La Patronal. Courtesy photo.
SANTA BARBARA — ¡Viva el Arte de Santa Bárbara! to present La Patronal in a free family concert at 7 p.m. Sunday, March Marjorie Luke Theatre, 721 E. Cota St, Santa Barbara. Doors open at 6:30pm. Reception follows concert.
La Patronal, a unique brass band from Lima, Peru, performs in free family events March 8 – 10. Rooted in the tradition of fiestas populares, or town fairs, common in rural villages across Latin America, La Patronal honors these gatherings, which celebrate tradition through fireworks, dancing, and religious images. La Patronal members are direct descendants of rural musicians from Peru, and use this knowledge of folk culture in combination with their formal music studies to preserve their heritage. Their lively performances encourage audience participation and dancing with contagious percussion and vibrant brass and winds.
All of Viva’s events are free due to the generosity and forward thinking of SAGE Publications, The Roddick Foundation, Anonymous, Russell Steiner, Monica and Tim Babich, Montecito Bank & Trust, National Endowment for the Arts, UCSB Office of Education Partnerships, The Stone Family Foundation, Linda Stafford Burrows, Marianne Marsi and Lewis Manring, and the Santa Barbara County Arts Commission Community Arts Grant Program, with funds provided by the City of Santa Barbara, in partnership with the Santa Barbara County Office of Arts and Culture. Additional support comes from The Marjorie Luke Theatre’s Dreier Family Rent Subsidy Fund. The program is supported in part by the Santa Barbara Independent, the Santa Maria SUN, El Latino CC, Radio Bronco, Entravision/Univision Costa Central, the Hilton Garden Inn Santa Barbara/Goleta, Pacifica Suites, the Best Western South Coast Inn, and the Santa Barbara Unified School District. Viva is co-presented by The Marjorie Luke Theatre, the Guadalupe-Nipomo Dunes Center and UCSB Arts and Lectures, in partnership with the Isla Vista School Parent Teacher Association.
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