About La Jarana
La Jarana is a Contemporary Jazz-Percussion ensemble conformed by unprecedented instruments: Vibraphone, Electric Bass, Saxophone and a Murga Drum Set. The Murga Drum Set is the percussion ensemble that serves to the most popular polyphonic choral genre in Uruguay: the Murga. Three instruments form the set: a Bass Drum, Cymbals and a Snare Drum; each of them executed by a different percussionist. Our band is on the continuous search to fuse the rhythmic and pitch-related language of the Uruguayan Murga Drum Set with other genres and musical languages such as Jazz, Tango, Brazilian, Cuban and Argentinean Folklore, amongst others. Our pieces acquire a particular color as they are interpreted with such form: the melodies and the solos get articulated with each other with elaborated harmonic and rhythmic arrangements. Our repertoire is extremely varied as it paves its way through American Folklore and our own compositions. Some of the most far-reaching festivals we have partaken in are: “Jazz a la Calle” “Festival de Percusión de Montevideo” “Primer Encuentro de Vibrafonistas de Montevideo” ” “Festival de Jazz de Tucumán” (Argentina), along with others. On generous occasions, we have dictated clinics in which we disclosed and explained the rhythmic, timbre, and “melodic” language of the previously mentioned percussion instruments. In our clinics, the audience is welcome to experience this unique way of playing the cymbals, the snare drum, and the bass drum as they become familiar with the world of the native rhythms of Montevideo, Uruguay.
