Abráce sweeps you away on an engaging and personable jaunt with harmonies
& rhythms from around the globe.
Samia Panni and Joyce Yarrow learned firsthand how music builds understanding between people of different world views. Joining forces with Rosemary Bell, they formed Abráce - a vocals/percussion group that embraces music from all around the world. When percussionist Denny Stern and vocalist Rebeqa Rivers joined Abráce in 2006 the group's sound evolved into it's current full and lively presence.
Abráce is honored to have performed at The Seattle Art Museum, The Bellevue Art Museum, SoulFood Books, Jai Thai Lounge , Caffe Bella, and in the Beyond Borders Music and Arts Festival, as well as in both the Othello Park Concert Series, and La Familia Gallery's winter artist series.
Abráce sings in 12 languages, including English, Spanish, French, Italian, Swahili, Xhosa, Bulgarian, Japanese, Brazilian Portuguese, Lucumí (archaic Yoruba), Ladino, and nonsense syllables. Ranging from 15th Century to contemporary material, Abráce's repertoire showcases traditional folk material, original compositions and improvisations.
As the rhythms change and the languages shift, the theme stays the same: building inter-cultural understanding through music.
