Intercultural journeys announces 2016/17 season
Homeland: Cultural Migrations Through Artistry
Philadelphia, PA August 10, 2016– Intercultural Journeys is pleased to announce its 2016/17 Season, Homeland: Cultural Migrations Through Artistry. The season consists of five diverse, compelling concerts featuring local and non-local artists is the second season curated by Alex Shaw.
The artists featured in the season include two-time GRAMMY nominee and 2015 National Endowment for the Arts Fellow, Rahim AlHaj; the Philadelphia debut of Brooklyn-based Alsarah & The Nubatones; previous IJ artists Keisha Hutchins, Udi Bar-David, and Hanna Khoury; and South Indian mrudangam master Rajna Swaminathan and her ensemble RAJAS in concert with playwright/actress Anu Yadav.
Intercultural Journeys is also pleased to continue a new programming tradition, Food for Thought. Prior to each concert, guests are invited to join a free community potluck and discussion designed to explore the social themes connected to the concert and the season. Remarks are provided by a local scholar or community organizer, and attendees are encouraged to bring a food item to share with the group. Each Food for Thought event takes place in the East Gallery at International House two hours prior to the show.
All performances are held at the Ibrahim Theater at International House Philadelphia. Season subscriptions are priced at $60. Single ticket prices are: $15 for general admission, $10 for International House members, and $8 for students. Tickets will go on sale shortly.
PERFORMANCES
Alsarah & The Nubatones: Ya Watan (O Homeland)
November 6, 2016 7:00pm
We kick the 2016/17 season off with Brooklyn-based Alsarah & The Nubatones. Alsarah is a Sudanese-born singer, songwriter, and self-proclaimed practitioner of East African retro-pop, whose music is deeply rooted in Nubian ‘Songs of Return’ from the 1960s and 70s, and contemplates modern migration patterns and cultural exchanges between Sudan and Egypt. We welcome Alsarah & The Nubatones for their first ever Philadelphia appearance, performing music from their internationally renowned debut album, Silt, as well as from their upcoming new album release.
Udi Bar-David & Hanna Khoury: From Tarshiha to Rabin Center - An Artistic Path to Peace
January 22, 2017 7:00pm
Acclaimed American-Israeli cellist Udi Bar-David and Arab-Israeli violinist Hanna Khoury (2010 Pew Fellow), joined by Syrian-Venezuelan master percussionist Hafez Javier Kotain (2013 Pew Fellow), will recount their recent concert tour of Arab and Jewish communities in Israel amidst the ongoing tensions in the region, while traveling with the Interfaith Center of Greater Philadelphia, in partnership with Intercultural Journeys. The trio will perform musical selections from their tour, and will share the challenges and hopes from their experiences through sounds and video that documented their journey of peace.
Rajna Swaminathan/RAJAS & Anu Yadav: Storytellers
February 19, 2017 7:00pm
Accomplished mrudangam (South Indian percussion) artist and composer Rajna Swaminathan joins forces with acclaimed playwright/actor Anu Yadav to debut their compelling political and personal performance, Storytellers, against the current backdrop of racially charged conflict and other 'isms' plaguing our society. In collaboration with RAJAS, Swaminathan’s ensemble rooted in the Indian classical perspective and jazz/creative music scenes, Storytellers combines musical improvisation with community-engaged theater that acknowledges our differences, transcends boundaries, and addresses the urgent need for compassion and humanity in these challenging times.
Keisha Hutchins: Going Home
March 26, 2017 7:00pm
In Going Home, classically-trained vocalist and singer-songwriter Keisha Hutchins examines how African-American musical art forms have functioned throughout history and across the Diaspora, and considers what it means to be Black in various homelands, where some of those living the Black experience still do not feel completely at home and welcome. Audiences will journey through music, dance and poetry to ask “What is home?” and “What is Blackness?“, and trouble the notions both outside of and within the Black Diaspora that try to define us in easily packaged monolithic terms.
Rahim AlHaj: Letters from Iraq
May 21, 2017 7:00pm
Two-time GRAMMY-nominee and 2015 NEA National Heritage Fellow, composer and oud virtuoso Rahim AlHaj will premiere his latest work, Letters from Iraq. Composed for oud, Arabic percussion, and string quintet, Letters from Iraq is a poignant meditation on war, its aftermath, and its consequences. Inspired by stories told from the perspective of Iraqi women and children, Letters from Iraq will feature a string quintet of renowned Philadelphia-based musicians, including Pennsylvania Ballet Concertmaster Luigi Mazzocchi.
About Intercultural Journeys
Intercultural Journeys seeks to promote peace and greater understanding between people of diverse backgrounds, faiths, and cultures through the arts as a catalyst for social change and awareness. Intercultural Journeys was founded in 2002 by Philadelphia Orchestra cellist Udi Bar-David, philanthropist Carole Haas Gravagno, Majid Alsayegh and Sheldon L. Thompson. Together, they saw the role that music could play in beginning a dialogue between people that might not otherwise speak to each other. Since then, Intercultural Journeys has held over 160 concerts, partnering with a diverse roster of local and international artists, in the Greater Philadelphia area, across the United States and abroad, in countries such as China, Spain, Italy and Israel.
Media Contact
Lindsey S. Crane, Managing Director
lcrane@interculturaljourneys.org, 215-387-2310 High res images available upon request
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