Calle Sur

Calle Sur immerses audiences in the soundscapes and rhythms rooted in many Latin American cultures. Ed East is Panamanian. His upbringing in Panama City meant noise, hustle, bustle, and those chaotic smells and sights so characteristic of any metropolis. It also meant being surrounded by musical innovation and creativity. Karin Stein, his Colombian partner, brings to the music of Calle Sur the perspective of her more traditional, rural upbringing. She grew up on an isolated rice and cattle farm in the eastern plains of Colombia, her soul harboring haunting cowboy tunes from her traditional Llanero culture.

They met in Iowa, where they both moved on student scholarships, stayed, and built a life in a foreign but welcoming land. They have been pioneers in a state that has seen a significant influx of Latinos only in the last two decades. Ed and Karin have been a team for 21 years.

One minute, Ed’s drumming makes you jump to your feet. The next, you sway to the samba he plays on his guitar. Karin strums a mean 6/8 beat on her Venezuelan cuatro, then effortlessly switches to Bolivian panpipes. Ed’s versatility takes you from guajira and jazz to bossa nova and salsa tunes. Karin’s voice melts you away with a Honduran lullaby, then swings you with an Afro-Colombian cumbia.

Calle Sur will give a panpipe workshop at the Nicolaysen Art Museum on February 18.

Co-sponsored by KCWY 13, Nicolaysen Art Museum, Townsquare Casper, and the Wyoming Community Foundation - Casper.

Host or Publisher ARTCORE