Festival Artist Sneak Peek #4: Rio Mira
Named after the river that flows between Colombia and Ecuador, this Afro-Pacific ensemble starts with the marimba at its center, and flows with centuries of musical influence, like its namesake. Much has been made of Afro-Colombian music the past few years… now here’s a different take, with Ecuadorian overtones.
Like so much of global music, you can find history lessons in the origin story. This one involves escaped slaves from mostly central and east Africa (thus the marimbas) over 400 years ago. Add layers of regional rhythms with luxurious call-and-response vocal harmonies, and you have a unique folkloric music which has been granted cultural heritage status by Unesco.
But never mind all of that. Just let the music take control, and transport you to a joyous and blissful place.
For additional information, including a clip from a live performance, visit Rio Mira’s artist page.
Until next week!
Rob Simonds
Lotus Booking Consultant and Guest Blogger
Previous Sneak Peeks:
Jupiter & Okwess | Aynur | Hawktail
