Our friends from CarmenCo have arranged a short tour of the UK by the Ala Par Duo.

Emily Andrews tells us “They are a husband and wife duo, who perform their own stunning arrangements of Argentinean folk music on guitar and two voices. It’s very accessible, very easy listening, and absolutely spotless musicality and togetherness.”

So this should be a rare chance to see something out of the ordinary in this country.

This performance is a joint venture between the Leatherhead Community Association (LCA) and the Leatherheads Concert and Arts Society (Music on Thursdays). Members of either organisation can buy tickets at a reduced price. 

Tickets are £15 full price, £13 for members and £5 for people under 26.

Tickets are available online from ticket tailor. or from the LCA office at the Institute on weekday mornings.

The duo have some videos on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-QFs4rYhRCA
https://youtu.be/5DieYLUvS20?si=iaEsjboU8rcP-QgR

According to the duo’s web site (with help from Google Translate):

The Ala Par Duo was formed in 2016 with the aim of reinterpreting classics of Latin American folklore.  The members are the Santa Fe singer Elisabet Schmidhalter and the Barilochense guitar player and singer Rodrigo Martínez Castro.  Their music evokes scenes from Argentina, Colombia, Paraguay and Switzerland.

In 2018 they won the first prize in the Certamen Nacional de Folklore Pre Cosquín and were declared cultural interests in the city of Santa Fe.  The duo continue their musical journey with the aim of connecting with people, traveling and sharing their passion for Latin American music.

Their recordings “Redescubriendo Canciones” (2019) and “Atemporal” (2024) are available on all good music platforms.

Doors open at 7pm, music starts at 7:30pm and ends by 9:30pm.  We do not have an alcohol licence but if you are of age you are welcome to bring your own. There are supermarkets nearby. Please bring plastic glasses or use the glasses that we supply.

Getting to the Leatherhead Institute

The Institute is at the top of Leatherhead High Street, KT22 8AH, on the corner with Leret Way. Leatherhead is served by bus from Kingston and by bus and train from Guildford, Dorking and Epsom. Nearby car parks are the Swan Centre multi-storey on Leret Way (KT22 7JL) and the surface car park on Station Road (KT22 7AF). Both are free after 6pm.