Brava Presents
¡Golondrina!
A Funkloric Odyssey through California
Una odisea Funklórica por California
Fri - Sat, May 3 - 4, 2024
at 8:00pm on Brava’s Main Stage
¡Golondrina! is a musical confluence of song and poetic storytelling celebrating California’s rich his/herstory, including abounding contributions of its original inhabitants, languages and vibrant folklore. Celebrating her roots from Baja to Alta California, Liliana Herrera’s ¡Golondrina! embarks on a Funklóric lyrical odyssey – one dimension, border and song at a time.
Through kaleidoscopic vocals, soundscapes, instrumentals and dance La Golondrina (epitomized by the famed migrating Swallows of Capistrano) narrates riveting stories from her wanderings which dispel the myths of passive consent to colonialism: from the romanticized Spanish Missions, booming gold rush cities, cascading sierras, coastlines and deserts to the toiled fertile valleys of our golden state.
While annual migration of La Golondrina and innumerable species around the world is revered as majestic, migration of “select” humans is criminalized and politicized. From coastal fog to blaring desert heat, La Golondrina bravely traverses anthropological labyrinths and ponderings: What is humanity capable of? She wonders. While some stories inspire; others fume with ire. With change, this migrating swallow seeks shelter between the seasons as she glides her musical heART in wistful song.
In a musical collage of stories, ¡Golondrina! meets the moth!
A concert-novela – Funklórica style: May 3 and 4, 2024!
Español
¡Golondrina! es una confluencia musical de canciones y narración poética que celebra la rica historia de California, incluidas las abundantes aportaciones de sus pueblos originarios, sus lenguas y su vibrante folclor. Celebrando sus raíces desde Baja California hasta Alta California, ¡Golondrina! de Liliana Herrera se embarca en una odisea lírica al estilo Funklórica - una dimensión, frontera y canción a la vez. A través de una caleidoscópica voz, escenarios sónicos, música instrumental y danza, La Golondrina (personificada por las famosas golondrinas migratorias de Capistrano) narra fascinantes historias de sus andanzas, que rompen los mitos del consentimiento pasivo al colonialismo: desde las romantizadas misiones españolas, las florecientes ciudades de la fiebre del oro, las sierras en cascada, las costas y los desiertos hasta los fértiles valles de nuestro estado dorado.
Mientras que la migración anual de la golondrina y de innumerables especies del mundo se venera como algo majestuoso, la migración de “selectos” humanos se criminaliza y politiza. De la niebla costera al calor abrasador del desierto, la golondrina atraviesa con valentía laberintos antropológicos y reflexiones: ¿De qué es capaz la humanidad? se pregunta. Algunas historias inspiran, otras enfurecen. Con el cambio, esta golondrina migratoria busca refugio entre las estaciones mientras desliza su coraSON musical melancólico.
Un collage musical de historias, ¡Golondrina! Concierto-novela al estilo Funklórica:
¡3 y 4 de mayo de 2024!
ARTistS
Ayla Davila
David R. Molina
Andrea Rodriguez
Rafael Herrera
Special Guests
Francisco Herrera
Miguel Govea
Tickets
$25 - $45
fees not included
About the artists
Liliana Herrera, originally from the California border, stands out as a cultural worker whose primary focus is music. Liliana builds a bridge between her fervor for the arts and her commitment to social justice, playing roles as both a performer and an advocate for linguistic justice.
Liliana highlights her bicultural roots through original and traditional compositions. Her eclectic musical styles span boleros, soul, salsa, cumbia, electronica, rancheras, blues, jazz, opera, and more, celebrating the valuable contributions of our native and most marginalized communities.
Before the pandemic, Liliana was the recipient of a scholarship from the National Endowment for the Arts. During that period, Liliana composed, performed, and served as artistic director of “Golondrina: Andanzas por California,” a musical storytelling of California history tracing back to precolonial times, inspiring native resistance, and familial anecdotes from the wandering narrative of the migrating Swallow, la Golondrina – to be reprised at Brava Theater in May.
Ayla Davila is a bassist, composer, and multi-instrumentalist from Berkeley, California. Raised in a musical household, Ayla started playing traditional Guatemalan and folkloric Mexican music as a young child. At age 11, Ayla found her voice in the bass, which remains her primary instrument. She graduated from the Berklee College of Music with a degree in Film Scoring and Bass Performance. She returned to the SF Bay Area in 2002, where she has had the opportunity to work with many of the area's most talented and distinguished musicians in a variety of musical styles, with an emphasis on Latin music. With over 25 years of experience as a performer, composer, arranger, teacher, and studio musician, Ayla is thrilled to draw upon her vast musical knowledge to help bring this important story to life.
