Takoma Elementary – Hispanic Heritage Month
An Arts Integration program of Latin music. The ensemble includes Fran Vielma on percussion, Taisha Estrada on vocals, and Eliot Seppa on guitar.
Music from Poplar Series: Ceylon Mitchell and Friends!
Ceylon Mitchell, a 2021 Strathmore Resident Artist, brings his ensemble and their passion for the Brazilian Choro and Afro-Caribbean music to St. Mary’s County. The choro, birthed in Rio de Janeiro in the mid 19th century, has its roots in African syncopated rhythms and European dance forms, including the lundú, the polka, and the habanera – an intriguing musical blend. The program also includes chamber music by Afro-Cuban composers.
Strathmore Artist in Residence Summer Concert
Just as the notes from his flute fly and float on air, Ceylon Mitchell is always in motion. This musician, educator, entrepreneur, and arts advocate is driven by his mission of keeping classical music alive, authentic, and accessible with programming and performances that promote traditionally marginalized communities, especially Black and Latinx cultural identities.
Originally from Alaska, this new dad is currently a Doctor of Musical Arts student at the University of Maryland, College Park. Mitchell is the recipient of a Prince George’s Arts and Humanities Council Artist Fellowship Grant and a Prince George’s County Forty Under 40 Award in Arts and Humanities.
Strathmore Artist in Residence Workshop
Join contemporary classical flutist Ceylon Mitchell to explore the percussion section instruments and the composite rhythmic elements that form the groove accompaniment in Cuban and Brazilian music, born from the rich amalgamation of Spanish/Portuguese folk music formulas and African rhythms.
This workshop will include live and recorded musical examples that pay homage to famous influential Cuban flutists including Eduardo “Richard” Egues and Orlando “Maraca” Valle, as well as Afro-Brazilian, Pixinguinha.
Try your hand at maintaining ostinato rhythms on percussive instruments like the clave, güiro, and congas while the main lead instruments like flute and piano improvise over these grooves.
Older students with instrument experience will gather and trade measures of improvisations, incorporate common rhythmic fragments, motives, and melodic riffs, and eventually venture into free improvisation.
Strathmore Artist in Residence Class of 2021 Virtual Debut Concert
Join the AIR class of 2021 for their virtual debut concert, when all 6 class members and their mentors take the stage for an unforgettable evening of cross-genre collaborations!