UNCW Department of Music Presents Nommo, an Evening of Dance, Music and Spoken Word, Oct. 30
10/1/2009 11:08:49 AM
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The University of North Carolina Wilmington Department of Music presents Nommo: A Theatrical Piece, an evening of music, dance and spoken word, at 7:30 p.m., Friday, Oct. 30 in Kenan Auditorium. Composed and directed by Joe Chambers, UNCW's Thomas S. Kenan Distinguished Professor of Jazz, Nommo incorporates the exuberant percussive sounds of the legendary jazz group M'Boom with dance by members of the Dance Cooperative and the UNCW dance program and readings by two poets. M'Boom will reunite on stage for this live performance.
In creating Nommo, Chambers was inspired by the creation mythology of the many religions that share a common element: in the beginning was the word. In this case, it was the vibration of the spoken word (nommo) by the African god Amma, who mixed it with primordial elements to create the Earth and humanity. The collaborative efforts of musicians, dancers and poets promise to make Nommo an unforgettable evening of sight and sound. The melodic lines of vibes, marimba and xylophone will blend with the power of tympanis, drum set, congas and claves to create a tapestry of sound and rhythm interwoven with the dancers and poets.
"Dance and percussion go together, and M'Boom's type of percussion is a natural fit," said Chambers. "I started this project with the music and then added dance – we have four wonderful choreographers here in Wilmington – and the prose and poetry of Rhonda Bellamy and Shaun Mitchell – two outstanding writers and performers. The music itself comes out of several multinational traditions: jazz combined with the sounds of the New World, North America, the Caribbean cultures and South America, all the rhythms and music that flowed from Africa."
An internationally known jazz percussionist, composer and educator, Chambers has worked with some of the most influential jazz figures of the last several decades, including Miles Davis, Freddie Hubbard, Wayne Shorter, McCoy Tyner, Chick Corea, Sonny Rollins, Herbie Hancock, Dizzy Gillespie and Andrew Hill. He is also a recognized composer whose works have been performed at Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center.
M'Boom, which is the name of a secret order of drummers in Northern Senegal, was the brainchild of the late jazz percussionist and visionary, Max Roach. In 1970, Roach gathered master drummers and percussionists, including Chambers, to explore and showcase the melodic, harmonic and rhythmic possibilities of percussion instruments. M'Boom's surviving original members – Joe Chambers, Warren Smith and Ray Mantilla – are joined by Steve Berrios and Eli Fountain. For Nommo, Theodore Burgh, UNCW associate professor of philosophy and religion, will accompany M'Boom on flute and saxophone.
Local choreographers Nancy Podrasky Carson, Suzanne Palmer, Linda Larson and Kate Neely, all of whom teach for the Dance Cooperative, will choreograph the dance component of Nommo. Palmer, Larson and Neely will also perform. Carson is a member of UNCW's dance faculty in the Department of Theatre. Theatre department faculty member Mark Sorensen is the costume designer for the Nommo dancers.
The spoken word component of Nommo will be performed by Rhonda Bellamy and Shaun Mitchell. Journalist, author, actor and advocate for the arts, Rhonda Bellamy is news director for Cumulus Broadcasting. Her stage credits include numerous one-woman performances. Shaun Mitchell, playwright, poet and actor, has written and directed five stage plays produced in Wilmington, including I, Constantine, Theodora and Master Mold.
Maxwell Paige performs the introduction to Nommo. Paige has performed throughout Wilmington since 1989, including The Full Monty, When You Coming Back Red Ryder, Life in 3-D & Color, and the longest running play in Wilmington, Driving Miss Daisy with Linda Lavin.
Nommo is presented by the UNCW Department of Music and co-sponsored by the Upperman African American Cultural Center.
Tickets are $15 for general public and UNCW employees; free to UNCW students with valid IDs. Tickets are on sale in advance at Kenan Auditorium Box Office, 910.962.3500, and at 6:30 p.m. on the evening of the performance.
For more information about Nommo: A Theatrical Piece, go to www.uncw.edu/music-calendar or call 910.962.3415.
Media contact:
Dana Fischetti, media relations manager, 910.962.7259 or fischettid@uncw.edu
Downloadable Photos
Joe Chambers on Percussion
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