Hey everyone, I wanted to share something special.
I was recently featured on NPR’s All Things Considered, where I talked about our project ‘The Sugar Road’, and how the history of sugar connects music, migration, and culture across the world.
If you’re interested in:
- How music travels across cultures
- The hidden role of Haiti in Latin music
- How history lives inside sound
Take a few minutes and check out this interview. Link in Bio 👆🏽
This project means a lot to me, and I’m excited to start sharing more of it with you.
Let me know what resonates with you in the comments!
#npr #thesugarroad #wbur #worldmusic #leoblanco
📣 Applications for the Berklee at the Gnaoua and World Music Festival program are now open!
🪘Spend a week developing technique, musicianship, composition, and performance skills with Berklee faulty from diverse corners of the world.
🇲🇦 Immerse yourself in Gnaoua musical traditions, expand your network, and gain exclusive access to main stage performances at the Gnaoua and World Music Festival.
🔗 Open to all musicians of all levels, apply now with the link in bio!
#berklee #berkleeontheroad #morrocco #essaouria #worldmusic
Did you know many Latin-American rhythms were born from a 15th-century “mistake”? 🌍🎹
Columbus wasn’t looking for a New World, he was looking for sugar. This commodity didn’t just change the economy; it changed the sound of the world forever.
#worldmusic #sugarroad #livemusic #latinmusic
Through The Sugar Road, we trace this migration of rhythm from the colonial plantations to the modern jazz stage.
🔗 WATCH THE FULL 3-MINUTE JOURNEY: Tap the link in my bio to see the full medley and narrative on YouTube.
🎶 Meet Leo Blanco, academic director for the 2026 Berklee at the Gnaoua and World Music Festival! 🇲🇦
Leo is a pianist, composer, musicology researcher, music consultant, producer, educator, and music social activist. As a Latin American educator and researcher at Berklee, and a member of the Africana Studies department, one of his main objectives in the last decade has been to develop a curriculum rooted in the African Diaspora and its influence in the music and cultures of the Americas.
Berklee at the Ganoua and World Music Festival is your chance to engage in performances with musicians from diverse corners of the world, exposing you to various grooves, rhythms, and harmonic and improvisational concepts.
Don’t miss your chance to experience this amazing program! Apply now with the link in our bio!
#essaouira #berkleeglobal #morocco #jazz #gnaoua
LEARN THE BASS,#Is not only about the tumbao, but how it relates to the bass line. Otherwise, it could be a killing tumbao “good for nothing”
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#piano #latinpiano #tumbao #salsa
ATTENTION MUSICIANS AROUND THE WORLD
#worldmusic #leoblanco #morocco #
#Your music passport is waiting to be stamped. ✈️🌍
This isn’t just another music camp. This is for Professional & Semi-Professional musicians This is a transformational experience. Join me and a team of world-class @berkleecollege educators for an immersive week in Essaouira, Morocco. 🇲🇦
We aren’t just teaching notes; we are teaching a Planetarium Perspective. You’ll sit alongside musicians from every corner of the globe to discover your own “Geo-Musical” location.
✨ Daily workshops with Berklee Faculty
✨ Perform in a final global showcase
✨ FREE pass to the legendary Gnaoua World Music Festival
✨ Join a lifelong global community
Tuition for all this $450 USD
Ready to change the way you hear the world? Comment “MOROCCO” below and I’ll send you the official program details and application link! 🇲🇦🎶
This isn’t just a wooden box. It’s a survivor.
DM us the word “BASS” and will@send you the link for the entire YouTube video of “BROVA BHARAMA”
In the first half of our track “Brova Bharama”, that deep, woody pulse you hear is the Marímbula.
Originally from Africa, became well known in Latin American music genres such as the Afro-Cuban Changüí tradition, it’s a descendant of the African mbira. We choose it for this track because it represents the ‘roots’ of the Sugar Road, the literal physical sound of history.
You tune this instrument by sliding these metal tongues in and out. It’s tactile, percussive, and soulful.
There are more rare instruments in this track, visit and subscribe the @LeoBlancoMusic YouTube channel to watch entire video and get more of The Sugar Road coming up.
Once you watch the whole video, Let us know why other video you want us to talk about?
Enjoy it!!
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#bass #marimbula #sugarroad #raga
The #carnatic classic Brovabharama, with a Latin twist thanks to @leoblancomusic ‘s @thesugarroad band. Had a great time recording for this - full song in bio and stories! #fusion #latin #jazz #sugar
Video of BROVA BHARAMA available March 20th 5pm on YouTube Channel. Subscribe to Leo Blanco Music in YouTube because more music is coming up!!
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#worldmusic #carnaticmusic #sugarroad #latinmusic #leoblanco
Before the composition is played, there is the Alapana – the introductory exposition where a musician carefully reveals the soul of the Raga. It is not a rush; it is a moment of pure presence, a prelude that teaches you how to listen. 🎶🙏
The introduction is the art of tasting the dish before you eat.
The true power of any great experience lies in its introduction – the vital space where understanding begins, where expectations are set, and where you are prepared to embrace the wholeness that follows. 💯💯
Don’t rush the process. Savor the start. ✨
Listen how our @thekonnakolbeatboxer sings this Alapana for “Brice Bharama” listen to it on all Music Digital platforms.link in Bio ☝🏽
(Tune in this Friday, March 20th, for the full video of Brova Bharama on my Youtube Channel @leoblancomusic
#ThePowerOfIntroduction #Alapana #ClassicalIndianMusic #Raga #thesugarroad
🎧 Stream “Brova Bharama” on all platforms:
LINK IN BIO ☝🏽. YouTube video Soon (Subscribe) from Bio ☝🏽
🌎 Join “The Sugar Road” journey as we bridge the gap between South Indian Carnatic music and the Latin Tinge. Whole video coming soon, Subscribe to the page to get notified.
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#LeoBlanco #TheSugarRoad #brovabharama #carnaticmusic #carnaticfusion
