Festival to share artistic sides of various cultures

By Elizabeth Marie Himchak

Take a trip around the world while never leaving the Casa del Prado Theatre in Balboa Park by attending the Harmony & Motion International Music and Dance Festival on Saturday.

The fourth annual event will feature two unique shows, each under three hours in length, that share the artistic sides of various cultures.

Producer Tom Johnston-O’Neill said six groups will perform per show, following an introduction before each by David Harnish, chairman of the University of San Diego’s music department.

Harnish, an ethnomusicologist — one who studies the culture of music — will guide the audience so attendees gain a greater appreciation and understanding of what they are experiencing, Johnston-O’Neill said. Such explanations can be quite helpful, such as when Dornob Collective takes the stage to perform Persian music.

“It’s on a very different scale than what people in America, Europe and elsewhere (play),” Johnston-O’Neill said. “It sounds out of tune, but when you know it is a different scale, you have a much greater appreciation.”

The 1 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 20 show will feature Ballet Folklorico en Aztlan (traditional Mexican dancing), Dornob Collective (Persian music and dance), Gloria Lanuza (a Spanish flamenco dancer accompanied by a guitarist), Kembang Sunda Gamelan (a “very percussive” Indonesian orchestra), Choro Sontaque (Brazilian ragtime-style music that is very upbeat) and Naruwan Taiko (Japanese drummers whose loud and energetic music is influenced by martial arts).

The 5 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 20 show will feature George Svoboda and Fred Benedetti (guitarists who play flamenco, eastern European and Middle Eastern music), Yale Strom & Hot Pstromi (a band that plays klezmer, traditional eastern European Jewish music that is high energy and often heard at Jewish weddings), Sol E Mar (a Brazilian samba group), Allegato World Ensemble featuring Allison Adams Tucker (she sings jazz music in seven languages), Samahan (Filipino folk dancing) and San Diego Civic Dance Arts Company (its members will perform the Bollywood finale — a dance from India — plus a Spanish number in addition to dances to accompany Tucker’s music).

Johnston-O’Neill said the festival came about when he and San Diego Civic Dance Arts Dance Specialist Andrea Feier were discussing how wonderful it would be if the SDCDA Company members — advance-level performers in the City of San Diego’s Park and Recreation program who are selected by audition — could have an opportunity to dance with live music. At the time, Johnston-O’Neill’s daughter was in Company and dancing while musicians play was something usually reserved for professional dancers.

He also happens to be the executive director of The Worldview Project, an all volunteer nonprofit organization that since 2001 has dedicated itself “to promoting greater knowledge, appreciation and understanding of world cultures.” It does this through print and online publications and by sponsoring and promoting organizations that embrace culturally-oriented goals.

So in 2011 The Worldview Project and San Diego Civic Dance Association — the nonprofit that supports the city dance program — put on a five-hour festival in Balboa Park’s Casa del Prado Theatre. Since then they have broken up the festival into two segments and offer an assortment of international refreshments before and between performances.

While festival popularity has gotten off to a slow start, Johnston-O’Neill said it is growing, better-known and next year organizers would like to stage a two-day event tied in with Balboa Park’s centennial celebration.

General admission tickets are $16 for one show or $30 for an all-festival pass. Student tickets are $10 per show or $18 for an all-festival pass. Purchase at

www.harmonyandmotion.org

or at the door.

Casa del Prado Theatre is at 1600 Village Place in San Diego’s Balboa Park.

For questions, call 858-964-0709 or send an email to info@harmonyandmotion.org.