Converging on roots music and tradition, La Banda Morisca evokes the cultural heritage of ancient al-Andalus and its reflection in the sound of current Andalusia, the Maghreb and the Middle East.
Inspired by Andalusian heritage, La Banda Morisca mixes Eastern and Western Mediterranean influences with the spirit of traditional flamenco and Andalusian rock. From New York to Samarkand, La Banda Morisca have dazzled audeinces, becoming a formidable ensemble with a vast reach in global music.
Inspired by this Andalusian heritage and by the traditional ballads, the group proposes a creative and original vision of a repertoire that mixes Eastern and Western Mediterranean influences (Andalusian moaxajas, Chaabi, Dahmane el Harachi, Nass el Ghiwane…) with the spirit of traditional flamenco and Andalusian rock (El Chozas, Lole y Manuel, Triana.)
After achieving recognition with their 2016 album Algarabya, the ensemble has traveled to many prominent international stages and festivals such as the SXSW in Austin the Flamenco Festival in New York, the Festival Arabe de Montrèal, the Small World music center in Toronto, New England Conservatory in Boston, the Old Town of Folk Music in Chicago, Miami Dade College and the Flamenco Festival in Miami, the Festival Flamenco de Chicago (Instituto Cervantes), the Havana World Music Festival (Cuba), the Merzouga International Festival (Morocco), l’Institut du Monde Arabe de Paris, the Festival des Musiques Métisses de Angoulême (France), the Spanish Pavilion at the Astana Expo 2017 – AECID (Kazakhstan), the Sharq Taronalari Festival in Samarkand (Uzbekistan), WOMEX, being the group supported by Sounds from Spain in 2017, Katowice; the EuroRadio Folk representing RN3; the Fira Mediterrania; the Krems Festival (Austria) and the Sziget Festival in Budapest.
PERSONNEL
José Mari Cala voice
José Cabral Moorish guitar, guimbri, oud, banjo, and saz
Belén Lucena violin, rabel, and backing vocals
Antonio Torres saxophones, gralla, zurna, tarota, backing vocals
Jerónimo Melgar electric bass
David Ruiz percussion
7–7:30 PM, Gain an insightful introduction to the history and heritage of the music, led by the band
This engagement of La Banda Morisca is made possible in part through the Iber Exchange program of Mid Atlantic Arts with support from the National Endowment for the Arts in collaboration with Ibermúsicas.
