The Soul Of Miami

Colombian Carnival Celebration at the Koubek Center
Saturday, 02/24/2018 – 12:00 pm – 04:00 pm
The Koubek Center
2705 SW 3rd St,
Miami, Florida 33135

Cost: FREE

Little Havana’s Favorite Free Family Series Returns with a Festive Bang!

Miami, Feb. 12, 2018 – Miami Dade College’s (MDC) Koubek Center reignites its beloved bilingual family series, Playtime: Días de las Familias with a grand celebration from noon – 4 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 24, presenting Carnaval de Barranquilla! This event is free and open to the public.

The Carnival of Barranquilla-declared a UNESCO Heritage Masterpiece-is said to be the second largest carnival celebration in the world. The Koubek Center, with the help of the acclaimed folkloric ensemble Puerta de Oro de Colombia and special guests Cumbiamba Curramberos en NY, brings its revelry and splendor to Little Havana.
The festivities will include music and dance performances and interactive workshops, story time, an exhibition of traditional carnival costumes, and craft-making of masks and “Congo Hats,” tall colorful headpieces that are an ode to the slaves who gathered in cabildos (slave associations that elected their own carnival queen) in the early carnivals. The performance will include the Cumbia, Fandango, Puya and Congo genres, and culminates in a grand finale Carnaval Parade!

The Playtime series provides parents an engaging (and free!) way for their children to learn and practice Spanish. The fun and interactive family days highlight the diverse arts, crafts, literary histories, and music and dance of the city’s many Hispanic cultures. Children will be invited to sing, dance, create and speak together en español. The Playtime series will continue with a Son Jarocho Day representing Veracruz, Mexico on Saturday, Mar. 31 and an Earth Day: Rumba Flora with educator and Grammy-nominated singer Rita Rosa on Saturday, Apr. 28.
ABOUT THE KOUBEK CENTER
The Koubek Center is an intellectual, cultural, and community hub in the heart of Little Havana. A historic landmark in South Florida, the revitalized mansion remains true to its pioneering heritage-celebrating its multicultural community with workshops, art exhibitions, theater performances, literary readings, concerts and more. In addition to the mansion, the iconic venue includes glorious gardens, the Koubek Theater, the ArtSpace, classrooms, and mini performance spaces.

The programs of Koubek Center are made possible with the generous support of: Miami Dade College; Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs and the Cultural Affairs Council; the Miami-Dade County Mayor and Board of County Commissionaires; the State of Florida, Department of State , Division of Cultural Affairs and the Florida Council on Arts and Culture; Southern Exposure: Performing Arts of Latin America, a program of Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation made possible through the generous support of the National Endowment for the Arts; and the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.
WHAT: Koubek Center presents PLAYTIME: Carnaval de Barranquilla!

WHEN: Saturday, Feb 24, from noon. – 4 p.m.
WHERE: Koubek Center
2705 SW Third St, Miami
For more information, visit koubekcenter.org

Little Havana Social Club: Danzón Cubano!
Saturday, 02/17/2018 – 02/17/2018 08:00 pm – 10:00 pm
The Koubek Center
2705 SW 3rd St,
Miami, Florida 33135
Website
Cost: $10.00 – $25.00

A Golden Age Throw-Back at the Koubek Mansion & Gardens

Miami Dade College’s (MDC) Koubek Center kicks off it’s season with a throwback, hosting a 1940s-style ballroom social dance, Danzon Cubano! featuring Federico Britos yu su conjunto with the Emmy-award winning Miami Dade College Orchestra in a tribute to legends Barbarito Diez, Beny More, and Cachao on Sat., February 17 in the Koubek Center gardens.

Danzón is the official musical genre of Cuba and a slow, elegant partner dance with concise footwork and elegant pauses allowing couples to stand listening to virtuoso instrumental passages. Also revered in Mexico and Puerto Rico, the danzon’s characteristic look has become iconic: the closeness of partners, the swaying hips, and the minimal use of floor space, limited to a single floor tile (ladrillo). As exalted in The Gaurdian, “The elegant three-step can be traced back to Matanzas on Cuba’s northern shore, in 1870. The father of danzón, Miguel Failde, mixed European and African rhythms to which couples moved gracefully and precisely, gently flirting with each other, storytelling with their bodies. The women, holding a fan or flowers, are dipped and twirled, but with only fleeting touches and eye contact.”

