SACRAMENTO, Calif.—Guitarist and songwriter Ivan Najera and his wife Karen attended Shen Yun Performing Arts the afternoon of Feb. 4 at the SAFE Credit Union Performing Arts Center in Sacramento, California.
“I was super attracted to this show for the music,” said Mr. Najera, who composes Latin jazz dance music and whose performances showcase the polish, precision, and passion of his concerts. “I play Latin American, Spanish and world music, and [Shen Yun’s music] is just so beautiful.”
“I was amazed to see so many young people playing so well, incredibly well, really tight and the compositions were phenomenal; I was taken by the harpist and then the two stringed ‘violin,’ I thought that was phenomenal, phenomenal!” Mr. Najera was referring to the erhu, a two-stringed instrument that is thousands of years old. Each Shen Yun company tours with its own orchestra, which plays all-original compositions accompanying the dances….