BIOGRAPHY
Observing his mischievous smile and clear gaze, it is easy to imagine the 12-year-old Xabi on the day he brought his first trikitixa from Rufino Arrola’s house.
Much of that excitement and capacity for wonder is still present in today’s Xabi, six albums and hundreds of concerts later. He would never part with that trikitixa again, “his beloved triki”. Arrola was a friend of Xabi’s father, and that meeting unintentionally ignited a spark that continues to burn.
That spark only needed a small flame: he always knew his passion was music. At the age of 7, in 1985, he began studying music theory and playing the piano accordion. The trikitixa was a part of everyday life. There were always trikitixa cassettes in his father’s car, where he listened to those who would later become his musical idols.
In 1988, the trikitixa championship (txapelketa) took place, featuring two of those idols: Joseba Tapia and Kepa Junkera, among others. Many of the participants would later revolutionize the instrument, which had been limited to the rural environment. At that moment, a world opened up for the trikitixa, in which Xabi would also be involved.
Championships soon indicated he was on the right path: he won the 2nd and 3rd prizes in the Derio (Bizkaia) trikitixa championship in 1995 and 1996, respectively.
Formal learning and direct contact with living tradition crystallized in a first demo with four self-composed tracks, funded with the proceeds from his teaching and playing.
From the good reception of that work came the first commissions: composing the song for Ikastola Karmelo in Santutxu, the festival song of Bermeo “Egunaro egunaro kalien” with contributions from musicians like Mikel Urdangarin and Joseba Tapia, and lyrics by Iñaki Aurrekoetxea, the music for Ibilaldia’04 of the Bizkaia Ikastola Festival, along with Fredi Paia. Friends like Oreka TX, Roberto Moso, and Eñaut Elorrieta also collaborated on this project.
In gratitude for the legacy of the elders, Xabi published the music book “Bizkaiko trikixa” in 2005, which he describes as “a gem, since our elders are disappearing along with their works.” The inspiration from these scores is reflected in the album of the same name, where Xabi approaches these scores with his personality as a young, urban professional musician. Great artists like Mikel Markez, Amaia Oreja, Xabier Berasaluze “Leturia”, and Xabier Zeberio collaborated on the album.
After a book and album based on tradition, in 2009, Xabi’s role as a composer began to take the reins of his discography. The album “Denboraren naufrago” (Elkar label) is the first album with compositions and original songs with lyrics by Kirmen Uribe.
The groups from Portugalete commissioned him to compose the festival song “Sartu da jaia Portura” with lyrics by Iñaki Aurrekoetxea.
His first work as director, composer, and arranger “Zamudio lehen orain eta be” incorporated the participation of the people of Zamudio with established artists like Natxo de Felipe, Amaia Zubiria, Mikel Markez, Anton Latxa, Mikel Urdangarin, Xabier Zeberio, and Jexux Aranburu.
After a season with concerts in the Basque Country, Greece, and the United States, “Geure” (released on Xabi’s own label DND) his third studio album sees the light, where Xabi advances in his own artistic language, combining folk and Celtic sounds with jazz influences. The strength of the brass section gives a very personal touch to this album. The lyrics of this project are by Iñaki Aurrekoetxea, Unai Elorriaga, and Kirmen Uribe. Thanks to this album, in 2014, he won the Runas Project held through the Ortigueira International Celtic World Festival.
2014 brought him exciting recognitions in his homeland: he was the town crier of the Portugalete festivals and the Blue Flag of Bilbao 2014 (the best of Aste Nagusia, Bilbao’s Great Week) for the musical performance he carries out every year with the “chupineras”.
In 2015, he headlined Ortigueira 2015 along with Cristina Pato and Sharon Shannon.
Xabi has always had a sincere admiration for Celtic music, and throughout his travels, festivals, and concerts, he has met many musicians with whom he has shared the stage. The main idea was to travel through music to the different areas that make up the Celtic territory. From Galicia to Quebec, passing through Asturias, Brittany, England, Scotland, and Ireland, “KeltiK” (DND 2016) is a tribute to Celtic music, where it is unclear if his music approaches Celtic or Celtic approaches his music.
Accompanied by his usual band, “KeltiK” featured collaborations with Oreka TX, Alos Quartet, Ed Boyd, Yann Le Bozec, Youen Le Berre, Niamh Ní Charra, Martin O’Neill, John Joe Kelly, Calum Stewart, Brian Finnegan, Anxo Lorenzo, Ciaran Ryan, Rua Macmillan, Susana Seivane, Gus Sicard, Alasdair Fraser, Natalie Haas, and Ross Ainslie. The lyrics, once again, were by Iñaki Aurrekoetxea Jon Maia. “KeltiK” was presented at the Getxo Folk Festival in September 2016 in a concert with the participation of some of the collaborators.
In this work, Xabi also took on the production for the first time, undoubtedly a result of his years of dedication to music.
Concerts and recognitions followed, such as being the Farolín of the Bilbao Carnival or the town crier of the Sopela festivals along with more musicians, or the Objective Aste Nagusia award for his contribution to the worldwide dissemination of our culture in 2019. In that same year, Xabi prepared “Bost”. In Basque, it means five, and it is his fifth studio album. It is the distillation of the learnings of recent years, with travels, conversations, and collaborations with key artists like La Bone Souriante, Alasdair Fraser Natalie Haas, Julie Fowlis, Phil Cunningham and Ali Bain, Anxo Lorenzo, Oskorri, Carlos Nuñez, or Gwendal; of his own memories like that first trikitixa or the trips to Palencia, the land of his grandparents’ origin; of the inherited stories like the Basque emigration to America. All these inspirations are felt in the nuances present in “Bost”, to which the great handful of collaborators (Yves Lambert of La Bottine Souriante, Fetén Fetén, Tanxugueiras, Calum Stewart…) add a special diversity. Xabi defends “Bost” live with a formation of five musicians and two dancers (for smaller spaces he has the alternative of a trio plus dancers).
With “Bost”, Xabi was selected by Basque Music to perform at the 2020 edition of the largest professional market for world and roots music: WOMEX. And earlier, at the end of September, “Bost” received the Musika Bulegoa Saria, the Basque Music Office Award for the best folk album.
“Aurrez Aurre” (DND 2021) is a live work. Xabi Aburruzaga looks back on his twenty-year musical career, and in this sixth work, he collects some of the songs from his previous five albums with new arrangements. To enjoy the sensations that live performances offer.
Basque folk looking at the world, and in the same way, Aburruzaga is the representative of the trikitixa around the world.
“Aurrez Aurre” face to face, the way we enjoy music the most. Both the creators and the audience. Together again, face to face again.
