By Christian Potts
The Norman Transcript
NORMAN — A staple of the Norman Public Library’s annual Hispanic Heritage Festival is the variety of music it offers. This year’s eighth annual edition is no exception.
Four acts will perform during the event, set 1 to 6 p.m. Sept. 12 at the library, 225 N. Webster Ave.
· Mariachi Orgullo de America, founded in 2002, averages about 120 performances a year throughout the region and has earned the unofficial title as “Oklahoma’s Mariachi.” The group performs traditional mariachi music that has roots in the state of Jalisco, Mexico, and has grown throughout Mexico and the southwestern United States.
· Raices, a group of musicians from Brazil, Mexico and Colombia, gets its sound from a mixture of American jazz and Caribbean music. The trio has played together since 2006.
· Skinfonia combines percussion, vocals, saxophone and melodica in playing Afro-Cuban, African and even Persian melodies set to Afro-Cuban and Colombian rhythms.
The group is making its first appearance at the festival.
· Son del Barrio, which features vocalists, trombone, flute and trumpet, seeks to “recreate the sounds and feelings that are experienced everyday in the world’s Latino neighborhoods for all audiences,” according to a biography of the group. They have played together since 2002.
Music lovers seeking a different sort of sound can attend the Hispanic Festival Gala, which opens 6 p.m. Friday, Sept. 10, the weekend of festivities.
Colombian pianist José Luis Tono will perform on a Steinway grand piano that will be set up in the library in an event that is part of the Norman Arts Council’s Second Friday Circuit of Art Series.
The festival also will feature food, a South American MarketPlace, a display of work by several local artists and activities for children throughout Sunday.
All events are free and open to the public.
For more information, call 701-2600 or go online to www.justsoyouknow.us/norman.
