VIVA NOLA April-May 2024

RANCHO
Aparte
By AnaMaría Bech
@anamabech
música
One of the musical groups invited to the New
Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, which is part
of the celebration of Colombia at the Expedia
Cultural Exchange, is Rancho Aparte.
Directly from the Department of Chocó, Rancho Aparte
represents the sounds of the Colombian Pacific, such as
abozaos, polkas, rebulú, contradances, and jugas through
its music. They are the most recognized band of Chirimía,
a rhythm that uses brass instruments and rescues the roots
and soul of a region where joy is present despite daily
difficulties. “The Chirimía has a combination of instruments
of European origin with native instruments; it is an ancient
musical format to which the voice and lyrics and other
instruments were added over time,” says Dino Manuelle,
Rancho Aparte’s vocalist.
Their performance at Jazz Fest will bring them their first
in the United States. They hope to discover more New
Orleans rhythms, connect with other bands from around
the world who will be present at the festival, and, of
course, be ready to make the audience enjoy themselves.
“At Rancho Aparte, we do not spare a single drop of sweat.
The audience will jump, sing, and get to know the music of
our population and our country. They will feel everything
from emotion to reflection with the lyrics of our songs,’ says
Manuelle.
Don’t miss Rancho Aparte’s performances at the New
Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. You can discover more
about this band through their social networks and musical
platforms.
The group’s energy has made them stand out in
Colombia, and they have conquered audiences on stages
such as the WOMEX Festival in Budapest and the Fuji
Rock Festival in Japan. They have been the favorites of
the Colombian Pacific music festival, the Petronio Alvarez
in Cali, Colombia, where they performed an exciting brass
band exchange with the renowned Hot 8 Brass Band from
New Orleans.
For Manuelle, the experience of playing with the Hot 8
Brass Band was a great idea. “We connected, and three
groups played a Chirimía song together. The energy was
tremendous, and we didn’t want to leave the stage,” he
said, adding that the similarity between New Orleans brass
and the Chirimía is in the percussion and wind instruments,
in that it is very urban and street music.
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VIVA NOLA MAGAZINE - April / May 2024