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2007 PERFORMERS
CenterFest 2007 also celebrates the talents of performing artists
throughout the two day event.
The application process for 2007 is now underway. You can download a Performing Artist Application or to receive one by mail. If you would like to receive an application for 2008 please contact us at centerfest@durhamarts.org.
Take a look at the performers who are participating in 2007!
AUDIOFORM Formed in Charlotte, NC in 2004, this seven piece jazz-funk collective has won praise and attracted fans for its fusion of jazz-funk and R & B. The band’s debut CD titled “Compositions” has garnered positive reviews.
BARRISKILL DANCE THEATRE SCHOOL Our instructors are professional dancers with real world experience on Broadway, in dance companies around the country, and with hundreds of previous students! We teach world-class Ballet, Tap, Jazz, Ballroom, Latin, Hip-Hop, Fusion, Swing, Broadway, and more. Located in Durham, N.C.
BLUE TAILED SKINKS The Blue Tailed Skinks (formerly the Blue Nile Gang) have been playing Old-Time String Music in Durham and environs since 2001. The band has six members who play fiddle, banjo, accordion, harmonica, guitar, mandolin, stand-up bass, and spoons, bones, etc. Blue Tailed Skinks is a fiddle-led band where all members sing and audience participation is encouraged. Their repertoire includes an equal mix of vocals and instrumentals, with clogging on a few numbers.
BOUNCING BULLDOGS The Bouncing Bulldogs Rope Skipping Team is comprised of more than 100 boys and girls, ranging in age from 5 to 22, from the metropolitan Traingle area of Chapel Hill, Durham, and Hillsborough. Team members perform more than 400 synchronized tricks and maneuvers using a combination of single and double-dutch ropes. Their innovative rope skipping style includes fancy footwork, flips, and other acrobatic stunts. The jumpers choreograph their own individual routines and team routines to music. The team currently has dozens of national championship titles in single and double-dutch events. The Bouncing Bulldogs are proud to have won USAJRF Grand National Trophies in Speed and Freestyle as well as the Overall Champion Title at the National Championships in 2005.
BULL CITY SYNDICATE More than just a cliche' wedding band, Bull City Syndicate, (formerly, Soul Kitchen & The Bull City Horns), pushes the boundaries of their powerful sound even further for 2007. No other band from the Mid-Atlantic region dares attempt the intricate fusion of rhythm-section funk, 4-horn firepower, and soaring vocals that SK throws down each time they play live. Featuring the Bull City Horns on their front line, Bull City Syndicate has been building a loyal and ever-growing following for over 13 years. It will be worth your effort to see why Bull City Syndicate is one of the most in-demand bands in the Mid-Atlantic region, and why the crowds at their public appearances are always filled with musicians from other bands.
CHILDREN OF THE HORN Children of the Horn is a six-piece ensemble that blurs the distinctions between Jazz, R & B. and Afro-Caribbean music. Comprised of three horns (cornet, trombone, and baritone saxophone) backed by guitar, organ, and drums, Children of the Horn takes the listener on a kaleidoscope journey through original compositions that run the gamut from super-syncopated Latin-Funk to swaggering New Orleans Second Line styles to Classic Motown-inspired grooves. Audiences of all ages find Children of the Horn to be highly entertaining.
CHINESE KUNG FU CENTER This high-energy group performs the classic Chinese Lion Dance.
THE
CULTURAL PRESENTATIONS ON INDIA
DURHAM JAZZ Durham Jazz is a full eighteen-piece community band including vocalists and made up of musicians from many walks of life: students, teachers, scientists, businessmen, professionals, retirees, etc. Membership in the band is open to any musician who shares the love of jazz. Durham Jazz is a non-profit organization and is funded by grants from the Durham Arts Council as well as private donations. Durham Jazz performs for community events such as concerts in the park, community festivals and street fairs. The band also participates in community outreach with concerts held at senior centers and other venues designed to reach a diverse audience. It collaborates with local schools to participate in the development of budding young musicians. The Band is also available for private concerts such as shopping mall promotions, church socials, business and private parties, etc.
