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Prominent Boise Basque Honored On September 12 Basque accordionist Jimmy Jausoro of Boise, Idaho was one of 12 Americans to receive the National Heritage Award, conferred by the National Endowment for the Arts. The prestigious honor is given to master traditional artists. The awardees attended a Congressional reception and an Awards Ceremony held at Ford’s Theater in our nation’s capitol. The recipients received a certificate and $5,000. Jimmy gave a public concert at the Old Post Office Pavilion at which members of the Oinkari dancers performed. He was nominated for the award by Mr. Steve Siporin, the folk arts coordinator for the Idaho Commission of the Arts. We would all like to take this opportunity to congratulate Jimmy Jausoro on the occasion of this wonderful national recognition of his lifelong contribution to Basque culture in Idaho and throughout the American West. [The following was the press release issued by the National Endowment for the Arts.] JIMMY JAUSORO The career of the Basque accordionist, Jimmy Jausoro, exemplifies the power of traditional art forms to energize and unify a local community. Mr. Jausoro grew up in Nampa in southwest Idaho, at that time a gathering place for Basque sheepherders. During the 1920s and 1930s, he and his friends frequented the local boarding houses and hotels listening to the older men tell stories, sing their Basque songs, and play the button accordion. After trying the small button instruments, he took his first job in order to earn the funds necessary to buy a shiny big Hohner piano accordion, the first of some seven instruments he has worn out in his lifetime of playing for Basque dances and performances. At first, his repertoire included a mix of American popular tunes, Basque folk songs, and popular music. During World War II, he took his accordion with him into the United States Navy and continued to play, largely popular music. After the war, he returned to Idaho, worked on the railroad, and formed a local dance band. Gradually, his thoughts turned more and more toward the music of his forebears, and in 1960 he formed a dance group named after a performing group from the Basque region in Spain where he had many times visited. The Oinkari Dancers have grown from a half dozen members in 1960 to over seventy today. Moreover it could well be argued that being an Oinkari dancer has become a rite of passage for young Basques growing up in Boise – a positive self-identification as a Basque made public through public performance. The general phenomenon of the local young people’s ethnic performing group is, of course, widespread. What is distinguished about the Oinkari dancers is the steady long-time musical and aesthetic participation of two senior artists – Jimmy Jausoro and his long-time accompanist and musical ally, Domingo Ansotegui. Every rehearsal takes place to live music provided by these older artists who can speak with authority to questions about authenticity, taste, and Basque cultural standards, speaking furthermore in the Basque language itself in which many of the younger dancers are now becoming fluent. In 1983 the first Idaho State Folk Arts Award was given to Jimmy Jausoro and Domingo Ansotegui for their artistic contribution to the Basque community of Idaho and to the entire state. |
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