Miami is pretty lucky to have an organization like Nu Deco Ensemble. It’s hard to explain how original they are, how they can be both treasured and undervalued at the same time. We should recognize them for what they are — a Miami cultural force shaped by Jacomo Bairos and Sam Hyken. Jacomo Bairos conducts Nu Deco with the kind of imagination and emotional clarity that turns Hyken’s genre‑bending ideas into music that feels unmistakably, electrically Miami. Hyken builds the machine. Bairos drives it.
I’ve written about them before, mostly marveling at how they’ve covered and collaborated with so many above‑the‑radar, beneath‑the‑radar, charming, imaginative, soulful, and underappreciated artists. Hyken and Bairos have curated something special.
They will return to the stage on Saturday, October 17, 2026 at 8:00 PM ET at the Banyan Bowl at Pinecrest Gardens — opening their new season gloriously under the stars.
Interpreting the music of Daft Punk, Aretha Franklin, Queen, Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson, and Lauryn Hill is no small feat. Collaborating with hip‑hop and R&B artists like Wyclef Jean, Talib Kweli, Lupe Fiasco, and Robert Glasper is no small feat. Playing with soul artists like PJ Morton, Allen Stone, Masego, Tank & The Bangas, Jon Batiste, and Bilal is no small feat. Showcasing indie artists like Ben Folds, Larkin Poe, Jacob Collier, Kimbra, and Tune‑Yards is no small feat. And connecting with classical‑fusion and Latin‑alternative artists — from Time for Three and Black Violin to Monsieur Periné, Magos Herrera, Danay Suarez, and Cimafunk — is no small feat. Hyken’s writing and arranging for everyone from Bad Bunny to Angelique Kidjo only adds to the madness.
This wide‑ranging lineup shows how Nu Deco reshapes orchestral music by weaving in modern sounds and global inspirations. Eclecticism like this takes imagination, vision, and work.
This time around, Nu Deco reaches back again to the soul canon with a Curtis Mayfield medley — a salute to the late, great architect of The Impressions, back when he and Jerry Butler were turning out slow‑drag classics like I’m So Proud. Before the solo years, before the accident, before the legend hardened, Mayfield was already sketching out a soundtrack of American conscience. And when he stepped out on his own, he gave us Super Fly, We’re a Winner, and a whole catalog that still feels like Miami on a good night — righteous, restless, and humming with purpose.
Valerie Coleman’s Umoja Unbound, Nu Deco’s atmospheric Tree Speak, Vivaldi’s Fall, and a soon‑to‑be‑announced guest artist round out the night. Soul, classical, and Nu Deco’s genre‑bending spirit wrapped in botanical hush — music that stays with you like Miami humidity.
And yes, it’s in Pinecrest — one of America’s “poorest” communities. Just kidding. Pinecrest Gardens, once home to the old Parrot Jungle, remains gloriously trapped in time in a way only a gated community could approve of. In a city that relishes bulldozing its own cultural memory, Pinecrest Gardens somehow held the line. It’s still gorgeous, still lush, and somehow still affordable.
Nu Deco says get there early.
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