Award-winning flamenco guitar and flute duo Melón Jiménez & Lara Wong bring the vibrant sounds of the Madrid flamenco-jazz scene to Canada on their cross-country tour. They are joined by celebrated Madrid dancer and choreographer, MariA.
Together, they are a dynamic encounter of dazzling guitar passages, mystical bansuri melodies, fiery footwork, and colorful flute improvisations. Their music and dance flows with elegance and emotive power, as they fuse the soul of flamenco with the inventive spirit of jazz and the rhythmic improvisations of Indian music.
CBC-Radio describes their music as " sensual and fully embodies the spirit of flamenco: virtuosity and passion" and World Music Central describes their "alluring style that presents prodigiously performed, masterfully crafted compositions"
Melón and Lara are both prominent figures in the world music and flamenco scene: Melón has toured extensively with artists like Anoushka Shankar, Ketama, Richard Bona, Niña Pastori, and Jorge Pardo, while Lara was awarded best flamenco instrumentalist at Festival Cante de las Minas, making her the first foreign prizewinner at Spain’s principal flamenco festival. Together, they have performed around the world at venues like Vancouver Folk Festival, Blue Note Shanghai, Mundial Montreal, Mariposa Folk, and SunFest.
MariA, a distinguished dancer and choreographer from Madrid, trained under flamenco masters such as Carmen Cortés and Juana Amaya. She has performed with Cirque du Soleil, Antonio Márquez, and Rafael Amargo, and has graced stages at the Folies Bergère in Paris and Teatro Calderón in Madrid.