Celebrates Hispanic Heritage Month with LatinX Music and a Dance Party

The Western Illinois Museum and Casa Latina Cultural Center at WIU celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month with music, dance, and food. On Friday, September 29th special guests Daniel Rojas and Claire Happel Ashe will perform with the members of EnsAmble Ad Hoc on the Museum’s indoor Our Front Porch. At 6:00 pm the doors, the Taqueria La Perlita Food Truck, and the bar will open followed by two sets of music at 7:00 pm and 8:00 pm. Dance lessons will be available in between the sets of music. There is a suggested $5 donation at the door.

The celebration brings together local and international musicians for an immersive evening to learn about Hispanic culture by experiencing it.  Live music starts at 7:00 pm when the Museum welcomes back harpists Daniel Rojas from Arpa Café and Macomb-based Claire Happel Ashe. They will be joined by EnsAmble Ad-Hoc which features vocalist Francy Acosta and José Luis Posada on the cuatro. The performance features music from regions in Central and South America including Joropo music from the border region between Venezuela and Colombia, Son Jarocho music from Mexico’s state of Veracruz, and the traditional music of Paraguay. The group will also offer cultural insights into these genres.  At 8:00 pm, the group will be joined by Raul Fernandez, jarana/hand drums, and Luis Correa, bass for music that is traditionally played at celebrations and parties and will no doubt make guests want to dance. In between the two sets of music, guests will have an opportunity to take a dance lesson to learn the Zapateado Jarocho dance.

The Our Front Porch series is set in a truly convivial space with gorgeous windows, great lighting, historic artifacts, and a bar. Come early to explore the collection, socialize with friends and family, and enjoy the casual atmosphere. This program is funded in part by a grant from the Illinois Arts Council, with additional funding from an Illinois Humanities Council grant and from the state of Illinois American Rescue Plan Act.

The Western Illinois Museum is a non-profit organization celebrating and nurturing the history, culture, and traditions of McDonough County, and is quickly becoming a vibrant community hub that features exhibits, an open collection, lectures, music, and other programs in a historic building. The Museum is located at 201 S. Lafayette Street, one block south of Macomb’s Courthouse Square.

A full schedule of events can be found at wimuseum.org or follow on social media @wimuseum. For further information, call 309-837-2750, text 309-837-2613, or email info@wimuseum.org.

About the performers

Francy Acosta holds a D. M. A. in Early Music from Case Western Reserve University, where she studied performance practice with Ross Duffin and voice with Ellen Hargis. She has a degree in Music Education from Universidad Pedagógica (Colombia) and an M.A. in Music from the University of New Hampshire, where she studied voice and vocal pedagogy with Kathleen Wilson on a Fulbright scholarship. Her main interests are the pre-classical Hispanic and Italian repertoires, which she performs with EnsAmble Ad-Hoc and other Early Music groups. She has taught music history and voice both in Colombia and the US., at institutions that include the Conservatory of the National University of Colombia, and the University of Chicago Graham School of General and Professional Studies. Francy Acosta is currently a faculty member at the Merit School of Music, Chicago, Illinois. She has performed and presented at conferences in Colombia, Argentina, South Korea, and the US.

José Luis Posada holds an M.A. in Early Music from Case Western Reserve University where he studied performance practice with Ross Duffin, and lute and Baroque guitar with Scott Pauley. He earned a Bachelor of Music Education from Universidad Pedagógica (Colombia), and a Master’s in Education from Northern Illinois University. He is a co-founder of EnsAmble Ad‐Hoc and with this and other early music groups he has performed in Mexico and other Latin American countries, and in the US. He has performed and recorded traditional Colombian music and toured extensively, performing on tiple, cuatro, and guitar. José Luis Posada combines performing with teaching activities and has also worked on professional musical editions and arrangements. Highlights include arrangements for the Colombian Symphony Orchestra with Velosa y los Carrangueros (traditional music). Currently, he works as a music teacher for the Cicero Public Schools (Chicago, Illinois) and performs regularly with EnsAmble Ad-Hoc.

Claire Happel Ashe performs on both modern and historical harps with ensembles throughout the Midwest and the Americas, including the Saint Louis and the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestras, Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional of the Dominican Republic, and the Newberry Consort. She holds degrees from Yale University and the University of Illinois and was a 2007–2008 Fulbright Scholar in Prague. Since 2021, she has studied the Joropo harp tradition of Colombia and Venezuela with Daniel Rojas through an Illinois Arts Council Master Apprentice Grant.

Colombian harpist Daniel Rojas has toured throughout the United States and Europe with groups such as Europa Group Los Llaneros, Tardes Llaneras, and most recently under his own group, Arpa Café. Performances at festivals and concert venues include the 2021 Arpafest (Cancun, Mexico), the Old Town School of Folk Music (Chicago), 2010 Western Alliance Music Conference (Los Angeles), 2010 Festival Mundial del Arpa (Asuncion, Paraguay), 2010 Association of Performing Arts Presenters (New York City), and 2009 Encuentro International Arpas al Fin del Mundo (Concepcion, Chile). As an educator, he has presented and taught at colleges and universities through the Arts Latinas Entertainment Company and given local workshops and lessons through Harp Folklore Inc. Cultural Foundation in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, the Llano y Joropo Academy in Bogotá, and the Débora Arango High School of Music in Medellín.

Raúl Fernández is a native Chicagoan who specializes in hand drums such as the congas, bongos, and dumbek. As a former member of the Sones de Mexico Ensemble Chicago, Raúl collaborated with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Chicago Sinfonietta, and the Mexican Dance Ensemble of Chicago. He also appeared on the National Public Radio syndicated program: Garrison Keillor’s A Prairie Home Companion and has performed in venues ranging from The World Music Festival Series of Chicago to Washington D.C.’s Kennedy Center. Raul holds a B.A. in education from the University of Chicago and regularly works with elementary and high school students in various performing arts education programs throughout Chicago including Chicago Public School’s Office of Language and Cultural Education, Northeastern Illinois University’s hACE and GEAR UP Projects, and Pro Arts Studios.

About Casa Latina Cultural Center at Western Illinois University

At the Casa Latina Cultural Center, we are passionate about social justice, intersectionality, and developing students through education, engagement, and leadership. Casa provides a unique and empowering space for students to experience college life. Casa is a space on campus that offers a holistic learning experience through programs and initiatives that facilitate the exploration of ethnic identity development, social justice, community outreach, cultural expression, and social and professional networking so students can become the best version of themselves.