Todos por Jorge!

This past year we launched my new album Recuerdo at. Toronto’s Koerner Hall as part of TD Jazz Festival. It was a full house and a pleasure to also invite my dear friend Jorge Lopez to accompany me as my special guest on a song that my Dad used to love called “Contigo Aprendi.  Jorge is an amazing guitarist and band leader of Mariachi Mexico Amigo.  He performed with me at my very first show at Alley Catz  in Toronto and has been a dear friend ever since.

Jorge has been recovering from Cancer and last night we came together as a community  to fundraise and help him through this difficult time. Here is an excerpt from our performance at Koerner Hall. If  would like to contribute and support him please email his daughter RennataLopez@gmail.com

Please click on the photo to watch the live performance.

Gracias por tu apoyo!

Recuerdo meets Recuerdo at the AGO!

This past May 2 I had the privilege of performing for the launch of Recuerdo, the new Latin American photography exhibition at Toronto’s AGO – The Art Gallery of Ontario .  Recuerdo is also the name of my album in honour of my Mexican father who inspired my love of music and who arrived to Toronto back in 1956 with his brother my Tio Arturo by bicycle. It was a memorable evening and we even got to serenade the curator Marina Dumont- Gauthier acoustically.  I hope you get to check out the beautiful exhibition- open till October 19th !

Behind the Scenes of Recuerdo

So excited to share a behind the scenes video about Recuerdo and my father Gustavo who inspired the album. Meet my long time band of over 20 years and my musical guests who I collaborated with and were part of our CD launch at Toronto’s beautiful Koerner Hall.

Gracias to Mitch Fillion who produced this mini documentary and to Zach Nash who helped film it.   Also featured are the beautiful dancers Sofi Gudiño, Ana Zamora & Carlos Rivas who I was lucky to share the stage with.

Click on the image to watch!

Sold out show! Recuerdo CDS available from Amanda!

Hola amigos!

It was a dream come true to share the stage with my full band and incredible guest artists on June 26 at Toronto’s Koerner Hall as part of TD Toronto Jazz Festival.  Thank you to all who filled the house and made us feel so loved!! I know my Dad was there in spirit listening with his red wine and savouring all the music and every artist on stage. He loved my band dearly and would have been blown away by all the dancers and guest artists who joined us including award winning author Martha Bátiz reading from her book No Stars in the Sky.

For those who want to purchase a copy of our new album Recuerdo which launches worldwide on July 5th you can!! I will be at TD Jazz Festival – 91 Charles Street West- at the  OLG Main Stage –  on Sunday June 30 signing cds between  330pm until 530pm!  I would love to see you and sign a copy of Recuerdo for you!.  If you cannot make it out on Sunday you can send an e-transfer to amandamartinezmusic@gmail.com and I would be happy to mail you a copy!

Amanda launches Recuerdo at Koerner Hall!

Toronto, June 8, 2024 — “One of the great new voices in Spanish language Latin music” (World Music Central), Amanda Martinez, is releasing her highly anticipated new album, Recuerdo, with a joyful feel-good concert at beautiful Koerner Hall, presented by the TD Toronto Jazz Festival.

This special evening features special guests along with Amanda Martinez’s incomparable band of 20 years: Kevin Laliberté on guitar, Drew Birston on bass, Rosendo “Chendy” Leon on percussion, and violinist Osvaldo Rodriguez.

Produced by her long-time guitarist Kevin Laliberté and co-produced by her husband, bassist Drew Birston, Recuerdo is a daring departure that incorporates elements of world fusion, Cuban rhythms, and an injection of English pop that is her most adventurous album to date. It is dedicated to the memory of her late father Gustavo, who bicycled to Toronto from Mexico in 1956 and from whom she says, “I got my love of music.”

“He always spoke about how much there was that he still wanted to do,” Amanda remembers. “He said ‘Life was about simple things, there is always more music to enjoy, good wine to taste, and love to savour.’” One of the songs, “Todavía”, on the upcoming album is penned with her father’s words in mind while others are reflections of her past and future.

Entwined in the sunnier, soaring melodies and palpitating cadences of Recuerdo, we find Martinez’s profound observations of life, many of them clarified by time spent isolated during the recent pandemic. “I took stock of my life during this period of uncertainty,” she says.

The emotion-driven launch concert this June 26 features an extraordinary lineup of guests, led by Rebecca Hennessy on trumpet and flugelhorn, Aviva Chernick on vocals, Donna Roberts on vocals and guitar, and Pablosky Rosales on vocals and tres, who also co-wrote some of the lyrics for Recuerdo.

The show will also include Jorge Lopez, award-winning Mexican guitarist who was a friend of Amanda’s father and recently survived after being in a coma; Martha Batiz, who will be reading from her award-winning book “No stars in the sky” that the song “Recuerdo” was inspired by; as well as Sofi Gudiño, award-winning Flamenco dancer and choreographer, and Carlos Rivas, Peruvian fusion dancer and choreographer, given Amanda’s close connection to dance from a young age.

World-renowned choreographer Debra Brown is the advisor in charge of giving the “outside artistic eye” of the show. Brown is an Emmy award-winning choreographer for Cirque du Soleil, who is also a York University graduate like Amanda and worked with her on her last music video “Estaba Cayendo” with Ballet Jorgen (2020). “You don’t want to miss out, this is a one-night-only performance that is never going to happen again”, Martinez guarantees.

Amanda to release single “Mi Libertad” from her upcoming album Recuerdo!

Are you hungry?  I filmed the video for the first single “Mi Libertad”  from my upcoming album Recuerdo at Gus’ Tacos in Toronto and I hope it wets your appetite!  My Dad, Gustavo Martinez ,who the album is inspired by, rode his bicycle from Mexico to Canada back in 1956 with his brother, my Tio Arturo. It took them 82 days!

Their plan was to return to Mexico by motorcycle but they fell in love with Toronto and my Dad made a new life for himself in Canada. He used to say that he always wanted to open his own Mexican taqueria so my mouth dropped open when almost a year after he passed away I saw Gus Tacos! Not just one but a slew of locations in Toronto.

A Toronto photographer,  Shlomi Amigo,  had posted a photo of Gus Tacos and I happened to see on his Instagram!! We had been talking about doing a photo shoot with my band so this gave me the idea to shoot it there.   I ended up inviting the amazing Mitch Fillion to film our music video there for the song Mi Libertad. Mil gracias Mitch for all your hard work and willingness to move so quickly on this!

We just posted a teaser today of the video which premieres Friday May 17.  The single airs for the first time on JAZZFM91 ‘s Cafe Latino,  hosted and produced by my dear friend Laura Fernandez.  And guess what? May 18 was my Dad’s birthday!! Salud Gustavo!! Tune in for the premiere of the video on Youtube where I will do a live Q and A after!

Watch the teaser on my instagram and tune in Friday at 4pm EST for the video launch! Saturday afternoon between 4 and &pm  is my interview on line jazz.fm on Cafe Latino or o radio 99.1FM