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Meet the artists
La Cris
Gandía, Spain
"I make music to remember.
I play my body to be present.
I sing to give thanks for what I have been given.
I use technology to honour the time we live in."
BRF2024 workshops:
· Boca Beats & Loop Station
· Groove Grieve
· El Calor del Tabor
If you ask La Cris how she would categorise herself as an artist, the multi-instrumentalist likes to describe herself as "a kind of minstrel 2.0 from Spain" or as a "musical nomad" whose art was shaped on the streets of the world.
La Cris was born on the Canary Islands and studied at the Escola Superior de Música de Catalunya in Barcelona and the Popakademie in Mannheim, among others. She now discovers music in (almost) everything and everywhere - and places and venues where she can perform it: She is just as active at street art festivals and beat box battles as she is at major Spanish TV shows or workshops with schoolchildren.
La Chris draws on the traditions of the Iberian Peninsula and South America and combines these roots with electronic music to create a new, unusual mixture.
The artist believes it is important to pass on her enthusiasm for music - as part of education and for better understanding and cooperation between people. In workshops at primary schools, for example, she teaches children about the creative use of music and rhythms, themes and technology in a playful way, according to the motto: "Everyone can make music and has music in them!"
"I make music to remember.
I play my body to be present.
I sing to give thanks for what I have been given.
I use technology to honour the time we live in."
BRF2024 workshops:
· Boca Beats & Loop Station
· Groove Grieve
· El Calor del Tabor
If you ask La Cris how she would categorise herself as an artist, the multi-instrumentalist likes to describe herself as "a kind of minstrel 2.0 from Spain" or as a "musical nomad" whose art was shaped on the streets of the world.
La Cris was born on the Canary Islands and studied at the Escola Superior de Música de Catalunya in Barcelona and the Popakademie in Mannheim, among others. She now discovers music in (almost) everything and everywhere - and places and venues where she can perform it: She is just as active at street art festivals and beat box battles as she is at major Spanish TV shows or workshops with schoolchildren.
La Chris draws on the traditions of the Iberian Peninsula and South America and combines these roots with electronic music to create a new, unusual mixture.
The artist believes it is important to pass on her enthusiasm for music - as part of education and for better understanding and cooperation between people. In workshops at primary schools, for example, she teaches children about the creative use of music and rhythms, themes and technology in a playful way, according to the motto: "Everyone can make music and has music in them!"
Gaël Aubrit
Lyon, France
Gaël fell in love with vocal improvisation and circlesongs through meeting Bobby Mcferrin in 2010.
BRF2024-Workshops:
· Circlesongs
· 5 and 7 in Vocal Improv
· Complementary patterns
He dedicates most of his life to spreading and refining this particular art form. Initially passionate about songwriting and musical composition, he graduated from the ENM Villeurbanne with a State certificate in musical studies (DEM) in singing. He then became a certified teacher of Allan Wright’s « Le Chanteur Moderne », a science-based vocal technique approach that he taught in private lessons and in various music schools in his hometown Lyon, France, specializing in voice therapy for singers.
In 2012 he co-founded « chant pour tous »: vocal improvisation events that are always free and open to everyone, with the intention of spreading vocal improvisation to a larger audience. 10 years later, more than 40 chant pour tous circles are happening every month all over France, Belgium, Switzerland, Réunion and Italy.
Gaël’s philosophy tends to bring together a simple, accessible and popular way to practice music with the desire to develop and refine the artistic dimension of circlesongs and co-improvisation. He has thus collected and modelled learning tools for people who wanted to broaden their musical skills. He has directed a three-year training course for co-improvisation; he trained singers of all levels as well as teachers and improv singing facilitators, and other music professionals. From 2019, he joined the teachers’ team in Bobby McFerrin’s Circlesongs workshop in the USA. He has been building connections with a lot of fellow singers and music and cultural organisations in France and abroad in order to develop as much as possible the community of improvised singing alongside the wonderful educational, artistic and popular experience it offers.
Gaël fell in love with vocal improvisation and circlesongs through meeting Bobby Mcferrin in 2010.
