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Summer Sessions 2007

Date: July 14, 21, and 28, 2007
Time: 6:00–9:30 p.m.
Location: Getty Center, Museum Courtyard and Garden Terrace
Admission: Free; no reservations required.

Our annual concert series returns with three nights of high-energy, genre-bending outdoor music at the Getty Center. From forró to vallenato, "dirty reggae" to "cumbia-tronic," and everything else in between, Summer Sessions presents the coolest international grooves that world music has to offer.

Don't miss our food and drink specials from 4:00 to 8:30 p.m.

Equatorial Heat, July 14

Global a-Go-Go, July 21

Espíritu de Mexico, July 28


Summer Sessions

Equatorial Heat, July 14

The series opens up with the coolest of South American exports.

Los Amigos Invisibles
Playing the nightclubs of Caracas before relocating to New York City, this Grammy-nominated Latin dance band has released several discs on David Byrne's Luaka Bop label. The sextet have been called "the Swiss Army knife of groove bands" for their ability to effortlessly blend disco, funk, space age music, acid jazz, bossa nova, hip-hop, electronica, and rock. Campy and retro, but with enough subtlety to elevate their music to the heights of "smirking international cool," a live show by these "invisible friends" is always a guaranteed non-stop party.

Forro in the Dark
Forro in the Dark is not your father's forró band. Supplementing the traditional instrumentation with electric guitars, an array of flutes, modern percussion, and other contemporary instruments, the group stylishly reinvents the popular Northeastern Brazilian music known as forró for the hipsters and club-goers of New York City. "Peppy, poppy, and impossible to sit still through," Forro in the Dark captures the immediate, pleasure-craving core of forró for modern audiences to relieve their stress on the dance floor.

DJ Dolores & Aparaelhagem
DJ Dolores burst onto the global club scene a few years ago with an explosive mixture of traditional northeastern Brazilian sounds with dance floor-friendly electronics, rock, and dub. Blending musical styles favored by the working classes with loops, breakbeats, street sounds, and live instrumentation, DJ Dolores, and his new live band Aparelhagem, create a musical cocktail both culturally meaningful and—most importantly—festive.

RNZ
Also on hand for the evening is RNZ from the Listen Recovery Crew—a collective dedicated to recovering and archiving vinyl recordings from around the world—who will spin beats from Latin America and beyond.

Music Samples
Hear an excerpt from "Amor" from Los Amigos Invisibles' CD Arepa 3000: A Venezuelan Journey Into Space (2000, Luaka Bop).

Hear an excerpt from "Forrowest" from Forro in the Dark's CD Bonfires of São João (2006, Nublu Records).

Hear an excerpt from "De dar Dó" from Dj Dolores' CD Aparaelhagem (2005, Crammed Disc).


Los Amigos Invisibles / Forro in the Dark / DJ Dolores

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Global a-Go-Go, July 21

Stick a little umbrella in that multi-cultural cocktail and party global style as Summer Sessions continues.

The Aggrolites
The Aggrolites play an infectious "dirty reggae" beat that honors the roots of soul, African hi-life, dancehall, and dub. Heavily influenced by The Meters, James Brown, and Wilson Pickett, their sound is a thick blend of rhythm and melody, seasoned by years of love. They have sweated it out in punk rock nightclubs and on the renowned Warp Tour circuit, but their brand of music is too lively and engaging to limit to one category. With their latest album, "Reggae Hit L.A.," the Aggrolites pay a rhythmic and soulful homage to the city and culture of Los Angeles.

Very Be Careful
A Caribbean soul and a California heart have sustained a decade of ceaseless romp-downs and raucous times for L.A.'s veterans of vallenato, Very Be Careful. They've taken their stripped-down Colombian coastal sound all around the world—from Austin's SXSW to Japan's Fuji Rock Festival—but their latest CD, Salad Buey, finds the band back in their home town, exploring L.A.'s gritty streets through the sweet and savory sounds of accordion, bass, and percussion.

Carlos Niño with Derf Reklaw & Munyungo Jackson
Carlos Niño is a celebrated producer/arranger/songwriter and host of Spaceways Radio on KPFK 90.7 FM, where he's been programming a soulful mix of music for nearly 12 years. Niño is a true selector who always goes the route of the expressive, conceptual and heartfelt over the commercial, obvious, and mundane. Derf Reklaw & Munyungo Jackson are two of the world's most masterful hand-drummers. These phenomenal showmen have played and recorded soul, funk, jazz, rock, folk, and world with a Who's-Who of greats, from Minnie Riperton and Miles Davis to Janet Jackson and Sting.

