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An original idea of Ignacio Esquiroz, alboka player, is the group comprised of Nicolás Iribarren, Anabel Jaureguiberry, Francisco Gándara and Franco Filippi. In the words of Esquiroz, “We are the result of the inevitable meeting for two passions, Basque folklore and music.  Through “Zutarriak” one can appreciate how artists in the Eighth Province once again gather around a fire lit by our grandparents, to claim our Basque and Argentine identity, as well as our universal one.” 

Buenos Aires, Argentina.   Members of “Zutarriak” have recently begun practicing again, enjoying playing with the different instruments to add new touches to the traditional Basque song repertoire.  That is why they describe their debut at “Buenos Aires Celebrates 2016” as an “experimental” debut.  “Our first performance in public, with the original group, was on the main stage of the festival and the excellent repercussions and reception that we had by the audience, encouraged us to continue to develop our repertoire, as well as including more instrumentalists and expand our interpretative horizons,” Ignacio 'Iñaki' Esquiroz explained to EuskalKultura.com.

He continued, “Zutarriak is the result of the inevitable meeting of two passions, Basque folklore and music.  The artists in the Eighth Province can recreate this meeting around the fire that our grandparents lit, claiming our identity and fusing the traditional Basque repertoire with different styles and folkloric instruments from all over the world, and brining our art to events in the Diaspora.”

In regards to the name, “Zutarriak” (dolmens) also links the group to the most ancient traditions of the Basque Country.  “’Zutarriak’ is a Basque word whose strictest translation means “standing rocks,” the alboka player explains. “Our ancestors stood long stones up, burying one end, as a symbol with multiple interpretations.  Some have messages on them that look for echoes in the minds of countless generations; others are unflappable witnesses of an uncompromising record.  Even a few, with a rather terse port, are surrounded by the purest and most mysterious silence that is fed by waiting for thousands of years” he says.

“And there is also what motivates us: a small and tough people that despite having been scourged by the more sordid aspects of European history, hasn’t done anything but strengthen their bones and expand their horizons.  Today their grandchildren, and greatgrandchildren, and beyond, who are free Argentineans, continue to be urged by the fire in the blood of our spirits that still are sensitive to the Holy Oak, the edge of the ax, and before the weight of the stone and the ancient language.”

Under the direction of Esquiroz, “Zutarriak” includes Nicolas Iribarren, on the guitar, piano and vocals; Anabel Jaureguiberry – who brings her experience as a Basque teacher, and also plays the pandero and percussion, Francisco Gandara, on the Bombo Legüero, percussion and vocals, and Franco Filippi on the violin and vocals.

Iñaki graduated in 2015 as a Professor with a degree in music education from the Superior Conservatory of Music, 'Manuel de Falla.'  He plays the alboka, having student under Maruro Telletxea in Buenos Aires, as well as during his participation in Gaztemundu 2013 with Karlos Subijana, at the Musika Etxea in Vitoria-Gasteiz.  He is currently, among other activities, director of the choir of Euskaltzaleak, the Basque Language School in Buenos Aires.

“Zutarriak” meets and practices at Euskalzaleak, a place that as explained by its members, “we belong unconditionally,” although this project, which is growing daily, “is designed to offer its music to Basque clubs across the country.”

-The group’s Facebook page: Zutarriak
-To hear them, click here