Rodrigo y Gabriela & OKAN at Midtown Ballroom – Bend, OR

Midtown Events brings you Rodrigo y Gabriela Saturday, September 28 at Midtown Ballroom in Bend! Special guest: OKAN. Doors 7pm, show 8pm. All ages show.

RODRIGO Y GABRIELA

Grammy Award winning duo Rodrigo y Gabriela grew up on an eclectic mix of classic rock, heavy metal and flamenco, a rare alchemy of influences that still informs their work today. Not long after the dissolution of their first band, the two musicians set off with their acoustic guitars and ended up in Ireland, where they soon ran out of money and began busking on Dublin’s Grafton Street — a turn of events that led to their crossing paths with Irish singer/songwriter Damien Rice, who then asked them to open for him at an early headline show. As they developed their distinct breed of guitar music, Rodrigo y Gabriela quickly gained recognition for their extraordinary live show and made their full-length debut with 2002’s re-Foc. Along with turning out 8 additional acclaimed and kaleidoscopic albums over the years: including Area 52 (a 2012 effort made with a Cuban orchestra), 9 Dead Alive (a 2014 release that spotlighted their more rock-leaning sensibilities) and the 2020 Grammy winning Best Contemporary Instrumental Album, Mettavolution, the duo has cemented their status as a globally renowned live act. Among their many successes: performing at The White House for the President and First Lady of Mexico at a 2010 event hosted by Barack Obama; headlining the Jazz World stage at Glastonbury; selling out major venues like the Hollywood Bowl, Red Rocks Amphitheatre, London’s Royal Albert Hall, Radio City Music Hall, and the Sydney Opera House; and performing to massive crowds in such far-flung cities as Tokyo and Paris. 2023 sees the release of their most ambitious project yet, the Advaita Vedanta inspired In Between Thoughts…A New World, which features their signature dual guitar attack augmented by a full orchestra, and a corresponding world tour.

OKAN

Fusing Afro-Cuban roots with jazz, folk and global rhythms in songs about immigration, resistance and love, OKAN takes their name from the word for heart in their Afro-Cuban religion of Santeria. With vocals in Spanish, Yoruba and Spanglish, OKAN is led by the Cuban-born violinist and vocalist Elizabeth Rodriguez and percussionist and vocalist Magdelys Savigne, both Grammy and Latin-Grammy nominees.

Having performed and recorded with Bomba Estereo, Lido Pimienta, The Halifax Symphony Orchestra, Hilario Duran and Dayme Arocena, OKAN’s recent release Okantomi was awarded the 2024 Juno Award (the band’s second Juno recognition) and included in NPR Alt Latino, Le Monde, and CBC Music’s “Best of 2023” lists, garnering critical praise from Songlines UK, Billboard, Pop Matters and JAZZIZ.

Charged with the profound power of their Afro-Cuban ancestry, OKAN alchemizes Lacumi chants and rhythms from their Santeria religious practice with virtuosic jazz and classical performances and indie-pop hooks.

Exploring themes of immigration, justice and love, OKAN takes its name from the word for ‘heart’ in Santeria. With vocals in Spanish, Yoruba and Spanglish, OKAN is led by the Cuban-born violinist and vocalist Elizabeth Rodriguez and percussionist and vocalist Magdelys Savigne, both Grammy and Latin-Grammy nominees.

Having performed and recorded with Bomba Estereo, Lido Pimienta, Symphony Nova Scotia, Hilario Duran and Dayme Arocena, OKAN’s recent release Okantomi was awarded the 2024 Juno for Best Global Music Album, earning mentions in NPR Alt Latino, Le Monde, and CBC Music’s “Best of 2023” lists and garnering critical praise from Songlines UK, Billboard, Pop Matters and JAZZIZ. (The album also charted on the transglobal music and WMEC charts, reaching number one on !Earshot international and NACC Latin charts as well top rank on at least 8 North American community stations.)

Building on their Juno-winning sophomore Espiral (2020) and the Juno-nominated debut Sombras (2019), Okantomi, passionately advocates for freedom of expression, queer rights and gender equality through what CBC Music calls “joy as a form of resistance.”

Magdelys and Elizabeth’s mesmerizing harmonies, virtuosic musicianship and potent lyrics, as well as an unfailing ability to connect with audiences on a deep emotional level, are earning the duo a dedicated audience worldwide.

Part of the next wave of Cuban women composers and multi-instrumentalists who embrace genres that have not historically fostered women artists outside of the role of singer, OKAN co-leaders have faced many challenges. Magdelys talks about the obstacles she faced in pursuing percussion in her native Cuba and how “coming out as a percussionist” to her family. was as significant as revealing her sexual orientation in a culture that was very homophobic.

Born in Havana, Cuba, Elizabeth Rodriguez is a classically trained violinist who served as concertmaster for Havana’s Youth Orchestra. Magdelys Savigne hails from Santiago de Cuba and graduated with honors in orchestral percussion from Havana’s University of the Arts.

Official showcases at SXSW, Folk Alliance International, Mundial Montreal, Contact East, Folk Music Ontario, Pacific Contact, Ontario Contact and Global Toronto have led to invitations to perform across Canada and the U.S. with stops at The Lincoln Center, The Kennedy Center, Winter Jazzfest in NYC and Cal Performances in Berkeley, CA, as well a The Calgary, Canmore and Mission Folk Festivals. Recent highlights include opening for Snarky Puppy at the Toronto Jazz Festival, and featured performances at Montreal, Rochester and Atlanta Jazz Festivals.