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The Arts Intel Report

A Cultural Compass
For the World Traveler
A Cultural Compass
For the World Traveler

Roomful of Teeth / Tambuco Percussion Ensemble

The Tambuco Percussion Ensemble.

January 25, 2025
881 7th Ave, New York, NY 10019, USA

Below street level at Zankel Hall, where sensitive ears and nerves may register passing subway trains if only subliminally, two singular ensembles step up to the plate. Their “double bill” has been curated by Gabriela Ortiz, current occupant of Carnegie Hall’s Debs Composers Chair and a musical magpie in the best possible sense. The crackerjack a cappella virtuosi of the group that bills itself as Roomful of Teeth shows it stuff in selections including Ortiz’s own new Tetluikan: Canto a la Piedra. Appearing separately on the program, Mexico’s Tambuco Percussion Ensemble dispenses enough Latin bonbons to fill a piñata. Their collective consists of just four virtuosi, but their versatility rivals the chameleon’s. On a bet, they could probably drown out a departing fighter jet, but also, they can tease your eardrums with vibrations on the verge of silence. —Matthew Gurewitsch

Photo: © Tambuco Percussion Ensemble