar del Plata, covering 11 old time classics, including ‘Ticket to Ride’ by the Beatles.
North American MTV took him on in their ‘Unplugged’ series which was later released all over Latin America, spreading his fame continent-wide. But remaining controversial; in 1999, he performed a private gig for President Carlos Menem.
Still recording in 2006, the rock star entered the world of cyber, releasing a new album ‘Kill Gill’ over the internet. This led to a refusal by the record company to officially release the album as it proclaimed that the album “has already been downloaded by everyone”.
Soon after, Charly was arrested for causing serious damage to a hotel and was admitted in hospital with pneumonia, and then a psychiatric institution.
But nothing could deter Charly from his music, he has since recorded a whole new album and in 2011, delayed by four years, ‘Kill Gill’ was finally officially released.
Genre: Rock
Dates active: 1972-present.
In his own words: ”No, I like it. It is part of the religion. Those who are afraid have already left. The way it works is as always: if I dye my hair or am admitted [to hospital], I cover all the papers. If you are attributed half of the [newspaper] space every time you release a disk, you sell millions.” (His reply when asked about his feelings towards his comings and goings to various rehab clinics).
Most famoussong: Los Dinosaurios
Best lyric: “Friends in the neighbourhood may disappear, the radio singers may disappear, people in the papers may disappear, the person you love may disappear, those in the air can disappear in the air, those in the street can disappear in the street, friends in the neighbourhood may disappear, but the dinosaurs will go away” (refers to the military dictatorship.)
Famous for:Singing during the dictatorship and being in rehab
Best to listen to: When you want to reflect on life
Miss Bolivia playing at Ciudad Emergente 2012 (Photo: Lautaro Aránguiz)
If you have been craving a plethora of youth culture activities stuffed into a one medium sized area, then Ciudad Emegente held at Cultural Centro Recoleta between 6th-10th June is right up your street.
With more things going on than you can shake your stick at, the “five days which will join the pulse of half a million young people who pass through the festival,” is a clear effort by Buenos Aires City Government to once again desperately show that they’re at the forefront of porteño youth culture.
For the fifth year, Ciudad Emergente will be cramming live bands, DJs, VJs, fashion, poetry, film, street art, street dance, stand up comedy, theatre, digital art and interactive art, into a five day long extravaganza. Basically, everything and anything associated with youth culture as they can possibly get their hands on.
The festival will be showcasing work and holding lectures from some of the most interesting Argentines currently capturing the digital and graphic art worlds. Famous Argentine graphic designer Alejandro Ros, is exhibiting his infamous designs for CD sleeves, and street artist Lucas Grothesque, will be painting the courtyard. The ‘3D’ theatre spectacle Hombre Vertiente will take its viewers on a water odyssey every night at 9pm, which if you haven’t seen already, take the opportunity to see what you’ve been missing for free.
Although the festival is a platform for up and coming Argentine musicians, it is also made some stage time for big name Latin American bands throughout the week. Bomba Estéreo, one of the largest contemporary Colombian bands, are headlining the first night of the festival with their experimental-brand of cumbia will surely be a crowd pleaser.
People at the entrance of Centro Cultural Recoleta during the opening of Ciudad Emergente 2012 (Photo: Lautaro Aránguiz)
At 6pm on Thursday, see Chilean Ana Tijoux, whose mixed roots and political heritage is feistily exhibited in a rap/hip-hop/Latino infusion. Growing up in France after her parents were exiled from Chile during General Pinochet’s dictatorship, she started out rapping in French and Spanish, moving on to form Tiro de Gracia, the best selling Chilean rap group of all time. Expect politically motivated songs such as Shock, which was inspired by the student protests, and an impressive display of MC-ing 1977.
And then there is Miss Bolivia, whose cheeky reggae is probably the best (and only) aggressive, feminist, lesbian, tropi-cumbia rap you’ll hear all year. Watch her sneer and gyrate in her video for Alta Yama, then be impressed by the fact she’s just as likely to rap about the drug epidemic in South America or the beauty of pluralism as she is about ripping her thong off.
Street dancing will be taking centre stage on the Patio del Ajibe everyday at 4.30pm and 6.30pm, with body poppers and break-dancers contorting themselves in a way that would make your grandma blush. For old school b-boying check out Los Fabulosos Bboys or current Campeonato Knock Out competition holders Terrible Style Crew.
