Opening Ceremony and Concert with Mayor Betsy Hodges, music by Helado Negro with Minneapolis Music Company and dancers Alberta Mirais and Erin Smith, Minneapolis Convention Center Plaza, Northern Spark 2016. Photo: Jayme Halbritter.
Opening Ceremony and Concert with Mayor Betsy Hodges, music by Helado Negro with Minneapolis Music Company and dancers Alberta Mirais and Erin Smith, Minneapolis Convention Center Plaza, Northern Spark 2016. Photo: Jayme Halbritter.
Opening Ceremony and Concert with Mayor Betsy Hodges, music by Helado Negro with Minneapolis Music Company and dancers Alberta Mirais and Erin Smith, Minneapolis Convention Center Plaza, Northern Spark 2016. Photo: Jayme Halbritter.
Opening Ceremony and Concert with Mayor Betsy Hodges, music by Helado Negro with Minneapolis Music Company and dancers Alberta Mirais and Erin Smith, Minneapolis Convention Center Plaza, Northern Spark 2016. Photo: Jayme Halbritter.
Robert Carlos Lange of Helado Negro.
Robert Carlos Lange of Helado Negro.
Kick off your night with Mayor Betsy Hodges as you witness the unveiling of Wolf and Moose, winner of the 2016 Creative City Challenge.
Then join a few thousand of your closest friends to be a part of a dynamic music experience: a live concert by Helado Negro in collaboration with the Minneapolis Music Company and dancers Alberta Mirais and Erin Smith. The performance, a meeting of music, dance, and Helado Negro’s Tinsel Mammals, will help you start your night off with a bang.
Helado Negro
A South Florida native, born to Ecuadorian immigrants and based in Brooklyn, Roberto Carlos Lange’s upbringing provides essential elements to his songwriting, including his consistently bilingual – English and Spanish – lyrics. While citing the influence of electro and Miami-bass he heard on the radio in his youth, his diverse work as Helado Negro points to shades of kraut rock bathed in his mesmerizing rhythms, loops and hair-raising melodies. Known for his craftsmanship, Lange has cultured his identity, ideology and musical dexterity with constant artistic and introspective development, pouring his heart and full sincerity into his music. His fourth LP Double Youth released in 2014 garnered acclaim with Pitchfork naming it “the boldest and most intricate Helado Negro work to date.” With a degree in Computer Art and Animation, Lange, a multifaceted creator, has worked with mediums such as video, sculpture, sound and performance. While Helado Negro is in a sense a one-man band for the digital age, a constant collaborator, Lange has worked on projects with numerous artists including Sufjan Stevens, Julianna Barwick (as Ombre), Mikael Jorgensen (of Wilco), Guillermo Scott Herren (of Prefuse 73), Mouse on Mars, and sculptor David Ellis.
Helado Negro tours extensively and has performed in diverse venues from clubs to cultural organizations including the Wexner Center, Columbus; Indianapolis Museum of Art; Mana Contemporary, Chicago; Museum of Natural History, L.A.; Mass MoCA, North Adams, Marguilies Warehouse, Miami; Festival Centro, Bogota; and Vive Latino, Mexico City. In 2015 he was the recipient of a Joyce Award and premiered an orchestral commission as part of the Liquid Music series during the inaugural festivities of the Ordway Center for Performing Arts in Saint Paul.
The Minneapolis Music Company presents musical performances in a visual, theatrical, and inter-disciplinary context, showcasing the Twin Cities’ finest musicians, actors, singers, dancers, visual artists, puppeteers, filmmakers, and artists in electronic/new media.
Laurels String Quartet:
Josh Misner & Jesse Peterson, violin
Erica Burton, viola
Cory Grossman, cello
Dancers: Alberta Mirais and Erin Smith.
Special thanks to McNally Smith.
Thanks to Radio Pocho, media sponsor for the Opening Ceremonies and concert. Radio Pocho is a program and an experience that navigates borders and musical influences of Latin@ peoples; reclaiming roots through musica. Classic to Contemporary, Radio Pocho can be heard on Wednesday nights, 8-10pm on KFAI 90.3FM Minneapolis/106.7FM Saint Paul or online at kfai.org!
kfai.org/radiopocho
facebook.com/radiopocho
Twitter: @radiopocho
Instagram: @radiopocho
The Opening Ceremony is presented by Northern Lights.mn with the support of Minneapolis Convention Center and the Arts, Culture and the Creative Economy program of the City of Minneapolis.
View more photos from the Opening Ceremony on the Northern Spark Flickr here!
Also check out a video from the event on our Vimeo here!