Right in time for Valentine’s Day weekend, Koubek Center channels these sweeter times with a romantic evening of slow dancing, beautiful attire, old-school manners and glorious music paying homage to the genre’s legends. To help attendees warm up and loosen up, Koubek Center will offer a complimentary pre-concert dance lesson and will be blending specialty cocktails for purchase.

The LHSC series continues the following month with the sounds of Pacific Colombia in a Chirimia street-style party featuring Rancho Aparte on Saturday, Mar. 24; and in the spring with Betsayda Machado, “the Voice of Venezuela, ” offers up the spirit-shaking vocals and percussion of Afro-Venezuelan soul on Saturday, Apr. 21.

About Federico Britos
Federico Britos is regarded as a titan of the violin, equally adept within the world of jazz as he is in the classical realm. Born in Montevideo, Uruguay, Britos began playing violin at the tender age five, and by eleven, had one of his musical pieces premiered by the renowned Romanian violinist George Boulanger. His talents grew as such that he came to serve as principal chair, soloist, and ultimately, concertmaster with some of the finest symphony orchestras in Uruguay, Venezuela, Peru, Cuba and South Florida.

Britos has performed with some of Latin America’s greatest musicians- Astor Piazzolla, Bola de Nieve, Cachao, Joao Gilberto, Dorival Caimi, and Vinicio de Moraes, as well as jazz legends Dizzy Gillespie, Dexter Gordon, Duke Ellington, Nat King Cole, Benny Goodman, Charlie Haden and Charlie Byrd. He’s composed and recorded countless works for orchestra, chamber ensemble, ballet and dance as well as music for films, TV and theater, and has won several Grammy awards for his work with Charlie Haden, Bebo Valdes and Israel “Cachao” Lopez.
The powerhouse violinist has played most major jazz Festivals, including Montreux Jazz Festival; San Francisco Jazz Festival; International Jazz Festival in Espoo, Finland; Bern and Basile Jazz Festival (Switzerland); and Django Reinhardt Festival at Birdland Jazz Club in New York, ans was a special guest in The Grappelli Legacy on December 1998 at Carnegie Hall on the first anniversary of Stephane Grappelli’s disappearance. He’s also performed at the Kennedy Center with Cachao, Nestor Torres, Jose Feliciano, Juan Luis Guerra, Gloria Estefan and Paquito D’Rivera, in a program produced by James Edward Olmos called “Americanos.”
About Alberto Bade and the Miami Dade College Symphony
Recognized for his dynamic style, drive and musical passion, Maestro Alberto Bade has established a reputation as an outstanding young conductor. His charismatic stage presence and powerful interpretations of a wide repertoire have garnered him national and international attention and his diverse approach has led him to work with artists from both the classical and jazz world, as Ed Calle, Trio de Negroni and Federico Britos.
Born in West New York, New Jersey, Bade developed his interest in music at a very young age. Although primarily attracted to the orchestral language, he was also influenced by jazz and other genres. He obtained a Bachelor’s Degree in Studio Music and Jazz at the University of Miami and a Master of Music Degree from the same institution before moving to New York to begin graduate studies at the Juilliard School. He’s studied with some of the most acclaimed conducting educators, including Vincent La Selva, Kenneth Keisler and the legendary Jorma Panula.
Bade currently works as Professor and Orchestral Director at Miami Dade College (MDC), where he serves as director of the MDC Symphony Orchestra. A dedicated advocate of music education, he founded the MDC Honors String Festival and is a regular guest clinician and conductor for local youth orchestras. He also frequently serves as a guest conductor in orchestras in Madrid, Berlin, Munich and St. Petersburg, Russia. He’s has won two Emmy Awards for his televised orchestral performances with the Miami Dade College Symphony Orchestra, and has received the Educational Outreach Award and the Miami Dade County Mayor’s Maestro Award for his performances and educational contributions to the city of Miami.

WHAT: Little Havana Social Club: Danzon Cubano!
with Federico Britos y su conjunto & the Miami Dade College Symphony Orchestra
WHEN: Saturday, Feb 17 at 8pm
WHERE: Koubek Center 2705 Sw 3rd St, Miami
TICKETS: $20 advance / $25 Day-Of Tickets at koubekcenter.org

About The Koubek Center
The Koubek Center is an intellectual, cultural, and community hub in the heart of Little Havana. A historic landmark in South Florida, the revitalized mansion remains true to its pioneering heritage-celebrating its multicultural community with workshops, art exhibitions, theater performances, literary readings, concerts and more. In addition to the mansion, the iconic space includes glorious gardens, the Koubek Theater, the ArtSpace gallery, classrooms, and mini performance spaces.

