Miguel Espinoza Fusion Band

Miguel Espinoza grew up with guitar, as a child he found out that music had an emotional impact on people and himself. He grew up during the funk era and started as a toddler exploring sound, finding it rhythmic. He has large fingernails on his right hand to help play the strings better. Miguel described the thumb as the most important finger when playing the guitar.

The band consisted of 4 members each with their unique instrument. Miguel on guitar, Dianna on cello, David on bass, and Randy on percussion. A genre the band played was Flamenco, which originated from Gypsy and came from Spain, Morocco, and Europe. They also fused Indian and Moroccan music. Miguel also talked about certain hand movements to use while playing the guitar, more specifically the Avanico, a circular hand motion with constant stringing, and the golpe, which incorporated hits on the guitar as the person strings. Miguel uses both movements heavily throughout the performance.

So to start the show they surprised me with an experience that felt like I was part of some adventure movie. It was so sick. The second song proved to do the same while incorporating claps as percussion to highlight the cello and guitar’s performance, which was something new and unique I have never seen any other band do. Throughout the rest of the performance, the band left mesmerized and in a trance of deep thought, I was able to craft stories in my head based on the music I was listening to. Vivid images I had were battles taking place that ended up leading to a personal connection at the end of the song. The band had their eyes closed the entire time as they played music and faced each other when needed.

Overall, it was a great show. One that taught me to appreciate the sounds and connection I can have with music.

Check them out on IG @miguelespinozafusion