Jerry LeDuff and Creolada

Note: Jerry LeDuff was nominated for an Emmy for his original compositions and performance of music for this documentary.

Producer : Darryl Wood, Debra Mims


Summary: This show explores the African roots of Detroiters.
Guests include: Imani Humphrey, founder of Aisha Shule an African centered charter school in Detroit, Thomas and Sharon Stallworth, the parents of a child attending the school; Dr. Samuel Ajiri, the president of Western Medical Systems, Inc., who is a native of Nigeria; Ricardo Solomon, chairman of the International Exchange council; the chief justice of the Michigan supreme court, G. Mennen Williams; congressman John Conyers; artist and art dealer, Walter Morgan; secretary of Wayne County government, Marion Crawford; Elise Davis, a researcher of African American history; and Kamal Amen Ra, an African drummer and dancer. - Detroit Public Television WTVS

Gerhardt Knodel, an artist and his work [videorecording]
a Michigan Foundation for the Arts presentation ; produced and written by Sue Marx ; Marx/Handley Productions, Inc
Call Number: N7433.9 .G4 1981
Location: General
Publication information: Chicago, Ill. : Encyclopaedia Britannica Educational Corp. [distributor], c1980
Physical description: 1 videocassette (13 min.) : sd., col. ; 1/2 in
Description: American fiber artist Gerhardt Knodel articulates his artistic goals, intercut with scenes of his studio, folk weavers in Kentucky who produce his special designs, and the installation of his massive woven pieces in such modern edifices as Detroit's Renaissance Center
- Marx/Handley Productions, Inc

Gerhardt Knodel, an artist and his work [videorecording]
a Michigan Foundation for the Arts presentation ; produced and written by Sue Marx ; Marx/Handley Productions, Inc
Call Number: N7433.9 .G4 1981
Location: General
Publication information: Chicago, Ill. : Encyclopaedia Britannica Educational Corp. [distributor], c1980
Physical description: 1 videocassette (13 min.) : sd., col. ; 1/2 in
Description: American fiber artist Gerhardt Knodel articulates his artistic goals, intercut with scenes of his studio, folk weavers in Kentucky who produce his special designs, and the installation of his massive woven pieces in such modern edifices as Detroit's Renaissance Center
- Marx/Handley Productions, Inc

Credits:
Videography by Robert Brady, Bill Bryce, Don Carter ; edited by Sue Giannotta, Deirdre Bellomo ; original music composed and performed by Jerry LeDuff ; narrated by Paul Caplan.
Summary:
Diego Rivera's murals at the Detroit Institute of Arts are acclaimed as a timeless tribute to the power of modern industry. This video profiles the artist and explores the legacy of Rivera's murals against the backdrop of 1930's Detroit.
Genre:
Art - Detroit Labor History Tours

n the evening there was a bountiful array of parties, and kicking it off in style was the stupendous DaimlerChrysler shindig at downtown’s David Whitney Building.

The folks from DaimlerChrysler reportedly spent about a cool million bucks and three weeks preparing and decorating the interior of the building for this one-night gig. They created two tropical-style bars in the former shops on each side of the building’s four-story atrium, with murals by locale female arts collective The Girlee Show and by Michael Segal.

The music featured an assortment ranging from Blackman & Arnold to Mark Ferguson’s flamenco guitar, to DJ Scott Zacharias to Jerry LeDuff and a Brazilian ensemble.

Simply put, this was the hippest one-night nightclub in town, with a sumptuous spread from the Ritz Carlton. I started out savoring a few oysters prepped in a martini glass (or did someone drop an oyster in my martini?), and moved on to the tenderloin, lamb chops and lobster, all with a delicious, slightly indistinguishable South American twist. - Metro Times

It’s the summer of 1991. Onstage at Chene Park on the Detroit River, a dozen percussionists are laying down a gigantic, colorful, all-embracing beat. A brightly costumed figure strides the stage on impossibly tall stilts, drawing squeals from the crowd. ...

“Anybody who can put 18 people together and have such a high degree of improvisation and have it work so well is a genius,” says Jerry LeDuff, a percussionist who played in the Percussion Choir. “I think he hears things differently than most people. And he is very, very, very intense.”

Bassist Marion Hayden, a first-call bassist and a member of the combo Straight Ahead, also played in the Percussion Choir.

“I had never encountered anything like that in my life,” she says. “It was mesmerizing. Once you set up these patterns, it was almost like a chant. It is a marvelous concept.”

Two sets of drums, two sets of vibes, marimbas, piano, music stands, timpani, a big Oriental gong. On the wall were posters from as far back as the ‘60s and ‘70s, from all over the world, with all of his different musical collaborations”

One was from the 1990 Moers Jazz Festivals in Germany, which the Aboriginal Percussion Choir played.

“We just blew them away over there,” says LeDuff. - 33-45.org

FRANCISCO MORA CATLETT With MARCUS BELGRAVE/CRAIG TABORN ALEX HARDING et al - River Drum (premier cru; USA) From 2005, this is an earlier gem from former Sun Ra & M'Boom percussionist, Francisco Mora Catlett. It features four different groups including a string quartet on one track. The players include Marcus Blegrave & John Douglass on trumpets, Alex Harding & Vincent Bowens on saxes, Sherman Mitchell on trombone, Craig Taborn or Kenny Cox on piano, Rodney Whittaker on bass, Emile Borde on steel drums, and Alberto Nacif, Jerry LeDuff & Francisco Mora Catlett on drums & percussion.
'River Drum' is one of the best percussion centered discs I've heard in a long while. Francisco wrote, arranged and produced this wonderful disc. I find this music to by joyous, jubilant and rhythmically seductive. The rich layer of interlocking percussion pushes this music to one great groove after another. I only know of a few of the musicians on this disc, but everyone plays superbly throughout. It is always great to hear local bari sax giant Alex Harding wail and he gets a few chances to stretch out here as well. The other (tenor) saxist here, Vincent Bowens also plays with fire and that creative spirit. Special mention to bassist Rodney Whitaker who plays some excellent acoustic bass throughout, bubbling and burning when need be. Steel drummer, Emile Borde, also sparkles all over the place, as do both trumpeters, the legendary Marcus Belgrave and John Douglass. Considering that this disc is some 75-minutes long, I must admit that it is consistently spirited and creative. The only Latin (oriented) jazz that has knocked me out in years comes from Kip Hanrahan. It would seem the great Francisco Mora Catlett has given Kip a run for his money. - BLG - Downtown Music Gallery - New York

46th Annual Bal Africain® Gala: 6–10 p.m.
The special exhibition Through African Eyes: The European in African Art, 1500 to Present is the focus of this year’s Bal Africain® gala fundraiser. The evening begins with a VIP cocktail reception from 6–7 p.m. A strolling dinner is available from 7–10 p.m., and dancing begins at 8 p.m. Guests will be treated to a live performance by Jerry LeDuff, Mark Stone and Kofi Ameyaw, American and African musicians that unite American-jazz sounds of vibraphone, drums and electric bass with the richness of African marimba, kalimba and hand drums. Bal Africain is presented by the DIA’s Friends of African and African American Art (FAAAA), one of the museum’s oldest auxiliaries. Sponsors include FAAAA, DTE Energy and Ford Motor Company. Proceeds benefit the DIA.

Tickets are $200, and $350 for the VIP cocktail reception. For tickets, call 313-833-1049. - thedetroiter.com