What: Singer/Songwriter Yahir Durán presentation July 19th 8 p.m. at the Municipal Auditorium Tickets 80 pesos / VIP 150 pesos. July 20th Book presentation
A few months ago, when Luis Lugo brought David Alguilar to perform in town, I interviewed him a bit. If you recall, he had brought his friend David both as an excuse to see him as well as to help with his “crowdfund” project Fondeadora (which included a certain amount of concerts and raising a certain amount of funds). Amidst embarrassed laughter, he hinted he liked this whole thing of being a musical promoter.
At that time, he told me if all went well he had a number of very talented friends, who deserved to be heard. Now, he’s at it again, and bringing Yahir Durán to Puerto Peñasco where the singer/songwriter will close out his Northern Tour. Yes, our sacred Rocky Point is now on the maps of many.
….(Excerpts of interview with Luis Lugo)….
Yahir Durán is coming from Guadalajara. He’s been living there for twenty-one years though he’s originally from Topolobampo, or rather he’s also from Sinaloa (David Aguilar who played Puerto Peñasco in January is also from Sinaloa though resides in Mexico City).
What’s interesting, and what I like a lot about his music, is that he has a very mixed style – from rancheras, cumbia, merengue, trova, one or another sultry song – some with jazz or blues, and almost a little rap. Also, his lyrics are very poetic and encompass a number of topics, he doesn’t just get stuck on one.
He is quite educated and has studied literature along with various writers and poets, hence his love for words; Durán has a degree in Sacred Music (just as local musician Germán Esquer, director of the City’s Music School – who actually studied at the same school). He also has material for piano that he’s also going to play here.
I believe he now also teaches pre-school. He’s applied his art there as he began composing didactic material so the children could learn. He has a lot of material in that respect, and an album that he’ll also have with him I think. He’s very versatile and does a bit of everything!
– Out of pure curiosity, do Yahir and David know each other?
– Yes, of course. In fact, David’s music is influenced by Yahir’s. When David moved to the south, to Mexico City, Yahir already had quite a bit of experience, and was heard around a lot. He’s from a school generation just before us.
– I opened a concert for him once in Hermosillo, about ten years ago. There I met him in person, because I already knew him, or rather knew his music and obviously I liked it.
That was in 2003, in a small bar named Está Cabrál, which is famous for inviting many musicians such as Alejandro Filio, Fernando Delgadillo, Mexicanto, and other generations such as Yahir, David, and many musical stand outs from what we’ll call alternative, or well, that are “rolas” as they say.
We’ve stayed in contact since then. When I was in Mexico City I also went to see him. It was precisely during that adventure to Mexico City (basically with just a backpack) that I became friends with a number of musicians and singer/songwriters.
What’s curious is he got in contact with me about coming to Puerto Peñasco, ever since we were putting together David’s thing in January. Yahir found out through Facebook and saw everything we were doing with the concert so he wrote and asked if we could something similar with him, and well, Yes, Fabulous! Of course! I also have others in mind that I’m in contact with…
Yahir has won prizes in contests in which he’s participated, from Guadalajara at the Jalisco Cultural Institute, to San Luis Potosí, among others; he’s also won awards in literature as he’s also a writer – he’s won awards for stories, narratives, and poetry. He has books and actually he’s also going to present a book here in Puerto Peñasco, on Sunday the 20th.
It’s so people can get to know him. He’s an artist in many senses and we’ve got to take advantage of having him here. The book presentation is thanks to the reading club Las Voces Vienen del Mar, and the writers’ group Página en Blanco. He’s going to present his only official book of narratives published by an editor; he has a number of books but they’re all independent publications.
Saturday’s concert, July 19th is at the Municipal Auditorium and begins at 8 p.m. Tickets are 80 pesos (about $7 US) and VIP tickets are 150 pesos (about $12 US).
– I love this, because I get two (or three) birds with one stone. I get to see my friends, they get to perform and get to know Peñasco, and Peñasco gets to know them.
There’s a whole wave of people with a style that is really popular in the center of the country, but that we barely hear here.
It’s “trova” but not very troubadorish itself. It comes from the concept trovare, which means traveling, but the musical style has diversified and become more independent and experimental. The original concept of trova, comes from Cuban trova, of protests; now the melodies and themes are much more varied, there’s a lot of literature. It’s being redefined. In fact in the south they’ve named themselves “Roleros” and not as much troveros… They roll out tunes, and roll all over, traveling and singing, taking their music and their ideas.