Twenty three year old Colombian harpist, Edmar Castañeda, visited the LP® studio, to share his story and his music with us on April 12, 2001.

Edmar came to the United States in 1995 in order to take advantage of the educational opportunities afforded by this country, and is currently attending college to acquire a degree in Musical Education.

Although Edmar has not forgotten his Colombian musical roots, his main artistic focus is Latin Jazz.

>He has developed a unique left- hand bass accompaniment to his right-hand melody. Traditional harpists do not use bass, because they are usually part of a group that contains a bass player. Since he plays mostly by himself, Edmar developed this style of playing bass, melody and solo simultaneously.

Edmar has had the opportunity to perform with such legends as Paquito D'Rivera and Nelson Gonzalez. Two musicians who have been especially influential on his music are Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie Parker.

Edmar is in the process of finishing a Latin Jazz album. The instruments in his band include drums,conga, bass, flute, trumpet and of course, the harp.

Listen to him perform and discuss the development of his distinctive style of playing.