Mason Artist-in-Residence Small Island Big Song Leads Events Across Campus and Community

Zoe Harr — Fri, 29 Mar 2024 20:41:10 +0000

Mason Artist-in-Residence Small Island Big Song Leads Events Across Campus and Community Zoe Harr Fri, 03/29/2024 - 16:41

In This Story

Mark Cooley

Edward Maibach

Dr. Gregory Robinson

Victor Adebusola

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Learn About Mason's Artist-in-Residence Program

Mason Artist-in-Residence Small Island Big Song will perform at the Center on April 20. Photo taken by Gelée Lai, Tony Tsai, Samra Teague, and Kimmi Cranes.

Right before Earth Day, Small Island Big Song presents a "jaw-dropping" (Billboard) concert experience at the Center for the Arts on April 20, combining music, spoken word, and stunning projections to showcase unique oceanic grooves and soulful island ballads, while shining a light on the devastating effects of climate crisis on our world’s oceans. Indigenous artists from Pacific and Indian Ocean island nations mix their diverse styles to establish a contemporary musical dialogue between cultures as far afield as Madagascar, Taiwan, Mauritius, Papua New Guinea, Tahiti, and Indonesia.

Co-Founder BaoBao Chen joins Small Island Big Song at the Center on April 20.

“For us, the goal of Small Island Big Song is to bring the audiences to some places that we might not have the courage of going alone, to celebrate, to confront, to inspire, to mourn, to feel hopeful. Our performance goes to all these emotions and shares the stories of ‘Our Island’, but ultimately, ‘Our Island’ is the one we all share,” notes BaoBao Chen, co-founder of Small Island Big Song.

Want to learn more about Small Island Big Song? Read more on the official website.

As a Mason Artist-in-Residence, Small Island Big Song will also deeply engage with the community through a series of education and engagement programs, detailed below:

Open-to-the-Public Residency Events

Climate Change: Our Response as Artivists on April 18 will explore ways in which artists can use their voices to expand global conversation on political, economic, social, and cultural questions at the root of the climate crisis. This event is co-presented with the Inclusive Collaborative Arts at Mason (ICAM) project with panelists BaoBao Chen, Co-Founder and Producer of Small Island Big Song; Mark Cooley, Associate Professor and Director of New Media Arts, Mason School of Art; founder of Green Studio; Moderated by Edward Maibach, distinguished professor at George Mason University and director of Mason’s Center for Climate Change Communication; and is a part of the Artist-Activist Speaker Series, an initiative of the Inclusive Collaborative Arts at Mason (ICAM) project. This event is free, but registration is required.
Small Island Big Song artist Sammy from Madagascar hosts "Trash to Music" on April 20.
On April 19, Small Island Big Song invites local students to experience a schooltime performance that includes participatory dance and rhythmic activities, as well as an open Q&A with students. This performance is free, but registration is required.
Also on April 19 and in collaboration with Mason Dining, Small Island Big Song artists will introduce Mason community members to a traditional island dish, fish curry. Led by Emlyn from Mauritius, the Cooking a Traditional Meal with Local Twists workshop will include food samples and musical accompaniment. The event is free to Mason students, faculty, and staff, but registration is required.
Led by Small Island Big Song artist Sammy and hosted by UpCycle Creative Reuse Center, Trash to Music on April 20 is an inspiring hands-on workshop demonstrating how to make musical instruments from trash, commonly recycled, and/or reused materials. Participants will be making a Malagasy-style berimbau and shaker. Recommended for ages 10 and up, minors must be accompanied by an adult. Limit of 20 participants with waitlist to notify if spots become available.

Additional Residency Activities for Mason and Local Community

Co-presented by the City of Fairfax and Center for the Arts, Small Island Big Song hosted a Friends of the Center for the Arts Artists in Conversation event, Our Shared Seafaring Heritage, Alive in Rhythm and Song, on April 2 at the Stacey C. Sherwood Community Center in Fairfax, VA. This lecture-demonstration provided geographical and historical background about the great oceanic migrations that affected the featured island nations of Small Island Big Song, and included musical demonstrations and an interactive Q&A.
Small Island Big Song artists Sammy, Yuma, Mathieu, and Small Island Big Song Co-Founder Tim Cole will visit Mason’s Dewberry School of Music program’s “Music History in Society III” course taught by Professor Greg Robinson.
In this Dancing Mauritian Sega workshop, approximately 100 second grade students from Hunters Woods Elementary School are invited to learn the Sega dance from Mauritius, led by Mathieu Joseph (Mauritius) with support from Sam Roem (West Papua).
Small Island Big Song artists and co-founders BaoBao Chen and Tim Cole will lead a discussion on the topic of “Artivism in Action - Managing Cultural Initiatives” with students of Mason’s Arts Management and Folklore programs’ “Folklore and Festival Management” course.

