American Sabor: Latinos in U.S. Popular Music Opens at EMP|SFM Oct. 13

American Sabor: Latinos in U.S. Popular Music Opens at EMP|SFM Oct. 13

Santana Rhythms headlines opening day festivities

SEATTLE, Oct. 12 /PRNewswire/ -- On Saturday, Oct. 13, 2007, Experience Music Project|Science Fiction Museum and Hall of Fame (EMP|SFM) will open American Sabor: Latinos in U.S. Popular Music, the first major museum exhibition to tell the story of the profound influence and impact of Latinos in American popular music. American Sabor: Latinos in U.S. Popular Music is created by Experience Music Project in partnership with the University of Washington. The 5,000 square foot bilingual and interactive exhibition is accompanied by a bilingual catalog. American Sabor: Latinos in U.S. Popular Music runs through Sept. 8, 2007.

From 12 noon until 4 p.m. on Oct. 13, Sky Church at EMP|SFM will radiate with Latino sounds from local bands to internationally-renowned musicians. The day's premiere event will bring together musicians from the band, Santana.

Santana Rhythms is a performance by and conversation with Michael Carabello and Michael Shrieve -- original percussionists from Santana -- who will be joined by Abraxas bassist Alphonso Johnson and Chepito Areas's son, Adrian Areas, who will play the timbales. In between songs they will discuss how they created arrangements for songs like "Oye Como Va," "Soul Sacrifice" and others.

   Performance schedule for Oct. 13:    --  Totiyo y Amigos, 12 noon-1 p.m.;   --  Tumbao, 1:30-2:30 p.m.; and   --  Santana Rhythms, 3-4 p.m.    

American Sabor: Latinos in U.S. Popular Music highlights inspiration from five major centers of Latino popular music: New York City, Los Angeles, Miami, San Antonio and San Francisco.

Curator of American Sabor: Latinos in U.S. Popular Music, Jasen Emmons has worked alongside University of Washington Guest Curators Marisol Berrios-Miranda, Shannon Dudley and Michelle Habell-Pallan since 2004 to research and develop the exhibition.

   Exhibition highlights include:    --  100 artifacts, including Ritchie Valens' Harmony electric guitar and       the Mexican-style vest he wore on American Bandstand in 1958; a       trombone belonging to salsa star Willie Colon; a gown worn by salsa       star Celia Cruz; and much more.   --  Instrument interactives that demonstrate how to play hooks from       well-known Latino songs and a mixer that allows visitors to remix       Latino songs.   --  A dance floor with a large screen projecting images of dancers and       where guests can move to their favorite rhythms.   --  Filmed oral history interviews with more than 45 Latino musicians.   --  Listening kiosks with explanations about the Latino influence behind       popular songs.    

The exhibition is sponsored locally by The Boeing Company and Qwest. Opening weekend programming is sponsored by Safeco Insurance. Additional support for the exhibition has been provided by PONCHO, Moneytree, Inc., 4Culture and Zune.

Members of the exhibition's community advisor group include: Casa Latina, Centro Cultural Hispano Americano, Consulado de Mexico, El Centro de la Raza, the Latina/o Bar Association of Washington, Sea Mar and the Washington State Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.

American Sabor: Latinos in U.S. Popular Music exhibition content was developed in collaboration with the Simpson Center for the Humanities at the University of Washington, and initial support for the exhibition was provided by the Seattle Partnership for American Popular Music (SPAPM). SPAPM is a collaborative project between EMP|SFM, the University of Washington School of Music, and KEXP 90.3 FM. The Paul G. Allen Family Foundation supports SPAPM.

Admission to EMP|SFM is $15 for adults and $12 for seniors, youth and students and military personnel with ID. Children under 5 are free. EMP|SFM is open from 10 a.m.-5 p.m., seven days a week.

Since EMP opened in 2000 and SFM in 2004, EMP|SFM has welcomed more than 3.7 million visitors through its doors.

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FCMN Contact:

Source: Experience Music Project|Science Fiction Museum and Hall of Fame

CONTACT: Maggie Skinner of Experience Music Project|Science Fiction
Museum and Hall of Fame, +1-206-262-3245, maggies@empsfm.org

Web site: http://www.empsfm.org/

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Profile: International Entertainment