AL SUR DE LA FRONTERA
(To the South of the Border)

Presented by The Ford and produced in partnership with Boss Witch Productions

PROGRAM

All works feature Maqueos Music Oaxacan Brass Band

AL SUR DE LA FRONTERA
Original version by Jimmy Kennedy and Michael Carr
Maestro Estanislao Maqueos, conductor 

KOATL
Carmina Escobar
Carmina Escobar and Dorian Wood, vocals; Yulissa Maqueos and Carmina Escobar, conductors

LA MARTINIANA
Anonymous Traditional Son from the isthmus of Tehuantepec, Oaxaca 
Maria Elena Altany, vocals; Efrain Gutierrrez, conductor 

LA PUTLEQUITA
Prudencio Navarrete
Baseck, experimental electronics; Yulissa Maqueos, conductor 

SANDUNGA
Anonymous Traditional Son from the isthmus of Tehuantepec, Oaxaca 
Erre Maqueos, solo trumpet; Maestro Estanislao Maqueos, conductor

CARACOL PURPURA ELECTRICO 
Dorian Wood, vocals; Baseck, experimental electronics

DIOS NUNCA MUERE
Macedonio Alcalá
Dorian Wood, vocals; Efrain Gutierrrez, conductor

LU NISADO’ (en el mar/ in the sea)
Carmina Escobar
Carmina Escobar, vocals; Yulissa Maqueos and Carmina Escobar, conductors

—intermission—

YEJH CHIAA
Erre Maqueos
Maestro Estanislao Maqueos, conductor

NTUKU’UN IN
Nadia López García
Nadia López García, pre-recorded voice, Yulissa Maqueos, poetry reading; Baseck, experimental electronics & arrangement 

FIESTA PERPETUA!
Carmina Escobar
Carmina Escobar, conductor

ÑUU NUU YUKU
Una Isu, Philharmonic Band Arrangement by Johnny Miguel
Una Isu, rap vocals; Yulissa Maqueos, conductor

CANCIÓN MIXTECA 
Jóse López Alvarez 
Carmina Escobar, Dorian Wood, Maria Elena Altany, vocals; Yulissa Maqueos, conductor

PORTALES
Carmina Escobar, Dorian Wood, Maria Elena Altany, vocals; Yulissa Maqueos and Baseck, noise makers; Yulissa Maqueos and Carmina Escobar, conductors; Audience, cellophane

AL SUR DE LA FRONTERA
Original version by Jimmy Kennedy and Michael Carr, Cumbia arrangement by Estanislao Maqueos
Maestro Estanislao Maqueos, conductor

DIRECTOR’S STATEMENT

We move in time. We walk the earth, maybe because we have no choice, maybe because it is in our nature, and we encounter each other through collision or tangential passing; our walks shape the land we cross and in turn it shapes us, both inside and outside. In this journey we huddle with our kin, we break bread, and create traditions that bind us to each other and the land in time, we become our origin. Tradition is a living entity, transmitted and transformed by our interactions. Tradition moves in time with us, and is both the feet and the voice of our core in relation to the worlds around us. 

We are in Los Angeles, a diasporic meeting point. Today on a map we identify the mainland in which we live as America, and in this cartographic construct LA is located in what we call the North. Another cosmogonic construct that embodies impediment or protection is the concept and concrete figure of the border. South of it is the place of origin of tonight's artists, we all have that in common. We also share a loose ancestry, a language from the colonizers, and our individual journeys that brought us to this common place in the North. Tonight our community anchor and guide is from Oaxaca, the philharmonic brass band Maqueos Music, led by maestro Estanislao Maqueos. They are the base of our encounter, of our celebration of togetherness, with them we have set the space to meet in the gamut of experiences, narratives, and backgrounds that conform “Latin America.” We each bring to this party our own culture and traditions, and we build communion through our differences.  

