RAÍCES PERFORMANCE ENSEMBLE The Raíces Cultural Center Ensemble is comprised of an intergenerational mix of advanced students and professional musicians. The ensemble performs the folkloric traditions of the Caribbean, as well as fusions of these traditions with modern genres. The Raíces Ensemble performs at a variety of venues, including cultural and community events, festivals, corporate events and diversity days, schools, universities and colleges. With a repertoire consisting of a variety of folkloric and traditional Caribbean genres such as rumba, comparsa, carnival, mozambique, bomba, plena, són, guajira, cha-cha-cha and the folkloric Santería liturgy, and a fusion of modern genres such as spoken word poetry, hip hop and salsa, the Raíces Ensemble interprets, preserves and disseminates a living history, while providing professional opportunities to local performing, visual and media artists. The Raíces Ensemble was born as Raíces Caribeñas in the fall of 2003 from a group of percussion students led by director Francisco G. Gómez. Founding members Dean Warren Schomburg, William Torres and Nicole Wines met in Francisco's Afro-Caribbean hand-drumming class at Middlesex County College in New Jersey. Over the years the group has evolved and the musicians have changed, but the Raíces Cultural Center Ensemble remains committed to preserving and disseminating the folkloric traditions, music, song and dance of the Caribbean. Upcoming Ensemble PerformancesAbout the Members To inquire about contracting the ensemble for a performance, please contact Francisco G. Gómez at 908-227-5671 or raices@raicesculturalcenter.org. |
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