Set #1: Chaka Benson - Set #2: Youba Cissokho : Sat May 18th, 2024

Gates @ 6:00PM, Music @ 7PM & 8PM - Real Food & Beverages Served

This is Concert 1 of a 4 Part Candlelight Concert Series in the Garden

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Chaka Benson grew up on a diverse diet of Philly music ranging from Schooly D to Sun Ra.  The Philly streets thrum and echo with raw soul and DIY spirit.  This simple aesthetic informs his music and artistic approach.  He uses modular and video synthesis to execute his take on this vision. His live performances are well known on the experimental electronic music scene; each having a new patch and an original improvisation.

The kora, or a type of harp made from a calabash gourd, was commissioned by West African kings to recount songs of folklore and love.

Youba fluently plays this traditional Mandinka and Wolof music as well as a modern style made up of jazz, reggae, and Afro beats. His lilting sound and expansive range comes from a lifelong exposure to a rich musical diversity. His father is Issa Cissokho, the saxophone player for the legendary world music group Orchestra Baobab, which blended Latin and Caribbean music with West African styles.

Youba has performed solo all over Africa, Europe, and the United States in cities such as Paris, New York, and Dakar. He also joined Artist-In-Residence and LINES Ballet dancer Adji Cissoko on Center Stage at the Vail Dance Festival and frequently accompanies the Temple University ballet classes and orchestras. Youba has played at venues such as The Philadelphia Art Museum and World Cafe Live as well as on the main stages at Harmonic Earth Festival, Cisko Centre, and Odunde Festival, the largest African American street festival in the U.S. with over 500,000 attendees.