Creole Choir of Cuba
Tande-La
In eastern Cuba lies Camagüey, a colonial-era maze of narrow streets where Creole — a mixture of French, Spanish, English, and Taino — is spoken, and where the influence of near-neighbor Haiti is felt in all aspects of life. Out of this incredible cultural mix has come the Creole Choir of Cuba, a mixed group of men and women 10 strong, who have simultaneously revived the powerful protest music of their parents and grandparents and given it an overlay of Haitian-inspired sophistication and beauty. On Tande-La, the complex, earthy vocalizing manages to be at once elemental and cinematic, a soundtrack for the 21st-century Caribbean. They will be coming to UCSB’s Campbell Hall on Wednesday, November 2, but now’s the time to steep yourself in their radiantly intelligent and humane recordings. For tickets, visit artsandlectures.sa.ucsb.edu.