The AXÉ (ah-SHEH) Percussion Festival will bring together diverse percussion ensembles from the community for interactive performances for all age groups and abilities.
AXÉ (ah-SHEH) comes from the Yoruba language and is colloquially used in Brazilian culture to express good vibes, agreement, and wellbeing.
It gives name to a genre of music from Bahia, Brazil.
Interactive performances showcasing diverse percussion traditions
Educational talks and tables
Games and fun in the park
Food trucks are not available so bring snacks if you want and enjoy a picnic in the park with some great entertainment
At the festival
Location: Amazon Park
Date: September 8, 2024
Time: 1PM - 7PM
Price: FREE
The following bus lines will bring you close to the Amazon Community Center.
LTD bus routes: 28, 81, 82, 96, 33, 92
LTD trip planner: https://www.ltd.org/tripplanner.php
There is also some parking available at the community center and some bike racks available.
We are excited to bring together the following groups and artists to celebrate percussion and dance.
Our schedule is set! Or course we can’t control everything so please check for any adjustments that might be required.
Lane Fire Brigade Pipes & drums - POSSIBLY NOT AVAILABLE
Samba Ja to cover time slot if needed
1:30 - 2:00
Gamelan Sari Pandhawa
2:00 - 3:00
Eugene Capoeira
2:45-3:30 Kids drumming workshop
Eugene Taiko
3:00 - 3:30
Eugene Capoeira
3:30-4:15 Kids Capoeira workshop
Madband
3:30 - 4:15
WACAI (West African Cultural Arts Institute)
4:15 - 5:00
Eugene Capoeira
4:30-5:30 Adults capoeira performance
Jenaguru - Kutsinhira Marimba
5:00 - 6:00
Samba Ja
6:00 - 7:00
Eugene Taiko was founded in 1989 as a program of the Japanese American Association of Lane County. Eugene Taiko was originally formed to provide live, traditional drumming to accompany dancers at the annual Obon Festival. As one of the first fifty groups formed in North America, Eugene Taiko was at the forefront of taiko’s early growth and development. Since then, the group has expanded to conduct workshops for any interested attendees and to perform in schools and at community events ranging from the Eugene Marathon to the Asian Celebration. Eugene Taiko’s mission is to entertain audiences while teaching about taiko and Japanese culture in Lane County.
Jenaguru “Full Moon” Marimba draws on the influence of traditional Zimbabwean mbira music to create jubilant dance music on marimbas. Since forming in 1998, Jenaguru has performed at the Zimbabwean Music Festival and numerous local events, from Saturday Market to Willamalane's MEGGA Hunt. Jenaguru is part of Kutsinhira Cultural Arts Center, which offers music classes, brings Zimbabwean master musicians to the U.S., and supports community development in Zimbabwe.
"Bamboozled" plays Indonesian-American fusion, combining the traditional music of the island of Bali with elements of contemporary American music. The music is centered around the tingklik, a Balinese xylophone with bamboo keys, the Sundanese angklung, a set of tuned bamboo rattles, and a bamboo flute called a suling. To this we add other Indonesian percussion instruments, and the Saxophone to add a contemporary feel.
Capoeira is a Brazilian Martial Art that combines dance, acrobatics and music in a spectacular game of ritual combat. Eugene Capoeira develops rhythm, balance, strength, combat and improvisation along with Capoeira focused Brazilian Percussion. Eugene Capoeira grew out of a University of Oregon MFA cohort which helped produced 8 Capoeira instructors in the state of Oregon.
Currently MADBand looks like a drum-line made of weird scientists to which some incorrectly assume to be humans they know and love. That is both correct and incorrect... MADBand is the interactions you have with the world around you then brought to the table to coincide with others' interactions while synced up to the rhythm of the drums.
A Pipes and Drums band comprised of current and retired Firefighters from Eugene Springfield Fire Department and surrounding area.
West African Cultural Arts Institute’s mission is to share the joy and passion of West African culture through vibrant educational programs focusing on music and dance, advocating for authentic source artists from Guinea and creating charitable projects in Guinea that promote artistic, emotional, and physical health.
WACAI’s programs include performances and community outreach events, school residencies and assemblies, college and university lecture demonstrations and community drum classes.
It was a great event, thank you everybody!
We are excited to perform along with all of the groups and we appreciate the effort put into making a wonderful community event.
We are a 15+ member percussion ensemble specializing in samba-reggae.
West African Cultural Arts Institute (WACAI)
Gamelan Sari Pandhawa - “Bamboozled”
Eugene Taiko
Jenaguru - Kutsinhira Marimba
Eugene Capoeira
Lane Fire Brigade Pipes & Drums
MADBand
