West African poly-rhythms and melodies interwoven with Afrocuban, Jazz, Rock, Funk and Flamenco colours

11 MP3 Songs in this album (68:37) !
Related styles: WORLD: African- West, ROCK: Latin Rock

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Details:
The ten-member orchestra SALVADOR SANGÓ (pronounced Shongó) is the brainchild of Sotiris Papadopoulos, a Greek who has been living and working outside Greece for the most part of his life. The bandâs name which, as it happens, is also Sotirisâs artistic pseudonym, is not accidental: Salvador is the translation of Sotiris (saviour) in Spanish, whereas Sango is the god of lightning, the protector of justice and the weak in the Yoruba pantheon, one of the most populous tribes in West Africa with a particular presence in music, dance and the arts in general.

Circumstances brought the Greek to the land of the Yoruba when he came to Nigeria for the first time in 1980 to play with Fela Anikulapo Kuti, the indisputable Afrobeat king. The same destiny brought him back -through UNESCO- eight years later as a senior lecturer in (Atomic) Physics, since this is what he has studied, at some Nigerian university having come from the research elite of Oxford. This position, however, could not keep Sotiris for a long time and after a series of personal and professional pursuits he returned to what he really loves, in spite of the fact that this could barely cover him existentially: the music. During this phase Sotiris formed his well known jazz quartet, SPICE, and has performed with numerous Nigerian artists including Femi Kuti, Orlando Julius, Victor Waifo, Batik etc. While in the US (for his doctoral studies in Physics) he participated both as a student and as a teacher for nearly three years in one of New Yorkâs most renowned jazz seminars, Jazzmobile in Harlem. Yet, Sotiris is essentially self-taught. Thatâs the case both for his instrument, the guitar, and for music as an academic subject (harmony, composition, arrangement). For the sake of acquiring this knowledge he has spent countless nights with the sole company of his guitar, his records and his books. In New York he got the foundations of jazz as he was opportuned to play with various groups and with stars of this genre like Billy Taylor, Frank Foster (Duke Ellington Orchestra), The Jazzmobile Ensemble and Tito Puente. In 1989, while still being an academician, he performed with Dizzy Gillespie during the latterâs Nigeria tour.

The musical result of these and other experiences not mentioned here is the SALVADOR SANGÓ orchestra which was created in 2004 with the broader aim of presenting to the international audience a bridging through music of the cultural and racial gap which still reigns supreme in todayâs world of globalization. This is done, however, without sacrificing the individuality and particularities as much of the orchestra members as of the musical style itself. The result is world music par excellence. To a large extent, their music employs West African polyrhythms and folklore as its foundation but the final result surpasses by far the West African borders: it passes through Latin America for its salsa/afrocuban ingredients, North America for its jazz/blues influences, West Europe for classical/rock and the Mediterranean for flamenco/arabesque, finally returning to the founderâs Ithaca: Greece.

The orchestraâs works comprise vocal tunes sung in Spanish, Yoruba, English, Greek, Fon, as well as instrumentals. One could say without reservation that SALVADOR SANGÓ are hierophants of world music for, along with the musical message passed to their audiences, another one, more ethereal and spiritual is being passed which cannot be described by words but is felt through the wide spectrum of emotions and sentiments their music causes: joy and sadness, nostalgia, exaltation, tranquility and introspection. Yet, two of these are always absent: fear and anger. The other, particularly African, element in their music is the constant provocation to dance. The band have performed extensively in West Africa and Europe. With the exception of their band leader, all other members have had the church as their training/performance ground. Yet, they all share two things: their unending love for MUSIC and the grand dream of propagating their spiritual and musical message all over the world.

The orchestra have recently released their debut CD on the SANGO RECORDS label, entitled "The Advice of Sango" and subsequently changed their base to Germany in preparation of their first world tour.

Further biographical and other details can be found at our website: www.salvadorsango.com Contact info: Sotiris Papadopoulos at info@salvadorsango.com

All rights reserved. © 2005-2008 SOTIRIS PAPADOPOULOS