Fishtank Ensemble
From the smokey cafes of Bucharest to the Gypsy caravans of yesterday, Fishtank Ensemble evokes the spirit of a past age with the sounds of tomorrow. Performing on a wide array of international instruments, including violin, accordion, shamisen, bass, and saw, and offering up-tempo arrangements that blend music from all over the world—Gypsy, Balkan, flamenco, and klezmer tunes—Fishtank Ensemble are always a surprise and a rollicking good time.

Music Samples
Hear an excerpt from "Free Time" from the Aggrolites' forthcoming CD Reggae Hit L.A. (2007, Hellcat Records).

Hear an excerpt from "Mi Vecina" from Very Be Careful's CD Salad Buey (2007, Downtown Pijao).

Hear an excerpt from "Changes" from Carlos Niño & Miguel Atwood-Ferguson's CD Fill the Heart Shaped Cup (2007, Alpha Pup Records).

Hear an excerpt from "Bordeas" from Fishtank Ensemble's CD Super Raoul (2005, Fishtank).


Aggrolites / Very Be Careful

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Espíritu de Mexico, July 28

Summer Sessions 2007 closes with an exuberant evening featuring Latin music traditions with an urban edge.

Charanga Cakewalk
Austin's Charanga Cakewalk is the brainchild of multi-instrumentalist Michael Ramos. Prior to forming his "cumbia-tronic" project, Ramos played keyboards and accordion for artists like John Mellencamp, Patty Griffin, Paul Simon, and the Rembrandts. Now, with Charanga Cakewalk, Ramos floats between meditative electronic beats and the earthy genres of tejano, folklorica, and merengue. Don't miss out as they spread the feel good grooves of Chicano Zen (their latest album) to the Getty.

Ceci Bastida
Born and raised in Tijuana, unsigned indie artist Ceci Bastida was only 15 years old when she joined Tijuana NO—one of Mexico's most important ska-punk bands of the 1990s—as a lead vocalist, keyboardist, and songwriter. She captured Mexican alterna-pop icon Julieta Venegas' attention in 2000 and has been playing keyboards and singing back-up vocals for her ever since. Ceci's irresistible music is quickly spreading—she's heard regularly on KCRW, and her U.S. solo debut at this years SXSW made her "a fresh face to watch."

Son del Centro
Son del Centro is much more than a young and vibrant group of accomplished musicians. They are companeros and camaradas—students, musicians, activists, dancers, friends, and organizers—brought together via alternative space El Centro Cultural de Mexico in Santa Ana. Son del Centro explore their traditions, creativity and consciousness, through son jarocho, music from the southern Veracruz region on the east coast of Mexico, and then pass on what they've learned to the next generation.

Mexican Institute of Sound
Hailing from the bustling metropolis of Mexico City, one-man dynamo Camilo Lara—under the moniker of the Mexican Institute of Sound (MIS)—creates an infectious pastiche of electronica, dub, cha cha cha, cumbia, and spoken word. In the past year, the sounds of MIS have earned raves from Spin, URB, and the Associated Press; been played by local tastemakers KCRW and Indie 103; and been featured on an episode of Ugly Betty. For their visit to the Getty Center, they plan on filling the Museum Courtyard with musical treats from their forthcoming album Piñata.

Music Samples
Hear an excerpt from "La Miga Hormiga" from Charanga Cakewalk's CD Chicano Zen (2006, Triloka Records).

Hear an excerpt from Ceci Bastida's "No Te Digan Que No" (2006, demo).

Hear an excerpt from "La Morena" from Son del Centro's CD Mi Jarana Es Mi Fusil (2006 Producciones Cimarrón).

Hear an excerpt from "El Microfono" from Mexican Institute of Sound's forthcoming album Piñata (2007, Nacional Records).


Charanga Cakewalk / Ceci Bastida / Son del Centro

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Food and Drink Specials
A seasonal variety of tasty treats and specialty cocktails created to complement the evening concerts will be available in the Museum Courtyard from 5:00 to 8:30 p.m.

A Taste of the Terrace—the Restaurant at the Getty Center invites you to join us from 4:00 to 6:30 p.m. for delicious small plates and refreshing summer drinks on the Restaurant patio. $5–$13.

General Information
Seating in the Museum Courtyard and the Garden Terrace is limited. Please do not bring your own chairs. Picnics are permitted at Summer Sessions, but for the comfort and enjoyment of all guests, blankets can only be used on the lawns in the Central Garden. Please make sure your coolers or containers are no larger than 11 x 17 x 8 inches, and note that alcohol may not be brought onto the premises. Beer and wine are available for purchase on site.