When you need to chill out from all the noise and movement, head to Sala 4 for a spot of spoken word. Almost agonisingly young and talented, emerging Argentine poets and lyricists will be reading their work aloud. Magazine lovers can discover the cream of Argentine youth publications in Sala 12, both events running from Thursday to Sunday.
Also catch brilliant music documentaries on in the BAFICI space, featuring “Talihina Sky: The Story of Kings of Leon”, “Leonard Cohen: Live at Isle of White”, Arcade fire’s “Mirror Noir”, and Chemical Brothers’s exhilarating “Don’t Think”. Spanish Film Quiero Tener una Ferretería en Andalucía unveils the lost years of Joe Strummer in Southern Spain, giving a rare insight into the iconic but enigmatic Clash frontman.
If all this isn’t enough, each night at 8.30pm a cutting-edge Argentine fashion designer will be speaking about the aesthetics of their designs.
Phew. The best part? It’s completely free. FREE!!!
Rodrigo's Album Learning to Live (Aprendiendo a vivir)
Legendary, mythical, saintly: by all accounts, Rodrigo “El Potro” was an Argentine musical phenomenon.
Born in Cordoba, Rodrigo Alejandro Bueno achieved that rare level of Madonna-esque stardom whereby he is most commonly referred to by his first name alone. The star is also affectionately called by his nickname, ‘El Potro’, or ‘The Colt’. Considered one of the most influential cuarteto artists in the genre’s history, Rodrigo was instrumental in spreading the style beyond Cordoba to other parts of Argentina.
Cuarteto first appeared in 1943, and like other forms of Argentine music – including tango –was heavily influenced by the music styles of different immigrant groups. The music has an active and strongly articulated ‘tunga-tunga’ rhythm, and is often classified as having a tropical flavour. Cuarteto lyrics focus on themes of love – and the misfortunes of it – quotidian life, humour and dancing.
Similar to tango, cuarteto originated as music of the working class. For nearly half a century after it appeared, the style retained this reputation, and did not spread far beyond the city of Córdoba and surrounding areas. It was not until the 1990s that the genre attained national appeal and crossed social divides.
Rodrigo’s family was of modest means, but they were well connected in the music world. The singer was therefore surrounded by the cuarteto classics from birth. Carlos “La Mona” Jimenez – who is also considered one of the top cuarteto artists of all time – was good friends with Rodrigo’s mother and became a significant influence on the singer.
Surrounded by music in his home, Rodrigo got his first taste of performing at a young age: at only two years old, a pint-sized El Potro first took to the stage, appearing on television in the “Fiesta del Cuarteto”. By 11, he had joined the band Cheberé, and shortly thereafter signed his first salaried contract with Manto Negro. Against his parents’ wishes, El Potro left school when he was in seventh grade to focus on his music.
At 17, Rodrigo launched his solo career with the album “La foto de tu cuerpo.” It was with his second CD, “Aprendiendo a vivir”, however, that he gained national appeal and made his Buenos Aires debut.
Patricia Pacheco, Rodrigo’s former girlfriend and the mother of his son, remembered in a 2000 interview with Canal Trece that Rodrigo sought to “bring cuarteto to every corner of the country,” in order to “give a little bit of happiness,” particularly in difficult times.
El Potro did not gain his fame through music alone. Fans and commentators consistently recall his “charisma,” an appeal that perhaps helped him to broaden his fan base beyond that of traditional cuarteto stars.
Rodrigo was also infamous for his unique style. The star’s hairstyles were particularly notable, including everything from long, curly and unruly to short and dyed in various crazy colours, including blue and red. His well-known look also included a myriad of signature faces and poses.
By 2000, Rodrigo’s popularity was at an all time high. In that year alone, he set a record by filling Luna Park to capacity thirteen times.
Then, on the 24th June, tragedy struck. At 27 years old, Rodrigo was killed in a car crash on the way home from a gig at the Escándalo club in City Bell.
The singer’s death was mourned across the country. Over 100,000 fans attended his 18-hour wake.
This past Sunday marked the 12-year anniversary of the death of Rodrigo, killed on the same day that tango giant Carlos Gardel died in a plane crash in 1935.
Although more than a decade has passed since his death, El Potro continues to have a powerful presence in Argentina.
