Music of the Americas: Ensembles and Solos

Monday, November 6, 10 am

Ch'umilkaj is a singer from the Kaqchikel nation of Guatemala. She is a music educator, cultural producer, and singer-songwriter who embraces memory and life, promoting the care for the Earth and her people's cultural values. 

From Guatemala City, she sent us two songs recorded live with Leví Patzan, Daniel Zuleta, Styvens Barrios, and Milton Iquité. Today, we share "Rajawal Juyu" (Protector of the Mountains), a song inspired by Mayan oral traditions that urge us to learn to listen to, protect, and respect Mother Nature.

Tuesday, November 7, 10 am

Argentine pianist, composer, and arranger Noelia Sinkunas won a Premio Gardel in 2023 for Best Alternative Folk album for Salve, her third release, which was the result of her exploration of chamamé. She has her own orchestra and is a member of several instrumental ensembles. 

From Buenos Aires, she sent us a solo version of her composition "A Don Páez," dedicated to her grandfather, musician Juan Páez. 

Wednesday, November 8, 10 am

Created in 2008 and comprised of guitarists Julio Monge, Nicolás Alvarado, Edmundo Núñez, and Manuel Durán, the Cuarteto de Guitarras de Costa Rica is one of the most distinguished chamber ensembles in the country, and an advocate for Costa Rican and Latin American music. The quartet has received the Premio Nacional de Música "Carlos Enrique Vargas," and second place in the III Concurso de Ensambles de México, among others. They have performed in Europe, the United States, Latin America, and Oman.

From San José, they sent us "Arrecife Urbano," a piece they commissioned from Costa Rican composer Alonso Torres, which combines the Calypso rhythm, typical of the province of Limón, in the Costa Rican Caribbean, with contemporary sounds.

Friday, November 10, 10 am

In March 2023, Ars Longa de La Habana returned to New York after four years with a new version of their Gulumbá gulumbé program. This was the second concert of the GEMAS series last season, and was presented in collaboration with Five Boroughs Music Festival at St. Ignatius of Antioch in Manhattan.

More information

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

The Fall 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, by The Fan Fox and Leslie R. Samuels Foundation, by the MexAm Cultural Foundation, and by the Alice M. Ditson Fund of Columbia University.