This month on the Metropolitan Culture Corner, we interview soul singer Clarence Bekker, known as one of the most dynamic and explosive front men in all of Spain. Over the years, he has been a part of a number of notable musical projects, from Swinging Soul Machine to Barcelona’s own 08001, to the international musical project and non-profit organization Playing for Change. This last one took him on the road all over the globe, and the project’s videos have racked up over 200 million views. But even before that, he had singles on the UK charts back in the 1990s; today, he’s known as the face of the Clarence Bekker Band, which has toured Brazil, Morocco, Japan, Italy, Spain, Australia, and beyond.
Last month we went behind the scenes with soprano and musicologist Dr. Patricia Caicedo, whose academic and creative work centers on Latin American and Iberian art song. She regularly gives lectures and master classes at music conferences and universities around the world, has released eleven albums, and has published multiple books as well as scholarly editions of scores. She is the founder of the Barcelona Festival of Song, which celebrates its 20th anniversary this month. Patricia is also the creator of Mundo Arts: a music publishing house, independent record label, and online store which supports various projects in Spain, Latin America, and the US.
Stay tuned to Metropolitan’s YouTube channel and social media to make sure you don’t miss a single episode of our monthly interview series! We’ve got a great lineup in store for you in 2024. You can also watch the full archive of previous interviews on our official YouTube channel, or listen to all the MCC interviews as free podcasts on Soundcloud. Be sure to follow Metropolitan on Facebook: @BCNMetropolitan, Twitter: @bcnmetropolitan and Instagram: @barcelonametropolitan.