Trained in flamenco in Spain and Canada, Shraddha founded the companies Caravana Flamenca and La Poesía del Flamenco. She collaborates with numerous artists and accompanies musical ensembles across Canada, the United States, and Asia. As a choreographer, she has created pieces for the opera Carmen under the direction of Kent Nagano and has collaborated with Cirque du Soleil.

She recently wrote and produced the short films Phoenix | Al–Kimia and BE (SOIS), which have been selected for several festivals, including LEFIFA, the Cannes 7th Art Awards, Dans Kamera Istanbul, the Duende Flamenco Festival, and the Vancouver International Flamenco Festival. Shraddha is initiated into Sama, is a student of the Inayatiyya, and is a graduate of the Sulūk Academy.

Caroline Planté is one of the world’s few prominent female flamenco guitarists and a pioneering voice in contemporary flamenco composition. Born in Montréal and trained in both Canada and Spain, she studied with master musicians and led Cruceta Flamenco in Madrid as musical director and composer from 2005 to 2013. Her 2010 album, 8 Reflexiones, made history as the first flamenco CD composed and recorded by a woman, receiving international acclaim.

Since returning to Montréal in 2013, Planté has launched innovative projects and collaborated with flamenco artists from diverse backgrounds. Her latest work, The Roses of Lorca, premiered in 2024 and draws inspiration from Spanish poet Federico García Lorca. With over three decades of experience, she remains a bold and expressive voice in the flamenco world.

Following his studies in composition and classical percussion at the Manuel M. Ponce Conservatory in Mexico, Miguel Medina worked for three years with choreographer and director Rubén Segal in Barcelona.

He has been a musician for contemporary dance for 15 years, performing at Circuit-Est, Concordia University, and the Montreal School of Contemporary Dance. He has also contributed to numerous musical projects in Mexico, France, and Canada, including collaborations with: El Azote (contemporary pop), Juan Carranza (flamenco), Gitan Blues (Manouche music), Sarah Renélik (Haitian roots), Malade Mantra (world music), the Spanish Flamenco Arte Ballet Company, SaSaSa Company (contemporary flamenco), Jorge Martinez (flamenco rhythms of the world), La Otra Orilla (contemporary flamenco), Caroline Planté (guitarist and composer), and Zal Sissokho (kora).

Born in Spain, Marcos Marin began his musical journey with the Petits Chanteurs du Mont-Royal. He went on to pursue his studies at the Conservatoire de Musique de Montréal, Université de Montréal, and UQAM, where he studied classical guitar with Alvaro Pierri.

Marcos discovered flamenco at the age of 14. His international stage experience includes collaborations with artists such as Paco Romero (Ecuador), Francis Brunn (Germany), Soledad Barrio and Noche Flamenca (USA), Joaquín Ruiz (Spain), Esmeralda Enrique (Canada), Caroline Planté, Mariano Cruceta (Canada), and La Otra Orilla (Canada).

He has also participated in numerous other projects, regularly collaborating with Daniel Lavoie & Louise Forestier, France D’Amour, Jean-François Groulx, Stéphane Rousseau, Luc Boivin, Le Cirque du Soleil, and Ubisoft.

Anouar Barrada is a Moroccan Sufi singer with a powerful and warm voice. He is recognized as one of the leading interpreters of Moroccan-style Arabo-Andalusian and sacred music, renowned for his energetic tenor. With the support of the Sufi Center, Barrada founded the Burdah Ensemble in 2009 in Montréal, a Sufi vocal group through which he has performed at major international festivals in the USA, England, Spain, and Canada. He has also collaborated on several projects with the acclaimed artist and composer Katia Makdissi Warren.

Farzad Shams a. Jafari is classically trained in Sama, the whirling practice of Sufis. He has studied the turn, sama meditation, as well as mysticism and Persian mystical poetry. He curated and has taken part in many sacred music Ceremonies and sama presentations. He serves the Sufi communities in Canada, presenting some of their work through Rumi Canada. He is also a student within the Inayatiyya and a graduate of Suluk Academy. He currently lives in Vancouver, Canada and holds monthly sessions for Sama and inner listening meditation.

Kiyo Asaoka began her flamenco journey in 1998 with the Arte Flamenco Spanish Dance Company. For more than 25 years, she has worked as a performer, choreographer, educator, and collaborator, studying with flamenco masters in both Spain and Canada. She also explores ways of blending flamenco with her Japanese heritage to create original works that honour tradition while opening space for new expressions.

Since 2016, she has managed Tablao Flamenco Toronto, curating performances and workshops with both local and international artists.

Kiyo’s mission is to dedicate herself to this beautiful yet powerful art form and to help keep it vibrant, accessible, and evolving for future generations within Toronto’s flamenco community.

Aki Takahashi is a traditional Japanese shamisen player and folk singer. She studied folk music in Kyoto and has performed both shamisen and vocals at a wide range of venues and events. Since moving to Canada, Aki has expanded her practice to include taiko drumming, deepening her pursuit of Japanese musical traditions.

She is currently the Associate Artistic Director of Nagata Shachu, Canada’s pre-eminent taiko ensemble, and also creates her own original compositions. Aki is the founder of the Japanese folk ensemble ten ten and has collaborated with numerous artists across diverse cultural backgrounds and traditions.

Heidi Chan works with music and sound for theatre, dance, and visual media. She plays bamboo flutes, percussion, and synthesizers, and is a member of the Japanese folk ensemble ten ten. Heidi also collaborates widely with cross-cultural music collectives and artists, and has performed at numerous arts festivals and performance series.