La Catrina, from Carnegie Hall to San Miguel
By B. K. Lake, Feb 9, 2007

Pro Musica Concerts, La Catrina Sat & Sun, Feb 10 & 11, 5pm St. Paul’s Church, Cardo 6, 50/150 pesos

Less than three weeks after appearing at New York’s Carnegie Hall, the La Catrina String Quartet will perform February 10 and 11 in the San Miguel el Grande Pro Musica series of chamber music concerts.

In April, the group will participate in the third International Joseph Hayden Chamber Music Competition in Vienna. La Catrina reached the semifinals in 2005 at the fourth international Joseph Joachim Competition in Weimar, Germany. They have appeared in Japan, the United Kingdom, the United States and Mexico.

Also on the schedule is a return engagement at San Miguel's international chamber music festival in August, following the quartet’s festival debut last year. Their Pro Musica debut in January 2006, was so well received they were brought back for two concerts last July.

La Catrina was founded at Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, in 2001 by three musicians from Mexico, Daniel Vega-Albela, violin; Jorge Martinez, viola; Alan Daowz, cello; and George Anthony Figueroa, violin, who was born in New York City and studied in Puerto Rico. Quartet members are completing a master’s degree in chamber music performance at Kent State University in Ohio, where the Miami String Quartet serves on the faculty.

In addition to performing the masterworks of the string quartet repertoire, the group is committed to working closely with living composers and promoting Mexican and Latin American composers. In their February 10 concert, they will play “Our Hands Were Tightly Clenched,” written for them in 2003 by Zae Munn. Born in 1953, Munn is a prolific composer as well as a professor of music at Saint Mary’s College in South Bend, Indiana.

The February 11 concert will include “La Oración del Torero,” the best-known work by the late Spanish composer Joaquín Turina, whose pieces are known for their local color.

Tickets are available at Casa de Papel, Mesones 57; La Conexión, Aldama 3; the Sierra Nevada Hotel, Hospicio 46; and at the St. Paul’s Church office, weekdays between 11am and 2pm. Tickets can be reserved by calling 152-0387 during those hours and purchased at the door one hour before concert time. 

V Encuentro Nacional de Jazz

Thur–Sat, Feb 15–17 & Fri, Feb 23, 8pm
Teatro Ángela Peralta
Mesones & Hernández Macías
200/150 pesos


Wed & Thurs, Feb 21 & 22, 8pm
Teatro Miguel Malo
Bellas Artes, H. Macías 75
150 pesos


Sat, Feb 24, 8pm & Sun, Feb 25, 5pm
Teatro Santa Ana, Biblioteca Pública
Reloj 50A



From February 15 to February 25, jazz fans in San Miguel de Allende will have a delightfully full schedule. 

Fine Wine Trio, consisting of Gabriel Hernández on piano, Gene Perla on bass and Bobby Kapp on drums, will kick off the celebration on February 15. The three have toured extensively together, including jazz festivals in Poland, the Czech Republic and Canada.

On February 16, Bernal/Basman/Monterrubio, who have played with the likes of Winton Marsalis, Cuban drummer Ignacio Berroa and worked with internationally acclaimed producers such as Daniel Lanois, will perform.

Nicole Henry takes center stage on February 17. Her debut CD, The Nearness of You, released in 2004 in the US and Japan, ranked second on HMV’s Jazz Charts in Japan, second only to Norah Jones. Henry’s voice “aims for the emotional center” as she commands and captures the complete attention of the audience, telling real stories while also bringing a sense of joie de vivre.

All three of these concerts take place at the Teatro Ángela Peralta and begin at 8pm. Cost is 200 pesos for orchestra seating or 150 pesos for general seating.

At the Teatro Miguel Malo, Emmy award-winning composer, local pianist Ken Bichel performs at 8pm on February 21. His approach to the piano is eclectic, neither jazz nor classical, but rather an amalgam of multinational styles and influences.

Mark Aanderud will be joined with two guests for a performance on February 22. He has performed extensively throughout Mexico, the US and Europe, including three consecutive years at the Prague Jazz Festival.

Both of these concerts take place at the Teatro Miguel Malo at 8pm. Cost is 150 pesos general admission.

Moving back to the Teatro Ángela Peralta, The Cool Jazz Era, led by Salomón Maawad on saxophone and rounded out with Gabriel Hernández on piano, Julian Arcos on guitar, Gilberto González on bass, Miguel Fabero on percussion and Carlos Aguinaga on drums, will give a rousing concert of jazz, funk, Latin blues, and samba. The performance begins at 8pm and costs 200 pesos for orchestra seating or 150 pesos for general seating.

Wrapping up the talent-filled week will be Wendy Bichel and Ken Basman in a jazz cabaret on February 24 and 25 in the Teatro Santa Ana. Bichel brings her unique blend of jazz and cabaret to San Miguel, while Basman, a true guitar virtuoso, adds a stylistic richness to the show. On February 24 the performance will be at 8pm and on February 25 at 5pm.