A look at one of El Potro’s many Facebook fan pages, for example, demonstrates this continued popularity; in a photo album “the Legend Continues”, Facebook users upload pictures of their tattoos mimicking Rodrigo’s colt design.
El Potro will soon have a 2.4metre tall statue of his own in the Gigante de Alberdi stadium, home to the Belgrano de Córdoba football team. The star was a notorious fan of his home city’s team. To help cover the estimated project cost of $290,000, the sculptor commissioned with designing the statue – artist Carlos Benavídez of Córdoba – made one hundred busts of Rodrigo to be sold to the public at $250 a piece.
To many fans, the star is remembered in a way that is nearly sanctified. In a interview with Canal Trece shortly after his death, his mother recalled “that which he had, he shared; and he suffered for the pain of others.”
This May, the television show ‘Gracias por Venir’ hosted a special remembering the musician, attended by his friends, family and other well-known musicians.
Over ten years after his death, El Potro clearly retains a place of importance in Argentine popular culture.
Genre: Cuarteto
Dates active: 1987 — 2000
In their own words: “I do not think that I am a good singer, but I tell stories. I make people participate in my songs. I don’t talk about banalities. I want to leave a message, to transmit the testimony of those whose stories I know. I am a very attentive person. I talk about taboo subjects and those subjects that no one wants to talk about.”
Most famous song: ‘Soy Cordobés’ and ‘Lo Mejor del Amor’
Best lyrics: Love overcomes every social difference/in the calendar, every day passes by/despite the doubts and what they may say, love can be more (from ‘Ocho Cuarenta’)
Famous for: Bringing cuarteto music to new Argentine audiences.
“To mourn death is to disrespect life.” After his shocking murder in Guatemala City last Saturday, Facundo Cabral’s own words ring with a sad resonance. Many have ignored these words however and openly mourned this great Argentine folk singer. Impassioned vigils have taken place across Latin America.
22nd May 1937 marked the beginning of Cabral’s life. From what can only be described as humble beginnings, much is publicised about the struggles and challenges he faced. His father abandoned him soon after birth, along with his mother and siblings, and life continued to bring hardships. At the age of nine he left home to look for work, infamously walking 3,000km, with the aim of reaching Buenos Aires to talk with then President Juan Domingo Perón, who promised to give the poor work.
Cabral’s career and relationship with music begun after he escaped prison, where he was carrying out a sentence for violent behaviour. This period behind bars saw him learn how to read and write, and crucially the beginnings of his involvement with Christianity.
Success was initially evasive. Under the artistic name ‘El Indio Gasparino’ his first songs were not well received. However by 1970, and under his own name, he was enjoying widespread popularity. This was especially the case after the release of ‘No soy de aquí, ni soy de allá’ – arguably his most famous song.
The late 1970s brought heartache for Cabral. Not only did he lose both his wife and one-year-old daughter in a plane crash, he was also exiled by the Military Junta from Argentina in 1976. Labelled a protest singer by the dictatorship, he returned to Argentina in 1984 a sacred name to the Argentine people. This period in exile also brought Cabral immense international success, especially in Latin America and his ‘second home’ of Mexico.
Cabral’s murder will secure his position as one of the greats of Argentine music. However his life story, which also includes surviving cancer and being named a United Nations Messenger of Peace in 1996, and his beautiful, passionate songs should not be overlooked. His music is lyrical and melodic. It is also haunting and evokes a whole range of emotions. Maybe that is now because of his tragic death, or maybe it is because of sad life story, but ultimately it must be because of his great skill as a musician and lyricist.
Genre: Folk
Dates Active: 1954-2011
In his own words: ”I always ask God, why did you give me so much? You gave me misery, hunger, happiness, struggle, lights…. I saw everything. I know there is cancer, syphilis, spring and apple fritters in the world”
Most famous song: No soy de aquí, ni soy de allá
Best lyric: ‘There is half the world waiting, with a flower in their hand, and the other half are waiting, for that flower’
Famous for: Cabral will probably become most famous for his death. However his life story, and all the struggles within it, will remain a fascinating story to tell.
Best to listen to: Just want to sit and think, maybe have a little cry? Stick this on, and feel the emotion in the lyrics and the instruments.
Hannah Flint heads out with the Papelnonos – network of retirees who make musical instruments out of paper mache and give weekly performances at schools across the country. The network was born 22 years ago in Mar del Plata and is now active in more than 60 cities, promoting inclusion of older generations into society.
