MEDIA RELEASE from Calaveras Arts Music in the Parks #4
EVENT DATE: Wednesday, July 8, 2009 6:30 pm
LOCATION: Murphys Community Park, Murphys, Calaveras County
Venezuelan Fusion Music Next Up for Music in the Park in Murphys
Traditional Venezuelan music fused with jazz is what’s in store for the Music in the Parks scheduled for Wednesday, July 8. Starting at 6:30 pm, in Murphys Community Park, the Calaveras Arts Council is presenting The VNote Ensemble, formerly known as The Snake Trio. Bring your lowback chairs to this free concert. The Murphys Community Club will have its snack shack open for those who forget their picnics and refreshments.
Driven by the innovative ideas of its four band members, VNote creates a new sound with South American folk rhythms such as Joropo, Psaje, Calypso, Gaita, and Golpe de Tambor blended with North American jazz styles. Members include Jackeline Rago on cuatro, mandolin, bandola and percussion; Donna Viscuso on flute, alto sax; Sam Bevan on bass; and Lali Mejia on percussion.
Jackeline Rago is considered a leading force in the promotion of Venezuelan music in the Bay Area, having been born in Caracas and establishing the only traditional Venezuelan music workshop in California. She is a composer, arranger and educator who specializes in the cuatro, the national string instrument of Venezuela.
Donna Viscuso, on flute and alto sax, has toured internationally with the groups Wild Mango and The Blazing Redheads. She performs in hundreds of elementary schools in the San Francisco area and her arrangements can be heard on numerous recordings, including film scores and children’s educational CD ROMs.
Sam Bevan first established himself as a bassist, vocalist and pianist for a wide variety of bands while stumbling his way through college in pursuit of a “lucrative” French degree. During that time, he won Best Bassist from the Salt Lake City Weekly in 1997 and 1998, as well as Best Songwriter Award in 1998 with his band the Sun Masons. Bevan moved to the Bay Area in1999 and became a member of the David Grisman Quintet from 2000-2001. Since then, he’s played with numerous bands, and will be back here in Calaveras on August 5 for the Music in the Parks playing with Joe Craven.
A native of Maracaibo, Venezuela, Lali Mejia started her musical training at an early age at the “Colegio Bellas Artes” in Maracaibo. After moving to the United States to pursue her BFA degree in Graphic Design, she became a house music DJ in San Francisco where she spun records for many clubs and venues in the Bay Area. She formally began her percussion studies in the year 2000 under Jackeline Rago, and now Mejía specializes primarily in the Afro-Venezuelan Folklore as well as other Latin American styles of music.
To reach Murphys Community Park, take Highway 4 east to Murphys. Turn onto Main Street to downtown and turn left on Algiers Street. The park is by the creek. For info, call the Calaveras Arts Council at (209)754-1774 or visit www.calaverasarts.org. END
Mary Jane Genochio
Penny West
Executive Director(s)
Calaveras County Arts Council
PO Box 250 / 22 N. Main St.
San Andreas, CA 95249
209.754.1774
arts@goldrush.com
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