BRF2024-Workshops:
· Circlesongs
· 5 and 7 in Vocal Improv
· Complementary patterns
He dedicates most of his life to spreading and refining this particular art form. Initially passionate about songwriting and musical composition, he graduated from the ENM Villeurbanne with a State certificate in musical studies (DEM) in singing. He then became a certified teacher of Allan Wright’s « Le Chanteur Moderne », a science-based vocal technique approach that he taught in private lessons and in various music schools in his hometown Lyon, France, specializing in voice therapy for singers.
In 2012 he co-founded « chant pour tous »: vocal improvisation events that are always free and open to everyone, with the intention of spreading vocal improvisation to a larger audience. 10 years later, more than 40 chant pour tous circles are happening every month all over France, Belgium, Switzerland, Réunion and Italy.
Gaël’s philosophy tends to bring together a simple, accessible and popular way to practice music with the desire to develop and refine the artistic dimension of circlesongs and co-improvisation. He has thus collected and modelled learning tools for people who wanted to broaden their musical skills. He has directed a three-year training course for co-improvisation; he trained singers of all levels as well as teachers and improv singing facilitators, and other music professionals. From 2019, he joined the teachers’ team in Bobby McFerrin’s Circlesongs workshop in the USA. He has been building connections with a lot of fellow singers and music and cultural organisations in France and abroad in order to develop as much as possible the community of improvised singing alongside the wonderful educational, artistic and popular experience it offers.
Lior Shoov
France / Israel
A sensitive being, performer, songwriter and improvisation artist.
BRF2024-Workshops:
· Embodying our Intuitive Musicality
· Improvising in Odd Meters
· From Automatic Writing to Intimate Expression
Lior creates intimate, organic pieces from the present moment, exploring musical expression and rhythmic techniques in a highly intuitive way, using uncertainty, playfulness and vulnerability as ingredients for creativity and humanity. Over the last 4 years she has been exploring: who is she? Behind the masks of identity. Free to be her while accepting the tension and inviting attention to what is alive now.
An exploration of the connection between heart and action, expressing and being expressed, inspired by the simple presence of letting herself be seen. She performs/ plays a new creation based on composed pieces and instant spontaneity to evoke and invoke the freedom of relationship and community - called "collective solo".
A sensitive being, performer, songwriter and improvisation artist.
BRF2024-Workshops:
· Embodying our Intuitive Musicality
· Improvising in Odd Meters
· From Automatic Writing to Intimate Expression
Lior creates intimate, organic pieces from the present moment, exploring musical expression and rhythmic techniques in a highly intuitive way, using uncertainty, playfulness and vulnerability as ingredients for creativity and humanity. Over the last 4 years she has been exploring: who is she? Behind the masks of identity. Free to be her while accepting the tension and inviting attention to what is alive now.
An exploration of the connection between heart and action, expressing and being expressed, inspired by the simple presence of letting herself be seen. She performs/ plays a new creation based on composed pieces and instant spontaneity to evoke and invoke the freedom of relationship and community - called "collective solo".
Jep Meléndez
Tenerife, Spain
Body Percussionist, Tap and Sand Dancer and Choreographer.
BRF2024-Workshops:
· Body Percussion and Folklore of the Canary Islands
· Hand Tricks & Weird Sounds
· Repertoire
”Mr. Meléndez, in an intricate solo, juggles a polyrhythmic orchestra within his limbs". Siobhan Burke, The New York Times.
Jep has been trained as a tap dancer in different schools in Barcelona and New York. He has also received complementary training in classical dance, jazz and introduction to Afro-Cuban percussion.
At the same time, motivated by dance and percussion, Jep created his own style of Body Percussion, which he has developed self-taught since 1992. That makes him one of the pioneers both in Spain and internationally. A particular focus of his work is on movement that creates sound.
Over the years, he has created his own recognizable style in this discipline, which has made him one of the most relevant figures in percussive dance.
Another technique that is part of his repertoire is the sand dance. Jep learned it in its most classical form from Guillem Alonso in 1999, but gradually transformed it into a contemporary form and without shoes. Today, this dance is another distinctive feature in the profile of this atypical artist.
Body Percussionist, Tap and Sand Dancer and Choreographer.
