Basque music leaves a mark in Glasgow
Euskara. Kultura. Mundura.
The Celtic Connections festival in Glasgow will be in full swing until February 3rd, but the Basque bands have come and gone. Korrontzi, Kalakan, Huntza, Oreka Tx and Tosta Banda performed on stage, and on January 24th and 25th several Basque music representatives took part in Connecting Cultures, the event held for industry professionals.
The Celtic Connections festival in Glasgow will be in full swing until February 3rd, but the Basque bands have come and gone. Korrontzi, Kalakan, Huntza, Oreka Tx and Tosta Banda performed on stage, and on January 24th and 25th several Basque music representatives took part in Connecting Cultures, the event held for industry professionals.
The first Basque band on stage was Korrontzi, who gave a concert on January 24th in the Old Fruitmarket: a former fruit market-cum- concert hall. After that came Kalakan, who played the same day in the Strathclyde Suite of the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall.
On Friday 25th, the duo Oreka Tx gave a special performance for school children, in which they explained how traditional Basque instruments such as the txalaparta (a wooden percussion instrument) and the alboka (a kind of double flute) work. Huntza and Tosta Banda performed that evening: the Huntza played at Queen Margaret Student Union, and Tosta Banda at the Royal Concert Hall. But the night was not over yet. The festival organized a Late Night Session in which Huntza and Tosta Banda joined other bands, each performing a small piece of their show in a more laid-back atmosphere.
Finally, on Saturday January 26th the Oreka Tx went on stage again in the evening at the Royal Concert Hall.
Apart from the concerts in Glasgow, there was also time for talks and cultural gathering during. The Connecting Cultures event took place on January 24th and 25th, and several Basque music professionals were invited to participate in the talks and networking activities: LadyRed management, Korrontzi, DJ Makala, Mauka Musikagintza, Aztarna, TxalapArt, Bidasoa Folk, Maitakultura, Bapo Bapo productions and Euskal Barrokensemble.
