Mestisay is a popular group in Spain’s Canary Islands. They were innovative experimental and eclectic while maintaining a strong connection to their folk traditions. Their lyrics were evocative of life’s special quality on these islands steeped in a unique mix of Spanish and transatlantic with a flavor of Africa borne on the dry wind that comes in from the East.
The album La Rosa de los Vientos (the rose of the winds) is like a kaleidoscope of all those traditions that have influenced the culture of the Canary Islands: among others Portuguese fado African percussion and Cuban bolero. Through their songs Mestisay gives homage to such artists as Ellis Regina Astor Piazzolla and Mercedes Sosa.
La Rosa de los Vientos features the track Sangueo an original from Equatorial Guinea which was translated with the help of “Hijas Del Sol” (The Daughters of the Sun) Piruchi and Paloma.
In some of their albums the group explores the strong ties of the Canary Islands with countries in the Americas with a large number of immigrants from tghe Carty Island such as Venezuela and Cuba.
The group is led by renowned vocalist Olga Cerpa.
Discography:
Canciones de las dos orillas (CCPC, 1989)
El cantar viene de viejo (Manzana, 1992)
Querido Néstor (CCPC, 1994)
La Rosa de los vientos (Nubenegra, 1996)
Viento de la isla (EMI-Odeon, 1998)
Mestisay (Sintonia, 2001)
Canciones del Sur (Ibermemory, 2003)
Toda una vida (2005)
Poeta en la isla (Factoria Autor, 2006)
Querido Néstor II (2006)
El Cabaret del Capitan Varela (La Central, 2008)
Pequeño fado y otras canciones de amor (La Central, 2009)
Atlantico Radio (Mestisay, 2012)
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.
