Sunday, November 6, 2011

Bi-state Cuatro Orchestras Concert Held In Milwaukee

Luis Lopez plays the cuatro with leading notes.

Photos: HNG

Second annual event raised funds to record CD by next year.

By H. Nelson Goodson
November 6, 2011

Milwaukee - On Saturday, a concert by Milwaukee and Chicago Cuatro Orchestras was held at the American Serb Hall, in the 5100 block of W. Oklahoma Ave. The two hour concert was sponsored by Luis Lopez, the director of the Milwaukee Cuatro Orchestra. Lopez is also an 8th grade teacher at the Milwaukee Public School District.
This was the second annual event at Serb Hall and the funds raised will be used to record a CD and to cover other costs toward the orchestra.
According to Wikipedia dot org, the cuatro (four) is a national Puerto Rican instrument and originated more than 400 years ago. It is a small guitar, which modern models might have four or more strings and the sound it produces is known as Jibara.
The Puerto Rican cuatro has ten strings in five courses, tuned in fourths from low to high B-e-a-d'-g',54321, with B and E in octaves and A, D and G in unisons.
Jibaro is a term from the Taíno words "jiba" (forest) and "ro" (man), that means forest people, commonly used in Puerto Rico to refer to mountain dwelling peasants, but in modern times it has gained a broader cultural meaning.

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