Grammy Award-winning duo Rodrigo y Gabriela grew up on an eclectic mix of music, a rare alchemy of influences that still informs their work today. Not long after the dissolution of their first band, Rodrigo Sanchez and Gabriela Quintero set off with their acoustic guitars and ended up in Ireland, where they soon ran out of money and began busking on Dublin’s Grafton Street—a turn of events that led to their crossing paths with Irish singer-songwriter Damien Rice, who then asked them to open for him at an early headline show.
As they developed their distinct breed of guitar music, Rodrigo y Gabriela quickly gained recognition for their extraordinary live show and made their full-length debut with 2002’s Re-Foc. Along with turning out nine additional acclaimed and kaleidoscopic albums over the years, including Area 52 (a 2012 effort made with a Cuban orchestra), 9 Dead Alive (a 2014 release that spotlighted their more rock-leaning sensibilities), and the 2020 Grammy-winning Best Contemporary Instrumental Album, Mettavolution, the duo have cemented their status as a globally renowned live act. In 2023, they released their most ambitious project yet, the Advaita Vedanta-inspired In Between Thoughts...A New World, featuring their signature dual guitar attack augmented by a full orchestra, with a corresponding 2 year world tour.
Among their many successes: performing at the White House for the president and first lady of Mexico at a 2010 event hosted by President Obama; headlining the Jazz World Stage at Glastonbury; selling out major venues like the Hollywood Bowl, Red Rocks Amphitheatre, London’s Royal Albert Hall, Radio City Music Hall, and the Sydney Opera House; and performing for massive crowds in such far-flung cities as Tokyo and Paris.
