This article was translated byย John R. Bopp

Basque group Kalakan is starting a tour on November 7th that will take them to a part of South America where Basques have a notable presence: Argentina and Uruguay.

Tonight, theyโ€™re starting their tour with a free concert in the Usina del Arte in Buenos Aires, and theyโ€™ll continue through Buenos Aires, Montevideo, Necochea, and Mendoza, to finally cross the Atlantic on their way to a concert in Pamplona.

By the way, in Necochea, theyโ€™ll play at the Argentine National Basque Week which is being organized by the Euxkaletxea in that touristic coastal town in Buenos Aires province. ย 

Itโ€™s interesting to see how the media are treating their visit, their decision to sing in Basque, or their geographic origin. ย It never ceases to surprise us that theyโ€™re constantly being asked if they sing in Basque for political reasons, or if Madonna chose them to join her on her world tour because they sang in that language, or to claim that they sing โ€œFranco-Basqueโ€ songs.

They sing in Basque because thatโ€™s their language. ย Madonna chose them because theyโ€™re incredible musicians who have a drawing power thatโ€™s hard to resist. ย And, theyโ€™re Basque. ย Itโ€™s true that they live under French administration, but that doesnโ€™t change the fact that theyโ€™re Basque in the slightest. ย Theyโ€™re many other things too, but theyโ€™re Basque, period.

On the other hand, it seems that the idea of โ€œBasque musicโ€ is for some, for many, an idea of a fossilized culture, preserved in formaldehyde, or in glass cases in museums, a โ€œdeadโ€ part of a โ€œdeadโ€ culture, that was born into a people that has disappeared, โ€œdissolvedโ€ in modernity. ย Some even dream of that.

But nothing could be further from the truth. ย Basque culture is alive and well. ย It influences the world and the world influences it. ย It changes, it adapts, itโ€™s molded, but it never loses its soul, nor does it ever disconnect from its roots.

These days, Argentines and Uruguayans, Basque-Argentines and Basque-Uruguayans can enjoy a group that proves all this: the strength, vitality, modernity, and tradition that are concentrated in Basque culture.

Weโ€™ll leave you with the two articles published about this tour in Argentina and a pair of videos in which the group co-stars. ย Basque music and culture are very alive and very open to the world.

El Dรญa – 5/11/2016 – Argentina

Tras girar con Madonna, el trรญo vasco Kalakan llega a La Plata

En el marco de una gira por Argentina, Kalakan, terceto vasco de percusiรณn y canto que durante siete meses de 2012 participรณ del tour mundial de Madonna, se presentarรก por primera vez en nuestra ciudad, con un funciรณn especial que se concretarรก maรฑana, a las 21, en La Salamanca, 10 esquina 60.

(Sigue) (Traducciรณn automรกtica)


La Naciรณn – 5/11/2016 – Argentina

Canciones del Paรญs Vasco Francรฉs y un proyecto israelรญ para el mundo

Kalakan es un trรญo vocal y percusivo que interpreta temas tradicionales de hace varios siglos, con arreglos a tres voces en euskera.

(Sigue) (Traducciรณn automรกtica)



Last Updated on Dec 20, 2020 by About Basque Country


Lagun iezaguzu aboutbasquecountry.eus mantentzen!
Help us keep aboutbasquecountry.eus running!
Ayรบdanos a mantener aboutbasquecountry.eus

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.