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  Odadaa! in NYC  Odadaa! Excerpts  Congo Square in Montreal  Congo Square Premiere  Collaborations Trailer |
Yacub Addy’s Odadaa! lights the stage with genuinely traditional Ghanaian classics and traditionally grounded newworks.Combining hot polyrhythmic percussion, rich vocals, bamboo flutes, balaphon, guitar, base, and dynamic dance that moves “like a river”, they offer sophisticated and virtuosic performance, yet retain a casual spontaneity that’s irresistable. Formed in 1982, Odadaa! grew out of a succession of groups created by Yacub Addy since 1957 - first based in Ghana, then in Europe and now the United States. Addy named Odadaa! for an annual celebration of the Ga people held in Ghana’s capital of Accra that breaks a seasonal ban on drumming. The sound of the Odadaa rhythm signals, “The way is open! Let the music begin!”. Odadaa!’s traditional instruments serve specific purposes. Each drum, each bell has a name, a voice, a function, a history. A variety of drums, from tall to short, cylindrical and rectangular, upright and hand-held, are played in various sets and combinations using ambidextrous hands, straight or curved sticks, sticks and hands, even hands and feet. A bell usually provides the critical basic beat, and interlocking drums, shakers, additional bells, bamboo flutes, guitar, bass, balaphons, and voices elaborate.
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• Calendar• Slide Shows • Biz (Sonicbids: bio, audio, video, requirements, etc.) • Selected Appearances • Reviews • Media Releases • New Work • Congo Square Project • Kolo Project • Special Programs |
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Reviews: (top)
"... a glimpse into a living world in which music - drumming particularly - is the lifeblood of the community ... Though many of their compositions are original, Odadaa! base everything they do on the traditions of which they are inheritors. It's the power of the past extending itself into the present and the future. An evening spent with Odadaa! will echo within for many months after the event is past." "One of the great virtues of this group is its ability to re-create the feeling of traditional festival in theatrical spaces. While thoroughly professional, the group retains a feeling of casual spontaneity. The performers are internally focused....The emphasis is on emotional and kinetic response....it is easy to forget that what they are doing is highly virtuosic." "Odadaa! is a treasurehouse of Ghanaian culture that not only performs traditional music and dance but continually invents new forms rooted in tradition. This group of artists, led by master drummer Yacub Addy, has been living in our midst for more than 25 years, constantly enriching the cultural life of the U.S." "Yacub is obviously a great master and teacher. The singers and dancers were fabulous and the drumming was great. It was a variety of music too ... congratulations to Odadaa! for a wonderful evening." "Odadaa! deserves the exclamation point." |
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New Work: (top)
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Special Programs: (top)
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