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“Bertshow” is a new cultural offering that will tour US Basque clubs this July and August.  The show fuses bertsos to pop and folk melodies, cultural talks and a summary of the history of Basque music in song.  The group of nine youth includes bertsolaris and musicians who will also perform at Jaialdi this summer.  They will also tour the east coast ending their tour in New York.  They are finalizing concert dates, so if you want them at your Basque club you still have some time. Hurry up!

Donostia-San Sebastian.   Nine musicians and bertsolaris from Gipuzkoa will travel to the US at the end of July to perform their “Bertshow.” They will travel for a month to Basque clubs to get to know the US Basque community first-hand opportunity to taste, understand and enjoy Basque bertsos.

They consider the trip a cultural exchange where they will try and take a piece of the Basque Country with them to Basque clubs, while learning about the life of Basques in the US while filming a documentary about their trip.

Bertsos to the rhythym of Let it Be

“Bertsow,” is comprised of three parts.  In order to make Bertsos more approachable to the Basque-American public they will be sung to very well-known songs such as Let it Be  by the Beatles, or Blowing in the Wind by Bob Dylan.

It is a fusion that they have already tested in the Basque Country and according to what they have told EuskalKultura.com, it works very well.  Here you can see these shows, improvising to the rhythms of Bob Marley, among many others at Aste Nagusia in Donostia. This is a festival in the Basque Country: for the US they adapted their show in order to explain and share with an English speaking audience the Basque bertso ways.

Song Exchange

Other focuses of the show is the tradition of Basque song.  The group will review the history of Basque song, singing and explaining the topics of each.  The repertoire includes classics and more modern songs as well, like Eperra (Zuberoa), Nire herriko neskatxa maite (Benito Lertxundi), Lau teilatu (Itoiz), Marinelaren zai (Sorotan Bele), Txoria txori (Mikel Laboa) or Xalbadorren heriotzean (Xabier Lete).

But the exchange will have two faces, because the group also wants to get to know and learn Basque songs that are sung in the clubs, or American songs that have been adapted to the tradition.  Finally, the group will also give cultural talks on themes like bertsolaritza, Euskera and Basque music.

At Jaialdi

The group will begin its trip at the end of July, at Jaialdi  in Boise.  Afterwards they will travel the west visiting Basque clubs including: Reno, San Francisco, Bakersfield, Las Vegas, San Diego, and Los Angeles.  The trip will conclude in New York and Boston at the end of August.

The group is composed of bertsolaris: Jon Martin, Inigo Mantzisidor ‘Mantxi’, Arkaitz Oiartzabal ‘Xamoa’, Jokin Labayen and Manex Mujika; translator Haritz Casabal, and musicians: Ixak Arruti, Urtzi Olaziregi y Eneko Sierra.

To organize an event at your Basque club hurry up and email them at: xamoa1@gmail.com. It's a unique opportunity!