Diego El Cigala Coming to Harris Center, 11/5

Appearing for the first time at Harris Center for the Arts in Folsom, three-time Grammy-winner Diego El Cigala is often credited as being the most exciting and innovative flamenco singer in the world today. El Cigala has captivated audiences all over the world with his gravelly voice and passionate interpretations of flamenco and tango.

El Cigala's earthy, exultant and richly emotive voice marks him as one of the great singers of the last century. He is also one of those rare crossover artists who has stayed true to his musical heritage yet achieved name recognition with mainstream audience. Passionate, profound, and immensely proud of his Spanish gypsy heritage, El Cigala has been called "the Sinatra of flamenco." The New York Times seems to agree declaring, "He radiates a magnetic mix of winking charm and unpredictable vitriol reminiscent of a singer from an entirely different milieu, Frank Sinatra."

Diego El Cigala will perform Wednesday, November 5, 2014 at 7:30 pm. Tickets are priced at $25-$45; Premium $55; Students with ID $12. Tickets are available online at www.harriscenter.net or from the Harris Center Ticket Office at 916-608-6888 from 10 am to 6 pm Monday through Saturday, and two hours before show time. Parking is included in the price of the ticket. Harris Center is located on the west side of Folsom Lake College campus in Folsom, CA, facing East Bidwell Street.

Diego El Cigala's various collaborations with world-renowned Latin American artists have earned him a reputation for seamlessly melding the rhythms and melodies of his Spanish Gitano heritage with styles ranging from bolero to son, tango, and Afro-Caribbean jazz.

Born into a family of flamenco musicians, El Cigala began his solo career in 1997. A mere four years later he was at the Latin Grammys, his Corren Tiempos de Alegria nominated for Best Flamenco CD. That was just the beginning of much bigger things to come, as a small initial collaboration on that CD between El Cigala and legendary Cuban pianist Bebo Valdés led in 2003 to a duo CD, Lágrimas Negras (Black Tears), which became one of the most astonishing breakthroughs in the realm of world music. Aside from winning El Cigala his first Latin Grammy (he now has three), Lágrimas became a huge global hit thanks to a combination of killer live shows, rave reviews, and ecstatic word of mouth. This groundbreaking disc, with its fusion of gypsy fire and complex Cuban rhythms, sold more than a million copies worldwide. Aside from winning numerous awards, the CD was fawned over by Britain's BBC Radio and hailed "record of the year" by the New York Times.

This was unprecedented success for a flamenco singer - and it was to prove just the beginning. El Cigala won his second Latin Grammy in 2006 for Picasso en mis ojos (Picasso in my eyes), which also became a bestseller. Then in 2010 El Cigala travelled to Argentina, land of the tango, to immerse himself in that country's powerful musical traditions. After merging his own band with two of Argentina's tango masters - bandoneonist Néstor Marconi and guitarist Juanjo Dominguez - the results were, once again, musical magic. Cigala & Tango won a Latin Grammy for Best Tango, and went on to generate fantastic sales, great reviews, and a sold-out tour that played to more than 160,000 awed fans.

El Cigala's newest recording, 2013's Romance de la luna Tucuman, offers a fresh take on the Argentinean tango tradition. Notable for the contributions of Mexico's famed electric guitarist Diego Garcia, known as "The Twanguero" for his embrace of cowboy, Hawaiian, and surf music, Tucuman went on to triumph at the 2013 Latin Grammys, winning El Cigala a third Grammy, his second for Best Tango. It is this landmark CD that will be the focus for El Cigala's tours through the United States, Europe, Australia, and South America