Alma Llanera Quintet

The five Venezuelan soloists who take part in this recording are members of the Alma Llanera Youth and Children’s Orchestra of Guárico. Luis Herrera, the orchestra’s conductor, was born in 1983 and grew up in a family of well-known traditional Venezuelan musicians. He researches traditional music from Venezuela and from other Latin American countries. For this particular recording he plays the cuatro, as well as the harp, maracas, bass, bandola, mandolin, idiophones, marimbola and the "Sabanera" guitar. He has made recordings with national and international artists and ensembles.

Daniela Alejandra Hernández Armas, born in 1998, started her musical studies at the age of eight on the violin and started playing mandolin at the Traditional Orchestra of Altagracia de Orituco when she was 11 years old. She now teaches mandolin for this orchestra.

Ibrahim Herrera, born in 1986, plays maracas. He also grew up in a family of musicians and started to play when he was three years old. He has made recordings with national and international artists and ensembles and has played in several international festivals. He is currently the regional coordinator of the maracas class at the Popular Music Orchestra of Guárico State.

José Armando Puerta Ochoa, born in 1998, started to play harp when he was seven years old. He has played in several national and international festivals and has been three times the winner of the International Children’s Harp Festival in Colombia, as well as the second prize winner at the Youth Harp Festival in Quibor, Venezuela.

Carlos Natera, born in 1981, started to play the cuatro and maracas at the age of eight. Some years later he started to study contrabass at El Sistema and was a founding member of the Alma Llanera Youth and Children’s Orchestra of Guárico State. He teaches guitar and plays contrabass in the Guárico Symphony Orchestra.