Los Lobos at Goshen College (IN) Nov. 21: Acoustic Brilliance

Thirty-five years and still going strong, this Grammy® Award winning band has captivated fans around the world. The band’s evolving styles are influenced by traditional Spanish and Mexican music, rock and roll, R&B, folk and country. Rolling Stone magazine confirms its relevance: “With the exception of U2, no other band has stayed on top of its game as long as Los Lobos.”

Los Lobos has recently taken their world-class traditional acoustic presentation, or their folklorico set, to some big names in higher education : Humboldt State University (CA), Michigan State University (Wharton Center), UCLA; early next year finds the band at Duke, the University of Alabama, and Mississippi State U. It seems fitting somehow that the Lobos set of traditional Mexican folk music would find its way into the halls of academia because, after all, this presentation is of Smithsonian Museum-grade caliber hence its still-vital educational value. Equal parts history lesson, language seminar, and music appreciation, this close-to-the-heart show was multicultural long before the term was even coined; the always cultural Lobos have been singing these songs since day one of their storied career. The use of traditional instrumentation like bajo sexto, tres, and guitarron only serves to add authenticity. So when the band lands at Sauder Music Hall on the campus of Goshen College in Indiana on Saturday Nov. 21, the Lobos will be among familiar performance hall confines. The acoustic show is seen more rarely than Lobos in-demand electric set. Just the four original members onstage at first but the night will also include at some point Steve Berlin on saxophone with Cougar Estrada on percussion. Acoustic Lobos opened up for The Chieftains (or as Dave Hidalgo put it that night "Los Chieftains") for a series of shows in 2000 which included a stop at the Meadowbrook Music Festival (Oakland University, Rochester MI). This presentation has the ability to make you rethink and reconsider how music can and should be played. (Meijer Gardens photo courtesy of Pamela Troyer) More Goshen College info at:
http://www.gcmusiccenter.org/php/programming/performing.arts.php

All things Los Lobos: http://loslobos.setlist.com/
and http://www.loslobos.org/site/