From: SHIVANOVA_at_aol_dot_com

Sent: 01 March 2011 11:29

Subject: Re: Equator music and dance series 2011- Kent and London Southbank Centre

 

 

http://www.equatorfestival.com/

www.equatorfestival.com

PRESS RELEASE

 

Equator Spring/Summer 2011 Programme

 

Ashford, Maidstone, Folkestone & London South Bank

 

Equator World Music series are thrilled to announce their spring and summer programme packed full of exciting and entertaining concerts, cultural experiences and educational workshops from an array of internationally renowned artists including flamenco legend Juan Martin, the talented Middle Eastern Jazz fusionists Attab Haddad Quintet,, Indian soundscape geniuses ShivaNova, Portuguese guitar master Custodio Castelo, Turkish-Folk fusion extraordinaire Dogan and the Deerhunters, Afro beat marvels Robert Maseko and the Congo Beat in Ashford, Maidstone, Folkestone and London.

We have a Special Offer - "Buy a full price ticket for 2 events and get 1 ticket half-price" for all Ashford and Maidstone events.

More information with weblinks and Youtube links on on events and artists, venue information, and booking details are on our website - www.equatorfestival.com

Ashford

 

Custodio Castelo - Friday 1st April - Norton Knatchbull School, Ashford


 

Custodio Castelo is the Master of the Portuguese guitar, performing with his trio intricate and moving Mediterranean rhythms packed full of emotion and combined with a dynamic mix of tempos in a mesmerising display.

www.custodiocastelo.com

www.myspace.com/custodiocastelo

"He stands between the classic and the modern, between tradition and innovation. Beautiful and perfect"

In A Trompa

7:30pm - Adults £8, Concs £5, Students £3, Children FREE

 

Venues: Norton Knatchbull School, Hythe Road, Ashford, TN24 0QJ


 

Tickets: Ashford Tourist Information Centre, 18 The Churchyard, Ashford, TN23 1QG

01233 629 165 - tourism_at_ashford_dot_gov_dot_uk - www.equatorfestival.com

 

Dogan Mehmet and The Deerhunters - Friday 15th April

Norton Knatchbull School, Ashford


 

Dogan and The Deerhunters create a captivating and energetic world fusion of English and Turkish folk music which cleverly combines jazz, funk, soul and indie-rock techniques with Anglo-Turkish and Gypsy-Punk styles in a mix of traditions and strong grooves. Dogan is a hugely dynamic front man, exceptional vocalist and talented multi instrumentalist.

www.doganmehmet.com www.myspace.com/doganmehmetthedeerhunters

"Whether in full Turkish mode, re-jigging English trad, or concocting his own patent mixture of the two, it's a remarkable debut." Mojo

7:30pm - Adults £8, Conc £5, Students £3, Children FREE

 

Venues: Norton Knatchbull School, Hythe Road, Ashford, TN24 0QJ


 

Tickets: Ashford Tourist Information Centre, 18 The Churchyard, Ashford, TN23 1QG

01233 629 165 - tourism_at_ashford_dot_gov_dot_uk - www.equatorfestival.com

 

 

The Hut People - Saturday 7th May - Ashford Youth Theatre, Ashford

The Hut People duo, dextrous accordion-playing Sam Pirt (the piano box man from the band 422) and inventive percussion Gary Hammond (former percussionist for the Beautiful South) are talented multi-instrumentalists performing traditional and contemporary folk music from around the world. Their varied blend of home-grown tunes mixed with British, Nordic and European folk music creates an enthusiastic performance that is spontaneous, hilarious, engaging, fun and entertaining.

www.thehutpeople.co.uk www.myspace.com/thehutpeople.


 

 

"certainly the most entertaining act on the folk scene by far."

Not the White Horse Folk Club

 

7:30pm - Adults £8, Conc £5, Students £3, Children FREE

 

Venues: Ashford Youth Theatre, 1 Dover Place, Ashford, TN23 1HU


 

Tickets: Ashford Tourist Information Centre, 18 The Churchyard, Ashford, TN23 1QG

01233 629 165 - tourism_at_ashford_dot_gov_dot_uk - www.equatorfestival.com

 

 

Robert Maseko and the Congo Beat - Saturday 28th May

Plus Drumming Workshop - Ashford Youth Theatre, Ashford


 

Robert Maseko and the Congo Beat perfectly fuse elegant vocals, sizzling guitar and Rumba propelled basslines, exploring the deep roots of Afrobeat and the connections between African, Cuban and Caribbean music. Robert and The Congo Beat reinvent hip-swinging Congolese Soukous music adding a clever touch of Reggae, Flamenco, Tango, Merengue and Zouk on the way.

www.robertmaseko.com www.myspace.com/robertmasekothecongobeat

"The wonderful lilting rhythm of Robert Maseko and Congobeat had us all up on our feet. Shimmering Soukous Rumbapop, with an understated beat that gradually ropes you in".

