Raices & Rhythms: Latin America in Australia invites audiences into an intimate world where music meets storytelling. Across the night, celebrated Latin American musicians now living in Australia take to the stage in stripped-back acoustic sets — pairing original songs with favourite covers — before sitting down with MC Frank Madrid, Canberra’s best-known Latin cultural personality, for candid conversations about their inspirations, journeys, and lives as artists in Australia.
🇨🇴 OSCAR JIMENEZ – Colombian artist based in Melbourne, known for his work with ARIA-nominated groups and for blending Colombian roots with urban Australian soundscapes.
🇧🇷 HUMBERTO PORTO – Brazilian musician and percussionist, celebrated for his work in samba and Afro-Brazilian traditions, now making waves in Melbourne’s Latin music scene.
🇦🇷 RODOLFO CAIVANO - Argentine Bandoneon player born in Mendoza, trained in Buenos Aires, now based in Canberra and Artistic Director of the Canberra Tango Quintet.
🇵🇪 EDUARDO RUIZ – Peruvian classical guitarist whose repertoire spans intricate traditional forms and contemporary expression.
🇦🇷🇧🇷 FABRICIO TOCCO – Argentine/Brazilian musician and ANU academic, whose research and practice bridge culture and scholarship.
🇦🇷 NADIA CAMARA CARDOZO – Argentine vocalist and local performer with a passion for sharing the sounds of Buenos Aires in Canberra.
🇨🇴 JUAN GARCES – Colombian percussionist rooted in Afro-Colombian traditions, now based in Canberra. He trained with master drummers in Colombia and performs with groups in Syd and CBR.
🇻🇪 FRANK MADRID - Venezuelan-born, Canberra-based arts manager and broadcaster Frank Madrid has 30+ years’ experience producing major festivals and cultural initiatives in Australia and beyond.
The concert is bookended by two special percussion performances - a pre-show outdoor performance by Raio De Sol and closing with Colombian percussion roots with Cumbia Rueda lead by Juan Garces.
This special pre-concert to La Fiesta (Canberra’s major Latin American festival held the next day, Sat 25 Oct at Latin American Plaza) offers a rare chance to encounter the music of Latin America in close-up, away from the big stages and festival crowds. Here, audiences discover the stories behind the music: personal histories, artistic roots, and the ways culture is carried across oceans and made anew in Canberra and beyond.
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