Spirit Garden Productions

arts fest banner

A Celebration Of Art, Culture and Spirit

The Big Sur spirit garden is an international arts and cultural center located in the Big Sur valley between the Santa Lucia Mountains and the Pacific Ocean .The Spirit Garden provides world-class
production and multi-cultural educational programs, truly a unique
performance space where art, culture and nature integrate into a single Vision.


June 3rd Wednesday 6:00-10:30pm $15
In concert -MJ Greenmountain
[email protected]
Fusing ancient and modern melodic and rhythmic
roots elements with real instruments and vocal layering, while syncronizing dub-style effects in
a fresh, medicinal global sound. His original songs and adaptations
include flavors primarily from Africa, Brazil, India, the Middle-East and
the Carib
bean. Founding member of the popular World Fusion band,
Hamsa Lila
one can hear threads of traditional Yoruban, Gnawan,
Native American and Rastafarian music weaving through captivating, conscious vocals and poly-rhythmic arrangements
Itapua capoeira
.
Diane Patterson
www.dianepaterson.com
The  Folk Goddess brings us
her soulful, funky earth ballads
"a soulful and poetic heart with a voice that will take you higher."JF


_____________________________________________________________________________________
June 5th - 14th
Artist in Residence - Direct from Cuba 
Felix "PUPY"  Insua Obbalubbe
"Dancing With The Spirits"

 Afro Cuban Drumming & Dance classes

Friday 5th
Drum Class   4:00-5:00pm  $15 
Dance Class  5:00-6:00pm $15



Saturday 6th

Drum & dance for kids 
12:00 -1:30pm  $10
Adults:
Drum class  2:00-3:00pm $15                      Sunday 7th 
                                                                         Drum class  2:00-3:00pm $15
                                                                         Dance class 3:00-4:00pm $15

Cuban music/dance known as salsa rumba or mambo has deep  Afro Cuban roots . In this workshop, participants will learn versions of several dance forms: Afro-Cuban folkloric, Spanish and
African-derived rumba, and dances such as salsa, merengue and mambo. Fundamental drum rhythms and call-and-response chants to invoke the energies of Yoruban gods and goddesses .

Felix "Pupy" Insua was born in La Habana, Cuba in 1948. Obbalubbe is Pupy's name in the Yoruba-based religion by which he lives his life. Obbalubbe translates to "King of Kings"Insua has been featured in documentaries and films made in both Cuba and the US.  Dame La Mano, an award-winning documentary about Cuban Culture and Rumba in NYC, follows his life from the street, to the classroom to the stage. Insua teaches and performs regularly in the New York City area. He continues to inspire and enlighten us as a phenomenal stage presence and gifted and knowledgeable professor of dance and culture.   
http://orikiomioddara.com/pupybio.htm
______________________________
June 5th Friday 
6:00-7:30pm  door  $15
joey changJoey Chang Trio
Cellojoe - Indie folk, jazzy-beat boxin'     "My name is Joey Chang and I play cello, beatbox and sing in a band called Cellojoe and the Midnight Ramblers. We are a five piece band featuring cello, upright bass, violin, guitar and drums. Our style is funky folk with a mix of old time and old blues thrown in. I fuse improvised cello grooves (you've never heard a cello played so funky) with beatboxing and socially conscious lyrics."
 _____________________________________________
June 5th Friday  8:00-10:00pm door $15grupofalsobaiano
 Grupo Falso Baiano

A choro group that offers a window into the history and diverse culture of Brazil.
Choro is one of Brazil's earliest popular music dating back to the late 1800s, and similar to jazz, it reflects the melding of African rhythms with a melodic and harmonic structure closely resembling Baroque Classical Music.
G.F.B.'s exploration of choro spans nearly 100 years, including everything from the traditional to more contemporary versions and jazz influenced re-interpretations.
 