Musicport Festival.

 

Workshop 6.30pm Concert 7.30pm - Adults £8, Conc £5, Students £3, Children FREE


 

Venues: Ashford Youth Theatre, 1 Dover Place, Ashford, TN23 1HU

 

Tickets: Ashford Tourist Information Centre, 18 The Churchyard, Ashford, TN23 1QG

01233 629 165 - tourism_at_ashford_dot_gov_dot_uk - www.equatorfestival.com

 

 

Attab Haddad Quintet - Friday June 24th- Norton Knatchbull School, Ashford


 

Oud player Attab Haddad and his musicians perform their enchanting fusion of flamenco and jazz combining Middle Eastern and Mediterranean influences to create the hypnotic melodies, sensual rhythms and passionate energy of their unique compositions. www.myspace.com/attabhaddadquintet


 

7.30pm - Adults £8, Conc £5, Students £3, Children FREE

 

Venues: Norton Knatchbull School, Hythe Road, Ashford, TN24 0QJ


 

Tickets: Ashford Tourist Information Centre, 18 The Churchyard, Ashford, TN23 1QG

01233 629 165 - tourism_at_ashford_dot_gov_dot_uk - www.equatorfestival.com

 

 

Equator Choir Competition - Friday 1st July - Norton Knatchbull School, Ashford


 

The Equator Choir Competition returns for its third year welcoming amateur, school and youth choirs based in Kent to take part in this exciting performance opportunity. Entry criteria and information for choirs can be found at www.equatorfestival.com The competition will be judged by a panel that will include highly experienced musicians and other choisr. The deadline for receipt of entries is Friday 27th May 2011.


 

 

8pm - Adults £6 Children £4

 

Venues: Norton Knatchbull School, Hythe Road, Ashford, TN24 0QJ

 

Tickets: Ashford Tourist Information Centre, 18 The Churchyard, Ashford, TN23 1QG

01233 629 165 - tourism_at_ashford_dot_gov_dot_uk - www.equatorfestival.com

 


 

Equator Music Competition - Thursday 7th July

Norton Knatchbull School, Ashford

 

Following the exciting impact of Equator's Autumn Music Competition we have again invited talented young musicians to display their musical abilities in a live performance before a supporting audience and judged by a panel of highly experienced musicians. Entries include vocalist, guitarists and saxophonist performing jazz, classical, indie and pop. The competition is in association with Kent Music and is aimed at encouraging and developing exciting, interesting and unique young artists in Kent. The winner will have the opportunity to perform as a supporting act in Equator's Autumn 2011 programme at the newly opened St Mary's Church Arts Centre.


 

8pm - Adults £6 Children £4

 

Venues: Norton Knatchbull School, Hythe Road, Ashford, TN24 0QJ

 

Tickets: Ashford Tourist Information Centre, 18 The Churchyard, Ashford, TN23 1QG

01233 629 165 - tourism_at_ashford_dot_gov_dot_uk - www.equatorfestival.com

 

 

Maidstone

 

Kasai Masai - Saturday 19th March

Plus African Dance Workshop - Kent Music, Maidstone


 

Kasai Masai are a five-piece band led by Nickens Nkoso performing traditional passionate rhythms deep from the heart of Congo and Africa mixed with their own urban twist, beautiful lyrics of the region and rich, uplifting beats. Impossible to stay still to!

 

www.myspace.com/kasaimasai

www.kasaimasai.com

"...Kasaļ Masaļ successfully marry a respect for vintage grooves with an overwhelming urge to move the dance floor. This is the sound of the old and the new, of the countryside and the city, from deep in the heart of Africa..."  

Nige Tassell - Reading Womad Festival

 

Workshop 6:30pm, Concert 7:30pm - Adults £8, Concs £5, Students £3, Children FREE

 

Venue: Kent Music, Astley House, Hastings Road, Maidstone, ME15 7SG

 

 

Tickets: Maidstone Tourist Information Centre, Town Hall, High Street, Maidstone,

ME14 1TF - 01622 602169 - tourism_at_maidstone_dot_gov_dot_uk - www.equatorfestival.com

 

 

Attab Haddad Quintet - Sat 21st May - Kent Music, Maidstone


 

Oud player Attab Haddad and his musicians perform their enchanting fusion of flamenco and jazz combining Middle Eastern and Mediterranean influences to create the hypnotic melodies, sensual rhythms and passionate energy of their unique acoustic compositions. www.myspace.com/attabhaddadquintet


 

7.30pm - Adults £8, Conc £5, Students £3, Children FREE


 

Venue: Kent Music, Astley House, Hastings Road, Maidstone, ME15 7SG

 

Tickets: Maidstone Tourist Information Centre, Town Hall, High Street, Maidstone,

ME14 1TF - 01622 602169 - tourism_at_maidstone_dot_gov_dot_uk - www.equatorfestival.com

 

Folkestone


 

World Music Festival - Sunday 20th March - Quarterhouse, Folkestone

 

A one-day celebration featuring ShivaNova with Dancers, Attab Haddad's Quintet, and Laye Sow's Drumming Group as well as workshops in Bollywood Dance and Indian Drumming.

