Organizing to keep traditional arts spaces rooted in place
Site Visits with ACTA's 2019 Apprenticeship Cohort
Through ACTA’s Apprenticeship Program, master artist Bernard Barros Ellorin has been working all year with his 2019 apprentice Kimberly (Kim) Kalanduyan in kulintang music from the Southern Philippines, which is played on a set of gongs that have different melodic…
Master artist in Japanese shamisen
Mridangam, South Indian percussion
Seungmu is a highly represented Korean traditional dance form that has roots that go back 500 years. The choreography that demonstrates intense expressions of joy and sorrows includes intricate yet calm movement. This reflects the journey of relieving heavy karma, leaving the secular world, and finally reaching nirvana. Performed as…
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