About

From the ashes of Los Angeles’ 1992 rebellion/riots arose a collective of East Side musicians committed to respectfully continuing the legacy of over 70 years of Chicano Rock, standing on the shoulders of giants like Ritchie Valens, Cannibal and The Headhunters, Los Lobos, and many others. Named “one of Los Angeles’ most important bands” by the LA Times and winners of a Grammy award in 2013, Quetzal forges a sound that will simultaneously make you dance and contemplate change, a sound as rich and complex as their pluri-ethnic barrio experience.

Artist Links: Website  |  Facebook  |  Twitter  |  Tumblr  |  Youtube

Areas of Representation: Worldwide

Biography

From the ashes of Los Angeles’ 1992 rebellion/riots arose a collective of East Side musicians committed to respectfully continuing the legacy of over 70 years of Chicano Rock. Standing on the shoulders of giants like Lalo Guerrero, Ritchie Valens, Cannibal and The Headhunters, The Brat, Los Lobos, and many others, Quetzal has created a path that has earned them the title of “one of Los Angeles’ most important bands”(LA Times).

Quetzal forges a sound that will simultaneously make you dance and contemplate change, a sound as rich and complex as their pluri-ethnic barrio experience. Their unique combination of community activism and creative compositions has allowed them to travel the world using music as a tool for creating a global network of musicians committed to building community.

Since 2002 Quetzal has been part of a transnational dialogue between musicians in California and Veracruz, Mexico known as “Fandango Sin Fronteras”. Many recordings, performances, and publications have been born from this dialogue. Their 5th album, “Imaginaries”, released by Smithsonian Folkways, received the Grammy Award in 2013 for Best Latin Rock, Urban, or Alternative Album.

Tour Dates

Videos

News

• Hermeto Pascoal Wins 2019 Latin Grammy We are very pleased to announce that on November 14, 2019, the 2019 Latin Grammy was awarded to Hermeto Pascoal in the category Best Portuguese Language Roots Album for his recording “Hermeto Pascoal E Sua Visão Original Do Forró” – Hermeto Pascoal (Scubidu Music).
• Composer who turned down OBE says he later accepted CBE in tribute to his parents’ “immigrant experience” When Nitin Sawhney was offered an OBE in 2007 for services to music, his father asked him to accept the order of chivalry for his birthday – but he turned it down, citing the Iraq War and saying he “could not handle the idea of the word ’empire'” after his name.
  But 12 years later, Sawhney, ...
• NYTimes’ Paul Krugman at DakhaBrakha Concert Paul Krugman is the New York Times Op-Ed columnist who holds forth on macroeconomics, trade, health care, social policy and politics.  He is the author or editor of 27 books and more than 200 papers in professional journals and edited volumes. And he loves DakhaBrakha!
  In June, he attended their concert in New York City and ...
• Hermeto Pascoal Featured in Jazz Journal

  Hermeto Pascoal, that crazy Brazilian albino
  David Block ventures into the eccentric musical world of the intuitive multi-instrumentalist who became a global jazz name when he played on Miles Davis’s 1970 album Live-Evil

  By
  Jazz Journal – February 27, 2019

  Hermeto Pascoal is an enigma. He creates music out of almost any object that he can get his hands ...

Press

Quetzal is a cool and classy band… Rich songwriting, enchanting arrangements, and serious musicianship… As a group they exude a lovely and irresistible spirit. — LOS ANGELES TIMES

Breakthrough music with greater gravity than what pop music currently offers. This is Latin American pop for the serious listener.” — ALL ABOUT JAZZ

Download – CD Review: “Imaginaries” LA Times 3/30/2012

Downloads/Media

Technical Riders:

Quetzal Tech Rider: Downloads (PDF)

Press Photos (high resolution):