In addition to these special residency events, a pre-performance discussion with Small Island Big Song Co-Founders BaoBao Chen and Tim Cole will take place in Monson Grand Tier prior to the performance on April 20. The discussion will be moderated by Center for the Arts Programming and Engagement Manager Vic Adebusola.

Buy tickets to Small Island Big Song on April 20 and be transported to the musical islands that are just around the corner.

This engagement of Small Island Big Song is made possible through the ArtsCONNECT program of Mid Atlantic Arts with support from the National Endowment for the Arts.

The Mason Artist-in-Residence program is supported in part by the Wendy Frieman and David Johnson Fund.

The Small Island Big Song residency is supported in part by Eloise Stinger.

Thank you to the City of Fairfax Parks and Recreation Everybody Plays Grant program for making free tickets possible for the schooltime matinee program. This grant was funded by the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA).

Topics

CFA

College of Visual and Performing Arts (CVPA)

College of Visual and Performing Arts (CVPA) Arts Management Program

folklore

Center for the Arts

Friends of the Center for the Arts

Mason Artists-in-Residence

Mason Dining

Campus News

Sustainability

Small Island Big Song Residency Showcases Indigenous Artists with Earth Day Message

Zoe Harr — Mon, 26 Feb 2024 17:17:52 +0000

Small Island Big Song Residency Showcases Indigenous Artists with Earth Day Message Zoe Harr Mon, 02/26/2024 - 12:17

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Honor Earth Day weekend with Small Island Big Song on April 20 at George Mason University's Center for the Arts for a moving musical experience that combines music, spoken word, and stunning projections to showcase the sounds of various island nations of the Pacific and Indian Oceans, while shining a light on the devastating effects of climate crisis on our world’s ocean.

Small Island Big Song is the brainchild of Australian filmmaker and music producer Tim Cole and Taiwanese theater producer BaoBao Chen (pictured left), who traveled to 16 island nations to capture unique sounds and cinematic sights while working with over a hundred indigenous local artists, elders, community groups, and grassroots musicians. The result of this inspiring research and storytelling yielded two award-winning albums, a feature film, and a world-touring concert. For Small Island Big Song’s April performance, panoramic visuals will work alongside live musicians to highlight a shared seafaring ancestry with interconnected musical traditions.

Small Island Big Song establishes a contemporary musical dialogue between cultures as far afield as Madagascar, Aotearoa, Taiwan, Mauritius, Marshall Islands, Papua New Guinea, Tahiti, and Rapa Nui.
(Photo Credit: Small Island Big Song)

To learn more about Small Island Big Song’s creation and its many artists involved, please visit the project’s website.

As a Mason Artist-in-Residence, Small Island Big Song will also work with the community through classes and workshops during the week surrounding the performance, including an Artists in Conversation event and schooltime matinee, both of which are free offerings and detailed below.

Small Island Big Song performs at the Center on April 20. (Photo Credit: Tony Tsai)

Co-presented by the City of Fairfax and Center for the Arts, Small Island Big Song will host an Artists in Conversation titled “Our Shared Seafaring Heritage, Alive in Rhythm and Song” on April 2 at the Stacey C. Sherwood Community Center in Fairfax, Virginia. This free, open-to-the-public lecture-demonstration will provide context prior to the April 20 performance with geographical and historical background about the great oceanic migrations that affected the featured island nations. Additionally, the evening will consist of conversation and musical demonstrations from Small Island Big Song artists, followed by an interactive Q&A session with audience members. This event is free, but registration is required; additional information can be found on the event webpage.

On April 19, Small Island Big Song invites local students to experience a schooltime performance that includes participatory dance and rhythmic activities, as well as an open Q&A with students. In addition to this special truncated performance with participatory activities, Small Island Big Song offers a free Study Guide that includes an introduction to the project, useful links, and relevant historical information. This performance is free, but registration is required; additional information can be found on the field trips webpage.

Get tickets today and join “one very big, very happy family doing what they do best while helping get the word out on a most serious issue” (RootsWorld [US]), Small Island Big Song on April 20.

This engagement of Small Island Big Song is made possible through the ArtsCONNECT program of Mid Atlantic Arts with support from the National Endowment for the Arts.

The Mason Artist-in-Residence program is supported in part by the Wendy Frieman and David Johnson Fund. The Artist-in-Residence program for this performance is sponsored by Eloise Stinger.

Topics

CFA

Mason Artists-in-Residence

Sustainability

Artist in Residence

Campus News