Search - Conjunto Jardin :: Nuevo Son Jarocho

Released in 1998, Nuevo Son Jarocho is the debut CD of Los Angeles-based Conjunto Jardín. Updating and reinvigorating the lively jarocho music of Veracruz, Mexico, Conjunto Jardín is led by sisters Libby and Cindy Harding (the name is a play on the Spanish pronunciation of their last name). Their seamless sibling vocals ? reflecting 25 years of singing together ? are accompanied by Libby on jarana (small strummed 8-string guitar) and Cindy on requinto (a 4-string guitar on which percussive melodies are played with a long pua or pick). The sisters have played jarocho music virtually all their lives, starting as children learning from and performing with their father, renowned Latin American scholar and musician Timothy Harding. They have further honed their skills with trips to Veracruz and by studying with master jarocho musicians in Mexico and the U.S. Around the traditional core of jarana and requinto, Conjunto Jardín features Gary Johnson (Sabiá, Word of Mouth) on ?incredible keyboard-harp simulations? (Tom Cheyney, L.A. Weekly). Jarocho?s African roots are highlighted by Benin, West Africa native Marcel Adjibi (Manu Dibango, Aster Aweke) on congas and vocals, while Rick Moors (the Bonedaddys) plays bass and Ricardo ?Tiki? Pasillas (Marc Anthony) contributes percussion and gritos. The end result is a lively reinterpretation of the style that respects jarocho?s key traditions and captures its irreverent spirit with a fun, supercharged approach that gently modernizes the music while broadening its appeal. Recorded by Ciro Hurtado and mixed by Larry Hirsch, known for his work with Los Lobos, Ry Cooder and Bonnie Raitt, Nuevo Son Jarocho caught the ear of Putumayo World Music, who picked up ?La Bruja? from the CD for their compilation Putumayo Presents Mexico, released in April 2001.