ABOUT ME
Music in my heart. Dance in my veins. Art in my eyes.
Elisa Garcia was born in Uruguay, immersed in the sounds of tango and other Latin American folk music. At the age of eight, she relocated to the US with her family and embarked on a journey of discovering other world cultures. Elisa’s interest in different societies and their customs led her to study Anthropology at the University of Colorado at Boulder. With a strong passion for music and dance, she was eager to explore the impact that these art forms have on building communities. This led her to join a West African dance and singing group where she learned not only the rhythms of this rich and vibrant land, but also the strong sense of community they create.
Upon graduation, Elisa rediscovered Brazilian music and became a proponent for that lively culture. Through song, she learned to speak Portuguese and dance samba. As she delved deeper into Brazilian music and its origins, Elisa also discovered and fell in love with the sounds of the Cape Verdean Islands and Fado from Portugal.
Elisa’s interests and studies took her around the world, but her search for cultural identity brought her back to her roots in tango and Latin American folk music. Inspired to write her own songs, influenced by these rhythms, Elisa co-founded the Pan-American band, NuMundo. In 2011, they released their first CD titled “Our Song”.
The years 2013 - 2016 were spent living in Singapore where Elisa collaborated with musicians to share the cultures of Latin America. Here she also did work as a samba dancer and Zumba instructor.
Elisa is currently living in Colorado with her husband and daughter. She plays Latin American folk songs with her trio/quartet which includes her percussionist husband Leo Muñoz Corona, and pianist Victor Mestas. They play a variety of styles from Cuban boleros to Mexican huapangos to Argentinian zambas and Uruguayan candombe.
Elisa is also teaching dance classes with Una Vida Niwot and Dance for Parkinson's with 3rd Law Dance/Theater.