Transcontinental Rhythms: Getty Center Summer Sessions 2006 Opens With Four Masters Of African Rhythm
Transcontinental Rhythms, July 8
Summer Sessions 2006 opens with four masters of African rhythm.
Daby Touré Hailing from Mauritania, the charismatic Daby Touré blends Parisian jazz and electronica, African beats, and international pop into a new Afro-centric sound. Touré's warm, melodic voice soars above powerful bass, percussion, and guitar as he recounts stories about relationships, family, freedom, and staying positive during hard times. Proud of his African roots but valuing creative freedom above all else, Touré's soulful style and soaring vocals have ignited audiences from Paris to Pittsburgh.
Chris Berry and Panjea Chris Berry is a California kid who moved to Africa, became a spirit caller, and went on to sell over a million records in Southern Africa. Berry's six-man band, Panjea, offers a pioneering blend of indigenous music, dance hall, and hip-hop that has earned them platinum albums in Zimbabwe, Mozambique, and beyond. They mix an uplifting transcontinental message of hope with contagious dance beats based on the rhythms of the Zimbabwean mbira (thumb piano) and sacred Congolese ngoma drum.
Dub Lab Soundsystem The Los Angeles DJ collective spins African music in all its forms—Afrobeat, high life, hip-hop, blues, gospel, and soul. Crossing genres and defying classification, each DJ digs deep to find rare gems and fulfill the group's mission to share beautiful music and bring dance floors to a boil.
Najite & Olokun Prophecy Led by Nigerian master percussionist Najite Agindotan, the Los Angeles-based Najite & Olokun Prophecy (N.O.P.) has kept authentic Afrobeat and African jazz alive for the better part of two decades. Over the years, many of Southern California's best instrumentalists have lent their talent to the ensemble, and the current band represents a cross-generational accumulation of their spirit and wisdom. N.O.P.'s joyfully defiant music stresses that despite all obstacles, the human spirit will not only persevere, it will celebrate.