Fito Páez in concert from 2010 (Photo: Sebastian Castro)
Born into the swinging sixties of Rosario, and growing into international stardom, Rodolfito, better known as Fito Páez, has had quite the trajectory. From the tender age of 13, Páez has been playing in a medley of bands, and after many a false start, founded Staff in 1980.
His skill on the guitar and electric piano bought him favour in the rock and folklore scene of late-eighties Rosario, and he even picked up a gong for the best progressive music band. Baglietti, member of Acalanto so happened to be on the panel, and pinched him for himself- together they recorded ‘Tiempos Dificiles’, an album whose poignant ballads hark back to the pain the country endured after the Falklands war of 1982.
Going it alone in 1984, a tour in the southern cone was cut short by the tragic news of his aunt and grandmothers’ deaths; Walter Di Giusti, a jealous former schoolfriend and musician, with a history of mental illness, broke into the family home and murdered both in a frenzied attack.
Heading back to his hometown, Páez poured his grief into the album ‘Ciudad de Pobres Corazones’, which, unlike previous attempts, did not reach critical acclaim. He said of it himself, “the disk is rubbish, but if I hadn’t made it, I would have gone mad.”
After six years of performing throughout South America, a mysterious record producer contracted him for ‘Tercer Mundo’, an album whose lyrics provided a biting reflection on Argentine poverty. Mere weeks into the project, said producer disappeared off the face of the earth, leaving Páez in the lurch, and short of pocket. He fled to Europe, where it would be cheaper to produce, with his tail between his legs. A phone call a few weeks later would change everything however. It appeared that the sorry album had sold over 30,000 copies in just 20 days, and proved to be a storming success.
Twenty one albums to his name, and with a 2007 Latin Grammy Award to boot, Páez has carved an important role for himself in the history of Argentine music. He has dabbled too in cinema, most notably script-writing and directing ‘Vidas Privadas’, a controversial film touching on incest, with the dirty war as a backdrop, in 2001.
Though shy of controversy he is not. Just this July, after governor Mauricio Macri’s success in the city government elections, Páez got himself in a bit of a pickle by way of an article in the daily Página 12. Attempting to criticise what he believes to be a disinterested, wealth-orientated majority that elected Señor Macri, he stated, perhaps rather undiplomatically: Half of Buenos Aires disgusts me.” Unfortunately this is turn disgusted a few people too, and the anti-discrimination watchdog Inadi gave him a slap on the wrist.
Genre: Folklore and Rock
Dates Active: 1980 and still going
In his own words: (About the album ‘Tercer Mundo’) “The disk reflects everything I saw throughout my trips in Latin America: pagan festivals, priests tied up with terrorists, prostitutes trying to grab money off north-Americans”.
Most famous song: ‘El Amor Después el Amor’
Best lyric: I think I’ve seen the sun come out, I think I saw you dancing to the Beatles, in some old house somewhere.
Most Famous For: his turbulent marriage with actress Cecilia Roth
IdeaMe is an online platform, which helps creators, be they inventors, artists, or designers, among others, to finance their projects through crowd funding. The Indy features and promotes one project every week, with the aim of helping the creators finance and achieve their dreams.
Argentine Producers Cecilia Somma and Marcelo Marin have paired up for this album.
This week’s project will hopefully succeed in what decades of fútbol passion have failed so far: to finally unite Argentina and Brazil.
“Music has the ability to bring people together, whereas soccer unhappily separates,” says the idea.me promotional video of Marcela Viciano, singer and musician porteña who is hoping with the help of the crowd funding website she will be able to record and produce a cross-country concept album between Buenos Aires and Brazil.
A dozen producers, composers and artists playing multiple instruments from both Argentina and Brazil will arrange all the songs of Compositores sin fronteras, a project that will be independently crafted and distributed with the help of local workmanship.
“At some point I realised I had a lot of recorded material with Brazilian composers I met initially on the Internet and then at Club Caiubi, which is the place that helped unite us all,” explains Marcela Vicario. “The aim is to record the album during the second semester of this year, half in Buenos Aires, half in Brazil.’
One of the Brazilian cities where the album will be recorded is São Paolo, where Club Caiubi is based. The official presentation of the album, however, will take place in Buenos Aires, where the songwriter Marcela Viciano lives and works.