DURHAM SENIORS DIVAS
The Durham Seniorette Diva Cheerleading Squad was organized in February of 2004. After seeing a group of senior citizen cheerleaders perform in Wilmington, N. C., in October, 2003, at the North Carolina Senior Games Ambassadors’ Training Program, Louise Gooche, who serves as an Ambassador for the Senior Games thought, “We can do that too." However, upon returning to Durham, she was reluctant to try to initiate her idea because she thought, “No one wants to become a senior citizen cheerleader but yourself!” After talking to several ladies, she decided to post a “sign-up” sheet at the Downtown YMCA in Durham where she works as a volunteer. Nine ladies signed up immediately! The word got around and ladies continued to sign up until there were eighteen (18).
FLAMENCO CAROLINA Flamenco Carolina is a performing group under the direction of Carlota Santana, artistic director of Flamenco Vivo Carlota Santana. It is composed of a core group of students who share a common love of flamenco dance, an art form which originated with Gypsies in the southern part of Spain. Flamenco is influenced by the many cultures that inhabited Spain: Spanish, Judaic, Arabic, Indian, and North African.
RALEIGH KALASRISHTI
Kalasrishti will perform a combination of abstract and expressive South Indian classical dance called Bharathnatyam. This is one of the oldest dance forms of South India that has roots in Natya Veda, an ancient text and guide for this classical dance. The rhythmic foot movements lend aesthetic beauty to the dance and often in step with the hand movements. The footwork is complex and challenging and the skill of the dancers lie in blending the different mediums of movements.
LEGACY STUDIOS REPERTORY COMPANY
Legacy Studios Repertory Company is a performance group focused on diversity and inclusion. Our repertory group spans ages 6 through adult and is ethnically diverse. Our choreography is created to draw as wide and audience as possible by offering repertory that includes Broadway-style tap, classical ballet, and pointe, hip-hop, jazz, flamenco, Irish hard, and soft shoe, and modern. Content of pieces is carefully considered and is reflective of not only the choreographer’s vision but of our joy in dance.
LITTLE RIVER CLOGGERS Little River Cloggers is a traditional clogging team from Bahama, North Carolina which was formed in 1996 and consists of youth 5 to 18 years old. While the group occasionally performs to contemporary music, the focus of the group is on traditional freestyle big circle mountain dances, as well as smooth dance. Over the years, the group has participated in many events including North Carolina Tourism Day, Duke Homestead Herb and Craft Festival, Heritage Day at Jordan Lake, Angels Among us Walk for Brain Tumor Research, and the Heart of Cary Winterfest Celebration. The group has participated and won numerous awards at the North Carolina State Fair, including the Annette Trophy for outstanding overall performance in 2005, and the Ruth Jewell Trophy for best traditional freestyle team in 2003. The group is community service minded, and has performed at many nursing homes and fundraisers.
LUCY SUMNER AND THE SECOND THIRD
Lucy Sumner and The Second Third focuses on soulful, heartfelt, folk, jazz, and blues influenced original music. Lucy, born and raised in Fajardo, Puerto Rico, was recently a finalist on Fox 50’s “Gimme the Mic” and joins The Second Third's whose focus is on improvisational original material and unique interpretations of cover tunes. Their explorations range from slow, meditative new age musings, funky world beat rhythms and renown hits from all eras of jazz, blues and pop. www.sonicbirds.com/2nd3rd
POLYNESIA
REGGAE INFINITY Started in 1996, Reggae Infinity toured primarily in the Southeast and along the Atlantic Coast before a hiatus during which the band members pursued solo goals and commitments. Now, Reggae Infinity is stronger than ever. With a firm spiritual foundation, these talented musicians and singers are dedicated to sharing the message of Roots Reggae through their original, positive lyrics and music. They believe strongly in the message of equality, brotherhood, and universal love. The band members hail from Nevis, St. Kitts, Trinidad, the Virgin Islands, and the US. They have shared the stage with many international acts including Culture, Burning Spear, Yellowman, The Wailers, The Meditations, and Haile Maskel.
SANDBOX Sandbox is a four-piece Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill band specializing in twangy, upbeat traditional children’s music (like “Old MacDonald” and “Bingo”). They are well known for our exceptionally fun, interactive performances and a vocal prowess that is very rarely found in children’s groups these days. While Sandbox targets 3-8 year old children, our music appeals to folks of all ages. Our approach is to play familiar classics that everyone knows and loves. From there, they encourage children (and adults) to dance, move, shake, and sing. Sandbox has been together for a year, and has 30 years of band experience under their belts.
