Nobody bridges the gap between generations or musical genres like Sweet Plantain, a refreshingly new acoustic string quartet. Artfully fusing the western classical traditions in which they were trained with the hip hop, jazz improv and Latin rhythms on which they were raised, these four versatile young musicians are gaining fans across the world (they are on tour in Russia this month) for their precise and passionate playing.
The group will make its Ketchum debut on Friday, March 26, as the last performance in the 2009–2010 Sun Valley Center for the Arts Winter Performance Series.
Separately hailing from the South Bronx, New Jersey and Venezuela, together these musicians give voice to a sound that is contemporary and multicultural. Sweet Plantain specializes in genre-blurring, original compositions and arrangements as well as contemporary works by Latin American composers. Its unique style fuses Latin, classical and jazz forms.
“Sweet Plantain struck me with their originality and interest in bridging genres. Hearing cellist David Gotay speak about growing up listening to hip-hop and realizing its parallels in classical music was an eye opener. I thought, “this group would be great for our audience and for students in our schools.” Their repertoire is varied and is based in contemporary classical composition,” said Kristine Bretall, Marketing Director.
The group consists of violinist Eddie Venegas, who hails from Venezuela and also plays the trombone; violinist Romulo Benavides, raised in Venezuela and trained at the Juilliard School in New York; New Jersey–born violist Orlando Wells; and cellist David Gotay, whose life story takes him from the Bronx to Carnegie Hall.
Much of the group's repertoire is rooted in improvisation. Once an integral part of Western classical music, improvisation has all but been abandoned in the training and performance of classical artists, although it continues to occupy an important role in nearly every other musical genre. Sweet Plantain works to weave the possibilities of improvisation into classical music by arranging existing pieces and writing original compositions that contain improvised sections.
To hear the music, visit www.sweetplantain.com .
Sweet Plantain will also be doing a school residency in the Wood River Valley. From their home base in New York City, the group runs a string program at the St. Ignatius School in the South Bronx, a neighborhood with one of the highest poverty rates in all of the United States. Sweet
Plantain also hosts public high school music student interns, or "apprentices," who regularly rehearse with the group and perform alongside the quartet at the end of each semester.
Tickets to Sweet Plantain are $20 for Sun Valley Center for the Arts members and $30 for nonmembers. The performance takes place Friday, March 26, at 7:30 pm at the Church of the Big Wood in Ketchum. For details and to purchase tickets, go online to www.sunvalleycenter.org , call 208.726.9491 ex 10 or visit The Center in Ketchum.
The Center thanks performance sponsors Barbara & Tod Hamachek, Carol Scheifele Holmes & Ben Holmes and U.S. Bank for helping to make this concert possible.
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