Event
FIRST FRIDAY Music Series @ Galeria West - CUMBIA DEL NORTE with FRANCISCO NAVARRO & GREG RIBOT
Since the inaugural concert in the summer of 2009 hundreds of music lovers have enjoyed the new FIRST FRIDAY Music Series, presented by TEATRO Si at the intimate Galeria West Art Gallery in downtown Westfield, NJ. This once a month live concert event continues to bring to the area a unique opportunity to enjoy a diversity of music genres as performed by a select series of renowned artists.
The FIRST FRIDAY events continue on Friday, December 3, 2010 at 7pm with a unique evening of Colombian cumbia jazz fusion with acclaimed musicians guitarist Francisco Navarro and reed player Greg Ribot.
Francisco Navarro was born in 1944 in La Consulta, a township in Mendoza, Argentina's wine state. Pancho wasn't quite a teenager when his father, a policeman and amateur guitarist, gave him his first guitar and showed him the basics of playing it. He began taking formal lessons at thirteen. While working with local dance bands he immersed himself in tango and the Argentine folklore that surrounds it; as he studied classical guitar he pored over recordings by Andrés Segovia, Los Romeros (the Spanish guitar-playing family of the '60s), John Williams, and Paco de Lucía. His amazing and sensitive playing is matched by his encyclopedic knowledge of popular and folkloric genres of Latin American Music. He is a great classical guitarist as well, but his abilities extend beyond playing the guitar, he is a consummate arranger and singer. Over time, he brought his guitar all over South America, settling the longest in Chile and Mexico. In Mexico City, he worked with many major mariachi groups, and for three years he was First Guitar at Mexico's "Festival Ranchero de la Cancion". He performed with highly acclaimed artists, such as Armando Mananero, Bebu Silvetti, Cristian Castro, Vicente Fernandez, Lucha Villa, Cuco Sanchez, Miguel Acevez Mejia, Maria de Lourdes, Guadalope Pineda, Rosita Quintana, Veronica Castro and Hugo Jordan. In 1984, after a decade in Mexico City, Pancho moved with his wife and three children to New York City: "the city I have looked up to ever since I was a kid, and considered to be the most important place for a musician's career." The gamble paid off. He became a first-call Latin guitarist on A-list sessions. Francisco's guitar can be heard in the soundtracks of the movies: "Mambo Kings" (Guantanamera, with Celia Cruz) , "Flawless" (Tia's Tango with Tangurdia) and the Golden Globe and Oscar winning "Frida" (throughout the film). He has also appeared in numerous recordings, including the Fania All Stars "Bamboleo" with Celia Cruz, Hector Lavoe, Willie Colon, Pete "El Conde" Rodriguez (solo on Bamboleo), "Guasasa" with Johny Pacheco, Ray Barreto, Bobby Valentin, Papo Luca, Roberto Roena (solo on Allegria) and Wea Carobe Tito Nieves "En Otra Onda", which was nominated for a Grammy Award. Most recently he performed with Placido Domingo at the Washington Opera and the New York Metropolitan Opera.
Latin-influenced composer, arranger and multi-instrumentalist Greg Ribot enjoys a prolific career writing music for film and television, also composing material for a number of classical ensembles. His solo recordings include El Flete de Mi Canto and International Conspiracy, recorded with Cumbia del Norte. He has also appeared on several recordings headlined by his brother, the acclaimed guitarist Marc Ribot. As much as his brother was drawn to the Cuban sounds of Arsenio Rodríguez, Greg has gone crazy for Colombian cumbia. Greg Ribot has also been a band leader for over 30 years producing four CDs of mostly original music, and has recorded and performed with Sean Lennon, his brother Marc Ribot and many others. Ribot and Navarro have been working together for over 25 years.
We hope you will join us often during the year to celebrate the arts in a unique setting. We recommend that you consider enjoying a fine meal before or after the concert at one of the fine eateries in quaint downtown Westfield and the surrounding area. Most are located within a short walk from the gallery. Proceeds from each event benefit in part programming efforts at TEATRO Si, a 501(c)3 New Jersey not for profit corporation.
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LocationGaleria West
111 Quimby Street
Westfield, NJ 07090
United States
Categories
| Kid Friendly: No |
| Dog Friendly: No |
| Non-Smoking: No |
| Wheelchair Accessible: No |
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