Great Music, Architecture, Food and Culture come together for

Concerts at the Square. Ten Community Heroes honored.

LOS ANGELES- On July 16, July 23 and July 30 step out of your car or get off the Metro Gold Line on your way home from work for one-of-a-kind free concerts at Heritage Square Museum.  Join us as we present great musical acts, local food vendors and costumed docents in a venue that brings you out of the present and into Southern California’s past. No need to drive – take the Gold Line to the nearby Heritage Square station. Concerts are made possible thanks to the support of Supervisor Gloria Molina and the Recording Industries Music Performance Fund.

Doors open to the public at 5:00 PM. Arrive at the museum early to see the historic architecture up close. Visitors will have a chance to try local food and drink and shop in the museum store. Costumed docents will be on hand to enliven the evening. On hand to receive honors will be ten Community Heroes that have made a difference in improving the lives of those living in Northeast Los Angeles in meaningful, tangible ways. Community Heroes recipients will be announced July 1.

On July 16, Mariachi Divas will be the headline act. Founded and directed by trumpet player Cindy Shea in 1999, the all-female Mariachi Divas are making big waves on the national music scene. In 2009, the group won the American Grammy award for Regional Mexican Album for their latest CD, Canciones De Amor. Mariachi Divas are a unique, multi-cultural ensemble imbued with the true flavor of Los Angeles and have been represented by women of Mexican, Cuban, Samoan, Argentinian, Colombian, Panamanian, Puerto Rican, Swiss, Japanese, Honduran, Peruvian, Tongan and Anglo descents. Cindy Shea states, “Music is a way of uniting our cultural backgrounds.” Mariachi Divas have appeared at Southern California venues such as the Arrowhead Pond, Universal Amphitheater, Staples Center, the Greek Theatre, the Santa Barbara Bowl, the House of Blues, the LA Forum for the 2005 Premio La Gente live TV awards show and the Shrine Auditorium for the 2006 Alma Awards. They have also accompanied Grammy- winning artists including Joan Sebastian, Jenny Rivera, Marco Antonio Solis, Pablo Montero, Graciela Beltran and Paulina Rubio and Mariachi Vargas.

On July 23, Dennis Kay will lead the Pasadena City College Swing Band, who will play big-band standards, swing favorites, and ballroom classics from the likes of Glenn Miller, Benny Goodman, and many more. Don’t let the name fool you – the Pasadena City College Swing Band consists of extraordinary students, faculty and professionals who come together to present a rockin good time!

Not to be outdone, on July 30th, the ever-popular Susie-Hansen Latin Band returns to us for what promises to be an unforgettable performance. Electric violinist Susie Hansen plays fiery Latin Jazz and Salsa, creating music that brings audiences to their feet, dancing in the aisles. Susie and her Los Angeles-based band have been acclaimed by many critics, such as Phil Elwood from the San Francisco Examiner who describes them this way: “It’s a sizzling, swinging Salsa band. Hansen can solo as if her bow was afire. The whole room was jumpin’ for joy.”  Mark Holston wrote in JAZZIZ Magazine that Susie Hansen’s “violin speaks the language of Latin Jazz with total fluency.” A long-time favorite in Los Angeles, Susie and her band play 175-200 live performances per year, including such events as the Playboy Jazz Festival, Fiesta Broadway, San Jose Jazz Festival, LA Salsa Festival and Newport Beach Jazz Festival. She has toured nationally with her band, and has appeared with such big names as Tito Puente.

For more information on Mariachi Divas, please visit http://www.mariachidivas.com/. For more information on Susie Hansen, go to http://www.susiehansen.com/.

Heritage Square is a living history museum dedicated to telling the story of the development of Los Angeles. At the museum, eight historic structures, saved from demolition and moved to the site, provide a glimpse of Southern California as it looked 100 years ago. The Museum is located at 3800 Homer Street, off the 110 Arroyo Seco Parkway (110/Pasadena Freeway) at Avenue 43, just north of downtown Los Angeles. For further information, please visit our website at www.heritagesquare.org