Arquitecturas Rayanas (Nuba Records/Karonte 2011)
Acetre, the great folk band from the borderlands of western Spain released this album in late 2011. Arquitecturas Rayanas is a tribute to the border architecture found in the border between Spain and Portugal. Acetre was formed in Olivenza (Badajoz), a border city between the two Iberian nations. Olivenza has preserved some of its Portuguese art. Until 1801, the city was part of Portugal.
The music on Arquitecturas Rayanas draws from the Spanish, Portuguese and Sephardic folk music traditions, including alboradas from Extremadura, Portuguese fado, harvest songs, and wedding dances. Acetre uses traditional lyrics that guitarist and composer José Tomás Sousa transforms into contemporary folk songs and tunes by adding current elements that include melodies and musical instruments from other traditions, polyphonic vocals and some jazz stylings.
The group is bilingual and uses Spanish and Portuguese lyrics. The current line-up features Antonio Leyras on bass, Ana Jiménez on vocals, Clara Lorenzo on fiddle, Ana Márquez on vocals, Inés Romero on accordion, Paco Croche on percussion, Fran González on drums, Víctor Asensio on flute, Extremaduran bagpipe, and clarinet, and José Tomás Sousa on acoustic guitar.
Guest musicians include Amine Tailssane on oud, Juan Manuel Rubio on santur and zanfona (Spanish hurdy gurdy), Miguel Blanco on guitars, Joao Esquetim on Portuguese guitar, Joaquin Carballo on trombone, and J. Manuel Madera on flugelhorn.
Arquitecturas Rayanas showcases some of the lesser known fine contemporary folk music that is being made in Spain.
Listen to samples and buy CD or MP3s: Arquitecturas Rayanas
Author: Angel Romero
Angel Romero y Ruiz has dedicated his life to musical exploration. His efforts included the creation of two online portals, worldmusiccentral.org and musicasdelmundo.com. In addition, Angel is the co-founder of the Transglobal World Music Chart, a panel of world music DJs and writers that celebrates global sounds. Furthermore, he delved into the record business, producing world music studio albums and compilations. His works have appeared on Alula Records, Ellipsis Arts, Indígena Records and Music of the World.