BRF2024-Workshops:
· Body Percussion and Folklore of the Canary Islands
· Hand Tricks & Weird Sounds
· Repertoire
”Mr. Meléndez, in an intricate solo, juggles a polyrhythmic orchestra within his limbs". Siobhan Burke, The New York Times.
Jep has been trained as a tap dancer in different schools in Barcelona and New York. He has also received complementary training in classical dance, jazz and introduction to Afro-Cuban percussion.
At the same time, motivated by dance and percussion, Jep created his own style of Body Percussion, which he has developed self-taught since 1992. That makes him one of the pioneers both in Spain and internationally. A particular focus of his work is on movement that creates sound.
Over the years, he has created his own recognizable style in this discipline, which has made him one of the most relevant figures in percussive dance.
Another technique that is part of his repertoire is the sand dance. Jep learned it in its most classical form from Guillem Alonso in 1999, but gradually transformed it into a contemporary form and without shoes. Today, this dance is another distinctive feature in the profile of this atypical artist.
Sarah Lasaki
Hamburg, Germany
The Hamburg dancer toured the world for seven years with the percussion show STOMP.
BRF2024-Workshops:
· STOMP Technique
· Creating for Stage
In her work, Sarah combines rhythm, dance and infectious energy. In recent years, she has increasingly explored the culture of her Nigerian roots.
Sarah Lasaki was born into a family of artists and from the age of five she studied classical dance at the Ballettzentrum Hamburg John Neumeier for nine years.
From the age of 14 she studied Modern Dance, Jazz and Afro Dance as well as Hip-Hop and Flamenco. Her training took her from Hamburg and Berlin via Paris, London, New York and Los Angeles to Nigeria. Her dance experience brought her into the world of musicals. She performed with Elton John's "AIDA" in Essen (Collosseum Theater) and at the European premiere "Dirty Dancing" in Hamburg. With her dance lessons she inspired children and teenagers (On Stage Hamburg and Billie's Tanzstudio). After several dance jobs and choreographies for music videos (Dante Thomas, Seeed, Nena, Shaggy, Audrey Hannah, etc.), an engagement at the Schauspielhaus Hamburg ("Suburbio Das Niemandsland" by Johan Kresnik) and the flamenco dance theatre project "Andanza" by Teresa Martin, she dedicated herself to her passion: playing drums.
Sarah was the only German to succeed in an audition for STOMP in 2007. She accompanied the successful show for seven years on its European and world tour. Here Sarah could unite all her versatile interests and talents: rhythm, dance, energy and passion.
The Hamburg dancer toured the world for seven years with the percussion show STOMP.
BRF2024-Workshops:
· STOMP Technique
· Creating for Stage
In her work, Sarah combines rhythm, dance and infectious energy. In recent years, she has increasingly explored the culture of her Nigerian roots.
Sarah Lasaki was born into a family of artists and from the age of five she studied classical dance at the Ballettzentrum Hamburg John Neumeier for nine years.
From the age of 14 she studied Modern Dance, Jazz and Afro Dance as well as Hip-Hop and Flamenco. Her training took her from Hamburg and Berlin via Paris, London, New York and Los Angeles to Nigeria. Her dance experience brought her into the world of musicals. She performed with Elton John's "AIDA" in Essen (Collosseum Theater) and at the European premiere "Dirty Dancing" in Hamburg. With her dance lessons she inspired children and teenagers (On Stage Hamburg and Billie's Tanzstudio). After several dance jobs and choreographies for music videos (Dante Thomas, Seeed, Nena, Shaggy, Audrey Hannah, etc.), an engagement at the Schauspielhaus Hamburg ("Suburbio Das Niemandsland" by Johan Kresnik) and the flamenco dance theatre project "Andanza" by Teresa Martin, she dedicated herself to her passion: playing drums.
Sarah was the only German to succeed in an audition for STOMP in 2007. She accompanied the successful show for seven years on its European and world tour. Here Sarah could unite all her versatile interests and talents: rhythm, dance, energy and passion.
Charles Raszl
Perugia, Italy
Rhythm, capoeira elements and dance characterize Charles' own style.