http://www.falsobaiano.com

_______________________________
Visiting Artist in the Garden series
Art Exhibit Featuring

 Rachel, Sarah and Ed Moody
with live music
 www.bigsur-inspirations.com

________________________________________
June 6th Saturday 12:00-4:00pm
 Mosaic Class mosaic
   & Exhibit
 $60 (including materials)
with Didier Guedj. A self-taught
charter member of the Society of American Mosaic Artists, Didier was honored to participate as a speaker at the 3rd annulal
SAMA conference on the Community Mosaics panel. His art has been published in Mosaic Art and Style: Designs for Living Environments by JoAnn Locktov
________________________________________________
June 6th Saturday  4:00-6:00pm   $20
North African  Morocco Music Workshop

aza workshop

This workshop covers a traditional style of North African music. Students will learn rhythms and a traditional song by the end of the workshop with the instrument of their choice (strings, drums, voice and woodwind). Instructor, Fattah Abbou, a native of Morocco, brings 25 years of musical experience. A founding member of the local band AZA, he has toured professionally in the U.S. and abroad.

___________________________________
June  6th Saturday 8:00-10:00pm  $15
Aza :Moroccan Berber Music of North Africa
Aza  is a musical band that was founded by two members: Fattah Abbou and Mohamed Aoualou who are both from Morocco. They've played and studied music for over twenty years before moving to the USA seven years ago. Fattah and Mohamed are Berbers;  Berbers or Imazighen are the indigenous people of North Africa whose history records date back to 3300 years ago. 
____________________________________
Itapua capoeiraJune 7th
& every Sunday

Capoeira &

Afro Brazilian Drumming
12:00-2:00pm
with Robson Oliveira Nascimento
                               from Bahia Brazil

_________________________________________
June 9th Tuesday 8:00-10:00pm $15
In Performance - Robert Greygrass
Walking on Turtle Island
robert grey grass
Robert  Greygrass will stimulate your thinking, roller coaster your emotions, expand your spiritual understanding and make you laugh till you cry, bringing his stories from the Lakota and other tribes, including comical personal narratives from his life.
His traditional northern style singing and cedar flute music stirs and guides everyone a little further on lifes journey. You don't want to miss his lighthearted, poignant and inspiring stories, song, and spiritual insight.
A tangential and humorous discourse during the true spiritual growth
of the American Empire and one multi-ethnic man's experience of enlightenment through the Lakota Way of Life and indigenous teachings about living on Mother Earth that have led to Recovery, Peace, Humor and unlearning multi-generational dysfunctions. Living as other, and not being reincarnated as a great Indian chief from a previous lifetime.
www.walkingonturtleislandthemovie.com
[email protected]
[email protected]

__________________________________

June 10th Wednesday  8:00-10:00pm  $10
Alison Lewis & Hymn for Her

"She moves you with words and melodies that take you to places you've been and places you dream of going. Her songs are paintings of life etched on rocky mountains, hidden caverns, deep sea corals and the setting sun. She'll take you into a dream and you'll wake up with that beautiful, peaceful feeling that everything is just as it should be". http://alisonlewismusic.net
Hymn for Her
"A duo who takes you over the stars and the sands playing soul-scaping music with voices and hands. A variety of stringed instruments and chords of vocals intertwine in a way that captivates and mesmerizes".
http://hymnforher.com

________________________________

      Jun
estare 11th Thursday  8:00-10:00pm                  In Concert
 Eostar Kamala 
 
Originally from Hungary, Eostar studied for many years with renowned Hungarian jazz icon Peter Juhasz.
Her songs are influenced by folk traditions such as Celtic, Hungarian, Indian, Reggae as well as various World Music performers.  It is the fusion of these elements with Eostar's instinctive feel for beauty and artful expression that makes her songs appeal to a wide variety of audiences. Her lyrics resonate with great depth of feeling and understanding of the human experience in a unique and characteristically "Eostarian" way. 
 http://www.myspace.com/eostarkamala
_________________________________
                                       "ASHE"
Africa Music & Arts Festival

