Kepa Junkera

BILBAO. The bertsolari (Basque improviser singer) Xabier Bilbao Amuriza presented today in Bilbao the album ‘Bizi Beti’, a CD in which has collaborated the trikitilari Kepa Junkera that combines Ancient Biscayans´ ballads and sung by the Leioa Kantika Korala and fused with electronic music.

This new album, presented at the Headquarters of the SGAE,  Amuriza himself tells us that the CD consists of 12 tracks that includes “that musical touch of Kepa Junkera” allows us “to approach this new album in a different way, combining past, present and even perhaps to give us a glimpse of patterns of the near future.”

“A new concept of musical fusion, a different sound and most innovative proposal of coral in the moment” tells us Iñaki Iraeta, manager of Hiri Records, responsible for the production of this project.

Also Amuriza highlighted that it is “Old verses, a youth choir, lively rhythms of dance and electronic sounds” that is a continuity of his previous album he conducted in a much more “traditional” way with trikitixa but again focused on old Biscayans´ballads.

Information and photo from DEIA.

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XABIER AMURIZA     /     LEIOA KANTIKA KORALA     /     KEPA JUNKERA

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BETI BIZI is the new album presented under the label of Hiri Records and the production by the musician Kepa Junkera. Xabier Amuriza, the chorus of LEIOA KANTIKA KORALA and Kepa Junkera, himself joined their talents to present this new album composed of 12 songs that seamlessly blend our past, choral and electronic music.

“Old verses, a youth choir, lively rhythms of dance and electronic sounds make up the novelty and strength of this project” Xabier Amuriza

Ancient Biscayans´ ballads recovered by Xabier Amuriza, sung by LEIOA KANTIKA KORALA and that special touch of Kepa Music seals the unmistakable style of this album which allows us to approach this new album in a different way, combining past, present and even perhaps to give us a glimpse of patterns of the near future.

“A new concept of musical fusion, a different sound and most innovative proposal of coral in the moment” Kepa Junkera

An original bet, accomplice and emotionally charged.  A meeting place of talents and various proposals that make one of the most special projects for the moment. BETI BIZI.

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Published on JUNE 17 2010 in the newspaper DEIA

The World Cup has just started off, the most important sport event in the world. This year held in South Africa, a country full of contrasts and working hard to make his way to the so-called first world. Interestingly, I received an email from a friend who told me that there is a photographic exhibition in Bilbao, called Desvelos, which is exposed outdoors throughout the wide venue walk of Abandoibarra, between the Guggenheim and the Euskalduna.  It shows the snapshots of the Cameroon photographer Angèle Etoundi Essamba and was organized by The Africa House, an association that works to promote relations between Africa and the Spanish State. I’ve seen several of the photographs of the collection and was surprised by its strength, the contrast and elegance. It is a portrait of African women dressed with the controversial issue of the veil, a very stereotypical view in our society. Angèle has sought to go beyond, offering an elegant and sensual vision of it. And thinking about it, something similar happens to me with Africa. We all have a very specific image of the black continent. Safaris, tribes, hunger, disease, poverty, migration and great poverty, but Africa also has many other aspects that are worth knowing. The fauna and flora, the abundance of raw materials and minerals and the enormous variety of human cultural representations that makes this corner a living oasis, working much the same way about how our planet had to operate long ago. Many times we have that image with what they tell us about them but it is essential not to be satisfied with what they tell us. Let’s find answers! Africa is the mirror that reflects our past, a disturbing present and hopefully a more promising future. A corner that still, in which they can say whatever they want; you can savor the full essence of life, even in small sips.

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Today José Saramago has decided to say goodbye to all of us to continue his journey to the different corners of the so ul, far and unknown, but certainly it will be a new challenge for this great Portuguese writer.

From kepajunkera.com we want to give a small tribute to this amazing person, publishing the preface he wrote for my album ETXEA two years ago.

Photo by Jose Luis Nocito, Bilbao 2001.

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There is a musical city where all the cities of the world are represented, as if it were a mutual home.  The name of the architect and the builder of all of this is Kepa.

The oldest music was the human voice.  Somehow we could say the man discovered the music within himself, inside each sound of a word of our rude forefathers, even when it was going to be necessary thousands of years before the first one would be formed.

The music has always latent within the man, as a possibility, but multiple and murmuring, also lived nature.  The birds already singing, the wind whistling in the cavities of the grottoes, the cascades; thunders like a song of Richard Wagner in advance and altogether, and what we can also imagine, was the nature’s great orchestra, where an empty seat awaits the arrival of man.  Which finally appeared holding in his hands a bone with holes called flute. And also a round object with a hole, with a skin stretched over the opening, which would receive the name of drum.