SOMOS SALSA Hola Amigos! We are SomosSalsa, a multi-cultural Latin dance group located in the Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill area of North Carolina. Our backgrounds might differ but we are united by our passion for Latin music and dance. After dancing for years, we decided to form SomosSalsa as a way to share our passion with others. Our dances include Merengue, Bachata, Salsa, Cumbia, Cha Cha Cha, and Casino Rueda. Casino Rueda started in Cuba in the mid-Twentieth century. The dance is fluid and dynamic with couples exchanging partners when one person calls out the different moves.
SOUL SURVIVOR The Soul Survivors are a five-piece R&B and Blues Band based in the Triangle. Some combination of the members have played together for almost ten years under various names, but only recently were the five able to come together as single “best of” gathering from those earlier projects. The band performs classic blues and R&B tunes with a solid rhythm section, powerful vocals and funky guitar and harmonica licks. www.myspace.com/soulsurvivorscarolina
SUNNY PERFORMING ARTS GROUPS “TA GE” & “A. MI ZI” Sunny Performing Arts Groups is the Chinese culture and performance group in the Research Triangle Park area. It consists of more than 20 Asian artist performances to promote the awareness, education, appreciation, and innovation of Asian culture and performing arts.
THE FUTURE KINGS OF NOWHERE Brimming with wit and energy, The Future Kings of Nowhere play acoustic pop-punk antifolk with an occasional bit of country twang. They call it acousticore. High speed acoustic guitars, double-time drumming, lush harmonies, and a slew of auxiliary instruments create a frantic backdrop for these songs of love, death, and modern day alienation. They sing with a disarming honesty that draws you in and a beat that keeps you moving. The hook sink deep and the energy is unforgettable.
THE HIGHLAND HUMMINGBIRDS The Highland Hummingbirds hail from the piedmont area of North Carolina. Drawing from a lively variety of musical styles, the Highland Hummingbirds play old time mountain music, cowboy songs, early bluegrass favorites and even some humorous ditties from the early 20th century. They also perform hot fiddle tunes from the old time tradition for concerts and dances. The four band members met while playing at festivals, band competitions, local dances and social occasions. Randy Johnson and Terry Burtyk harmonize on country songs along with Charley Pennell and Zack Mondry. The band members each play a number of different stringed instruments, switching stylings to match the sound and feel of their tunes. Zack played extensively on the west coast before relocating to the Raleigh area. Charley has lived in Canada and brought his old-time and bluegrass interests with him to Cary. Randy played old time music in Pennsylvania, in Asheville, NC, and currently lives in Greensboro. Terry lived in Boston, Virginia and Washington, DC, playing southern string band music with friends along the way. So, point your compass north, south, east or west, and these friends will entertain you with their cherished musical traditions!
THE MIGHTY GOSPEL INSPIRATIONS The Mighty Gospel Inspirations is made up of 5 active singers and 2 administrative personnel and has been together for 19 years. They are currently working on their third album and have performed on radio and television for Gospel on the Road (Cable Channel 8). The group travels throughout the state of NC, performing for rest homes, senior citizen homes, in prisons, for handicapped children at Duke Medical Center, and at the Burn Center in Chapel Hill. The Mighty Gospel Inspirations is a purely a cappella group, using no instrumentation.
POLKA PLUS BAND The band plays a variety of music form polka/waltz, rock & roll, swing, and ballads, whatever the listeners want to hear. All members of the band sing. Members grew up hearing and playing polka music, which is what grew the group together. Here in the South the demand for polka music is not that great, which makes our style of playing unique. They are the only true polka band in NC that play a variety of polka music. The band has performed at Raleigh’s International Fest, Triangle Polish Fest, St. Stanislaus Polish Fest, St. Michael’s International Fest, and at CenterFest 2006. In addition performances at senior retirement homes, Heritage Raleigh, Forest at Duke, Durham VA hospital and other private events.
THE WILL MCBRIDE GROUP The Will McBride Group has for over 4 years, presented central and eastern NC with a truly unique blend of jazz, edgy funk/pop and Latin stylings, full of rich color-chording, impressive melodic solo and vocal work, all supported with superb rhythmic backing. They present music that “satisfies your cool side…and moves your backside!” Think Steely Dan meets Antonio Carlos Jobim meets Wes Montgomery! The group currently is touring in support of Will’s latest CD release “As Yet...”
CenterFest Performance Schedule | ||||
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