Chus Alonso
I am a musician in the field of contemporary Latin and flamenco music, with 25 years of experience performing, composing, leading musical projects and teaching. My main instrument is flute, but I also enjoy playing cajón, Spanish lute (laúd), guitar and piano. .
....My area of expertise is flamenco and Cuban music. As a composer and leader of the Potaje Ensemble, I have focused on creating contemporary music rooted in flamenco and Latin American traditional genres. I am also a founding member of the Orquesta la Moderna Tradición, possibly the most significant ensemble today in the movement to recover and modernize Cuban Danzon and Cha-cha-cha. In addition, I play flamenco with Mark Taylor Quartet and other ensembles and flamenco companies.
....As a performer I have played throughout the United States, including at The Lincoln Center in New York, the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, The Ford Theater in Los Angeles, the Alaska Center for Performing Arts in Anchorage, the Telluride Jazz Festival in Colorado, and most major venues and festivals in the San Francisco Bay Area. I have also toured Spain five times.
....I teach at the Community Music Center in San Francisco. My classes for adults include a workshop for all instrumentalists of intermediate level that focuses on rhythmic development (Flamenco-Latin Rhythm Workshop), and an ensemble class for advanced musicians (Flamenco-Latin Ensemble). I am also part of the Mission District Young Musicians Program, a scholarship program for middle and high school students in the Mission District of San Francisco that focuses on Latin music.
Performing experience
I moved to the San Francisco Bay Area in 1984 where I have been active in both the flamenco and Latin artistic communities. I have been a freelance musician with numerous flamenco companies and Latin music ensembles including Theatre Flamenco (Spanish dance and flamenco company), Conjunto Cespedes (Cuban music), Fuego Vivo (flamenco company), Orquesta Ritmo y Armonía (Cuban music), La Tania Music and Dance (flamenco company), Guillermo Rios’ Soul of Spain (flamenco music), Aidavú (Latin music), Brebaje (Cuban music), Rosa Montoya Bailes Flamencos, Ajuba (Afro-Haitian music), Daniel Escobar (Peruvian New Song), Kash Killion & Chus Alonso Duo (Jazz), and Aurora Alcalá (Traditional Peruvian music).
1992-present. Musical director, composer and flautist of Potaje
In 1992 I founded the ensemble Potaje with the objective of creating and performing contemporary music rooted in flamenco, Latin music and jazz. Since 1992 I have composed and arranged Potaje music. I have strived to create a unique blend that is both, respectful of traditional musical forms and open to contemporary ways of expression. In the framework of this ensemble, Flamenco artists, Latino-American and classical musicians have collaborated to build a musical bridge linking Spain with Cuba, and Europe with the Americas. The ensemble has played festivals, convention centers, theaters, cultural centers, clubs, cafes, restaurants and private events (e.g. San Francisco Ethnic Dance Festival, American Festival of San Jose, Performing Arts Center of Monterey, Mosconi Center of San Francisco, La Peña Cultural Center of Berkeley, Montgomery Theater in San Jose, and Community Music Center in San Francisco).
1996-2007. Flutist, founding member of Orquesta La Moderna Tradición
This twelve piece band is dedicated to authentic Danzón, Chachachá, and Guaracha, which are traditional Cuban charanga styles. After we released the CD "Danzonemos" in November 1997, we were invited to play at New York's Lincoln Center in the summer of 1998. In the year 2000 we released the second CD, "Goza Conmigo," and in 2006, the third, "En Canto." Orquesta La Moderna Tradición has played extensively throughout the United States
Education
I was born and raised in Zamora, Spain, where my musical education was eclectic. During childhood I played guitar, sang in folkloric groups, and studied classical piano and theory. When I was ten I played "bandurria" in a traditional "tuna" in Santiago de Compostela: the "bandurria" is a Spanish instrument in the family of the laud and mandolin, and "tuna" is a Spanish type of folkloric ensemble whose origins go back to the 17th century. At 18, I moved to Madrid to study flute and percussion with Martin Porras at the Madrid Conservatory. Seeking an alternative to the Conservatory, I studied with Pedro Iturralde, the first Spanish musician who explored the fusion between flamenco and jazz. Later, in Barcelona, I was fortunate to study with internationally recognized jazz composers and arrangers including Thad Jones and Chuck Israels. I also developed an understanding of Latin music guided by Chilean composer and pianist Mario Lecaros. From 1981-82, I studied flute technique with Ellen Toettcher in Berlin, Germany. After moving to San Francisco in 1984, I studied with local jazz musicians including Mark Levine, Eddie Marshall, and Jon English. I quickly became a part of the flamenco and Latin music scene in the Bay Area, and my training continues to develop through contact with the seasoned musicians of this artistic community.