Also bringing with him his own voice, and without no doubt, was one of the most sublime moments in history of mankind, in which a human being, man or woman, stood up to sing.  From there on, it may not appear at first glance, but the songs collected by Kepa Junkera are about this, in this unique recording that surely will seek new directions in the composition and musical interpretations.  To sing the language of others is the first challenge.

José Saramago (2008)

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Published in DEIA on June 10, 2010

Ten years ago, right this time, I presented my first website; kepajunkera.com, and I remember the powerful feeling that I felt at seeing it in the cyberspace. Even at that time it was fascinating to me to be able to “pin up” in the virtual world of the Net, a site in which contents were my own. Since then it has rained a lot and even more in the unstoppable and even maddening world of computing and telecommunications. The contents have changed and even on how to approach them and their subsequent treatment. Now and days, what is appearing on stage, among many others, the blogs, social networks all the time revolutionizing the landscape of the Internet, always in constant evolution.  Finally the physical gives way, increasingly, to a virtual and the information support conquest different spaces than the real world. Today, the access to it, to music, to images … reached almost an endless of huge proportions and we wanted with this new version of kepajunkera.com, which was presented this week, making it in the heart of everything published about my music, to be a place to meet and in consultation, both for the follower as the professional who needs constant updates. At the end this type of work are the result of the efforts of many people, that might not appear in the front row, but without whose efforts and dedication none of this would be possible. I want to thank each of you who have participated in this project, Bea, Iñaki and in particularly to Sole Calzada, whose talent and hard dedicated work without asking anything in exchange fills each page and each picture with it. Mila esker denori! (Millions of thanks, to all)  And again, this very special feeling, knowing that in a small corner of the immense virtual universe, exist a place where my music, my projects and I can also say that even part of my life, for anyone who wants to share. I’ll be waiting! This goes to  the three of you!!

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11/06/2010.

The Art Festival of Miajadas – FAM – is the first festival in Extremadura that never ends and is promoted by the City Hall of Miajadas (Cáceres) under the direction of the Department of Culture. It began in 2009 as a project which engages all citizens into an event, in which, over a week they exchange emotions, melodies, different view points and understanding the food, music, art and theatre among other disciplines.

FAM was founded with the firm goal in making Miajadas in the first Town Museum of Extremadura in Vanguard Art and being all held outdoors. In short, FAM is a festival made from Extremadura, empowering Extremadura artist, making Miajadas in a regional reference of avant-garde art, where in this edition the Basque accordionist Kepa Junkera will be in charge of putting the finishing touch to the festival, July 3, after six days of activities.

News sent from the www.akelarre-folk.com 11/06/2010 · © 2010

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Published in DEIA on June 3, 2010

Few people achieve in their work a new way of doing things. Usually they follow the trail of those who have successfully preceded us, to continue the journey. Like every kid, I loved to play cowboys and Indians, embodied by actors that have marked an era, the Westerns heroes imposing their law, galloping with the blow of a gun and rifle. Among them there was one that always caught my attention. His strength, far from depending  on what weapons he had, all was resided in his eyes, in his way in acting and in that false coldness. Clinton Eastwood Jr. was born in San Francisco, California and has just celebrated his 80th birthday, being in top form. He did not have a comfortable beginning and before he began acting in films, he had to work as a lumberjack, bricklayer, pianist, forest firefighter, etc. We all know his films, awards and success he has achieved in his life. But besides the economic and fame treasured by Clint Eastwood, he is a great example of a man seeking to improve and be consistent with himself. Throughout his career being an actor, director, producer, screenwriter, and musician he has gone from being a star of action, to give action to the human feelings and thus showing us the real hero he is, being of flesh and bone, everything done with an amazing genius. As he often says “in life you can not lose time, we must fight for what you love. If you find it, success is guaranteed.” There are certain people who, having begun their career in a particular way, overcoming fears and probably driven by new concerns, gives a twist to their career and begins to explore other unknown territories. Clint Eastwood is one of those examples, in which to discover, does not matter the age or circumstances or difficulties. Life is divided into two kinds of people, those who watch and those who do. I bet on the second. You just have to, above all, believe in yourself.

Kepa´s picture by the fantastic photographer Marie-José Durquet

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Today Kepa Junkera presents his new official website;

kepajunkera.com

A new place to meet and catch up on all the information about Kepa Junkera and his music.  We invite you to come in and enjoy this fresh, beautiful, stylish, clean, clear, unique art design web…. just like his music.

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Kepa Junkera produces ‘HERRIA’, his last album of his international collective project.

