What: A Brazilian Style CARNIVAL celebration party featuring grooving music, dancers, and more! When:Saturday, March 5th, 2011/ Doors open at 7pm Where:Mateel Community Center Tickets:$25 Advance / $30 at the door
Celebrate the Brazilian Carnival week & dance, party, & groove to over 40 performers!
You are cordially invited to participate the 1st ever SoHum Carnival celebration! The March 5th weekend is Carnival week in Brazil and we'll be commemorating the festivities in grand style at the Mateel... be prepared to dance!
Founded in 1986 by Dr. Eugene Novotney, the Humboldt State Calypso Band was the first ensemble of its kind in the entire California State University system. The Humboldt State Calypso Band is a 100% acoustic group comprised of an orchestra of steel drums, or more accurately, steelpans. The steelpan, or "pan" as it is called in the Caribbean, is a highly developed instrument formed from a raw 55-gallon oil barrel. The barrel is hammered, measured, etched, tempered, and then fine-tuned by an expert craftsman. Through the use of single, double, and multiple combinations of barrels of different depths, the full symphonic range of instrumentation is reproduced.
The Humboldt Calypso Band prides itself in maintaining an accurate and authentic connection to the roots of the steelband movement and the innovative musicians of Trinidad & Tobago, the island nation that created and developed this unique percussion phenomenon. Most of the Humboldt State Calypso Bands' steelpans are built by Clifford Alexis, a Trinidad native living in the United States.
The indigenous "Calypso" and "Soca" music performed by the Humboldt State Calypso Band represents the true voice of steelband music in the Caribbean, and steelband arrangements from Trinidad & Tobago greatly influence the group's repertoire and instrumentation. Over its twenty-plus years of existence, the Humboldt State Calypso Band has developed a relationship with some of Trinidad & Tobago's most important steelband composers, most notably Ray Holman & Len "Boogsie" Sharpe, who have written many of the arrangements and original scores that the group performs. Some alumni of the group have traveled to the West Indies, where they performed in the National Panorama Competition during Trinidad's famous Carnival celebration, and shared the stage with some of the best steelpan performers in the world.
Other alumni have gone on to lead steelbands in communities, in public schools, at colleges and universities, and professionally throughout the United States. The Humboldt State Calypso Band meets weekly as a class in the Department of Music, and is open to both music majors and non-majors alike. In addition to the Humboldt State Calypso Band's regular performances at Humboldt State University and throughout Northern California, the Calypso Band has undertaken tours to San Francisco, Santa Cruz, San Jose, Santa Rosa, Sacramento, Seattle, Stockton, Fresno, Berkeley, Oakland, Long Beach, and Los Angeles. Find out more at their MySpace page here: http://www.myspace.com/hsucalypso
~ Club Cubano
(More information on HSU's groovin' group Club Cubano to be posted soon...)
~ sambAmore
Who is "sambAmore" you ask? sambAmore was born out of the artistic community in which we call home, Humboldt County. Drumming and dancing have long been a strong influence in this area. The dance and drum relationship is rooted deep in African community celebration. Jesse Jonathon, music director for sambAmore and a graduate of Humboldt State's Music Department found a passion for community music and dance. It was his desire to mix drumming and dancing with a powerful melodic presence, so he recruited a band of brass and woodwind players to perform his original compositions and arrangements. Andelain L. Roy, dance director for sambAmore, was born and raised dancing in Humboldt. Andelain shares the same passion for community celebration, dancing in her first parade in 1991. Andelain leading the dancers and Jesse leading the band the group can be found playing parades and stage performances to inspire their community and encourage Humboldt to sambAmore. Find out more at their MySpace page here: http://www.myspace.com/sambamore
Check out this video from the 2009 North Country Fair on the Plaza in Arcata...
Founded in 1986 by Dr. Eugene Novotney, the Humboldt State Calypso Band was the first ensemble of its kind in the entire California State University system. The Humboldt State Calypso Band is a 100% acoustic group comprised of an orchestra of steel drums, or more accurately, steelpans. The steelpan, or "pan" as it is called in the Caribbean, is a highly developed instrument formed from a raw 55-gallon oil barrel. The barrel is hammered, measured, etched, tempered, and then fine-tuned by an expert craftsman. Through the use of single, double, and multiple combinations of barrels of different depths, the full symphonic range of instrumentation is reproduced. 
The Humboldt Calypso Band prides itself in maintaining an accurate and authentic connection to the roots of the steelband movement and the innovative musicians of Trinidad & Tobago, the island nation that created and developed this unique percussion phenomenon. Most of the Humboldt State Calypso Bands' steelpans are built by Clifford Alexis, a Trinidad native living in the United States.