    June 12th-13th-14 th       
__________________________________

June 12th Friday - 5:00-7:00 pm
Itapua capoeira
Afro Cuban Dance
& drum class   
wit
h Felix "Pupy" Insua Obbalupe
____________________________________
  June
Itapua capoeira12th Friday - 8:00-10:00pm $15
Mandjou Kone & Family
Griots are the  people of West Africa
 Renown for their unique ability to record events carefully and accurately, passing history from one generation to the next through song story telling and dance.  Mandjou Kone, an award winning performer, comes from one of the most renownded griot families of the  Bambara tribe of Mali. Her voice is elegant, she dances with  passion and grace. She will be joined by  her group of drummers and dancers.
_____________________________________
June 13th Saturday 
Tribute Concert honoring the life of
Babatunde Olatunji

 










Saturday
Afro Cuban Dance & Drum Class
2:00-3:30pm
$15
Yoruba diaspora
    master dancer Of Cuba
        Felix "PUPY"  Insua Obbalubbe
_________________________________________________
           Danjuma & Onola
  5:00-7:00 pm  $15 
Five horns, two guitars, one bass, one d
rummer, one conga master, one keyboard and a dancer.  Danjuma & Onola are
a big showband playing Afro-Beat, Hig
hlife, Sukus and Afro-Funk. Get ready to dance all night long.
_________________________________________________________________
 
African fashion show  7:00-8:00pm
with NigeriaTextile artist and designer
Adebayo Agbelekale
www.ibbayo.com/bio.htm
______________________________________________________
oba
   8:00-11:00pm $20
       in concert
        OBA
                Heart & Soul
                 Alafia Music

with the members of The Babatunde Olatunji Drums of Passion Ensemble
www.obatheband.com
    _________________________________________________
 Featured visual Artist June12th-14th
Spirits of Africa Exhibit with Abbeyabbey Onikoyi
Abbey Onikoyi, a native of Nigeria grew up in a family that goes back generations. His family was one of the founding royal families of Lagos. The Onikoyi family tradition is rooted in Arts and culture. Join us for this wonderful exhibit.
spiritsofafricagallery.com
____________________________________________________
               Sunday 14th
Drum class 2:00-3:30pm 
$15 per class
Dance class 4:00-6:00pm
Orisha
Drum & Dance
class

                   with the  Yoruba diaspora
                     master dancer Of Cuba
       Felix "PUPY"  Insua Obbalubbe
________________________________________________


Itapua capoeiraJune 14th
& every Sunday

Capoeira &

Afro Brazilian Drumming
12:00-2:00pm
with Robson Oliveira Nascimento
from Bahia Brazil

______________________________________________________

June 14th Sunday  12:00-2:00pm 

Brian plays over 20 instruments
[w/ looping pedals] orchestrating ORIGINAL music from the heart. His music has been described as an ORGANIC, SOULFUL, FUNK. However, since he plays so many instruments it is so MUCH MORE.
www.myspace.com/brianernstmusic

__________________________________
June 19th Friday 8:00 10:00 pm 
$15 entrance
In Concert
Lucia Comnes      &    Karamo Sus
so  
lucia conmesDiversity is the critical ingredient in the works of classically trained violinist Lucia Comnes. Enchanted by Europe and its diverse musical sounds, the San Francisco native has traveled to and studied the music of Ireland, Greece, Turkey and Bulgaria. After experiencing success with KITKA, an internationally acclaimed vocal ensemble specializing in Balkan/Eastern European folk music, Comnes has concentrated on creating her own style of music, blending the best of everything she uncovered in the travels, all set against a backbone of jazz. What results is her own genre of instrumental mastery.
   www.luciacomnes.com                                
Karamo Susso
 is an international kora star. Growing up in a griot compound in Mali, he started playing kora as a tiny child, and was performing for large crowds before he was even big enough to hold the instrument up by himself. Fully immersed in the tradition, he learned from world-renowned players like his uncle Ballake Sissoko and his neighbor Toumani Diabate, and studied and taught kora at the Institute Nationale des Artes in Bamako, Mali.
www.myspace.com/karamosusso
________________________________

June 20th  Saturday  
Brazilian Music with Celia Malheiros
workshop 2.00-4.00pm  and performance 8.00-10.00pm

"Celia's music is pulsing with freshness and vitality. It is samba,
it is bossa nova, it is nourishing, it is carnaval, it is Brazil"

If you haven't heard her name yet, you will soon. Celia was born in Rio de Janeiro, a place where music and dance are the heart and essence of the culture.

