R. Carlos Nakai Trio In Concert At The Palm, 7/27

21 Jul R. Carlos Nakai Trio In Concert At The Palm, 7/27

“The haunting sound of the Native American flute is gaining more widespread appeal in recent years, and R. Carlos Nakai is the reason for it,” Billboard

R. Carlos Nakai

Of Navajo-Ute heritage, R. Carlos Nakai is the world’s premier performer of the Native American flute. Originally trained in classical trumpet and music theory, Nakai was given a traditional cedar wood flute as a gift and challenged to see what he could do with it. Since 1983, he has released over 35 albums on the Canyon label. In addition to his solo appearances throughout the United States, Europe, and Japan, Nakai has worked with guitarist William Eaton, flutist Paul Horn, composers James DeMars and Phillip Glass, and various symphony orchestras.

While well-grounded in the traditional uses of the flute, Nakai has explored new musical settings including new age, world-beat jazz and classical. His cross-cultural collaborations have included an album with the Wind Travelin’ Band, a Japanese folk ensemble and Tibetan flutist and singer Nawang Khechog on several productions including “In A Distant Place.” Nakai has earned two gold records for Canyon Trilogy and Earth Spirit and has received nine Grammy® nominations. Nakai’s career was shaped by a desire to communicate a sense of Native American culture and society that transcends the common stereotypes presented in mass media.

To read a full biography of Nakai, go here.

Saturday, July 27, the R. Carlos Nakai trio performs at Telluride’s Palm Theater. The concert begins at 8:00 p.m.; doors, 7:30 p.m.

R. Carlos Nakai Trio

Supporting Nakai, the trio’s guitarist is William Eaton. A dedicated luthier (builder of stringed instruments), widely regarded as one of the greatest inventors of stringed instruments of modern times, Eaton plays only the instruments he has fashioned himself, as beautiful in appearance as the unique, textured music they produce.

The trio’s  Grammy-nominated percussionist is Will Clipman, a multi-talented artist whose disciplines include poetry, mask-making, and storytelling. Clipman can play over 100 instruments. His custom percussion setups include dozens of drums and shakers from cultures all over the map,  informing each performance with unique, pan-global rhythms.

The Carlos Nakai trio in concert is a fundraiser that will support the Wilkinson Public Library, largely in support of programming.

For a preview of the show, watch this video.