BELLOWS FALLS — Kora player John Hughes will perform at Stone Church Arts at Immanuel Episcopal Church on Saturday, Nov. 17, at 7:30 p.m.
According to Banning Eyre of Afropop Worldwide, “What is so impressive about Hughes' work is the way he has absorbed so much of the stylistic language of Mande kora music, and yet freed himself to compose within the idiom. It is confident, original, and above all, highly musical.”
The kora is an ancient (nearly a thousand years old) West African harp not often heard in the U.S. Its resonating chamber is made from a very large gourd covered with a stretched hide sound board. It has 22 nylon strings in two separate rows that span four octaves. Hughes plays koras that he builds himself.
Hughes is an internationally-renowned composer, kora player, percussionist, and vocalist whose style ranges from “traditional west African rhythms and melodies to original hypnotic grooves that cross cultural boundaries and fuse disparate influences,” according to a news release. Hughes takes his audiences on “an intimate musical tour of universal expressions of joy and hope, at once soothing and uplifting.”
Also a sculptor, dancer, instrument builder, and educator, Hughes holds a B.F.A. from the Tyler School of Art and the West Surrey College of Art and Design and an M.F.A. from the University of Wisconsin at Madison.
Hughes has studied the music, song, and dance of West Africa for more than 25 years, training with numerous master drummers and dancers from Guinea and Mali, including Mamady Keita, Famoudou Konate, and Youssouf Koumbassa.