Artist Archives - Page 13 of 37 - Alliance for California Traditional Arts

Bomba, Puerto Rico’s oldest art form, originated in the 17th century as a form of communication, rebellion, and relief by enslaved Africans on the coastal sugar cane plantations of the island. Bomba is a result from Spanish colonization, which brought African as slaves to work plantations. The resiliency of the…

Thuluth, the most important script in traditional Arabic calligraphy (Islamic calligraphy), was developed in the 11th century. It is a large and elegant, cursive script, used in medieval times as architectural adornment, as well as for inscribing various texts and manuscripts. The unique capacity of the Thuluth style in creating…

Carnatic music originated in South India from the ancient classical music system that is traced back to the Vedic age. Carnatic music is characterized by a well-structured system of swaras (successive steps/notes of an octave), raagas (melodic modes), kriti (musical compositions with lyrics). A unique feature is the concept of…

Arabic Percussion

As part of ACTA’s Apprenticeship Program in 2006 Marcelo taught Isis Raele, his step-daughter, the art of capoeira. Capoeira is the only indigenous martial art of the Americas and was developed by enslaved Africans in Brazil. Mestre Pereira started playing capoeira on the streets of São Paulo, Brazil, as a child and…

Sabrina Hou was a master artist for ACTA’s Apprenticeship Program in 2007 with apprentice, Janice Ng. Hou studied Kunqu opera, the oldest form of Chinese folk opera, at the Beijing Opera Conservatory and performed with the Beijing Northern Kunqu Opera Theater before moving to the United States ten…

Master artist Fujima Kansuma and apprentice Melody Takata participated in Round 7 of ACTA’s Apprenticeship Program, conducting an apprenticeship in Japanese Nihon Buyo, or Japanese classical dance. Fujima Kansma is no ordinary figure. Surmounting a series of challenges and discouragements, her long career reflects extraordinary focus and…

Korean Pojagi and Chogak-Po

Sahab Motallebi began playing the tar (a six-stringed plucked instrument) as a child and attended the National Iranian Music Conservatory in Tehran, the Saint Petersburg Conservatory in Russia, and RGS University in Turkey. Mehrdad Jahangiri studied the Persian tar with master artist Sahab Motallebi in 2007 as part of …

G.S. Sachdev studied North Indian classical bansuri (bamboo flute) with Vijay Raghav Rao for twelve years in Delhi, India and with Pandit Ravi Shankar for eight years in Bombay, India. In 2007, Sachdev taught apprentice, Sheela Bringi as part of ACTA’s Apprenticeship Program.