Article written by:
Maider IZETA | LOS ANGELES.  News published in the Diario Vasco on June 6, 2010

He has recorded with singers of Iranian origin, Korean and Navajo Indian musicians
A camera man and a photographer accompanies Kepa Junkera during this musical journey
“The Basque people of California have given me a lot. They are people who enjoy these encounters ”

“Years ago I made a bet. As a musician, you have to consider challenges. There are many artists I admire and with whom I have always wanted to collaborate and work with them it´s a source of energy for me. “These are the convincing words of the musician of Biscay, Kepa Junkera when he speaks of ‘Etxea‘ and ‘Kalea‘, the first two albums of his trilogy of Basque songs that will come to an end in a few months with ‘Herria‘ and which is much more than a collection of traditional songs versions sung in Euskera by a wide range of guest artists.

The first two installments of this project which, judging by the given names to the records, travel from private space of home to the city’s public, passing through the nexus of both, the street, were released 2008 and 2009, respectively. Today, Junkera is immersed in the production of ‘Herria‘, the latest album of a project that, in the last legislature, was financially supported by the Basque Government.

As in the previous work, the Biscayan musician has been traveling to Europe, Africa and America in search of unique sounds to merge with the rhythmic melodies of trikitixa. This search has led him to settle temporarily in California. “I’ve been in cities like San Francisco, New York, Los Angeles, Oakland …, places that attract me much by its diversity,” he says. In his visits to those cities, Junkera has recorded with Iranian-born singers, Korean musicians, Navajo Indians and a blues band, among others.

Continues to open doors

But Kepa Junkera´s project goes beyond the merely musical. His goal in this trilogy is, as he explains, “To open our music to the world. To do this, I have been helped by many interesting musicians, which I am very grateful. My goal is to continue to open doors. “Therefore, he visits cities like San Francisco or New York but not limited to long study sessions. Junkera spends time on the streets, collecting testimonies from people they have met during his travels.

A camera man and a photographer accompanies him on this musical journey. Some of the testimonies he has collected during his stay in California come from people of Basque origin. “I am very interested into uniting this chorus,” says the trikitilari. “The Basque people of California have given me a lot. These are people who enjoy these encounters and the experience is very positive. I receive love from them.”

In California, the main Basque communities are located in San Francisco, Fresno, Bakersfield and Chino. The people from Chino, located an hour from Los Angeles, have been directly involved in producing the next album of Junkera. And that ‘Herria‘ includes several songs recorded with the group NOKA. “We have recorded” Eperra’ “and some other themes. It’s being a very nice experience, “says Kepa Junkera. NOKA consists of three female descendants of Basques. The trio just released their second album of Basque folk songs, a work that fits well with the Junkera´s project. Besides recording with NOKA, visiting Chino, Kepa Junkera has been able to met the Basque Diaspora and collect their testimonies. Several people from the Euskal Etxea Chino (Chino Basque Club) have worked with the Biscay musician during his  stay in the Californian state.
Junkera´s album will be ready later this year: “I would like to release it in November. So my goal is to finish it by October. We’ll see.” Although he doesn´t known the number of songs included in ‘Herria‘, the musician Biscay is convinced that it will exceed the twenty songs. “It will be a double album as well. Follow the designs of ‘Etxea‘ and ‘Kalea‘.” From now until late summer, Kepa Junkera will continue to reside in California to continue his musical project.

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Published May 27, 2010 by the newspaper DEIA

The music or sound occurs because a body vibrates and it is transmitted into the environment.  There have been many who have tried to clarify the reasons for why the music and the sounds exercise such power inside of each and everyone of us.  How can something so present in our lives be so unknown? For many years, my life has been and is linked to everything that has to do with music and anything that is related to the world of the seven notes and their various combinations awakens my curiosity to an almost endless thirst for knowledge.  In ancient times, the music was used to communicate with the gods, and in Greece it was closely linked to the mathematics, specially, thanks to Pythagoras assigns the seven musical notes and talks about the number 7 as the perfect number, calling his attention that the music, as the gods, creates emotion and being invisible, that is, something that cannot be seen but produces visible effects. Today it is known that the music is able to heal both mentally and physically, that each note has its own vibration and that vibration may change a heart rate, creating in us an altered state of consciousness and it can even get us mad. The music is to feel it, embrace it and make it our own so it can become part of us in an exciting adventure into our inner selves.  Clearly it is a language, a method of communication but at the same time it is science and art and as such we should take it into consideration when creating a better and advanced society.  We can not pass up the opportunity to continue on seeking its knowledge and, above all, its understanding. We must go further on and discover all the richness that lies within that accompanies us daily in our lives in which we take as a common everyday thing.  We must evaluate it much more, because it is an important part of ourselves and what surround us.

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