INFORMATION ON EL DUQUE Story: El Duque de la Bachata is a documentary film about Joan Soriano, a Bachata Musician from the Dominican Republic, as he struggles to reach his goal of a hit CD and success as a musician. It is also the story of his large extended family living in the rural countryside of Monte Plata near Santo Domingo. They dream along with him, hoping that his success will improve their economic situation and quality of life. As a child, Joan's hands were protected by his father from the dangers of agricultural work after it was discovered that he had a talent for the guitar. Immediately upon this discovery, Joan, along with his siblings, formed a musical group and began performing bachatas and merengues for neighbors. Improvising with found object instruments such as homemade guitars, tin can maracas, plastic bucket tamboras, coco grater güiras, and a glass bottle for bass, Joan set the foundation for the his unique style of Dominican music. The bachatas and merengues he plays have their origins in the Dominican Republic and are an important part of Dominican culture yet draw upon a variety of musical influences from regions of Africa, Europe, Latin America, and the Caribbean. Soriano is a practitioner of Afro-Dominican traditional salve and palo, and he blends these percussive styles with bachata to create a fresh sound. Joan Soriano is now 35 and lives with his girlfriend and son 20 minutes from Monte Plata, in the Santo Domingo barrio of Villa Mella. Joan has been featured on the Rough Guide to the Bachata and on the documentary Santo Domingo Blues as well as performed and recorded with big name bachata musicians such as Joe Veras and Zacarias Ferreira. However, at 35 he still has not had his own hit and is feeling the pressure now to make it big more than ever. Within the last few years, a music producer named Benjamin de Menil from IASO Records has begun recording a CD of Joan's music and is now moving toward the CD's completion with high hopes that it will be a hit. If Joan is going to make it as a bachata and merengue artist the time is now. In El Duque de la Bachata the rhythms of life are played out and the story of a family is written. Saturated with music, Dominican culture, intimate portraits, sabor (flavor) Dominicano, and the dreams of Joan and his family, "El Duque" provides an emotionally and intellectually satisfying story aimed at those hungry for documentary video content with a soul. The film is produced and directed by Adam Taub. To view information on Adam's most recent documentary La Quinceañera click here.
|
EL DUQUE UPDATES:
November 18th 2008: Post-production is underway and test screenings of the rough cut will begin within the week. Scheduled release for March 2009 April 28th 2008: The March Production trip was a success with over 90 hours of footage shot. The footage is now being captured and logged in preparation for editing. March 8th 2008: Adam Taub's documentary "La Quinceañera" will screen at the San Diego Latino Film Festival in TIJUANA STORIES program. January 23rd 2008: The next production trip in the Dominican Republic is scheduled for March. Twenty hours of documentary footage was shot during the first trip in August and this shoot seeks more footage of Joan Soriano and his family as he pursues his bachata and merengue music. January 21st 2007: A new teaser for El Duque de la Bachata has been completed and is available under "trailers." It features one of his new merengues. Click here for El Duque trailer.
|
