Café Con Pan play son jarocho music from Veracruz, Mexico. They explore the roots of son jarocho while connecting with other traditions from Latin America and beyond.
Alec Dempster and Kali Niño began playing as a duo in 2004. They met in the town of Santiago Tuxtla in 1997, where Kali is from and which is famous for its musical heritage. Over the past decade they have maintained a multi-disciplinary relationship with son jarocho with projects, which combine research, collaboration, visual arts, teaching, and producing. Their performances are guided by Kali´s uplifting voice and her effusive zapateado dancing. She began dancing and singing as a child, surrounded by legendary son jarocho musicians, and skillfully combines the vigorous impetuous of the jarocho genre with an introspective quality. Alec plays an array of traditional instruments such as la leona, la guitarra de son, la jarana and el pandero. Now based in Toronto, Café Con Pan also features zapateado dancer Mayahuel Tecozautla and bassist Chris Banks.