So what DO the cowboys of Latin America sound like?
Find out this weekend. The WCFSO teams up with irrepressible local duo Calle Sur for a cross-cultural, family-friendly program of cowboy music from North, Central and South America. The concert is entirely self-produced with Karin Stein and Ed East of Calle Sur. Guest Alfredo Rolando Ortiz will perform his South American Suite for harp.
This winter Calle Sur enhanced the symphony's already wide-ranging school programs with a series of colorful visits to area elementary schools. Ed is pictured above teaching students the Venezuelan song El Gavilan at Edison School in Waterloo in January. [Photo by Brandon Pollock, Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier] Ed is also lead singer of the acclaimed Latin jazz group Orquesta Alto Maiz, with whom the WCFSO co-produced a hot program of Latin jazz, salsa and popular music in 2005.
Melody Parker previews Cowboys of the Americas. [And, yes, Ed is playing the guitar in the photo that accompanies Melody's piece, not the flute as stated.]
Update: It is early Sunday and I am sitting at home in Cedar Falls watching the snow fall heavily outside onto the half inch of ice already down. Needless to say, Cowboys of the Americas will not ride into town today. We are planning to reschedule the event for October. More details soon.