2:57 p.m., Sept. 30, 2008----Saberes Alternativos: Music as Knowledge in the African Diaspora, sponsored by UD's Latin American Studies Program, is a series highlighting the range, variety and influence of Afro-Latin music in South America, with three lecture/performances scheduled for Thursday, Oct. 9; Tuesday, Oct. 28; and Sunday, Nov. 9.

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Carla Guerrón-Montero, assistant professor of anthropology at UD, who holds a joint appointment in the Latin American Studies Program, is the series coordinator.

Guerrón-Montero has carried out ethnographic research in Panama, Ecuador, Grenada and Chile, and spent last semester in Brazil on a junior research leave aimed at social inclusion and citizenship. As part of her research, Guerrón-Montero studied calypso, soca, reggae and other genres of music.

“What I discovered is that music is an important segment of education,” said Guerrón-Montero. “There is a tendency to view both popular and classical music from the African Diaspora uniformly as one kind of music, but there is a large variety in this music, and it is an influential force on culture and education, as these upcoming events at UD will show.”

The lecture/performance schedule follows:

“Negra Música Urbana” (Black Urban Music) with keynote speaker, Afro-Brazilian singer and composer Dão, is set for 6:30 p.m., Thursday, Oct. 9, in the Gore Recital Hall of the Roselle Center for the Arts.

Dão is part of a new generation of musicians from Salvador, Bahia. His work represents the essence of original black music, with a strong influence of soul, blues, funk and rock 'n' roll music from the U.S., plus reggae and samba duro. He was a finalist in a festival of instrumental music, “Radio Educadora,” in Bahia, and has had his music played in Brazilian films. With his band Caravanablack, he also played for Bahia's celebration of its founding. He will play his guitar and give his lecture in Portuguese, which will be translated by Cynthia Schmidt-Cruz, associate professor of foreign languages and literatures at UD. A reception will follow.

“Cubana-Be, Cubana-Bop: Race and Rhythm in Afro-Latin Jazz” with Charles Carson, UD assistant professor of music at UD, is set for 6:30 p.m., Tuesday, Oct. 28, in the Gore Recital Hall of the Roselle Center for the Arts. Carson will lecture and play his trumpet, and a reception will follow.

Favela Rising (part of UD's Fall 2008 International Film Series) will feature a showing of the documentary film Favela Rising at 7:30 p.m., Sunday, Nov. 9, in the Trabant University Center Theatre. The screening will be followed by a discussion with the film's director, Jeff Zimbalist,

Favela Rising depicts the development of the Afro-Reggae movement, created by Anderson Sá, a former drug trafficker. Through hip-hop music, the rhythms of the street and Afro-Brazilian dance, Sá rallied his community to counteract the violent oppression enforced by teenage drug armies and sustained by corrupt police.

Besides the Latin American Studies Program, the series is sponsored by the Black American Studies Program, the College of Arts and Sciences, the Committee on Cultural Activities and Public Events, the Center for Black Culture, the Center for International Studies, the departments of Anthropology, Communications, Music, Sociology and Criminal Justice, the International Film Series, Multicultural Programs, the Office of Affirmative Action and Multicultural Programs, and the Office of the Vice Provost for Academic Affairs and International Programs.

All three events are free and open to the public. For more information, go to [www.udel.edu/LAS/lasp-events.html].

Article by Sue Moncure