Soul group Elephantine is the Bay Area sound of Afro-futurism. Devoted to exploring new sonic territory, Elephantine features mesmerizing rhythms and captivating singers. Launched in Oakland in 2013, Elephantine features the electrifying vocal triumvirate of Zakiya Harris, Tossie Long and Solas B. Lalgee. https://youtu.be/pzq-9pafS5M?list=PL_C6KeCoAO6PjlrIJHD20m3iADoIM6E9f
This children's program repeats at 12:15–12:45pm. Joe Leon’s Caterpillar Puppets don’t just entertain kids and parents. His eccentric menagerie draws audiences of all ages into seemingly familiar stories that take unexpected turns. Like his version of the Big Bad Wolf and the Three Little Bla-bla-blas, or the shy artist mouse Amadeus who needs encouragement from […]
Mexico’s jazz scene bristles with genre-bending bands, and one of the most illustrious and innovative is Troker. Founded in Guadalajara in 2004, the group has honed a potent fusion of jazz, funk, DJ scratching, and mariachi horns. Stocked with world-class improvisers from different regions of Mexico, Troker creates music that sounds like a soundtrack for […]
Founded by Jon Reed Sims in 1978 in response to Anita Bryant's anti-gay campaign in the late 1970s, the San Francisco Gay Freedom Day Marching Band and Twirling Corps was the first openly-gay musical group in the world. Sims went on to create the San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus, the Lesbian/Gay Chorus of San Francisco, […]
The ancient Japanese percussion tradition known as taiko has deep roots in the Bay Area (the nation’s first taiko dojo came together in San Francisco in 1968). But it wasn’t until a decade ago that a small and determined group of Cal students formed UC Berkeley’s first taiko ensemble. Quickly making up for lost time, […]
This children's program repeats at 12:15–12:45pm. Combining exceptional athletic skills, traditional Chinese music, dazzling costumes, and a fast-paced show sure to amaze viewers of all ages, the Red Panda Acrobats bring the ancient art of Chinese acrobatics into the 21st century with jaw-dropping displays of strength, balance, and dexterity. While founded in Shanghai in 1990, […]
As America’s most renowned ensemble devoted to the secular, celebratory music of Eastern European Jewry, The Klezmatics emerged from the unique alchemy of New York City’s downtown music scene 30 years ago with the single-minded mission of making Yiddish culture a vital force. Known for collaborations with a glittering array of artists, from John Zorn […]
Lines and lyrics from Litquake Nation! Enjoy line breaks during your lunch break, as some of the Bay Area’s best poets and musicians share their work in the great outdoors. Cave Canem fellow James Cagney is a published poet and writer from Oakland. He has performed throughout the Bay Area and Vancouver, Chicago, and Mumbai. His current […]
The West Coast’s fastest rising jazz vocalist, Tiffany Austin combines an ever-growing command of the jazz tradition with a deep love for old-school and contemporary R&B. Her 2015 debut album Nothing But Soul earned rave reviews for her bold recasting of Hoagy Carmichael standards. Then she triumphed in New York when alto sax legend John […]
This children’s program repeats at 12:15–12:45pm. Silliness is very serious business for the Pi Clowns. A company dedicated to knock-about physical comedy, these performers don’t tell jokes. They embody them with robust and timeless antics. Blending mime, theater, acrobatics, juggling, and improvisation, the Pi Clowns deliver delightful and original clown vignettes. Pi members have worked […]
Note: This program takes place at Downtown High School. Lucia Tarallo Jensen, respected elder, artist, author and one of Hawai'i's pre-eminent cultural scholars, presents a talk-story on the spiritual and cultural philosophy of the kuahu. The next day, Saturday, July 16, 2016 the construction of a traditional kuahu takes place in Yerba Buena Gardens as […]
An unprecedented, interdisciplinary manifestation presented in partnership with the Yerba Buena Gardens Festival, The Ola Project combines chants, music, dance, lectures and sculpture as a celebration of the Bay Area legacy of Patrick Makuakane’s hula school and dance company Nā Lei Hulu I Ka Wēkiu. Ola means life in Hawaiian, and the event centers around […]
