UPDATE: Now starts at 1PM!
Please join Chris Cuoto for a pop performance and to learn the history of Marrabenta music style. The performance will end with an opportunity for students to try playing djembes, congas and miscellaneous percussion that bring the Marrabenta tradition to life.
WORKSHOP:
Marrabenta is a popular style of Mozambican dance culture combining traditional Mozambican dance rhythms with Portuguese folk music. It was developed in Maputo, the capital city of Mozambique, during the 1930s and 1940s.
The Marrabenta style is a blend of traditional Mozambican rhythms and Portuguese Folk Music with influences from Western popular music. In the early 30's & 40's Instruments were fashioned out of tin cans and pieces of wood, later to be used on djembe's and eventually the drumkit.
Today, Marrabenta reflects global influences, including rythm & blues, reggae, blues and hiphop. This has led to the emergence of a number of subgenres within Marrabenta, including pandza, which is a mix of reggae and Marrabenta and is currently very popular among the Mozambican youth.
Students will learn the history of this music style and will be playing on djembes, congas and miscellaneous percussion to bring the Marrabenta tradition to life.
BIO:
Chris Couto aka COUTO is a respected, dependable professional session-musician, producer, arranger and educator from Vancouver, BC. He has been Nominated for a JUNO for best World Album of the year 2021 titled 'PATRIA' with one of his many groups, Mazacote. His professional career has spanned for over half of his life, gaining experience touring Canada-wide and internationally and getting to play a command performance for Her Majesty the Queen. He has also opened up for names such as DJ Premier, Booker T. Jones, Ozomatli and Salif Keita to name a few.
Chris is always working on an assortment of varying projects and genres, breaking the boundaries with known rhythms and incorporating them seamlessly to any style. His hopes are to continue making a difference in the community as he strongly believes that music has the power to change lives, enhancing the social, cultural and spiritual lives of people, and serve as a profound medium of personal expression.
This event is in part of VIUSU's Black History Month event series.