Donostia-San Sebastián. The conditions imposed by the pandemic have made many Basque gatherings and activities difficult and have made others possible. The latter is the case of musicians Iñar Sastre (piano) and Jagoba Astiazaran (txistu) who after publishing their album “Arineketan,” in September of last year, will debut on YouTube today, the video of their single “Belauntxingoa,” with the participation of the trio “Alma” from New York, and the Gazte Alai Basque Dancers from the Necochea, Argentina Basque Club.
The album includes songs rescued by Gipuzkoan folklorist, Juan Ignazio Iztueta (1767-1845), and fusions these melodies that are 200 years old with contemporary
rhythms and touches of jazz and pop. Jagoba met Alba Sanchez Torremoche from the Alma trio in Donostia while studying musical composition and proposed her a version of the song “Belauntxingoa." The NY trio of female voices were encouraged for the first time to sing in Basque, achieving a renewed, interesting and original version.
The project reached even further to Argentina inviting the Gazte Alai Basque dancers from the Necochea Basque Club to also be part of it. They accepted enthusiastically, enjoying the participation after being restricted so long because of the pandemic. The result is the gathering in this video that debuts today, April 28th, the day before International Dance Day at 9pm on YouTube that can be enjoyed from anywhere in the world on Thursday.
Sastre and Astiazaran, and as Iztueta says it in the song, have taken old forgotten melodies to a new place, demonstrating that they can be danced today. Looking to the future, even though they understand that these are hard times, they hope that the three groups can meet in person to share an exchange that to date has only been done over the internet.
To watch the debut of “Belauntxingoa” click here.
When: today, April 28, 2021
Time: at 9pm in Euskal Herria, 4pm in Argentina, and 3pm in New York
-More information on the Alma trio
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