For Immediate Release

Sept 12, 2011

Contact: María de Jesús Gómez    559-455-5782

Music of Colombia’s Heartlands Featured

In Radio Bilingüe Latino Heritage Month Specials

In celebration of Latino Heritage Month, Radio Bilingüe, the non-commercial radio network will broadcast 14 hours of special programming featuring performances and interviews recorded at the Smithsonian Folklife Festival in Washington D.C. in July 2011.   The theme of the international festival, Colombia: The Nature of Culture, comes to life through Radio Bilingüe programs featuring a rich range of musicians and musical genres representing Colombia’s heartlands.  The productions were made possible with a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts that allowed Radio Bilingüe to broadcast live from the festival in July and produce the programs that will be aired beginning Tuesday Sept. 13 through September 29.

The special Festival of Colombian roots programs will air on Radio Bilingüe stations and may also be heard via live streaming at radiobilingue.org.  Stations may air the programs via Satélite Radio Bilingüe, Content Depot or Online stream.  The programs are also available via podcast and audio on demand archives at radiobilingue.org.

Radio Bilingüe FESTIVAL OF COLOMBIAN ROOTS Broadcast Schedule:

1.        Tuesday,  Sept. 13    4 pm PDT & Tuesday Sept. 20     4 pm PDT:

         1. CHIRIMÍA AND BANDOLA – The ensemble Chirimía la Contundencia interprets traditional music from the northern Pacific coast of Colombia. Featuring wind and brass instruments, this musical style is heard at carnivals and patron saint festivals. The group Aires del Campo, featuring all cousins, plays string music from the coffee-growing region using traditional instruments such as the bandola and the tiple.

  2.                  2. Wednesday,  Sept. 14   4 pm PDT & Wednesday, Sept. 21  4 pm PDT 

JOROPO CRIOLLO -- A concert by Grupo Cabrestero and Aires del Campo, who interpret joropo music, part of the culture of the plains, revolving around cattle ranching. Includes interviews with members of both groups.

3.          Thursday Sept. 15   4 pm PDT & Thursday, Sept. 22   4 pm PDT

DON ABUNDIO Y SUS TRAVIESOS – Performance featuring rythms of tambora guacherna, chandé and berroche from the Mompóx región on the Caribbean coast of Colombia. The group’s repertoire includes aires and traditional dances for Carnaval. Includes an interview with the groups’ director Don Abundio, whose real name is Samuel Marmol Villa, a singer, dancer and instrument maker.

  4.          Saturday,  Sept. 17   5 pm PDT & Saturday, Sept. 24   5 pm PDT

GRUPO CABRESTERO -- Joropo music, featuring the sounds of the Southeastern Plains of Colombia and instruments such as maracas, cuatro, and bandola. Musician Félix Chaparro Rivas describes his dedication and teaching of music in his native Aguazul.

5.        Sunday,  Sept 18   2 pm PDT & Tuesday, Sept. 27   4 pm PDT 

AYOMBÉ -- The best of vallenato, accordion music from a valley on the Caribbean coast, with rhythms such as Puya, Paseo, and Merengue. Includes a backstage conversation with three of the bandmembers: accordion player Luís Carlos Farfán, drummer Efraín Camilo Díaz, and singer Reynaldo "Papi" Díaz. Also, the festival curator, Olivia Cadaval talks about the work behind the celebration of "Colombia: The Nature of Culture”, and plans for next year’s festival.

6.            Sunday,  Sept 18   3 pm PDT & Wednesday, Sept 28   4 pm PDT

EL PUEBLO CANTA – A concert of Carranguera music with Bambucos, Merengue Carraguero, and Torbellinos, this group’s songs evoke anecdotes of rural Andean life. Includes a conversation with director and composer Julio Álvaro Suesca Acuña and his son Edixon Julián Suesca, child drummer and instrument maker.

7.          Sunday,  Sept 18   4 pm PDT & Thursday,  Sept. 29   4 pm PDT

MARIMBA AND MORE -- This musical moment at the Smithsonian Folklife Festival brings together musicians from Chirimía la Contundencia and marimba player Don Baudilio Guamas Rentería from Colombia’s Pacific Tropical Rainforest. Don Baudilio also offers a solo played on the marimba instrument he built during the festival.

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Radio Bilingüe, a non-profit radio network with Latino control and leadership, is the only national distributor of Spanish-language programming in public radio. This satellite network was formed to provide stations with news, information, and cultural programming in Spanish and musical programs showcasing a variety of Latino formats with emphasis on Mexican folk and Afro-Caribbean rhythms. Satellite Radio Bilingüe builds on Radio Bilingüe's decades-old tradition of talk programs and special events coverage. www.RadioBilingue.org.