Our new Summer Beats pop-up concert series at Roger Williams Park features live, socially distanced performances with local and international flavor. You never know when you might stumble upon a pop-up performance, so grab your mask, get outside in the fresh, open air and keep your eyes (and ears) peeled for some safe summer fun.
Featured Artists
BECKY BASS • 7/25, 6:30 PM | Roger Williams Park Dalrymple Boathouse Lawn [map]
Local treasure Becky Bass is known for her euphoric steel pan playing, soulful voice, and powerful stage presence. A native of St. Croix, Bass utilizes her talent to highlight Caribbean music’s evolution through human necessity and resilience, and share the complex history of Caribbean music and its influence on the U.S. A 2013 graduate of Brown University in Theatre Arts & Performance Studies, Bass is two-time New England Urban Music Award winner. She has performed at the National Gallery of Art (Washington, D.C.), New York City’s Lincoln Center, Chicago’s Underground Wonder Bar, and Off-Broadway theater LaMaMa. www.beckybass.com
Photo by Erin X. Smithers
NITIN MITTA • 7/29, 6:30 PM | Roger Williams Park Dalrymple Boathouse Lawn [map]
One of the most accomplished and distinctive tabla players of his generation, known for his technical virtuosity and spontaneity. Moving from India in 2002, Nitin received a grant from the Rhode Island State Council on Arts to jumpstart his American career. Since then, he has traveled throughout the U.S., Europe, Canada and India performing and teaching the tabla, at prestigious venues including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Weill recital Hall/Carnegie Hall, the UCLA Royce Hall, the Indian consulate in New York, the Smithsonian Museum in Washington, D.C, the Music Academy in Chennai, and the Habitat Centre in New Delhi. http://nitinmitta.com/
Nitin will be accompanied by sitarist Srinivas Reddy – www.srinivasreddy.org
SIDY MAIGA • RAIN DATE 8/6, 6:30 PM | Roger Williams Park Dalrymple Boathouse Lawn [map]
A pillar of Rhode Island’s local music community, master Malian drummer Sidy Maiga has traveled the world sharing the insatiable rhythms of the djembe with enthusiastic audiences. Maiga combines the best of West African percussion traditions with modern beats, infusing traditional African styles with rhythms of the Caribbean, hip-hop, Latin tunes, Brazilian styles, and the Blues. A staple of outdoor festivals across Rhode Island, Maiga’s drumming brings audiences to their feet and closer with their neighbors; as Maiga says, “music is the bridge that brings people together.” https://sidymaiga.com
Photo by James Lastowski
ORLANDO HERNÁNDEZ • 8/12, 6:30 PM* | Roger Williams Park Dalrymple Boathouse Lawn [map]
Providence-based Orlando Hernández is an interdisciplinary performer working primarily in tap dance. His work weaves together threads of theater, percussion, and improvisation into immersive experiences of collective rhythm and reflection. Hernández’ work has been showcased across the country at institutions like Jacob’s Pillow, Judson Church (NYC), and the Public Theater (NYC), as well as Canada and Puerto Rico. A seasoned educator, Hernández works as a teaching artist for Trinity Rep and Rhode Island Latino Arts. www.orlyhernandez.com
Orlando will be accompanied by saxophonist Leland Baker – https://lelandbaker.com
Photo by James Lastowski
*Dates and times subject to change – rain dates will be announced
