When Beau Bledsoe returned from a two-month stint in Portugal and started Ensemble Ibérica, he wasn't sure he would find an audience for music from Spain, Portugal and the colonial Americas in Kansas City.
"I remember when we came back, and we looked at some census data, and I think there were three people here from Portugal," the founder, artistic director and a guitarist for the ensemble told KCUR's Up To Date. "And I was like, 'What were we thinking?'"
Now, more than 10 years later, the ensemble is thriving. Their concerts often still focus on the music of Spain, Portugal and the regions touched by those countries' colonization, but they also include a lot of Middle Eastern music. Ensemble Ibérica's cellist, Ezgi Karakus, is from Turkey.
Bledsoe attributes their success to audiences' curiosity.
"They will come along on whatever weird ride we're going to do," Bledsoe said.
- Beau Bledsoe, guitarist, artistic director, Ensemble Ibérica
- Ezgi Karakus, cellist, Ensemble Ibérica
