Music of the Americas: Ensemble Dal Niente Live in New York and En Casa

Monday, June 12, 10 am

Born and raised in Antigua, Khadijah Simon is admired for her sagacious musical style and sense. Although still a teen, Simon has performed with distinguished musicians including Bruce Skerritt, Andy Bassford, Rich Brown, and Larnell Lewis. 

From her home in Antigua, she sent us her solo version of "My Song," by Keith Jarrett, which her recently deceased mentor Bruce Skerritt showed her. She says about her choice: "It easily became one of my favorite Keith Jarrett tunes because of the beautiful chord progression and melody. I enjoy playing it a lot which is why I thought it would be the perfect song to play for this project."

Tuesday, June 13, 10 am

Gina D'Soto and Juan Diego Villalobos are back with another original composition by D'Soto, "Redwood." 

Wednesday, June 14, 10 am

The music of Colombian singers/instrumentlists/composers Las Áñez (Valentina and Juanita) is created to be performed live with a loop pedal and small instruments. The have released four albums that combine folk music with the avant-garde, received to acclaim in Latin America and Europe. 

From Bogotá, they sent us "Árbol Genealógico," which is included in their latest release. In this song, the twins display their vocal interplay and atmospheric sound in a song that evokes the Andean huayno. The song speaks of the power and influence of our ancestors over our lives and possibly over our future lives, and presents the family tree as an eternal affintiy based on love and generosity. 

Thursday, June 15, 7 pm

Ensemble Dal Niente returns to Music of the Americas after a virtual concert in 2021 with a program of music by Tomás Gueglio, Graciela Paraskevaídis, Paulo Henrique Raposo, Hilda Paredes, Marcos Balter, and Melissa Vargas.

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Friday, June 16, 10 am

Argentine singer-songwriter Antonella Restucci was born in Quilmes, a suburb of Buenos Aires, into a music-loving family. She made her stage debut just out of elementary school, and has since participated in several festivals singing in a variety of genres. In 2018, she was part of the all-female band Desperdigadas, with whom she won the TV contest Rock del País and soon after started the band that works with her to this day, which includes her father on drums. "At a time when many societies, including Argentina, are deepy divided," Restucci says, "my artistic work is based on three organizing concepts: unity, commitment, and hope, and through these I sing to that which all human beings share, living with respect and empathy towards each other and the environment that shelters us." 

She composed "Lo que decidas plantar" during the COVID isolation, transforming her frustration in the face of the situation into a hopeful message. “In my opinion," she says about the song, we are always in a state of change, but the pandemic was an important inflection moment, and this song speaks to our ability to plan these changes in a conscientious way."

The MetLife Foundation Music of the Americas concert series is made possible by the generous support of Presenting Sponsor MetLife Foundation.

The Spring 2023 Music program is also supported, in part, by the Howard Gilman Foundation, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council, by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature, and by The Fan Fox and Leslie R. Samuels Foundation.

Additional support comes from the Alice M. Ditson Fund of Columbia University, The Amphion Foundation, the Aaron Copland Fund for Music, New Music USA’s Organizational Development Fund, the National Endowment for the Arts, the Association of Performing Arts Professionals’ ArtsForward program, made possible through support from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, and The Augustine Foundation.