Workshop 2:00-4:00pm
This workshop will focus on exciting Brazilian rhythms and a variety of styles from different areas of Brazil. Working with traditional percussion instruments like: pandeiro (beginning and advance), tamborim, surdo, canza, agogo, berimbau, caixa, also with vocal and body percussion.   


CELIA MALHEIROS, Brazilian singer,
multi-instrumentalist, composer, arranger, producer and educator. composer, singer.
Born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, her performances and works include: recordings with Hermeto Pascoal on her CD Sempre Crescendo, Jo�o Bosco on her CD Cenario Brasileiro, performing at jazz festivals, composer of film and video sound tracks, director of the Brazilian All Star big band for 13 years, world tours in 2006 and 2007, new CD release 2009 - After the Carnaval - on Sundance Music.
http://www.celiamalheiros.com
______________________________________________________

Itapua capoeiraJune 21st & every Sunday
Capoeira &
Afro Brazilian Drumming
12:00-2:00pm
with Robson Oliveira Nascimento
from Bahia Brazil
 
_______________________

June  21st Sunday
5:30 -11:00pm   $10
member of Big Sur Natives
Mountain Jam

Trio Esparza Mariachi and more
 Summer Solstice Celebration and Fundraiser for Campamento Rancho Rico. Campamento Rancho Rico is a bilingual summer camp that teaches art, ecology, music and much more for children in the Big Sur community. The event will include a Mexican Family Dinner, Silent Auction and Several Musical Acts. The evening will begin with a performance by Mountain Jam, a young local bluegrass trio. They will be followed by the Esparza Brothers, a dynamic Mariachi group and the night culminates with a grand reunion of The Big Sur Natives. Please Come and Join us June 21st at the Big Sur Spirit Garden 5:30 to 11pm. Adults $10, Children under 12 Free.
____________________

June 23rd  TuesdayItapua capoeira  8:00 10:00 pm  $10-15
los de abajo  
Los de Abajo broke onto the international market with the help of David Byrne, who signed them to his Luaka Bop label, and suggested that their music should be called 'punk salsa'. The band preferred the term 'tropipunk'  "because of the fusion of tropical rhythms"


This surely is one of the more glorious moments in the history of clashes between global music styles. There's a stirring, south-of-the-border brassy mariachi introduction, a grand announcement 'Rude Boy - this is made in Mexico', and then a sudden switch to a Ska beat as Los de Abajo launch into a Spanish-language, Latin-flavoured treatment of that old Fun Boy Three hit from back in 1982, The Lunatics (Have Taken Over the Asylum), with one of the original Fun Boys, Neville Staples, joining in. This is the Ska revival as seen from a recording studio in Mexico City, and directed by the production team of Neil Sparkes and Count Dubulah, best known as those exponents of global dance music, Temple Of Sound.


