September 12-23, 2012

New York City

*Photo credits: (left to right) Elyse Fradkin; Fernando Azevedo; Deokhyung Cho; Welcome M'somi*

* Opening Concert: Wednesday, September 12 at the magnificent Church of the Ascension

The Locating the Sacred Festival is a twelve-day, twenty five-event arts festival coordinated by the Asian American Arts Alliance. The Festival brings together hundreds of artists, arts workers and cultural activists with churches, museums, cultural centers, botanical gardens and theaters across all five boroughs of New York City to create events exploring the meaning of the word ”sacred” and its relevance in our communities.

The vision of this festival is to re-connect with the sacred and bring our communities closer together. Opening Concert on Wednesday, September 12th at the magnificent Church of the Ascension includes a program of transcendental music. This features the experimental musician Bora Yoon in collaboration with the exhilarating Texas-based group Riyaaz Qawwali, who perform the passionate devotional music of South Asia known as Qawwali. On September 15th in the village setting of an autumnal garden, Master Artists from the NYFA Folk Artist Development Program presents the sacred traditions that have been passed on to them through lineage and legacy. Imbued with reverence for the artists' teachers, performances, The Gift of Wisdom, will include a devotional Odissi dance (classical dance form of India) by Mala Desai, a Hindustani classical composition on sitar by Ikhlaq Hussain, powerful songs of praise for elders on the kora (African harp-lute) by Alhaji Papa Susso, and a seasonal improvisation on the kayagum (Korean zither) by Yoon Sook Park. These artists, all masters of their own tradition, have collaborated and rehearsed together for the past few months, learning about each other's traditions. Experience and participate in this spirit of sharing at the enchanting Queens Botanical Garden. All are welcome, including families. For more information about the festival, please contact Asian American Arts Alliance at 212-941-9208 or visit http://locatingthesacred.org.