A globe-trotting multi-instrumentalist, singer/songwriter, and visual artist, Zena Carlota has spent years immersing herself in the oral traditions, rituals and songs associated with the kora, a lilting West African harp, including a recent trip to Paris studying with Malian master Toumani Diabaté. In her own Afro-folk music she combines her love of Appalachian roots styles, […]
** Just Announced (7/15/16) ** Roberton, lead singer from Los Van Van, will join Fito Reinoso's set during this concert as a special guest! ********** A powerful sonero whose resonant voice brings to mind the legendary Beny Moré, Fito Reinoso is one of the finest practitioners of música cubana in the US. He played a […]
This children’s program repeats at 12:15–12:45pm. A beloved Bay Area institution, the Unique Derique is a prince among clowns, an internationally esteemed performer who has honed a singular blend of physical comedy and hambone body percussion. Derique (aka Lance McGee) started clowning in Berkeley at 15 with Circus A La Mode and later joined San […]
A wildly charismatic trumpeter with a global musical vision, Will Magid has earned a devoted following with his Bay Area concert series World Wide Dance Party, a moveable musical feast serving up celebratory sounds from around the world. The multi-instrumentalist, producer and DJ returns to the Gardens with Alligator Spacewalk, what Magid describes as “a […]
Fasten your seatbelts for another wild yet thought-provoking ride with the world-renowned San Francisco Mime Troupe. Experts at finding the absurdity in contemporary culture, the SFMT has been on the progressive frontlines since the heyday of the civil rights movement in the early 1960s. Prepare for laughter, tragedy, snappy dialogue, and vivid live music. Pre-show […]
A charismatic performer and multi-instrumentalist, singer/songwriter Joe Bagale has been an essential force on the Bay Area music scene for the past decade. He played a central role in Brass, Bows, & Beats, the critically acclaimed hip-hop symphony performed by the Bay Area's Jazz Mafia. As a leader he’s released two albums showcasing his well-crafted […]
This children’s program repeats at 12:15–12:45pm. What’s in that box, you ask? In the hands of Ka-Hon, a gentle spring shower, a flamenco troupe, a galloping stallion, and a rumba circle. Drawing on a pan-American array of rhythms, the high-energy ensemble displays the astounding versatility of the humble cajón, a simple wooden box usually played […]
André ThierryThe Bay Area shares long and passionate ties with Louisiana, a bond exemplified by this raucous double-bill. Tom Rigney and Flambeau features some of the finest musicians on the roots music scene, including Rigney, an electrifying violinist and composer with a gift for putting an individual stamp on fiery Cajun and zydeco two-steps, low-down […]
The Artists Guild of San Francisco is the oldest outdoor art collective in the country. Guild artists speak directly with the public about their artwork, explaining technical details, creative decisions, and other aspects of producing a painting or sculpture.
Bay Area soul with visceral beats! The Seshen is devoted to exploring new sonic territory, featuring mesmerizing rhythms and captivating singers. Fronted by captivating Haitian-American vocalist Lalin St. Juste, The Seshen is a seven-piece San Francisco combo that laces hip-hop, R&B, and West African influences with a heady dose of psychedelia. https://youtu.be/TK2rIV9m9ms?list=PL_C6KeCoAO6PjlrIJHD20m3iADoIM6E9f
This children’s program repeats at 12:15–12:45pm. Using finger snaps, tight slaps, chest thumps, foot drags, hand rubs, and percussive dance steps, Crosspulse Ensemble performances are designed to enchant children with an international array of rhythms, instruments, and obscure musical practices. With five extraordinary artists versed in body percussion and a diverse array of traditions, the ensemble features […]
In collaboration with Yerba Buena Gardens Festival, AfroSolo Arts Festival presents its 16th annual free concert in Yerba Buena Gardens. Dedicated to nurturing, promoting, and presenting African-American and African diaspora art and culture through solo performance and the visual arts, AfroSolo showcases some of the most trenchant, vibrant and soul-stirring artists around. Tammy L. Hall […]