 ___________________________________________________________________________
June 24-25-26th  kids camp  
World Music Day Camp for KidsItapua capoeira
James Henry, Mama Azia, Muhommad Kuyate, Kenny Blackman  
With 20 years of experience, House of Samba have created fun for kids all around the world. Mama Azia, James Henry, Kenny Blackman, Muhommed Kuyate, and Mark Gabel are
a powerful team who care about our kids, the environment and community. 
"To us, kids are the world"
Enjoy a beautiful day of World Music and Dance at the Spirit Garden with Master Percussionist James Henry, Master Dancer Mama Azia, Master Trap & Serdou Player Kenny Blackman, Master Drummer and Balaphone Player Muhommad Kuyate from Guinea, West Africa,  and Master Shakeray and Drum Maker Mark Gabel

Our workshop consists of Making  Art, Dancing and Drumming and Making Instruments from around the world . "This workshop for kids will inspire your children's mind, spirit and soul."

 
www.sambasamba.com
 
www.handsonfireband.com. 

or by phone (415) 995-2743
______________________________________
June 26th   Friday  2:00-4:00pm
Selah Tribal fusion Belly Dance Class
with Vila DonovanItapua capoeira

Vila has been dancing for ten years, her dominant influence is in traditional tribal dance, fused now with modern dance techniques and the upcoming of american bellydance.  She has studied both traditional and modern styles with many teachers.

__________________________________
June 26th  Friday            7:00-8:30pm  $15
Itapua capoeira       Selah Tribal fusion Belly Dance
                               &
      the Fire Within fire dance troup
                              &
            Dark Chocolate
                    9:00-11:00pm
    World Music Latin Jazz

______________________________
June 27th Saturday  7:30-9:00pm $15
Vagabond OperaVagabond Opera
Based in the Pacific Northwest, yet encompassing the world, Vagabond Opera delivers passionate offerings of Bohemian cabaret. Paris hot Jazz, gut bucket swing, Tangos, Ukrainian folk-punk ballads, Klezmer and vigorous originals meet a world of riverboat gambling queens, Turkish belly dancers, and the enigmatic Marlene Dietrich.This is not your granny's opera, but a visceral artistic ensemble that features powerful instrumental and vocal performances coupled with a highly eclectic and theatrical experience.

__________________________________
June 27th Saturday 
Gamelan X
Workshop
2-4pm Balinese monkey chant  and percussion $15
Performance    9:00-11:00pm   $15 

Gamelan X worl
d music ensemble presents dynamic, original music for concerts and dance events. Drawing musical inspiration
from Indonesian, Balkan, African, Indian and American traditions, Gamelan X combine complex interlock
ing rhythms and sinewy melodies into a visceral groove experience that excites and entrances its listeners.
Instruments used inc
lude dozens of small and large gongs, wind and stringed instruments, synthesizers, drum set, and percussion from across Africa, Asia, and the Middle East. With this sound-palette, injected with engaging group choreography and crowd interaction, Gamelan X takes audiences on a journey through a wide range of exotic musical spaces.
The Gamelan X "Bali-bass" groove ritual: dynamic, mesmerizing, and
highly addictive.

__________________________________________________________
Itapua capoeira
June 28 th

& every Sunday
Capoeira &
Afro Brazilian Drumming
12:00-2:00pm
with Robson Oliveira Nascimento
from Bahia Brazil


_________________________________________
June 28th Sunday- 4:00-5:00pm  $10-15
Banana Slug string band for  kids      

banana slug stringsBlues, gospel, funk, bluegrass, reggae, folk, they all get a sounding in Slugs'
new CD, which features guest players such as Laurie Lewis and Tim O'Brien, both of whom are leading figures in contemporary bluegrass. If there's anything that the Banana Slug String Band knows how to do, it's to communicate sometimes complicated scientific ideas through the medium
of song to school-aged children.

The Santa Cruz Sentinel Awards & Recognition for We All Live Downstream


Slugs and roses   7:00-10:00pm $10-15
SLUGS AND ROSES is a 7 piece Band , with 2 lead guitarists, Keyboards and a dynamic rhythm section. Passionate Vocals lead the way in these life-long DEAD HEADS.... The Music Never Stops!


photos complimentary of Sacred Celebration Photography and  Patrice Ward photography www.sacredcelebrationsphotography.com

For more information contact [email protected] or 831-667-1300 cell 831-2381056.

The Spirit Garden is located 26 miles south of Carmel at Loma Vista along Highway 1 next to the Big Sur Bakery.