Hartford, Conn. (May 3, 2012) – The Trinity Samba Fest, now in its sixth year, will take place on Saturday, May 5, from 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., at Mortensen Riverfront Plaza, 300 Columbus Boulevard. Admission is free to the rain or shine family-friendly event, produced in partnership with Riverfront Recapture. The event features a dynamic lineup of musicians, highlighted by
Berimbrown, a nine-member Afro-fusion band from Brazil, dancing, face-painting, juggling, and many other crafts and activities. Click here for a
short video teaser of the event.
“Music and dance from Brazil to Peru to Puerto Rico and beyond show common threads among these cultural expressions,” says Eric Galm, who conceived and produces Samba Fest. The Trinity College professor of music and ethnomusicology continued, “Vibrant, live music and dance is a way that we can learn about our hemisphere and its history. Highlighting these connections throughout the African diaspora in the Americas enables us to understand how James Brown, bomba, samba, and salsa move and groove together.”
(Click here for photos from
2011 Trinity Samba Fest)
Berimbrown, from Minas Gerais, returns to Samba Fest for the third consecutive year, this time with special guest Dinho Nascimento from Bahia. Berimbrown and Nascimento, a percussionist and singer, are highly regarded for innovative blends of North American funk, s
oul, and reggae with regional and historical Brazilian references.
(
photo: Crowd at 2011 Trinity Samba Fest, by Nick Lacy)
The Trinity Samba Ensemble, directed by ethnomusicologist and professor Eric Galm, performs, and they will be joined by Brazilian vocalist José Paulo. New Haven’s Ginga Brasileira will demonstrate the Afro-Brazilian martial art of capoeira and the “stick dance” called maculelê, which originated with enslaved Africans toiling in Brazilian sugar plantations.
Local celebrity trumpeter and salsa bandleader Ray González conducts Conjunto Antilleano and the youth ensemble Guakibom Jazz. Hartford’s Negrura Peruana performs traditional music and dance of Peru’s African and Creole population originating in the coastal region south of Lima. The Willimantic-based Bomba Ashe performs quintessential Puerto Rican folk music and song forms, bomba and plena.
The Artists Collective African Connection Dance and Drum Ensemble will demonstrate West African dance. The duo JuggleJoy is teaching circus-oriented dexterity skills throughout the afternoon. Samba Fest also features crafts activities and movement-based games for children (organized by Trinity College student groups).
The Trinity Samba Fest is free and open to the public. For directions and parking information, and additional information about the participating artists and styles of music, visit sambafest.com. For general information, call 860-297-2199.
Samba Fest is supported by the City of Hartford Arts & Heritage Jobs Grant Program, Pedro E. Segarra, Mayor; Greater Hartford Arts Council; Trinity College’s Austin Arts Center Guest Artist Series, Department of Music, Center for Urban and Global Studies Arts Initiative, offices of Community Relations, Multicultural Affairs, and Campus Life, Trinfo.Café, and WRTC 89.3 FM. Additional support is provided by the UConn Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies, the Governo de Minas/Programa Música Minas, and the Consulate General of Brazil.