The name of tonight’s performance is derived  from the first (and last) piece of the concert, which is  part of the Maqueos Music Philharmonic Brass Band repertoire, “Al Sur de la Frontera.” This piece is symbolic of the immigrant experience, gestures towards the memory of the place of origin by invoking the South, and expresses the struggles of the northbound journey by naming the construct and physical entity of “the border.” But here nostalgia is only a brief whisper, because taking strength from the pride of the place of origin not only roots us, but it also gives us  the power to create something new, to connect in wholeness to each other, to create communitas in love and respect. 

—Carmina Escobar

CREDITS

Creator, Artistic Director, and Music Director:
Carmina Escobar 

Music Director:
Estanislao Maqueos

Produced by:
The Ford and Boss Witch Productions

Core Ensemble:
Maqueos Music Oaxacan Brass Band

Artistic Director and Executive Producer:                 
Madeline Falcone 

PERFORMERS

Soloists:
Baseck, Carmina Escobar, Dorian Wood, Maria Elena Altany, Una Isu, Yulissa Maqueos

Conductors: 
Maestro Estanislao Maqueos, Yulissa Maqueos, Efrain Gutierrrez

Clarinet: 
Yulissa Maqueos, Efrain Gutierrrez, Tania Maqueos, Dylan Jiménez, Arthur Guzmán

Soprano Saxophone: 
Diego Núñez, Joseph Amaya

Alto Saxophone: 
Miguel Martínez, Yareni Cruz, Iván Salas

Tenor Saxophone: 
Andrea Ventura, Angel Jimenez, Briza López

Trumpet: 
Estanislao Maqueos, Erre Maqueos, Temo Garcia, Emiliano Jimenez, Ricardo Hernández

Euphonium: 
Thomas Lopez, Mauro Hernandez

Trombone: 
Edward Maqueos, Erick Ventura, Ángel Gómez, Gael Sanchez 

Alto Horn: 
Mateo Cruz 

Tuba:
Alison Barrera, Kristian Fabian

Percussion: 
Betsabet Ventura, David Gonzalez, Miguel Ventura

CREATIVE TEAM

Wardrobe, Hair, and Makeup Designer:
Pony Lee

Assistant Wardrobe, Hair, and Makeup Designer:
Spike Rodriguez 

Wardrobe Fabricator:
KA McMahon

Jewelry:
Karen Lofgren

Makeup Artist:
Michaela Carr

Associate Producer:
Josephine Shetty

Publicist:
Matthew Johnstone

Poet:
Nadia López García

Audio Consultant:
Justin Jefferson Asher 

Megaphone Reconstructor:                                         
Brian Stanis

Gobo Design:                                                            
Sean Deyoe

THANK YOU
Silvia Maqueos, Cynthia Prida,  JD DiFabbio, Adrienne Andisheh, Tina Marie Del Rosario, Dana, Micaela, Brian, Yuma, and the amazing team at The Ford without whom this presentation would not have been possible

Boss Witch Productions Board Members: 
Laura Gutiérrez, Timur, Raven Chacon, Daniela Lieja Quintanar, Abby Sher, Josephine Shetty, and Micaela Tobin 

Boss Witch Productions Donors:
Abby Sher, Anuradha Vikram, Ariel Osterweis, Beck+Col, Cassia Streb, Daniela Lieja Quintanar, Edgar Miramontes, Emily Call, Jaime Scholnick, Jen Bewerse, Julia Meltzer, Laura Gutierrez, Laurene Harding Rivas, Liz Goetz, Margo Harms, Mark Allen, Mary Fagot, Michael R Light, Nicole Jefferson, Paul Chavez, Sandra Powers, Timur, Veronika Krausas

Sponsors:
California Institute of the Arts and Folklore Salon and Barber 

IMPORTANT NOTES 

• All of the plastic materials used in the performance of AL SUR DE LA FRONTERA are recyclable and will be reused or recycled following the performance

• The balloons used in the performance are organic latex and compostable

• The cellophane paper is derived from bio-products and will decompose in 10–30 days. You may choose to take it with you for your compost, or leave it in one of our boxes on your way out for us to compost it.