BRF2024-Workshops:
· From Body Percussion to Circlesinging
· Brazilian Rhythms and Dances
· Introduction to Body Percussion/ Schnupperworkshop
He uses the movement sequences of typical dances of his home country Brazil (Capoeira, Samba, Frevo) to elicit sounds and rhythms from the body. Only with the help of voice, hands and feet imaginative grooves and melodies are created. A combination of dance and body percussion, which Charles developed himself. No wonder that he easily succeeds in arousing enthusiasm for his kind of Brazilian joie de vivre.
Charles is a long-time member of the Barbatuques, one of the most influential body percussion groups in the world. With them, Charles tours extensively internationally and has collaborated with artists such as Bobby McFerrin and Cirque du Soleil. He studied classical guitar and choral conducting in São Paulo. Since 1997, he has developed cultural research projects and musical performances with a variety of dance and theater groups. Charles scenically directed music shows for the Brazilian Cultural Institute SESC and the prestigious Instituto Brincante in São Paulo. He was musical director for several state street theaters. As a composer and arranger, he created original soundtracks for dance and theater performances. In addition, Charles is continuously active both independently and with the "Nùcleo Barbatuques" as a workshop lecturer in programs for children and youth and in adult education. In this, he also volunteered for disadvantaged children in São Paulo.
Since 2019 Charles lives and works in Italy.
Rhythm, capoeira elements and dance characterize Charles' own style.
BRF2024-Workshops:
· From Body Percussion to Circlesinging
· Brazilian Rhythms and Dances
· Introduction to Body Percussion/ Schnupperworkshop
He uses the movement sequences of typical dances of his home country Brazil (Capoeira, Samba, Frevo) to elicit sounds and rhythms from the body. Only with the help of voice, hands and feet imaginative grooves and melodies are created. A combination of dance and body percussion, which Charles developed himself. No wonder that he easily succeeds in arousing enthusiasm for his kind of Brazilian joie de vivre.
Charles is a long-time member of the Barbatuques, one of the most influential body percussion groups in the world. With them, Charles tours extensively internationally and has collaborated with artists such as Bobby McFerrin and Cirque du Soleil. He studied classical guitar and choral conducting in São Paulo. Since 1997, he has developed cultural research projects and musical performances with a variety of dance and theater groups. Charles scenically directed music shows for the Brazilian Cultural Institute SESC and the prestigious Instituto Brincante in São Paulo. He was musical director for several state street theaters. As a composer and arranger, he created original soundtracks for dance and theater performances. In addition, Charles is continuously active both independently and with the "Nùcleo Barbatuques" as a workshop lecturer in programs for children and youth and in adult education. In this, he also volunteered for disadvantaged children in São Paulo.
Since 2019 Charles lives and works in Italy.
Esther Diethelm
Hamburg, Germany
The Swiss is a specialist in musical group processes with the TaKeTiNa method.
BRF2024-Workshops:
· TaKeTiNa | Exploring odd metres
· TaKeTiNa | Move & Groove in Polyrhythms
Since 1991 Esther has been offering workshops for a wide audience, leading rhythm classes at music colleges and working with orchestras and choirs.
Esther Diethelm's work is based on training in rhythm pedagogy and therapy with Reinhard Flatischler (Taketina rhythm process and percussion) and Dr. Wolf Büntig (potential-oriented psychotherapy) as well as further training in dance (among others. Heidrun Hoffmann), voice and improvisation (with Lisa Sokolov and Daniel Prieto), circle singing and choral conducting (with Thomas Reck and Fabio Jegher), frame drumming (Glen Velez) and body percussion (Michael Siefke, Keith Terry).
She was musically influenced by her intensive study of traditional Korean percussion (Samul Nori) and Balinese gamelan music, as well as by extensive musical study trips to Tanzania, northern Ghana and Southeast Asia.
Since 1991 Esther has been offering open Taketina workshops for a wide audience, conducting rhythm classes at various music academies in Germany and Switzerland, and working with orchestras (e.g. Dt. Kammerphilharmonie) and choirs. She also accompanies psychotherapeutic training groups with Taketina rhythm therapy.
The Swiss is a specialist in musical group processes with the TaKeTiNa method.
BRF2024-Workshops:
· TaKeTiNa | Exploring odd metres
· TaKeTiNa | Move & Groove in Polyrhythms
Since 1991 Esther has been offering workshops for a wide audience, leading rhythm classes at music colleges and working with orchestras and choirs.