She has been shuffling back and forth to Brazil for the past ten years, exchanging stories and rhythms whose traces can be easily detected in her band’s creole sound. In 2008, she released a solo album,Mar de adentro, as an act of homage to this culture she so strongly fell in love with.
Waiting to share the buena onda of her Brazilian vibes with crowds of aficionados during a series of winter concert in Buenos Aires, she is currently a fix feature in different local radio programs.
“I literally can’t define my own music. It’s a mix of different styles, it’s really eclectic. It fuses folk music from Brazil with the Argentine tradition, blues and jazz. It does not have a gender. It’s a fusion between cultures.”
Album artwork for the proposed album by 'Musica Sin Fronteras'
Marcela Viciano is a living testimony that not only friends are music could be exchanged between countries, but also crowd funding initiatives are talking to each other across state borders.
“With various friends we wanted to develop a project in Brazil and we were looking for funding. People from the Brazilian platforms Catarse and Nodo Movíl suggested me to try idea.me, and so here I am,” she confessed.
The money raised will cover the costs of the recording and editing of the album. It will be released via independent circuits in at least 500 copies, along with a special ‘artisanal’ edition “produced in an old fashioned way, with old-school recording and producing techniques” and featuring a distinctive cover designed by a local artist.
IdeaMe is an online platform, which helps creators, be they inventors, artists, or designers, among others, to finance their projects through crowd funding. The Indy features and promotes one project every week, with the aim of helping the creators finance and achieve their dreams.
La Belgranense performing (courtesy of La Belgranense)
This week’s featured idea.me project takes us into the lively atmosphere of La Belgranense’s big band ensemble. Formed in 1999, this group of 20 musicians has dedicated itself to entertaining in a variety of locales that don’t typically enjoy such energy-filled performances.
Formed in the Temperley area of Buenos Aires, La Belgranense is a travelling act of good will and high spirits. At least once per month for the last 13 years, the group has visited rural schools, nursing homes, special schools, psychiatric hospitals, and prisons in Argentina in order to perform for those whose access to live music is limited by circumstance.
La Belgranense initially emerged as a dream of founding member Juan Carlos Pombo. Though he had not played trumpet for over ten years, Pombo asked whether a band existed at his children’s school in Temperley. He was given the go ahead to form La Belgranense.
“I sent a note to parents calling on them to play any instrument, and with the first five members, we organised rehearsals and got a band leader,” explained Pombo.
What began as five members soon blossomed to 20, comprising professionals who range from lawyers to engineers. Today, La Belgranense’s impressive line-up includes three flutes, two clarinets, five saxophones, two trumpets, two guitars, a trombone, a flugehorn, keyboards, percussion, and a recorder, among other odds and ends.
Beginning in 2001, in response to hard times around the country, La Belgranense formed a sponsorship with a school in Bella Vista, Corrientes. Now, every October, through the Civil Association of Patrons and Students of Rural Schools (APAER), La Belgranense travels to Corrientes to entertain groups of students, bringing along donations and a full selection of tunes.
“Our repertoire is varied and eclectic,” said Pombo. “It goes from tango and folklore to jazz and popular music, as well as a children’s repertoire, but I think that jazz is where we are most comfortable.”
La Belgranense also partners with the Claps Group, a team of animators who stir up the imagination of youngsters with everything from lights, sound, and projections to party favours, games, magic, and black theatre.
“It’s amazing the way kids appreciate our presence,” Pombo continued. “You have to come and see the their faces year in and year out. The joy is recorded in their eyes and hearts.”
With the hope of expanding their reach, La Belgranense has taken to idea.me for support in achieving its future goals. The group now seeks to divide its annual tour into three trips—one to the Province of Buenos Aires, one to the rural areas of Entre Rios, and the last to Corrientes—in order to include more schools and bring the big band experience to as many children as possible.
La Belgranense’s next performance will be 11th May in the Navarro zone, where children will be brought together from three different rural schools.
“We believe that to laugh, sing, play, have fun, and share is very valuable to these children, and valuable to us.”
“To mourn death is to disrespect life.” After his shocking murder in Guatemala City last Saturday, Facundo Cabral’s own words ring with a sad resonance. Many have ignored these words however and openly mourned this great Argentine folk singer. Impassioned vigils have taken place across Latin America.
