PANEL | MUSIC
March 12, 2024
Brown Arts Institute, Tanya Tagaq, and FirstWorks co-host a conversation about the responsibilities of artist-activists to address the urgent issues of climate change.
PANEL | MUSIC
March 12, 2024
Brown Arts Institute, Tanya Tagaq, and FirstWorks co-host a conversation about the responsibilities of artist-activists to address the urgent issues of climate change.
Tanya Tagaq and Small Island Big Song: In Conversation
Co-Hosted with FirstWorks
Tuesday, March 12, 2024, 5:30pm-7:00pm
Martinos Auditorium, Granoff Center for the Creative Arts
(Special Note: Free copies of Tanya Tagaq's acclaimed novel Split Tooth will be available for all attendees. Join us for a book signing with the author on Friday, March 15, 4pm-5pm, in the Nelson Atwater Lobby of The Lindemann Performing Arts Center.)
On the occasion of multi-hyphenate artist Tanya Tagaq’s residency at Brown and the presentation of the music, film, and performing arts project Small Island Big Song (SIBS) in Providence, Brown Arts Institute and FirstWorks co-host a conversation between Tagaq and SIBS company members about the responsibilities of artist-activists to address the urgent issues of climate change. Conversants ask us the question: “What will we tell our children if we fail to protect our planet?” Selections from documentary and creative film works by Tagaq and SIBS will also be shared. Moderated by BaoBao Chen, co-founder and creative producer of Small Island Big Song. Welcome by Lynsea Montanari, from Tomaquag Museum Indigenous Empowerment Center.
Small Island Big Song,a multidisciplinary project uniting the islands of the Pacific and Indian Ocean through artistic collaboration, is presented by FirstWorks at The Strand on March 15, 2024.
Having produced and managed Small Island Big Song's two multimedia concert productions, two award-winning albums, documentary, as well as curating world tours across 18 countries in Europe, the USA, Asia and Oceania, BaoBao is one of Taiwan’s most prominent producers of cross-cultural arts projects and an ISPA (International Society for the Performing Arts) fellow 2023-25. A vivid storyteller and fluent in English and Mandarin, she has a social media following of 130K+, and has been invited to speak at TEDx, WOMEX, APAP NYC, Stanford Live, and numerous arts festivals.
Courtesy of the artistTim Cole
Australia | Director, Music Producer, Filmmaker
Cole is an Australian music producer and filmmaker who’s passionate about cross-cultural arts projects. He has produced numerous albums, films and concerts for Australian aboriginal, Torres Strait islander and Pacifica artists including Archie Roach, Telek, and Shellie Morris. He has also toured internationally with Circus Oz for 8 years as theater and sound designer with seasons on Broadway NYC & West End London. He was a senior music producer at CAAMA - Central Australian Aboriginal Media Association before beginning Small Island Big Song. Cole has received a Churchill fellowship and invitations to speak at the United Nations HQ, APAP NYC, and WOMEX.
Courtesy of the artistSam Roem
Wamena Heritage, West Papua & Indonesia | Performing Artist
Sam Roem is an Australian-based performing artist from West Papua. In 2006 with 40 other West Papuans, he crossed over 600 miles of open seas to seek political asylum in Australia, sparking a diplomatic crisis. After graduating from Australia’s Dance Academy Sam has pursued a dynamic career in the arts drawing on his unique Papuan heritage, performing at The Sydney Opera House, Womadelaide and BluesFest Byron Bay.
Like the lively uplifting Tahitian rhythm he was named after, Aremiti's music could have only come from one island, Tahiti. A natural fusion of the island's cultural mix grounded in his Tahitian heritage, Aremiti’s songs and performances integrate traditional Polynesian instruments and rhythms with reggae, hip-hop, rock, folk, and pop sensibilities, often sung in Tahitian, French & English in one song. His recent performances at Aotearoa/New Zealand’s ‘Pasifika Festival’ and in Europe and the USA expanded his reputation as a voice for the Pacific Ocean.
Courtesy of the artistTanya Tagaq
Ikaluktutiak (Cambridge Bay, Nunavut) | Singer, Composer, Author
Internationally celebrated artist Tanya Tagaq is an improvisational singer, avant-garde composer, and bestselling author. A member of the Order of Canada, Polaris Music Prize, and JUNO Award winner and recipient of multiple honorary doctorates, Tagaq is an original disruptor, and a world-changing figure at the forefront of seismic social, political, and environmental change.
Brown Arts’ IGNITE Series uplifts the spirit of artistic collaboration across Brown, Providence, the Rhode Island region, and beyond. Ignite your creative curiosity through this multi-year series of programs, activations, interventions, and investigations.
