Friday, November 4 The Latino Music Series explores the influences of Middle Eastern music on Andalusia, Spain with The Andalusian Trail opening for acclaimed flamenco guitarist Juan Carmona and his band featuring Algerian musician Youba Adjrad.

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INSTITUTO CERVANTES CHICAGO 31 W. Ohio, Chicago, IL ($10 PARKING VALIDATION AT 33 W ONTARIO)

Juan Carmona was only ten years old when his father gave him his first guitar. His passion for the instrument grew and his virtuosity was quickly remarked by professional musicians. Juan’s journey as a professional guitarist took him back to his roots: Jerez de la Frontera in Andalusia. For 9 years, he absorbed as much as he could in the purest flamenco tradition, rubbing elbows with some of its biggest names, like Joaquín Grilo, Agujetas, Duquende, Antonio Canales, Chano Domínguez and many others. A self-taught musician, he can boast of having composed his Sinfonía Flamenca and Orillas, today performed by many orchestras in the world, including the Sydney Symphony Orchestra (Australia), the St Louis Symphony Orchestra (USA), and the Russian Philarmony. His albums Alchemya, Orillas, Sinfonía Flamenca and El Sentido del Aire were nominated for the Latin GRAMMY. His new album, Zyriab 6.7, retraces the journey of the musician-poet Zyriab, stopping off along the Mediterranean, from oasis to caravanserai, covering 6,743 km from Baghdad to Cordoba.

The Andalusian Trail: From Rajasthan, India to the Middle East, from North Africa and across the Mediterranean into Andalusia, Spain, musical ideas and instruments were exchanged and have contributed to the foundation of Andalusian and flamenco music. Through music, dance, and storytelling, members of Las Guitarras de España and Surabhi Ensemble take to the trail and tell the tale of this shared cultural history from medieval Andalusia to the present. The performance includes original and traditional repertoire of Spanish guitar, Arab-Andalusian poetry and music, as well as Rajasthani, Middle Eastern, and flamenco folk music and dance.

Presented by the International Latino Cultural Center of Chicago, Intercultural Music Production, and the Old Town School of Folk Music as part of the Ojalá project funded by the Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Arts.