Famed Mexican-born jazz vocalist Magos Herrera joins the genre-defying string quartet Brooklyn Rider (Johnny Gandelsman, violin; Colin Jacobsen, violin; Nicholas Cords, viola; and Michael Nicolas, cello), hailed as “the future of chamber music” (Strings), for an unforgettable musical journey reinterpreting Latin classics from their 2018 recording, Dreamers, on Wednesday, October 10, 2019, in the Bram Goldsmith Theater at The Wallis. The album, on Sony Music Masterworks, features a collection of works from the Ibero-American songbook as well as pieces written to texts by Octavio Paz, Rubén Darío and Federico García Lorca and reimagined by such noted arrangers as Jaques Morelenbaum, Gonzalo Grau, Diego Schissi, Guillermo Klein and Brooklyn Rider’s own Colin Jacobsen. These compelling works from Mexico, Cuba, Peru, Chile, Brazil, Argentina and Spain illuminate the essential role poets and songwriters play as dreamers, sharing their faith in humanity and generating hope. NPR hails Dreamers as “a vocally resplendent album, one for the head and the heart.” A Preludes @ The Wallis pre-concert conversation moderated by Classical KUSC’s Brian Lauritzen will be held before the concert with the artists along with a complimentary glass of wine.
Brooklyn Rider, “four classical musicians performing with the energy of young rock stars” (Pittsburg Post-Gazette) showcases its broad and unusual repertoire in gripping performances that attract legions of fans and draw rave reviews from classical, world music and rock critics alike. Founded in 2005, the group has released multiple albums, including Brooklyn Rider Almanac, Spontaneous Symbols, The Fiction Issue, The Impostor with Béla Fleck, and So Many Things with soprano Anne Sofie von Otter, featuring the music of Colin Jacobsen, Caroline Shaw, John Adams, Nico Muhly, Björk, Sting, Kate Bush and Elvis Costello, among others.
Hererra, applauded for her “smoky single-malt voice” (The Boston Globe), is regarded as one of the most expressive singers on the contemporary Latin American jazz scene. Her eloquent vocal improvisation and bold style elegantly transcend cultural boundaries. “Herrera is stretching the very notion of jazz singing, pushing past the diva pleasantries into a sound that’s bold, thrilling and effortlessly global” (NPR).
Dreamers was released by Sony Music in September 2018. Highly acclaimed by critics and audiences, the album rapidly rose to the #1 position on Amazon, the #2 position on iTunes, and the top lists of The New York Times, Billboard Classical, NPR Music, NPR Alt Latino, PRI’s The World, KPCC-FM, and KPFK’s Global Village; the album has been nominated for the international Grammys for Best Arrangement with the song “Niña.”
Tickets, $29 to $59, are on sale now. The Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts is located at 9390 N. Santa Monica Blvd, Beverly Hills. To purchase tickets and for more information, please call 310-746-4000 or visit TheWallis.org/BR.