Esther Diethelm's work is based on training in rhythm pedagogy and therapy with Reinhard Flatischler (Taketina rhythm process and percussion) and Dr. Wolf Büntig (potential-oriented psychotherapy) as well as further training in dance (among others. Heidrun Hoffmann), voice and improvisation (with Lisa Sokolov and Daniel Prieto), circle singing and choral conducting (with Thomas Reck and Fabio Jegher), frame drumming (Glen Velez) and body percussion (Michael Siefke, Keith Terry).
She was musically influenced by her intensive study of traditional Korean percussion (Samul Nori) and Balinese gamelan music, as well as by extensive musical study trips to Tanzania, northern Ghana and Southeast Asia.
Since 1991 Esther has been offering open Taketina workshops for a wide audience, conducting rhythm classes at various music academies in Germany and Switzerland, and working with orchestras (e.g. Dt. Kammerphilharmonie) and choirs. She also accompanies psychotherapeutic training groups with Taketina rhythm therapy.
Ben Schütz
Hamburg, Germany
Ben founded the Body Rhythm Festival in 2015 and has been enthusiastically developing it ever since.
BRF2024-Workshops:
· Groove and Play our Festival Songs
· Introduction to Body Percussion/ Schnupperworkshop
In addition to regular courses in Hamburg, Ben gives workshops in Germany and abroad and appears on stage at events and musical theatre pieces.
He is a lecturer for body percussion at renowned institutions, including state music academies, Goethe Institutes, Youth plays Jazz and Musicians without Borders. Commissions have already taken him to Italy, France, Austria, Greece, Argentina and China.
Ben received his musical education at the Music College in Hannover, Germany, where he studied drums and percussion in jazz, rock, pop and music education.
As a studio musician, he has been involved in CD and film music recordings. Live he played percussion in musical performances, including "Aida" at the Staatstheater Darmstadt.
Stylistically versatile, he has drummed in big bands, jazz combos, Latin bands, rock and pop groups, and a classical orchestra.
For years he has been collecting and training body sounds and grooves from all over the world. Again and again he travels through South America, where he gets new inspiration for his holistic, gentle and at the same time vitalizing teaching style, especially by working with artists in São Paulo, Brazil.
Ben founded the Body Rhythm Festival in 2015 and has been enthusiastically developing it ever since.
BRF2024-Workshops:
· Groove and Play our Festival Songs
· Introduction to Body Percussion/ Schnupperworkshop
In addition to regular courses in Hamburg, Ben gives workshops in Germany and abroad and appears on stage at events and musical theatre pieces.
He is a lecturer for body percussion at renowned institutions, including state music academies, Goethe Institutes, Youth plays Jazz and Musicians without Borders. Commissions have already taken him to Italy, France, Austria, Greece, Argentina and China.
Ben received his musical education at the Music College in Hannover, Germany, where he studied drums and percussion in jazz, rock, pop and music education.
As a studio musician, he has been involved in CD and film music recordings. Live he played percussion in musical performances, including "Aida" at the Staatstheater Darmstadt.
Stylistically versatile, he has drummed in big bands, jazz combos, Latin bands, rock and pop groups, and a classical orchestra.
For years he has been collecting and training body sounds and grooves from all over the world. Again and again he travels through South America, where he gets new inspiration for his holistic, gentle and at the same time vitalizing teaching style, especially by working with artists in São Paulo, Brazil.
Anna Llombart
Barcelona, Spain
The dancer, teacher and choreographer for body percussion and tap dance from Barcelona can already look back on a long artistic career.
BRF2024 workshops:
· Games and Resources for Rhythm Teaching
· Choreography Residency
· Introduction to Body Percussion/ Schnupperworkshop
As Anna is at the same time artistic director, choreographer and dancer of her groups, she can shape the entire creative process.
Current and recent highlights:
Rhythm dance group WOODBEATS, with whom she premiered her first show La Gran Fuga in Vilafranca el Penedès in 2021 and performed throughout Catalonia. The show was performed at the Teatre Apolo in Barcelona in February 2022. Member of the conducting faculty at Coral Sant Medir. Since 2021, member of the Ritme i Compromís project, led by Laia Molins, which works for social change through rhythm, movement and tap dance (courses in prisons, nursing homes, hospitals, youth homes, etc.).
