Melvis Santa: Afro-Cuban Voice Therapy (Brooklyn Raga Massive Education Series)
Tue, 05 May 2020 (EDT)
08:00PM - 09:00PM
Event past
Director
Praveen Ramamurthy
Teacher
Melvis Santa
Organizer
Brooklyn Raga Massive
Artistic Director
Neel Murgai
Host
David Ellenbogen
Melvis Santa a frequent collaborator with the BRM community, introduces the songs, rhythms, dances and folklore and philosophy of the traditional music of Cuban , in an approach she calls Afro-Cuban Voice Therapy. This class is open to musicians and non-musicians alike and participation is expected.
Afro-Cuban music can transform time and consciousness with its multilayered polyrhythms and hypnotic chants, taking us out of our ordinary state of mind and invoking the spirits of the Afro-Cuban pantheon of orishas.
2018 Grammy nominee Melvis Santa and her group Ashedí (translated to ‘invitation’ in the Lukumi dialect of Cuba) bring this powerful, ecstatic tradition to new spaces. A 4 piece format, which Melvis leads on piano and vocals, while fronting a full percussion section of sacred batá drummers. Ashedí features Afro Cuban master percussionists Roman Diaz, Rafael Monteagudo, and Anier Alonso
Born in Havana, Melvis Santa has been well known in Cuba since she was fourteen years old and formed the vocal group Sexto Sentido. In 2010 Melvis spread her wings and appeared as one of the lead vocalists of Interactivo, a seminal fusion band in Cuba, recording and touring worldwide. Based in New York since 2014, she continues to make a mark as a performer and educator teaching Afro-Cuban music and dance workshops at NYU, CUNY Graduate Center, Yale University, Tulane University of New Orleans, and others. Melvis has also worked with a who’s who of the jazz and Latin communities, from Ravi Coltrane to the Buena Vista Social Club.
MAY 5, 2020