The Moraine Valley Community College Percussion Ensemble will be dancing down the street pounding and shaking out rhythms in Brazilian samba style in Chicago’s fourth annual Arts in the Dark parade on Saturday, Oct. 20, 6 to 8 p.m., on State Street between Lake and Van Buren.
The ensemble is joining forces for the first time with percussionists from College of DuPage, Lane Tech High School in Chicago and dancers from the Dill Costa Dance Studio at the Old Town School of Folk Music to form a bateria, or samba drum corps. Ben Wahlund, adjunct instructor of Percussion and director of the College of DuPage Percussion Ensemble, was inspired last November to bring together percussionists and groove to the samba beats together. He, along with Doug Bratt, Moraine Valley professor of music and director of the Percussion Ensemble, and Reed Flygt, full-time music teacher at Lane Tech, decided the Arts in the Dark parade would work perfectly.
Backed by support from the Illinois Chapter of the Percussive Arts Society, for which Bratt serves as president, the entire group should number in upwards of 80 members.
“The Moraine Valley Percussion Ensemble has participated in a number of notable performances over the years, including at Millennium Park and at the Illinois Music Education Convention. However, this is the first time we’ve ever been involved in a parade and the first time we’ve joined directly with other percussion programs to perform,” Bratt said. “Getting to make music with so many other percussionists is an absolute thrill, and it’s about building connections across our diverse and incredibly inspiring percussion community here in the greater Chicago area. I can’t wait for the performance and hope that it might become an annual tradition!”
This night parade celebrates artists and Halloween, drawing together groups from around the Chicagoland area such as the Art Institute of Chicago, Lookingglass Theatre Company and After School Matters to participate.