Member of the teaching staff of the Escola de música UT, which, together with Santi Serratosa, offers body percussion workshops for schools and high schools throughout Catalonia.
Choreographer and dancer at the Catalan television channel TV3 for the Tv3 Christmas campaign "Viu el Millor Nadal" (2022 and 2023) and choreographer for the Fundació la Caixa #Yo Canto Adeste Fideles 2023 Christmas campaign.
Lecturer at the 1st New Balkan Rhythm Festival in Serbia in September 2022 and August 2023.
Tap dance coach for the children performing in Billy Eliot The Musical (Teatre Victòria in Barcelona) from 2019 to 2022. Co-director of the body percussion event RHYTMO 2018 together with Jep Meléndez and co-organized by Harmony Games in Barcelona.
She works as a teacher and choreographer for other dance companies and a variety of art schools: contemporary dance, music, circus arts, artistic skating teams, musical theater and also for corporate events.
The dancer, teacher and choreographer for body percussion and tap dance from Barcelona can already look back on a long artistic career.
BRF2024 workshops:
· Games and Resources for Rhythm Teaching
· Choreography Residency
· Introduction to Body Percussion/ Schnupperworkshop
As Anna is at the same time artistic director, choreographer and dancer of her groups, she can shape the entire creative process.
Current and recent highlights:
Rhythm dance group WOODBEATS, with whom she premiered her first show La Gran Fuga in Vilafranca el Penedès in 2021 and performed throughout Catalonia. The show was performed at the Teatre Apolo in Barcelona in February 2022. Member of the conducting faculty at Coral Sant Medir. Since 2021, member of the Ritme i Compromís project, led by Laia Molins, which works for social change through rhythm, movement and tap dance (courses in prisons, nursing homes, hospitals, youth homes, etc.).
Member of the teaching staff of the Escola de música UT, which, together with Santi Serratosa, offers body percussion workshops for schools and high schools throughout Catalonia.
Choreographer and dancer at the Catalan television channel TV3 for the Tv3 Christmas campaign "Viu el Millor Nadal" (2022 and 2023) and choreographer for the Fundació la Caixa #Yo Canto Adeste Fideles 2023 Christmas campaign.
Lecturer at the 1st New Balkan Rhythm Festival in Serbia in September 2022 and August 2023.
Tap dance coach for the children performing in Billy Eliot The Musical (Teatre Victòria in Barcelona) from 2019 to 2022. Co-director of the body percussion event RHYTMO 2018 together with Jep Meléndez and co-organized by Harmony Games in Barcelona.
She works as a teacher and choreographer for other dance companies and a variety of art schools: contemporary dance, music, circus arts, artistic skating teams, musical theater and also for corporate events.
Meet the artists
Will Lopes
Layers of Movement
Federica Loredan
Move & Groove
Bongani Magatyana
South African Songs & Gumboots
Gitte Wolffson
Yummy Vocal Music Treats
Marcello Wick
Overtone & Undertone Singing
Anita Gritsch
Morning Yoga & Stretching
Mattias Wyss
2015-2024
Alex Ostapenko
Goa, India
Anita Gritsch
Vienna, Austria
Anna Llombart
Barcelona, Spain
Anna Trish
Moscow, Russia
Ben Schütz
Hamburg, Germany
Carla Fonseca
Buenos Aires, Arentina
"Çeçe" Gürcay
Istanbul, Turkey
Charles Raszl
Perugia, Italy
Claudio Spieler
Utrecht, Netherlands
Estêvão Marques
Barcelona, Spain
Esther Diethelm
Hamburg, Germany
Federica Loredan
Genoa, Italy
Fidel Minda
Quito, Ecuador
Gabriel Hahn
Berlin, Germany
Gaël Aubrit
Lyon, France
Gitte Wolffson
Dusseldorf, Germany
Guillermo Rozenthuler
London, United Kingdom
Hilde Kappes
Berlin, Germany
Jep Meléndes
Tenerife, Spain
Johannes Bohun
Vienna, Austria
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