 

Concert 1 - 1:30

Laye Sow - Rhythms of West Africa Drumming Performance

Laye Sow, Folkestone's own multi instrumentalist in afro-beat, blues and reggae, will be performing with his dynamic group of drummers. www.myspace.com/layesow1


 

Attab Haddad Quintet

Oud player Attab Haddad and his musicians perform their enchanting fusion of flamenco and jazz combining Middle Eastern and Mediterranean influences to create the hypnotic melodies, sensual rhythms and passionate energy of their unique acoustic compositions. www.myspace.com/attabhaddadquintet


image of ShivaNova

Bollywood Dance Workshop - 3:30

Indian Drumming Workshop (Bring your own drum) - 4:00

Concert 2 - 5:00

ShivaNova and Dancers

International renowned ShivaNova perform their distinctive blend of traditional and contemporary Indian music and dance that combines influences from folk and jazz to creating an exciting soundscape of captivating beats, infectious pace and mesmerising chants in a high energy performance and stunning visual display of movement.

www.shivanova.com www.myspace.com/shivanovacom


 

 

 

"Fantastic! Wonderful "family atmosphere" beautiful dancing and music . . . Thanks for the workshops, very encouraging and informative"

Audience Member


 

Adult £6 per concert £10 for both - Student £3 per concert £6 for both

Children £2 for the day 4 - 16 years old - Tickets included workshops in the price

Venue & Tickets: Quarterhouse, Tontine Street, Folkestone, CT20 1JR

01303 858 500 - www.quarterhouse.co.uk


 

 

Robert Maseko and the Congo Beat - Sunday June 5th

Quarterhouse, Folkestone

Robert Maseko (Congo Prince) and the Congo Beat perfectly fuse elegant vocals, sizzling guitar and Rumba propelled basslines, exploring the deep roots of Afrobeat and the connections between African, Cuban and Carribean music. Robert and The Congo Beat reinvent hip-swinging Congolese Soukous music adding a clever touch of Reggae, Flamenco, Tango, Meringue and Zouk on the way.

www.robertmaseko.com www.myspace.com/robertmasekothecongobeat

"The wonderful lilting rhythm of Robert Maseko and Congobeat had us all up on our feet. Shimmering Soukous Rumbapop, with an understated beat that gradually ropes you in".

Musicport Festival.

 

5pm - Adults £8, Conc £6, Students £3, Children FREE


 

Venue & Tickets: Quarterhouse, Tontine Street, Folkestone, CT20 1JR

01303 858 500 - www.quarterhouse.co.uk

 

Bollywood workshops - Fridays (during term-time) in Ashford from 6.30-7.30pm for children and adults - North School, Essella Road, Ashford TN24 8AL, and in Folkestone at Pent Valley Leisure Centre from 4.15-5.15.   Please email admin_at_shivanova_dot_co_dot_uk for further information.

London

 

EQUATOR MUSIC & WORDS

ShivaNova and Yasmin Alibhai-Brown - Friday 25th March

Southbank Centre/ Purcell Room, London

 

International renowned ShivaNova perform their distinctive blend of traditional and contemporary Indian music and dance that combines influences from folk and jazz to creating an exciting soundscape of captivating beats, infectious pace and mesmerising chants in a high energy performance.

 

www.shivanova.com www.myspace.com/shivanovacom

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-6Oj5t66qE0

http://www.myspace.com/video/shivanovacom/sundance-flying-high/11079171

 

 

"Brilliant performance . . . very inspirational. A beautiful balance of Eastern and Western music"

Audience Member

Yasmin Alibhai-Brown is well known for her journalism and writings on issues of immigration, diversity and multiculturalism. She will be talking about her food memoir The Settler's Cookbook, cultural dynamism, exchange and food. www.alibhai-brown.com

 

7:45pm - Adults £14 & £9.50, Conc 50% (limited availability)

 

Venue & Tickets: South Bank Centre, Belvedere Road, London, SE1 8XX

0844 875 0073 - www.southbankcentre.co.uk

 

 

EQUATOR MUSIC & WORDS

Juan Martin, Attab Haddad and Claudia Roden - Tuesday 21st June

Southbank Centre/London - Purcell Room

Juan Martin is a celebrated virtuoso legend of the flamenco guitar who has been voted twice into the top three guitarists in the world by US magazine ?Guitar Player'. He is renowned for his guitar mastery and highly distinctive compositional style developed in his early years that captivates spectators in an evening of passion and excitement.

www.flamencovision.com

www.myspace.com/juanmartinflamencovision

?He has a terrifyingly good technique and an absolute dominance of the guitar, filling the concert hall with crystalline clarity.'

