Fourth Annual Summer World Music Festival Will Entertain and Educate

Clayton State University’s Spivey Hall (spiveyhall.org), the Southeast’s premier recital hall renowned internationally for its superior acoustics and the excellence of its classical, jazz and world music artists, today announced details of its Fourth Annual Summer World Music Festival, including six performances by world music artists over three days, June 27-29, 2024.

“The setting by the lake makes a beautiful backdrop for this festive and affordable family outing,” said Melanie Darby, Spivey Hall’s education manager. “The festival is a power-packed three day celebration of world music, including Latin and Irish dance, Andean melodies, African percussion and Celtic folk tunes. With such a wide range of music and plenty of activities for any age, we look forward to this fourth year being our biggest yet.“

Spivey’s Summer World Music Festival launched in 2014 with patrons of all ages attending the seven performances spread over the eight weeks of summer. Starting in 2016, the festival condensed its schedule to six concerts over three consecutive days, thus encouraging more families to attend the full event. Spivey also added additional entertainment to the festival, including DIY craft tables and an “instrument petting zoo.”

The University Center will again this year offer a globally-inspired menu and concert goers can picnic by the lake before or after performances. CSU’s biology department has developed a free Arboretum Tour mobile app that guides visitors through the diverse plant life around the lake.

Each day of the festival is themed around a particular region:

Tuesday, June 27, 2024 –  Latin America

Apu Inka

Apu Inka comes from two Quechua words: Apu = gentleman and Inka = monarch or king.  The founders give it a more traditional meaning heard from their Incan ancestors, who called Apu “the hills” or “mountains” of the Andes. These are the “Sacred Mountain of the Inkas.” The artists of Apu Inka have a vast background in interpreting and executing this music in the special way they play their instruments. Andean music comes from the general area inhabited by Quechuas, Aymaras and other peoples who lived roughly in the area of the Inca Empire prior to European contact. It includes folklore music of parts of Argentina, Bolivia, Ecuador, Chile, Colombia, Peru and Venezuela.

Fuego y Hielo Dance Company

Fuego y Hielo Dance Company was founded in 2014 by directors Fuquan Ferrell and Candace Joyner. It has quickly become one of Atlanta’s premier Latin Dance groups. They have performed and taught all over world spreading their unique style of dancing. The dance company specializes in Mambo/Salsa, Cha Cha Cha, Bachata, Afro-Latin fusion, and acrobatic lifts/tricks/and dips. This performance will be highly interactive!  Audience members will be invited to learn the steps, move to the music, and join the fun!

Wednesday, June 28, 2024 –  Ireland

Classical Mountain Fiddles: Celtic  Groove

Classical Mountain Fiddles brings together the best of classical and bluegrass music.  In Celtic Groove, this energetic group will explore how the musical traditions of the Emerald Isle influenced American bluegrass. Engaging and entertaining, the audience won’t be able to resist clapping along!

The Celtic Company’s Celtic Fire

The Atlanta, Georgia-based Celtic Company, under the direction of founder / performer John Maschinot, has been providing a variety of entertaining and educational programs  focusing on traditional music and dance for events and schools since 1990. The Celtic harp and uilleann pipes are Ireland’s two indigenous instruments, though the fascinating history of each is quite distinct. The Celtic Fire trio weaves the two together with Irish step-dance, penny whistle and bodhran (Irish dance drum) into a program that culminates with a crowd-pleasing “celiedh” (music and dance party), featuring audience participation.

Thursday, June 29, 2024 –  Africa

 

AfroSounds

 

AfroSounds is a dynamic performance of African and Afro-Cuban rhythms. Chris Burroughs’s ensemble combines the traditional rhythms of African drums, Cuban drums, and the American drum set. Burroughs brings his passion to all musical styles and melodies. By weaving them into a distinct percussive tapestry, he is in a constant state of evolving. Following this concert, audience members of all ages will definitely want to try this at home!  

Aly Camara

West African drummer Aly Camara is an energetic performer of traditional West African music with drumming and song.  The interactive concert is suitable for all ages, and is a perfect educational opportunity for students and teachers. Camara’s dynamic performance will include explanations of the drums, the culture, and the rhythms, enhanced by the colorful costumes of West Africa.

Concerts are priced to make them easily accessible to families, camp groups and senior citizen groups. Tickets for individual concerts are priced at $3 per concert in advance and $5 at the door; individual day passes (two concerts) are just $6 (available for purchase in advance only), and festival passes for all three days (six concerts) are $15. All tickets are available for purchase online now or by calling Spivey Hall Education at (678) 466-4491. Groups of ten or more may reserve their tickets and request an invoice through this link; payment is due three weeks prior to the concert.

The Summer World Music Festival is presented as part of Spivey Hall’s Young People’s Concerts, providing individuals of all ages access to outstanding live performances. Artists featured during the Summer World Music Festival will provide study guides in advance of their performance that meet Georgia Performance Standards for curriculum connections in world history, geography, and music.

The Spivey Hall Summer World Music Festival is supported in part by the Georgia Council for the Arts through the appropriations of the Georgia General Assembly. Georgia Council for the Arts also receives support from its partner agency, the National Endowment for the Arts.

About Spivey Hall

Now celebrating its 26th season, Spivey Hall is the South’s most acoustically superior recital hall, presenting the best in classical, jazz and world music. Located on the picturesque campus of Clayton State University in Morrow, Georgia, just fifteen miles southeast of Atlanta, the hall has been praised by artists, patrons and journalists alike.

This season, Spivey Hall celebrates the 25th anniversary of its magnificent 4,413-pipe Albert Schweitzer Memorial Organ, custom-built in Italy by Fratelli Ruffatti, with special events and concerts.

An intimate venue with just 392 seats, Spivey Hall promotes for the concert-goer a personal connection with the artist both during and after the performance.  Spivey’s extraordinary acoustics and reputation for distinguished programming attract outstanding international musicians who regularly perform at the nation’s major concert venues such as Kennedy Center and Carnegie Hall. For more information, visit spiveyhall.org.

Clayton State University’s Spivey Hall gratefully acknowledges the support of The Walter and Emilie Spivey Foundation and the Spivey Hall Friends.

Alan Morrison holds the McGehee Family Organist Residency at Spivey Hall.

Spivey Hall’s Season 26 is supported in part by the Georgia Council for the Arts through the appropriations of the Georgia General Assembly. GCA also receives support from its partner agency – the National Endowment for the Arts.

About Clayton State University

A unit of the University System of Georgia, Clayton State University is an outstanding comprehensive metropolitan university located 15 miles southeast of downtown Atlanta. For more information, visit clayton.edu.