FIU Sings! New American Voices
Thursday, 03/08/2018 – 07:30 pm – 09:00 pm
The Wertheim Performing Arts Center Concert Hall
10910 SW 17th St.,
Miami, Florida 33199
Website
Cost: $5 (students) – $15 (general admission)

The diversity of the American experience can be heard through the tradition of rich tradition of choral singing. The FIU Choirs present an evening of music by a wide range of composers from Hawaiian composer Queen Lili’uokelani to Ysaye Barnwell, as they express their voices through music. The concert will close with Leonard Bernstein’s iconic Chichester Psalms. Directed by Kathryn K. Longo.

Piano Alumni Concert
Saturday, 03/03/2018 – 07:30 pm – 09:00 pm
The Wertheim Performing Arts Center Concert Hall
10910 SW 17th St.,
Miami, Florida 33199
Website
Cost: Free

FIU piano alumni return to the Herbert and Nicole Wertheim Performing Arts Center. Directed by Jose Lopez.

Free and open to the public.

Something Old, Something New
Thursday, 03/01/2018 – 07:30 pm – 09:00 pm
The Wertheim Performing Arts Center Concert Hall
10910 SW 17th St.,
Miami, Florida 33199
Website
Cost: $5 (students) – $15 (general admission)

The FIU Symphonic Band and Brass Choir are joined by Miami Northwestern High School for time-honored treasures in the Wind Band literature from the music of Jack Stamp, Percy A. Grainger, Dana Wilson, and Brian Balmages. This programming is directed by Barry Bernhardt, the FIU Director of Bands.

Program:

Gavorkna Fanfare by Jack Stamp

Merry King by Percy A. Grainger

Speak to Me by Dana Wilson

Metal by Brian Balmages

Women in Academia: Sisters in the Sacred Grove
Thursday, 03/01/2018 – 03/01/2018 05:00 pm – 07:00 pm
The Wertheim Performing Arts Center Recital Hall
10910 SW 17th St., Room 150 (FIU's Modesto A. Maidique Campus),
Miami, Florida 33199
Website
Cost: Free

This conversation draws upon themes covered by the 1988 publication, Women of Academe: Outsiders in the Sacred Grove, and will highlight challenges faced by women in Higher Education including the gender pay gap, work-life balance, and tenure.

Women of Academe caught the attention of college professors everywhere for saying “out loud” what women professors have known for years: women in college and university positions are treated as the “lesser class” than their male counterparts. They are, on average, paid less than their male counterparts, fill fewer of the tenured-or tenure-track positions than men, and do more service work in the academy than their male counterparts.

Frankie Midnight Live In Concert !
Saturday, 03/03/2018 – 07:00 pm – 10:00 pm
H2 Studios of The Arts
5111 NW 159 Ter. / Bay H,
Miami Lakes, Florida 33014
Eventbrite
Cost: $8.50 online / $10.00 at door

Frankie Midnight LLC presents, Frankie Midnight Live In Concert!, a live music and mini theater concert, exhibiting creative / performing artist, Frankie Midnight and his debut self produced album called, “Love Stories”. Frankie Midnight Live In Concert! will take place at H2 Studios of the Arts at 7pm on Saturday, March 3rd of this year 2018. This concert highlights the emerging artist, Frankie Midnight as he performs his Indie / theater pop debut album, “Love Stories”, through live music with a backing band as well as solo multi layering instrument looping. He will also showcase songs from the album through mini theater performance, interacting with the audience while “in scene” pertaining to the theme of each song performance. “Love Stories” was written, composed, recorded, and performed by Frankie at his home studio in Miami Gardens, FL. With the album now complete and available on ITunes, Google Play Store, Spotify, YouTube and other digital outlets, Frankie is ready to present the songs in a live concert which his company is funding and producing. It is his goal to elevate the contemporary independent artist by not only creating and producing all of his own works but taking control of his works and productions and building a direct fan to artist relationship for the purpose of a greater experience through entrepreneurship with artistic independence.
Frankie Midnight Live In Concert! will be held in the fully equipped 200 seat flexible theater / exhibit and dancehall space at H2 Studio of the Arts that is also home to a complete professional sound recording studio. In this venue that is very much like a blank canvas allowing the guest to creatively imagine their events, Frankie Midnight Live In Concert! will take a warm and homey creative approach with an indoor decor reminiscent to a comfortable lounge setting to make the audience feel like they are hanging out in a large living room accompanied by live music and performing arts. There will also be an opening music and theater arts act prior to Frankie Midnight’s main performance