The
world music percussion ensemble, Spoken Hand, brings its pulsating
rhythms to Upper
Darby Performing Arts Center March 22
Known for its high-energy live performances, the acclaimed percussion orchestra
blends North
Indian tabla, Afro Cuban bata, Brazilian samba and West African djembe
in an exhilarating evening of traditional and contemporary drumming and choral compositions
DREXEL HILL, PA – March 6, 2012 –
The acclaimed world music percussion ensemble, Spoken Hand, blends the
pulsating rhythms of North Indian tabla, Afro Cuban bata, Brazilian
samba and West African djembe in an
exhilarating evening of traditional and contemporary drumming and
choral compositions. The high-energy performance takes place at Upper Darby
Performing Arts Center on March 22 at 7:30pm.
Tickets
are $7-$10 and UDPAC members save $1 off each ticket. Tickets may be purchased
online at www.udpac.org
or by calling the box office: 610. 622.1189. Upper Darby Performing Arts Center is located at 601 North
Lansdowne Avenue in Drexel Hill, PA. The 1,600 seat theater is just minutes
from the Main Line and Center City Philadelphia and offers free parking. The
performance is one hour and appropriate for all family members ages seven and
over.
A celebration of polyphonic rhythms, Spoken
Hand unifies four percussion batteries into one distinct voice. Since its
inception over fifteen years ago this uniquely
robust orchestra of percussionists has traveled the road to perform giving drums their individual
voices. Linking the past and present, the sacred and secular with a
symphonically textured fusion of traditional and contemporary drumming and
choral compositions, Spoken Hand has twice earned the title of “Best World Music/Roots
Performance” by Philadelphia City Paper, and continues to share this cultural musical
experience with audiences far and wide.
Artistic Director Daryl Kwasi Burgee recently interviewed on
WHYY TV discussed formulating Spoken Hand. “The drum is always in accompaniment
to something else. And I realized that most people aren’t aware of the harmonic
and the melodical aspects of the drum. Giving people the opportunity to
experience that in a collage of melody and sound, that’s what this project was
all about. It was the opportunity to give the drummer voice.”
The four corners of the world are represented as Spoken Hand
fills the stage with percussionists who blend the rhythmic Afro-Cuban,
Brazilian, North Indian, and West African sounds in an artistic mission to
share with audiences their passion for music.
The Upper Darby Performing Arts Center and Upper Darby
Summer Stage are jointly sponsored by the Upper Darby School District Board of
School Directors and Upper Darby Township Mayor and Council through the
Department of Recreation and Leisure Services.
