Haiti Benefit Concert

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Comment by Nicholas D. Ward on January 25, 2010 at 7:28pm

RISE UP! NEW MEXICO STANDS WITH HAITI
a benefit concert event

Thursday January 28th 7:00 pm
Albuquerque Little Theater
224 San Pasquale SW
ABQ, NM

$10.00
All net proceeds will go directly to Direct Relief International's efforts in Haiti
www.directrelief.org

a multi-genre evening of music featuring

R A H I M A L H A J

S O U L K I T C H E N

A S P E R K O U R T

P O E M A

M A R I A C H I M Y S T E R Y T O U R

Tickets available at ALT Box Office
by phone: 505-242-4750 ext. 2
online at: www.albuquerquelittletheatre.org
or at the door

Presented by Avokado Artists, Albuquerque Little Theater & ¡Globalquerque!
_________________________________________________________________________________

The Performers:


RAHIM ALHAJ
Two-time Grammy nominee (most recently 2010), Iraqi oud virtuoso and composer Rahim AlHaj is no stranger to hardship. A refugee from his home country where he was jailed and tortured over a two year period, Rahim has found a new home in Albuquerque even as his star has risen internationally. He has performed and recorded with master musicians from around the globe. Next month he will perform as part of the Cultural Olympiad at the 2010 Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver. This September he will release an amazing project entitled Little Earth: Voices For Peace, a two-CD set which feature Rahim's compositions performed in collaboration with the likes of Bill Frisell, Robert Mirabal, REM's Peter Buck, Maria de Barros, Lui Fang, Guy Klucevsek, Yacouba Sissoko, Argentina's Santa Fe Guitar Quartet and many others.

SOUL KITCHEN
Something of an ABQ super group, Soul Kitchen features vocalist extraordinaire Hillary Smith, winner of Albuquerque the Magazine's 2009 Best Vocalist and whose latest CD No Easy Way walked away with five 2009 NM Music Awards including Best of the Year), guitar hero Chris Dracup (Albuquerque the Magazine's 2009 Best Musician and musical journeyman Tommy Elskes, who has done everything from perform with the likes of Lyle Lovett and B.B. King to writing songs for The Flintstones! Together they are much more than the sum of their parts. Soul Kitchen creates a dynamic blues-drenched soul that musically wanders somewhere between Saturday night revelry and Sunday morning redemption.

ASPER KOURT
Even though he refers to Jack Johnson, Ben Harper, and John Mayer as musical favorites, Asper Kourt’s singer-songwriter Kevin Herig writes and plays music in a class all his own. While he does pull from his influences to gain inspiration, most of Herig’s songs and lyrics are wittingly and expressively written about his own personal experiences. Still a very young group - Asper Kourt formed in 2007 with Mat Beston (Bass), Nate Boitano (Lead Guitar), Kurt Sorenson (Keyboard) and Heath Warren (Drums & Percussion) - the band was recently voted Best Local Band Headed for Stardom by Albuquerque the Magazine. Their fan base continues to grow throughout the southwest and beyond. In November 2008, Asper Kourt recorded their first EP, Changing Times which was released nationally February 23, 2009.

POEMA
Although they didn’t necessarily know how it would play out in their future plans, music has always played a key role in the lives of Shealeen and Elle, two sisters (19 and 17 years old, respectively) who’ve discovered that songwriting is a pretty great vehicle for saying exactly what’s on their minds. Unlike many siblings who spar and fight at the drop of the hat, Shealeen and Elle’s don’t use their songs to vent their frustration against each other. Instead, the lilting melodies and memorable harmonies they’ve created only underscore the beauty of collaboration. With song inspiration ranging from a Pride & Prejudice moment of hopeless romanticism (“Safe to Say”) to an ode to a shall-remained-nameless member of the opposite sex (“Blue Sweater”), Shealeen and Elle love serving up these melodic slices of life. Recently signed to indie label Tooth & Nail, look for Poema's new CD later this year.