De CAJóN Project

DE CAJóN Project is a community arts organization dedicated to educating populations about the cultural contributions by people of African descent in Peru. As a movement they facilitate music and dance workshops, offer lectures and residencies, perform widely throughout the Pacific Northwest, and build intercultural and intergenerational communities through art.

HAGUCHA GARINAGU

Hagucha Garinagu is a Seattle-based Garifuna ensemble that features the music, dance and culture of the Garifuna people. The Garinagu, who came from the island now known as Saint Vincent (originally Yorumien) after being exiled from their hometown now live in Central America and the United States and speak Garifuna, a language with Arawak, Carib, and West African roots. Hagucha Garinagu will offer a reverence for the Ancestors (andu wuriti or black saint), paranda music and will close with punta music and dance.

Marcela Rosero y Rimawaynina Cumbé

Alternative folkloric dance group dedicated to teaching and celebrating our diverse ancestral roots through the representation of a variety of Colombian and Latin rhythms, mainly cumbia.

It has its origin in the living room of our home where as a family we performed the dance ritual after each dinner. My 2-year-old daughter Achalay danced and danced nonstop drawing figures with her long skirts following her mother to the rhythm of cumbia drums and a wide variety of Latin rhythms. At the same time, she was experiencing a variety of body movements while the choreographies were taking shape to the rhythm of “La Pollera Colorada” among many others.

Milvia Berenice Pacheco Salvatierra

I am an Afro-Latina artist born in Caracas-Venezuela, where I began my career as a dancer combining dance and theater training. Experiences with trauma at an early age fueled in me a pressing drive toward movement. I went on to devote my life to reaching liberation through art and movement. In this Journey, I have become a contemporary dancer, choreographer, performer, bodyworker, visual artist, mother and Community Organizer. MÁS (Movimiento Afrolatino Seattle) has become the platform where I continue serving as a conduit for empowerment and beyond empowerment for myself and others.

Otoqui Reyes y los Hijos de Agüeybaná

Hijos de Agüeybaná is a group that performs one of Puerto Rico’s native music genres known as the Puerto Rican Bomba. It is made up of eight or more artists, committed to their Afro-Antillean and Afro-Caribbean culture, ambassadors of that legacy, who want to make their African roots known inside and outside our Island. Hijos de Agueybana has a history of more than ten years of experience offering workshops , talks and historical-cultural courses on the Bomba genre. Bomba is the genre that collects the African heritage. In the Afro-Caribbean, the drum is a common denominator that resonates from island to island, from town to town, leaving its sound charged with convocation and solidarity.

Alfredo Chavez.

Composer, multi-instrumentalist and singer, Chávez’s group repertoire includes bolero, corridor, cueca, joropo, cumbia, son, guajira, Andean music, merengue and calypso, as well as popular ballads. Educator and cultural ambassador, Chávez was previously Folk Troubadour and Professor at the National University of Panama. Artist Participant of Más Versadas, oralidades que sanan.

Panama Folklore Seattle

It is a distinguished non-profit organization committed to the advancement and preservation of Panamanian cultural heritage within the Pacific Northwest. Our mandate encompasses the celebration, promotion, and cultivation of the rich tapestry that constitutes Panamanian identity. Panama best known for its Canal is also colloquially mentioned as the ‘Bridge of the World’ and the ‘Heart of the Universe’ – ‘Puente de el mundo, corazón de el Universo’.

Seattle Fandango Project

SFP is a collective of fandango students and practitioners of all ages who began building community through the tradition of fandango. SFP offers free workshops to the community. One of the driving forces behind the collective is the recognition of community music as an element from which dialogue, awareness and practicing social justice can be generated.

Silvio Dos Reis / Union Cultural Center

Silvio has dedicated his life to Capoeira for the past 31 years. He started teaching Capoeira in Brazil and moved to Seattle in 2004. Since then he has been teaching after school programs at Seattle public schools, Capoeira workshops, and ongoing classes at Evergreen State College, Western Washington University, and the University of Washington. As a way to promote Capoeira in the community, Silvio runs his own Capoeira school, the International Capoeira Angola Foundation/ICAF SEATTLE, located in Seattle where he offers regular classes for adults, youths, kids and toddlers.­­­

Todo Folklore Cubano (TFC)

Is a Seattle-based dance company that stands as a vibrant testament to the rich folkloric traditions of Cuba. Founded in 2005 by the distinguished José Carrión, a former principal dancer with Ballet Folklórico Cutumba, TFC has evolved into a cultural beacon in the Pacific Northwest. Since its inception, TFC has graced various stages, including prominent events like Folklife and the World Rhythm Festival. The ensemble’s performances are a dynamic fusion of dance, rhythmic percussion, and soulful singing, offering audiences an authentic journey into Cuban folklore. The heart of TFC is shaped by José and his family: his son Yoanis, who dedicated 20 years as a percussionist with Cutumba; Teno, a rising star in dance; and his sister Liana, deeply rooted in these traditions throughout her life. The group is further enriched by the contributions of local artists such as Arturo Rodriguez and Danny Mendoza, as well as the exceptional Cuban dancer, Takechi Ruiz.

Destiny Vásquez (Perú)

Destiny Vásquez is a former member of the Afro-Peruvian dance group “Africandela”. Her character acts, dances, and whispers joy. She represents the new generation and the future of our ancestry.