Thursday July 26, 2012

GRAFTON -- From July 27-29, the Cooperman Drum Company of Bellows Falls and the North American Frame Drum Association will host the fifth annual NAFDA North Frame Drum Festival.

Set at the Grafton Inn and throughout the village, this three-day event will feature a variety of workshops and performances with local, national and international artists.

Frame drums are found in many cultures around the world. These instruments come in a variety of sizes and they are typically played with the fingers and hands. These drums have played an important role in the traditional music of India, Iran, Morocco, Egypt, Israel, Central Asia, Turkey, Italy, Brazil, Ireland and Spain.

This years’ event will feature some of the top traditional and contemporary artists in the international frame drum community. The roster of workshop artists includes Naghmeh Farahmad (Iran), Yshai Afterman (Israel), Patrick Graham (Canada), Shane Shanahan (U.S.), N. Scott Robinson (U.S.) and Todd Roach (U.S).

Workshops begin on Friday evening and run through Sunday afternoon. For a complete listing of the workshops, visit www.nafda1.com/nafdanorth.php.

Multi-instrumentalist Mac Ritchey, vocalist K.S. Resmi and special guest percussionist John Marshall will join the workshop artists for two evening performances on Friday and Saturday at The White Church (55 Main St). In addition, the world

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percussion ensemble Inanna, Sisters In Rhythm (Tori Morrill, Shirsten Lundblad, Annegret Baier and Lizzy Derecktor) will perform both nights. The concerts are free and open to the public and both presentations will begin at 8 p.m.

NAFDA North 5 is sponsored by Cooperman Drums, the Windham Foundation, Rockingham Arts & Museum Project and The Loft. For a complete listing of the event schedule, artist bios and information about NAFDA, visit www.nafda1.com. For more information, e-mail loftarts@yahoo.com or call 802-380-6360.