1992 National School of Art ........................................................................Havana , Cuba
Intensive course on folkloric Afro-Cuban percussion
1986-87 Antioch University..........................................................................San Francisco, CA
B.A. Music Education and Jazz Improvisational Studies, personal adviser: Chuck Israels.
1984-85 Music and Arts Institute..................................................................San Francisco, CA
Classical Music Studies.
1982-83 Taller de Musics.............................................................................Barcelona, Spain
Latin-Jazz ensemble, big band, and music theory.
1981-82 Ellen Toettcher...............................................................................Berlin, West Germany
Classical flute studies with this professor of the Berlin Music Conservatory.
1980-81 Aula de Música Moderna y Jazz.......................................................Barcelona, Spain
Ear training, harmony and arranging.
1974-78 National Conservatories...................................................................Madrid and Salamanca, Spain
Classical Music Studies.
Teaching experience
I have given numerous workshops on flamenco and Latin music in universities, music schools and conservatories throughout United States and Spain. Since 1994 I have taught Latin-Flamenco ensemble classes at the Community Music Center in San Francisco for intermediate and advanced musicians. More than a hundred musicians have pass through these ensemble classes, some of them becoming part of the Bay Area Latin music scene. I have written several educational booklets for musicians about flamenco and Cuban music and I have composed many educational Latin music pieces for both, the intermediate and the advanced player. I have also given scores of workshops in the Bay Area for elementary school children and teachers through arts organizations such us LEAP (Learning through Education in the Arts Project), California Arts Council (artist in residency program), Adventures in Music, La Peña Cultural Center in Berkeley, California School Leadership Academy, Arts Education Founders Collaborative, Creative Campus in Sausalito, Young Audiences of the Bay Area, and Oakland, Alameda, and Berkeley Unified School Districts.
Chus Alonso's Educational Work in the Bay Area
Work through the Community Music Center, San Francisco
Community Music Center, San Francisco
1994-present
Since 1994, Chus teaches two weekly classes for adult students: A workshop that focuses on rhythmic development for all instrumentalists of intermediate level (Flamenco-Latin Rhythm Workshop), and an ensemble class for advanced musicians (Flamenco-Latin Ensemble). Since 2003, he directs a music summer camp for 9 to 14 year old students. Since 2006, he directs the Mission District Young Musicians Program, a scholarship program for middle and high school students in the Mission District of San Francisco that focuses on Latin music. In addition Chus is the Community Music Center’s Program Director since 2002.
Work through L.E.A.P. (Learning through Education in the Arts Project)
Holly Name Elementary School, San Francisco
April-May, 1990
Two 4th grade classes and one 7th grade class.
Sutro Elementary School, San Francisco
February 4-March 23, 1990
One 4th grade class, one 5th grade class, one 2nd/3rd grades class and one 4th/5th grade class.
Marshall Elementary School, San Francisco
November 25, 1991- January 23, 1992
One 4th/5th grades class, one 5th grade class, one 2ND/3rd grades class and one 1st grade class.
Marshall Elementary School, San Francisco
March 30-May 24, 1992
One 2ND grade class, one 3rd grade class, and one 3rd/4th grades class. In addition Chus collaborated with other visual and dance artists. The goal of this residency was to prepare the whole school to participate in the San Francisco Carnival parade.
Redding Elementary School, San Francisco
January 9-February 27, 1995
One Kindergarten/1st grade class, one 3rd/4th grades class, and one kindergarten class.
Saint Dominic Elementary School, San Francisco
January 15-March 1, 1996
One 4th grade class, one 5th grade class, one 6th grade class, and one 7th grade class.
Monroe Elementary School, San Francisco
February 1- March 24, 1999
Two 1st grade classes, and one 3rd grade class.
