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The Elements: Fire
styles popular in clubs and at cultural celebrations. In addition to reggae, they play konpa, a meringue style Haitian dance music with roots in Africa, and zouke, a fast-paced carnival beat. The band members were born in Haiti but met at church in Immokalee where their families work as farmworkers. This versatile group stays true to the Haitian tradition of socially conscious music while exploring popular genres. At the Folklife Stage, Karribean Groove will be playing songs and telling stories related to fire in Florida.
Born in the Dominican Republic to Cuban parents, Jose Elias is a musician and arts administrator in Miami. He played with the Grammy-nominated group Conjunto Progresso as well as the Spam Allstars before founding Cortadito alongside Julio Cesar Rodriguez Delet 2011 Over on the Folklife Stage, Cortadito will perform early 20th century Cuban music in the styles, such as son montuno, guaracha, boleros, nengon and bolero son, and also have Q&A time with the audience during their show slots. Cortadito have amassed countless honors and awards over the years. They are also one of the featured artists in the Florida Department of State’s online encyclopedia of Florida music, entitled Florida Music Tours. The 2023 installment featuring Cortadito is entitled, Latin Music Tour.
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In the sweltering heat of a Florida summer, packed in a warm church for a Sunday service, the swell of the organ gets replaced by the keening whine of the steel guitar. In Florida, we call this particular genre of country-inflected gospel music Sacred Steel.
Cortadito
Led by Judes Albert, Karibbean Groove is a dance band that plays a variety of Caribbean
The Sacred Steel Summit occurs inside the Florida Folk Festival At their Sacred Steel stage, you will be able to see more than thirtyfive sacred steel musicians, including legends of the genre like Check Campbell, Lonnie Bennett, Aubrey Ghent, and Ted Beard. Three players from the Sacred Steel Summit will be coming to the folklife stage. Tommy Phillips will be performing on Friday, Bryan Taylor on