David Molina is a composer, multi-instrumentalist, sound artist/designer, and instrument inventor. He has created music and sound for all the performing arts, film, interdisciplinary productions, locally and internationally for the past 27 years. His work focuses on social justice issues and working with marginalized community members. Frequent collaborators include: multimedia artists: Cause Collective, Violeta Luna, Naomi Rincon Gallardo; directors: Roberto G. Varea, Juliette A. Carrillo, Carl Cofield, Lisa Portes; companies: NAKA Dance Theater, Human Shakes Dance, La Lengua Teatro, and Brava Theater. His career began with the Magic Theater, Campo Santo, Lorraine Hansberry Theater, USF’s PASJ Program. He was a co-founder of Secos Y Mojados and the Drum Machine Museum. He has toured with Quixote Nuevo productions since 2018. Recent credits: The XIXTH at The Old Globe, Hotter Than Egypt at DCPA, 12th Night at St. Louis Shakespeare Festival, and touring with La Mezcla. Awards include: LA Ovation, Creative Capital, St Louis Theater Circle, Colorado Theater Henry Award, Zellerbach Grant, MAP Fund, SFAC Grant, and a Signal Award for Best Music/Score for Next Chapter Podcasts’ Macbeth. His multimedia work was shown at: SFMOMA, The Broad, Oakland Museum of California, de Young Museum, McLoughlin Gallery, and SOMarts. Music collaborations include: TAU (Berlin), Emanative (UK), El Paso (Peru), The Pyramids (Strut Records). His bands are: Impuritan, Ghosts and Strings, and Transient.
Andrea Rodriguez | Born and raised in the San Francisco Mission District's culturally rich Latinx neighborhood, Andrea Rodriguez is a Xicana-Mexican-American multidisciplinary artist. She is a dancer, choreographer, actress, producer and filmmaker. She holds a BA in World Arts and Cultures/Dance from the University of California, Los Angeles and MFA in Interactive Media from the University of Southern California. Rodriguez, performed professionally in the Viva Navidad Parade at Disney California Adventure. She is a Game Producer for the Zumba Fitness Video Games, which sold over 9 million units. She starred as Consuelo, the grandmother, in the “On Your Feet” musical. Rodriguez is a recipient of the San Francisco Arts Commission, Artist grant (2020. 2023). She recently presented at PASEO ARTISTICO: “Women of the Resistance” an excerpt of her latest production, “La Rumba No Para," a salsa love story about growing up in San Francisco, La Misión, which explores the themes of love, loss, and addiction at Dance Mission Theater. Her mission is to create compelling narratives for theater, film, games, and virtual reality with the goal of inspiring diverse audiences to move.
Rafael Herrera | Songwriter/Multi-Instrumentalist Rafael Herrera’s cross border musical journey was forged in the searing heat of Calexico California’s desert landscape. The family mariachi band formed the training ground for a young Rafael’s musical aspirations which led him to perform and tour with various artists in the US, Mexico and Europe. Now residing in New Mexico, Rafael is signed to Epidemic Sounds where he composes and performs music with Alcones Negros.
Francisco Herrera | Whether it is singing with your children or as community at a rally, action for social justice, picket line, or a celebration of our sheroes and heroes, the music of Francisco is music of liberation. Theologian, Cultural Worker, Singer-Songwriter, Francisco Herrera has produced 7 albums (includes 2 children's music in Spanish), writes scores for film and theater, working with producers like the late great Saul Landau. He has shared the stage with Jon Fromer, Pete Seeger, Emma's Revolution at mass actions as School of America's Watch (up to 22,000 people), and the Battle for Seattle, with over 250,000 people shutting down the WTO in 1999 and massive demonstrations across the country. However, Herrera's most common place is not on big stages. He can be found in intimate gatherings of women recovering from domestic violence, day laborers organizing for a universal wage, children becoming bilingual (Spanish/English), Interfaith groups shutting down private prisons; always performing uplifting and energizing songs that move, teach and inspire. His Latest albumHonor Migrante crosses physical and musical borders to expose the grace and beauty of the migrant community as all of us with a rocking sound that brings together regional music from Mexico and the U.S. with a "Chicano Soul" style that permeates his eclectic choice of music. http://franciscoherreramusic.com
Miguel Govea | Multi-instrumentalist, bandleader, and educator Miguel Govea has been active in the San Francisco Bay Area music, cultural, and arts community since 1978. Through his work with the SF Community Music Center and SFJAZZ, he teaches students at middle and high schools in the San Francisco Unified School District. He frequently performs with his wife Susan Peña, and daughters Rene Peña-Govea and Cecilia Peña-Govea, as La Familia Peña-Govea. Raised in Bakersfield, California by an immigrant Mexican father and Mexican-American mother, he was heavily influenced by his parents’ and siblings’ community and labor activism in an era of rapid social change.