Wasska Project
B ased in the Bay Area, Wasska Project is a colloquial musical idea that fuses Latin-American traditional harmonies with classical guitar resources.
The colors of the cajon, donkey jaw, cajita, spoons, and Afro Peruvian tap dancing are exposed to the dynamics of the guitar, bringing a rich conversation between oral tradition and a colorful cadence in the strings.
News & Events
We are happy to share our music in so many venues around the Bay Area, to have a weekly update please follow us in our Facebook and Instagram accounts. And an easy way to hire us is through our Gigsalad account where you can find more details about rates and specifications. Cheers!!
We are supper happy to be part of the Crossrock family that always have the best cases for the musical instruments, take a moment to check all their amazing stuffs they have on their website on the botton of the page alone with our other vendors.
And for a good break in the middle of the week we are every Wednesday at Pucquio from 7:30 to 9:30pm.
Come and enjoy the best Peruvian food in plus some great latin music.
Wasska Project its always glad to be sponsored by such an amazing place like GSP Guitar Solo Publications in San Francisco-CA where we get the best service for our instruments and accessories, also by our friends from Schertler in Switzerland that provide us with the best acoustics amplifiers ever!! Thanks
Members
Javier Trujillo was born in Lima, Peru where he studied Classical Guitar at the
Conservatorio de Musica de Lima, later on he continued at UC Berkeley where he
studied Musicology as well.
He has participated in various festivals in USA and Peru as a performer and
educator, always sharing the importance of the guitar in Latinoamerica. Recently also performing in Europe.
Living in the East Bay Javier has had the opportunity to have master classes with
different classical guitar masters related to the Omni Foundation of the Performing Arts.
While playing with different bands and ensembles in the Bay Area, Javier explored both classical and popular music. He felt the need to further investigate the Afro-Peruvian guitar and became engaged with the style, exploring the different rhythms and possibilities in the music of his country.
Wasska Project has the need to show different genders and styles of music from South America adding contemporary guitar effects/cajon/voice and with a small touch of academic classical guitar ideas.
Mariela Herrera was born in Santiago de Chile, Chile, and has been singing and
dancing since her childhood. She was part of a children’s folk group called
Los Maipucitos for more than eight years and toured around the world with them as a
musician and dancer. She learned about native dances and music, and played
guitar, harp, flutes from Los Andes, and percussion instruments. She also joined
BAFOCHI (Folkloric Ballet from Chile), and the Arte Chile dance company. She
studied traditional Chilean culture at the Catholic University of Chile and took
theatre courses at the University of Chile.
After moving to California in 2004, Mariela studied childhood education at Merritt
College in California. As a dancer she has participated with different companies in
the Bay Area like Araucaria (Chilean dance), Jaranon y Bochinche, De Rompe y
Raja (Afro-Peruvian music and dance), Ancari for SF Carnaval, and more. As a
musician she has performed in different theaters and venues around the Bay Area
with groups like Pasto Seco Band, Vibo Simfani, Proyecto Lando, and others.
Mariela as an educator has developed a bilingual musical education program
named "Mariela Music Time" that she performs in libraries, private shows, festivals and different educational venues. In 2016 she was part of the San Francisco
Symphony AIM program. For more information visit her website: marielaherrera.com
Miguel Angel Becerra has been playing the Afro-Peruvian cajon and other percussion
instruments with different bands throughout the Bay Area, Santa Barbara, and in
Bogota, Colombia for several years. Originally from Lima, Peru, Miguel comes from a
family of musicians. Throughout his musical experience, Miguel has played many
different styles, such as Afro-Peruvian rhythms, Samba Reggae, Maracatu,
rock, latin jazz, nuevatrova, bossa nova, huaynos, cumbia, salsa, flamenco, and other
rhythms.
Additionally, Miguel has also built cajones from scratch along with his
father, working from the family’s garage. Besides playing percussion, Miguel has also
worked as a social worker with several different agencies and is currently a
researcher/data analyst. For more information about Miguel’s professional career
and his data visualization portfolio, check out his personal website: www.tableaudor.com.
Pedro Rosales was born in Lima, Peru. At the age of 14 he discovered the Cajon as his
main musical instrument, taking classes with Master Ernesto Sandoval at the Art
Museum in Lima. In '89 he was part of folklorist Julio Casanovas’ “Tradiciones
Peruanas” ensemble until '92 when he moved to the Bay Area. In '93 he co-founded with pianist Jorge Molina the experimental ensemble “Malambo Kombo,” mixing
Afro-Peruvian elements with Rock & Jazz. Pedro has also accompanied the most
accomplished Peruvian singers & artists since '92 including: Pepe Vasquez, Jesus Vasques, Luis Abanto Morales, Arturo Zambo Cavero, Lucia de la Cruz, Lucila
Campos, Peru Negro, Bartola, Jorge Luis Jasso, Manuel Donayre, Rosa Flor, and
Carlos Hayre, among others.
Pedro’s ability to play and teach the Peruvian Cajon has developed thanks to the
contributions of fellow master Cajon players such as: Manuel “Manguey” Vasquez,
Eusebio “Sirio” Pititi RIP, Braulio Barrera & especially with his mentor “Lalo”
Izquierdo (founder, choreographer, percussionist/dancer of Peru Negro Cultural
Association). From 1995 to 2013 he co-founded and directed “De Rompe y Raja” Cultural Association. Pedro Rosales it's a multi-talented musician, and with his cajon he has composed many songs that later on found their nest at the band he created:
Proyecto Lando.
With these resources he adds to Wasska Project the perfect balance of academy and
tradition. For more information about his work visit: proyectolando.com
Joaquin was born in Mexico City. He started his music studies at 9 years old learning percussion. At 14 he is accepted at the Escuela de Iniciación Artistica (The School of Artistic Initiation), part of the Institute of Fine Arts in Mexico, where he studies classical guitar. Later at 16, Joaquin decides to focus on electric bass and he starts working in the music scene in Mexico City. During this time, Joaquin studies with jazz bassist Rodrigo Castelán, who is well known in the jazz scene in Mexico and internationally. After moving to the US, Joaquin finishes his music studies in acoustic bass at the University of Arizona where he had the opportunity to study with professors Jason Roederer and Philip Alejo. Some musical projects Joaquin has participated in are Mitote Jazz, LoCura, Vox Urbana, Tucson Latin Jazz Nonet, Tucson Symphony Orchestra, and Orkesta Mendoza.
