Diego Coy - Quena/Zampona/Guitar/Vocal Diego Coy is originally from Santiago de Cali, Colombia. He began playing the quena and zampona in 1986 while studying at the Instituto Popular de Cultura in Armenia, Colombia. In 1990 he furthered his musical studies at Colombia's Universidad del Valle in Cali. Since then, Diego has lived and traveled throughout Colombia, Bolivia, Chile, Ecuador, Peru and Argentina to learn the musical traditions and various wind instruments of native Andean cultures. He continuously perfects his craft and expands his knowledge of the myriad of Andean rhythms and instruments by returning to South America every year. To this day, it is not uncommon for Diego to make his own wood instruments and then teach himself how to play them. In 1997 he and Grupo Juglares were invited to represent Colombia at the Fiesta Latina music festival in South Carolina. That same year he played with Viva la Musica in Hiroshima, Japan atthe famous Flower Festival. He also performed with Viva la Musica as member and musical director at the Festival of Tolerance in Prague, Czech Republic. Diego has since played in Italy, France, and numerous cities across the US.
Miho Takekawa - Marimba/Piano Miho Takekawa is originally from Tokyo, Japan and has been playing the piano since she was 3 and percussion since she was 13. She graduated from Kunitachi School of Music in Tokyo and is currently a percussion lecturer at Pacific Lutheran University and a doctoral candidate in percussion performance at the University of Washington. Since coming to Seattle in 1997, Miho has been performing with various classical music ensembles, including the renowned Microsoft Wind Ensemble and the University of Washington Wind Ensemble. She is a member of the Pan Leggo Steel Drum Ensemble, Pan Duo, the Akoma West African Drum Group and her own Mallet Jazz ensemble. Her music has been heard at Benaroya Hall, Seattle Center, the Moore Theater, Meany Hall, Town Hall, and other venues in Washington. In 2005, she toured Japan with her jazz group from Seattle and formed a steel drum group in Sapporo, Japan. Miho has won numerous awards, including the highly competitive Boeing Scholarship, and was a 2006 Washington State Arts Commission Fellowship recipient. She is co-author of A Composer's Insight: Thoughts, Analysis and Commentary on Contemporary Masterpieces for Wind Band.
Reviews:
I am pleased to recommend most highly the wonderful ensemble of my colleague Miho Takekawa, the Miho & Diego Duo. Ms. Takekawa plays marimba along with her collaborator, Diego Coy on Andean flutes. The duo presents a wide range of ethnic and jazz-influenced music. Their presentations enlighten as much as they entertain. The infectious rhythms, tight ensemble, shared lyricism and obvious joy of their collaboration bear the audience along on a journey of excitement, nuance and beauty. The Duo’s performance here this spring was one of the highlights of our musical season.
David P. Robbins, Chair/Professor of Music, Pacific Lutheran University
Quenarimba
It is remarkable how the two very different instruments blend so well together, the warm, woody sound of the quena balanced with the rich, resonant tones of the marimba. The variety of musical selections on their CD, including original compositions, Latin American, jazz, and Japanese pieces delight the ear and showcase the virtuosity of the musicians. In short, I love this recording and keep it in high rotation in my CD player.
Teruyo Koshimiya -Celtic harpist & Japanese Paper “Soy Source” editor (Seattle, WA)
"Miho and Diego got the whole audience involved!" "The instruments were as much a part of the program as the performers! This was a wonderful program."
Valerie Wonder
Immigrant & Refugee Programs Manager
Seattle Public Library
Experiences:
Flute Quest Festival 2006 in Kenmore, Festival Latino 2006 in Auburn,
White Center Music Night Series in White Center, Redmond Senior Center,
Columbia City Art Walk in Columbia City, Hispanic Heritage Month Event in Olympia,
Seattle Fiestas Patrias in Seattle Center, Country Village in Bothell, Guillermo’s (Palm Desert),
Pena Pacha Mama (San Francisco), Jubilante, Mi Tierra (Monroe), Egan’s Ballard Jam House,
El Pechugón, Seattle Public Library Immigrants and Refugee Program, Pacific Lutheran University
University of Washington Ethnic Cultural Theatre
Live performance at KBCS 91.3FM, Sabor, KBCS 91.3FM, El Lado Latino
Washington Hispanic Festival (Centralia), Eastside Hispanic Leadership Forum, Microsoft Auditorium, Seattle City Hall, Costco (Woodinville), Everett Community College, Kobe International Junior & High School, University of Washington Brechmin Auditorium, Seattle University Xavier Global House, the King Country Public Library System
The Miho & Diego Duo has been boldly blending Latino, Japanese, African and American musical traditions since 2006. Both accomplished musicians in their own right, Miho Takekawa and Diego Coy came together after years of admiring each other’s work and discovering that their sounds could be combined to make something genuinely new and unique. Fittingly, the title of their debut CD, "Quenarimba", combines the names of their primary instruments, the quena, a traditional Andean flute, and the marimba. "Quenarimba" showcases their distinctive combination of warm, natural wood sounds and takes the listener on a musical trip from Japan to South America.
Playing a brand of music that is truly their own and not easily categorized, the Duo’s repertoire covers an amazingly wide range of styles with an innovative approach. They play from an extensive catalog of Andean, traditional South American folk, Brazilian, Japanese, jazz and Latin jazz compositions, as well as original compositions. The Duo has been invited to perform at festivals and venues all over Washington and California. Their upcoming tour of Japan in 2007 promises to be a momentous homecoming for Miho and a career-changing experience for the Duo.
The Miho & Diego Duo greatly respects the elders who gave them their music and they strive to take their music to the next step, to make it their own.
Miho & Diego Duo is a recipient of the King County 4Culture Special Program Grant 2007.
