Innovative musician Aurelio Martinez is ready to celebrate the release of his new CD “Laru Beya” in LA on January 15 and 16 – 7:00 p.m. at The Getty Center. Known for integrating tradition with spontaneous creation and some funky Garifuna grooves.

Born in the tiny coastal hamlet of Plaplaya on Honduras’ Caribbean coast, Aurelio Martinez, 39, may be one of the last generations to grow up steeped in Garifuna tradition. These traditions encompass the African and Caribbean Indian roots of his ancestors, a group of shipwrecked slaves who intermarried with local natives on the island of St. Vincent, only to be deported to the Central American coast in the late eighteenth century.

He learned his first chords from his family, including his father, a well-loved local troubadour who improvised playful paranda songs that embrace Garifuna roots and Latin sounds. He became a drummer almost as soon as he began to walk, thanks to his uncles and grandfather. From his vocally talented mother, he learned to sing and picked up many songs she crafted.

While a young adult his musical career took a global turn thanks to his Belizean friend and fellow musician Andy Palacio, who organized a major Garifuna festival and invited Martinez. The two artists struck up a decades-long friendship thanks in part to their shared hopes for the future of Garifuna music and culture.

In 2005, Aurelio Martinez took on a new role as a representative to the Honduran National Congress, the first of African descent in the country’s history. Devoting himself in promoting Garifuna culture, Martinez set aside his music making for years as a legislator and politician.

In 2008, his friend Andy Palacio passed away unexpectedly at the young age of 48, leaving the Garifuna community stunned and bereft. Aurelio was still a congressman, but he left the congress session to go to Belize for the funeral.

The CD Laru Beya was not only a way of honoring Palacio as a person; it was a means for continuing his mission of uplifting and expanding what it meant to be a Garifuna artist. Taking up Palacio’s mantle as bard and advocate for his people, however, did not mean Martinez stopped his exploration of new approaches to Garifuna sounds, in particular their musical links with West Africa.

The result is a lush journey marked with thoughtful reflections of the Garifuna past, the sometimes difficult present, and the promising glimmers of the future for artists like Martinez. “This album is about far more than just keeping tradition alive; it’s about urging people to action when they listen. We’re dealing with an emergency, and we don’t know if Garifuna music will survive,”

“We’re not going to let this culture die,” Martinez affirms. “I know I must continue the culture of my grandparents, of my ancestors, and find new ways to express it. Few people know about it, but I adore it, and it’s something I must share with the world.”

Event Details (as scheduled):
01/15/2011, Sat
Los Angeles, CA
The Getty Center, 1200 Getty Center Drive
Show: 7:00 pm
Tix: Free
Ph: 310.440.7300

01/16/2011, Sun
Los Angeles, CA
The Getty Center, 1200 Getty Center Drive
Show: 3:30 pm
Tix: Free
Ph: 310.440.7300