Election Section

Eclectic Offerings at Weekend Music Festival

By Richard Brenneman
Friday June 18, 2004

From Celtic fiddling to Brazilian samba, from Congolese song and dance to bluegrass and Cajun, a world of music awaits visitors to Telegraph Avenue Saturday and Sunday. 

The Berkeley World Music Weekend will offer something for everyone—and in places where live performances are the exception, rather than the rule. Musicians will display their prowess in bookstores and coffee shops, pizzerias and Peoples Park. 

The festival kicks off at 11 a.m. Saturday with the South African vocal rhythms of Zulu Spear’s Khumbala, performing through noon in the Naan N Curry at 2366 Telegraph. Performances continue through 8 p.m. and resume on Sunday from 11 a.m. 

The official grand finale commences at 2 p.m. Sunday in the Casual Gourmet and Beau Sky Hotel at 2529 Durant St. featuring Borrina Mapaka, appearing fresh from Paris with a program of Congolese and Afrofusion song and dance. 

Then, from 5 to 6:30, participants will hold a post event party in the basement of Blake’s, 2367 Telegraph Ave., with The Real Tom Thunder offering a program of Blues and Rock. 

One of the most versatile performers on the program is Berkeley’s own Tim Rayborn, who plays “about 30” instruments, including a variety of flutes, drums, lutes and harps. He sings as well, and has written scholarly papers on songs of the Crusades—not surprising, given his doctorate on Islamic/Christian relations during the early crusader era. 

Rayborn will be playing Turkish, Arabic and Sufi music with the group Salaat at Rasputins from 3 to 5 p.m. Saturday, then offering his own Medieval and Middle Eastern instrumentals from noon to 3 p.m. Sunday at Musical Offering, 2430 Bancroft Way. 

Big Bones, a remarkable one-man band, will offer his own “Blunk” (a meld of Blues and Funk) from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday in the Food Court at 2519 Durant Ave. 

Berkeley High’s renowned Jazz Combo will perform from 3 to 5 p.m. Saturday in Peoples’ Park, and versatile Berkeley musician Stephen Kent will treat listeners to riffs on the didjeridu at Cody’s from noon to 1 p.m. on Saturday. 

Gianni Ranuzzi, the driving force behind this weekend’s festivities, knows Telegraph first-hand, having worked as a street artist for 15 years selling jewelry she’d made. Though she quit six years ago, she says, “I still see people wearing earrings I made.” 

Ranuzzi spent the next three years working full-time for the Telegraph Area Association. She’s now freelancing and working for the association—organizing, among other things, this weekend’s festivities. 

“We’re trying to bring back a renaissance, where art is supported by the community and its residents,” she said. “We’re showcasing how great Berkeley is, while building community and helping out our musicians.” 

Ranuzzi singled out City Councilmember Kriss Worthington for special praise. “He’s been very helpful in putting this together,” she said. 

A unique feature of the weekend program is the first-ever World Lyric Slam, emceed by Charles Ellick, the host of the weekly Wednesday evening poetry slams at the Starry Plough. 

Poets will offer their music and lyrics at the slam, competing for $150 in cash prizes at Blake’s. “We’re hoping this can become a monthly event,” Ranuzzi said. “We have a lot of wonderful talent here, and a unique forum to showcase their talents. Telegraph Avenue’s a wonderful place, full of dynamite people with wonderful stories to tell. This festival will show the avenue at its finest.” 

For more information on the weekend’s festivities and a complete schedule of performances, see www.telegraphberkeley.org. and click on “Berkeley World Music Weekend,” or see the information booth in front of Cody’s Bookstore at the corner of Telegraph Avenue and Haste Street.›