I have been drumming with the Chicago-based performance art marching band Environmental Encroachment since 1998, integrating circus arts, dance, multimedia, and custom costumes. We were fortunate to have been invited to the first HONK! Fest 10 years ago and have been hooked on HONK! ever since, traveling to other HONK! Fests in Seattle, Austin, NYC and beyond. I have studied global grooves in Chicago, Morocco, and South Korea and love to teach hand drums and percussion, especially to beginners. My day job as a grant program coordinator in the Harvard Semitic Museum supports my music habit. I was a mentor with this summer’s first-ever Camp HONK. School of HONK is a great expression of community-minded musical activism and I’m happy to be a part of this fun and experimental process of teaching and learning.

I am from Vermont and other than being a musician I am a dancer, music promoter, environmentalist, teacher and scholar. I am a percussion mentor for School of HONK and I have been here since the beginning! I am profoundly happy and proud to be part of such a positive and enriching educational program. I have been playing percussion and drum set since I was 8 years old and performing in bands since I was 15. I have a master’s degree in Ethnomusicology from Tufts and my focus was on African and Afro-Latin diasporic music and migration. I am currently a full-time music teacher: snare technique, drum set, piano, ukulele and songwriting. I also lead a rock group called Paper Waves based in Somerville with 4 other ladies. I play with Second Line Social Aid and Pleasure Society Brass Band, when my schedule allows. I run a concert series called Afropop Night Live, which is Boston’s monthly live Afro-centric music and dance party. Building community is extremely important to me as I can see that it allows people to thrive. I love School of HONK because it creates such a wonderful community and spreads joy when we are learning together or performing in the streets together. I love that any musician of any level can come be supported to learn while pushing themselves to the next level, having fun and being spontaneous.

I have been a percussion mentor since the beginning of the School of Honk. I also play snare drum and percussion with the Second Line Social Aid and Pleasure Society Brass Band. I have played drums since my teen years when I dreamed of being the next Elvin Jones. When I realized I had neither the talent nor the ability to stay up for the late set I set my sights to the streets. School of Honk has been an amazing opportunity to share the experience of playing for whomever happens to pass by, to draw them in, and to make them smile. It has been life-changing for so many folks, including me, and I look forward to the future of this project.