Jun 6, 2009 | 1-5pm
Westlake Park, Seattle
artSparks
Presented in Partnership with:
Seattle Parks and Rec
Jun 20, 2009 | 10-5pm
Art Park, Fall City
Fall City Days
Presented in Partnership with:
Fall City Arts
James Whetzel
Points of Departure: People & Cultures in Motion
Cultures like people are always in motion. New styles and identities develop to respond to the specific spaces and times in which human beings find themselves. Performers in this project are rooted in non-Western Classical music. Four are recent immigrants to the USA. This music is music that may not often be heard in public in the USA. And this project will also serve to show that what is traditional can also be innovative as well. The core concepts will be from South Asian and African classical and fold styles in which improvisation occurs within a shared rhythmic and melodic framework.
James Whetzel is a uniquely eclectic performer. He plays both acoustic music and electronic music. He sings his own West African palmwine songs and he sings original songs inspired by Indian folk and Classical music while playing the fretless Indian lute called sarod. Also he recites "tabla poetry," which are spoken word pieces based on the mesmerizing beats of the Indian tabla drums. He is also a highly skilled and innovative Tuvan style throat singer.
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