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Alumni perform at Black History Month celebration

Mon 15 October 2018

Trinity Laban’s Black History Month event programme draws to a close on Wednesday 24 October with a free celebration of music and dance from an international line-up of amazing talent:

  • Brazilian choreographer and performer Jean Abreu
  • Performance poet and vocalist Cherise Adams-Burnett
  • Cuban guitarist Ahmed Dickinson Cardenas
  • MOBO-nominated saxophonist Camilla George (pictured) and band
  • Rwandan-born Belgian jazz singer Ineza and band   

The event is free, with no pre-booking required.

The Laban Theatre bar is open from 5.30pm with performances starting at 6.30pm

The performance lasts for approximately 2 hours with a 20 minute interval.

The finale brings to an end a busy month of events for students and public, including black history walking tours in Greenwich and Deptford, and a ‘Desert Island Disks’ with jazz vocalist and new member of the Trinity Laban Jazz Department Cleveland Watkiss MB.

On Tuesday 23 October, all are welcome to attend a lunchtime solo flute recital by former Trinity Laban teacher and internationally renowned performer and educator Rowland Sutherland. The programme will include a fascinating repertoire of music by composers of African descent. Entry is free with no booking required. Join us from 1pm at the Queen’s House, Greenwich.

About the Black History Month finale artists – 

Jean Abreu graduated from Trinity Laban in 1999 with a Diploma in Dance Theatre. He has choreographed his own work, receiving the Jerwood Choreography Award in 2003 and founding Jean Abreu Dance in 2009. His work has toured throughout the UK, Europe and Brazil and includes performances for Dance Umbrella, the Royal Opera House and the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. He toured his new work Solo for Two across six venues in May this year, with two dancers sharing the stage with a little robot called Macheba.

Cherise Adams-Burnett studied at Trinity Laban from 2013-17 and was a member of the Jazz Choir. Since graduating, Cherise has been invited to perform at many of the UK’s most prestigious venues and festivals ranging from The BBC Proms at The Royal Albert Hall to Love Supreme Jazz Festival. Her performance style fuses her passion for soul and neo-soul with a great appreciation and understanding of the great jazz vocalists.

Ahmed Dickinson Cardenas has been described as a “a true pioneer” by Classic FM Magazine. The award winning London-based Cuban guitarist is one of the finest performers of the Cuban classical guitar school. He is founder of Cubafilin Records – a record label dedicated to the exclusive promotion of Cuban musicians and their original works. Since his arrival in the UK in 2005, Ahmed has received numerous awards, including the Ashley Stewart Arts Sponsorship 2011, Concordia Foundation 2008-2009 and Ivor Mairants International Guitar Competition 2006.

Camilla George is a London based saxophone player, improviser, composer and teacher. In 2012 she graduated with a Masters in Jazz from Trinity Laban where she also won the Archer Scholarship for outstanding performance. In 2009 she joined award winning band Jazz Jamaica, and in 2014 formed the Camilla George Quartet. Camilla’s debut album, ‘ISANG’, with special guest Zara McFarlane on vocals, was released on Ubuntu Music in late 2016, to exceptional critical acclaim.

Ineza graduated from Trinity Laban where she studied Jazz Vocals and is now a rising talent on the London jazz scene due to her unique sound, powerful voice, excellent swing feel, smooth scat singing and her emotional connection with lyrics. As a composer, her music is an intriguing mix between jazz, R&B and soul music with a touch of hip-hop.