GATE Intensive Art Summer School for gifted and talented students, Alameda U.S.D.
June 16-June 29, 1999. 7 hours a day working with 3-5 grades students.
West Portal Elementary School, San Francisco
February 5-April 9, 2001
Four 1st grade classes.
Work founded by the California Arts Council (CAC)
Marshall Elementary School, San Francisco
School year 1993-94
Once a week working with two classrooms and a workshop for teachers.
La Peña Cultural Center, Berkeley
1993-94
Two weekly workshops throughout the school year, one for youth and the other one for adults. Chus co-taught these workshops with Cuban musician Guillermo Cespedes. Participants studied concepts of ensemble playing and play charts of traditional Cuban music.
Community Music Center, San Francisco
July 16-September 3, 1994
Weekly workshop for 25 adult musicians on Latin-Flamenco Music.
Independent Work
Randall Museum, San Francisco
September 22, 1990. Creating a Musical Instrument, workshop for children in 3rd, 4th and 5th grades.
Creative Campus, Sausalito, an intensive summer camp in the arts
June 21-July 2, 1991. 8:30-4:00, k-5 children.
Workshops at East Bay high and elementary schools sponsored by a grant from La Peña Cultural Center/ Berkeley Arts Commission
1991-92. Chus co-taught workshops with Cuban musician Guillermo Cespedes.
Searles Elementary School, Union City
March 19, 1993. Three assemblies with the whole school and follow up workshops.
Edison Elementary School, San Francisco
December 9, 1993-January 18, 1994. Working with thirty 5th grade children.
Arts Education Funders' Collaborative
March, 12, 1996. A workshop for elementary school teachers and principals.
University of California at Berkeley, Bay Area Math Project
November 22, 1997. Workshop for teachers of mathematics and science, 30 participants. Participants learned ways to integrate music into math curriculum.
Albany Preschool, Albany
1997-98. Several workshops through the school year for preschoolers.
Bay Area School Leadership Center
June 18, 1998. A three-hour workshop for 60 school principals at the SF Symphony building
Arts Education Funders' Collaborative
January 28, 1999. A workshop for elementary school teachers and principals.
Manor Elementary School, Fairfax
March 24-June 9, 1999. Working with two 5th grade classes
Wren Avenue Elementary School, Concord
April 26 and May 3, 1999. An assembly presentation by Chus’ ensemble Potaje (a quintet), and follow up workshops for two 4th grade classes, and two 5th grade classes.
Diablo Valley Montessori School, Lafayette
May 10, 17, 24, 1999. Workshops for two kindergarten/1st classes.
Diablo Valley Montessori School, Lafayette
February 8, 15, 29, 2000. Workshops for two kindergarten/1st grade classes.
Zeum, San Francisco
June 30 and July , 2001. A participatory program for children, an exploration of the world of musical sounds, and a taste of Latin American and Flamenco music.
Cornell Elementary School, Albany
1999-2003. Numerous workshops for k-3 grade classes
Work through Adventures in Music / San Francisco Symphony
In 1998 Chus’s ensemble Potaje develop, with SF Symphony staff, a program content and presentation to perform 35 presentations in San Francisco elementary schools.They presented the program in the following schools:
Bessie Carmichael Elementary School
Bret Harte Elementary School
Dr. William L. Cobb Elementary School
E.R. Taylor Elementary School
Frank McCoppin Elementary School
George Moscone Elementary School
Hillcrest Elementary School
John Swett Elementary School
Lafayette Elementary School
Lakeshore Elementary School
Paul Revere Elementary School
Work through Young Audiences of the Bay Area (YABA)
In 1999 Chus’ ensemble Potaje developped with YABA staff an educational presentation to perform in Bay Area's elementary schools. They delivered 13 performances in the following schools:
Marriot Hotel, K-12 children from Sausalito's schools. August 2, 1999
Thornhill Elementary School, Oakland. December 7, 1999
Murwood Elementary School, Walnut Creek. December 17, 1999
Lawrence Hall of Science, Berkeley. December 29, 1999
Monte Verde Elementary School, San Bruno. March 1, 2000
All Saints Elementary School, Hayward. March 6, 2000
Highland Elementary School, Oakland. March 22, 2000
Glenview Elementary School, Oakland. April 4, 2000
^TOP^