Music & Solidarity with Jerome Jennings & Gustav Thomas [Dr Will Edmondes]
Saturday September 19, 2020 6:30pm BST Performance by drummer, activist, bandleader, composer, sideman and educator Jerome Jennings. Followed by a discussion with music professor Gustav Thomas [Dr Will Edmondes] moderated by Dr Hannabiell Sanders.
Jerome Jennings Jerome Jennings is a drummer, activist, bandleader, composer, sideman and educator. His debut recording ‘The Beast’ is a reflection of the everyday joys and traumas of black life in the U.S. It was named one of the top three Jazz releases by NPR, received a four star rating in Downbeat Magazine, and was nominated for the prestigious French ‘Grand Prix du Disque’ award for Album of the Year in 2016. Jerome’s sophomore recording, ‘Solidarity’, released November 2019 was recognized by NPR as best music that spoke truth to power of 2019.
Jerome is a pertinent performer. To date Jerome has performed, toured and recorded with legendary musicians like Sonny Rollins, Hank Jones, Gerald Wilson, Christian McBride, Ron Carter, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Wynton Marsalis (J@LC), The Count Basie Orchestra, Philip Bailey, Henry Butler, and countless others. He has also made recordings and shared the stage with contemporary musicians Sean Jones, Camille Thurman, Jazzmeia Horn, Christian Sands, Charenee Wade, and Bokani Dyer to name a few. Gustav Thomas [Dr Will Edmondes] Gustav Thomas is a performer, composer, writer and visual artist who works primarily with spontaneous vocals, beats and recorded media (sampling, cassettes, vinyl). Since 2004 he has been a full-time member of the music department at Newcastle University where he teaches on composition, performance, Hip Hop and underground music cultures.
Dr. G Hannabiell Sanders Dr. G Hannabiell Sanders is an African American Jamaican, originally from New Jersey, USA. She holds a BFA in Music from Mason Gross School for the Arts, Rutgers University and a Masters and PhD in Music Performance from Newcastle University. With a musical career starting at the age of 9 she has become an award-winning performer, bass trombonist, African & Latin hand percussionist, composer, and activist. She is the musical director, composer and performer for Hannabiell & Midnight Blue and the Ladies of Midnight Blue who have performed nationally & internationally. Both ensembles fuse together Afro-Caribbean & Latin percussion, Jazz, Afro-beat, Funk, and Reggae to create their unique sound.
Hannabiell is the Co-Founder and Artistic Director of Harambee Pasadia CIC, an organisation dedicated to promoting the arts as a means for social change and civic engagement in the North East of England. Harambee in Swahili means ‘let’s get together,’ and Pasadia in Spanish means ‘to spend the day.’ Currently, the organisation delivers two festivals Harambee Pasadia: Afro Fusion Arts festival is a 4-day family camping extravaganza which hosts world-renowned performers, practitioners, and foods of fusions found in the African diaspora and the Darlo Drum Festival, a one-day festival dedicated to bringing all things drumming to the City of Darlington.