3x JUNO Award nominees Sultans of String thrill their audiences with their BILLBOARD-charting global sonic tapestry of Spanish Flamenco, Arabic folk, Cuban rhythms, and Django-jazz, celebrating musical fusion and human creativity with warmth and virtuosity. Fiery violin dances with rumba-flamenco guitar while bass lays down unstoppable grooves. Acoustic strings meet with electronic wizardry to create layers and depth of sound, while world rhythms excite audiences to their feet with the irresistible need to dance.
Sultans of String have been riding a wave of success, hitting #1 on world/folk/jazz music charts in North America, and earning eight Canadian Folk Music Award nominations, winning Instrumental and World Group of the Year. They also took home the 2014 SiriusXM Award for World Group, and 1st place in the International Songwriting Competition out of 15,000 entries! The band has been featured in the NY Times, and recorded live for broadcast on BBC TV, SiriusXM in Washington DC, CTV’s CanadaAM, CBC’s Canada Live, and Kentucky’s WoodSongs, and has topped campus/community radio charts in Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Colombia, France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Spain, The Netherlands, U.S. and U.K. When violinist and Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Medal recipient Chris McKhool (Jesse Cook, Pavlo) first heard founding guitarist Kevin Laliberté’s (Jesse Cook) rumba rhythm, their musical synergy created Sultans of String’s signature sound — the intimate and playful relationship between violin and guitar. Amazing musical friends include bassist Drew Birston (Chantal Kreviazuk), Cuban percussionist Chendy Leon (Alex Cuba), and have featured special guests such as the Chieftains’ Paddy Moloney, folk-pop darlings Dala, Latin Grammy winner Alex Cuba, and Richard Bona. This Canadian string super-group performs as a trio to sextet, bringing their unique blend of global music to audiences around the world including Celtic Connections Festival (UK), Birdland Jazz Club in NYC, Canada’s National Arts Centre, and Folk Alliance in Memphis, TN. They were recently named Official Cultural Ambassadors by the City of Toronto with special performances in Toronto and New York. Sultans of String have also performed Symphony concerts across the continent (Vancouver Symphony Orchestra with Maestro John Morris Russell of Cincinnati Pops, Buffalo Philharmonic), as well as Education Concerts with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra.