Almadraba by Oscar Peñas at the 2018 Next Wave Festival

Guitarist and composer Oscar Peñas presents his latest jazz production inspired by the Andalusian fishing tradition.

Almadraba by Oscar Peñas

• On Wednesday, October 3 at 7:30 pm.
• On Thursday, October 4 at 7:30 pm.
• On Friday, October 5 at 7:30 pm.
• On Saturday, October 6 at 7:30 pm.

Spanish-born guitarist and composer Oscar Peñas and his quartet combine piano, bass, and drums with a string quartet in this classical-jazz suite inspired by the 3,000-year-old Andalusian fishing tradition known as the almadraba. Borrowing sounds from Cuban and South American folk music, as well as from Peñas’s own Iberian heritage, the composition pays poetic tribute to this age-old ecological technique for sustainably trapping bluefin tuna. A musical narration of this arduous process —from the labyrinthine formation of boats to the dramatic hoisting of nets— Almadraba is both a lush melding of sonic styles and a celebration of ancient wisdom.

About Next Wave Festival

BAM’s Next Wave Festival has permanently changed the artistic landscape, featuring breakout performances and landmark productions. Using a name that plays on the New Wave in French cinema, BAM President and Executive Producer Harvey Lichtenstein launched a series entitled “The Next Wave/New Masters” in November 1981 with four productions: three dance works, plus Philip Glass’ new opera Satyagraha. A more ambitious program followed in 1982, including a two-evening performance work by Laurie Anderson entitled United States: Parts I-IV.
The success of these first two years helped propel a bolder and riskier program in the years to come—one that has defined BAM and an entire generation of artists. In October 1983, the Next Wave Festival was launched, which spotlighted exciting new works and cross-disciplinary collaborations by promising young artists.