The Spanish paper ?El Mundo'

Attab Haddad's innovative new approach to oud playing combines, Flamenco, Jazz and European Folk in his own creative compositions of tantalising melodies and soulful energy that define his original instrumental style. Attab has worked in dance, television and film, including James Newton Howard's score for Blood Diamond, starring Leonardo Di Caprio.

He plays tonight solo and in duet with Juan Martin.

www.myspace.com/attab

 

?The Oud is a traditional Arabic instrument, the breadth and beauty of which is no better illustrated than in the hands of Attab Haddad.... A precociously talented musician'

Matthew Woodward, Wotton Arts Centre

The much-loved food writer Claudia Roden has introduced countless households to the delights of cooking from the whole Mediterranean region, north, south and east. Her multi-dimensional understanding stems from her Egyptian origins and her extensive travels, and is shortly to be lavished on a new book about Spain, its culture and its cuisine - to be explored in tonight's much-anticipated talk

 

7pm - Adults £14 & £9.50 ? Conc 50% (limited availability)

 

Venue & Tickets: South Bank Centre, Belvedere Road, London, SE1 8XX

0844 875 0073 - www.southbankcentre.co.uk

 

 

 

Venues and Ticket Information

 

Ashford Venues: Norton Knatchbull School, Hythe Road, Ashford, TN24 0QJ

Ashford Youth Theatre, 1 Dover Place, Ashford, TN23 1HU

 

Ashford Tickets: Ashford Tourist Information Centre, 18 The Churchyard, Ashford, TN23 1QG - 01233 629 165

tourism_at_ashford_dot_gov_dot_uk - www.equatorfestival.com

 

 

Maidstone Venue: Kent Music, Astley House, Hastings Road, Maidstone,

ME15 7SG

 

Maidstone Tickets: Maidstone Tourist Information Centre, Town Hall,

High Street, Maidstone, ME14 1TF - 01622 602169 tourism_at_maidstone_dot_gov_dot_uk - www.equatorfestival.com

 

Folkestone Venue & Tickets: Quarterhouse, Tontine Street, Folkestone, CT20 1JR

01303 858 500 - www.quarterhouse.co.uk

 

 

London Venue & Tickets: South Bank Centre, Belvedere Road, London, SE1 8XX

0844 875 0073 - www.southbankcentre.co.uk

 

Full Programme

 

March

?         Kasai Masai - Saturday 19th March, 7:30pm, Kent Music, Maidstone

?         World Music Festival - Sunday 20th March, Quarterhouse, Folkestone

?         Equator Music and Words - ShivaNova and Yasmin Alibhai Brown - Friday 25th March, 7:45pm, South Bank Centre, Purcell Room, London

 

April

?         Custodio Castelo - Friday 1st April, 7:30pm, Norton Knatchbull School, Ashford

?         Dogan Mehmet and The Deerhunters - Friday 15th April, 7:30pm, Norton Knatchbull School, Ashford

 

May

?         The Hut People - Saturday 7th May, 7:30pm, Ashford Youth Theatre, Ashford

?         Attab Haddad Quintet - Sat 21st May, 7.30pm, Kent Music, Maidstone

?         Robert Maseko and the Congo Beat, Saturday 28th May, 7.30pm, Ashford Youth Theatre, Ashford

 

June

?         Robert Maseko and the Congo Beat - Sunday June 5th, 5pm, Quarterhouse, Folkestone

?         Equator Music and Words - Juan Martin, Attab Haddad and Claudia Roden - Tuesday 21st June, 7pm, South Bank Centre/ Purcell Room, London

?         Attab Haddad Quintet - Friday June 24th, 7.30pm, Norton Knatchbull School, Ashford

 

July

?         Equator Choir Comp - Friday 1st July, 8pm, Norton Knatchbull School, Ashford

?         Equator Music Competition - Thursday 7th July, 8pm, Norton Knatchbull School, Ashford

 

 

 

 

The EQUATOR series is supported by ShivaNova, Arts Council England, Big Lottery Funding, Kent County Council, Ashford Borough Council, Shepway District Council, and Kent Music.

 

best wishes - from the Equator /ShivaNova team; www.equatorfestival.com;  www.shivanova.com;  www.myspace.com/shivanovacom;
Equator and WOW - Women of the World are registered trademarks belonging to ShivaNova. Equator is the promotional arm of ShivaNova.