Real Good for Free: The Drum Boogie Festival, 9/19/09

By Greg Haymes On Sep 17, 2009

Yes, it’s an unfortunate name that makes us think of a big bunch of guys smoking pot and drinking 40-ouncers in the park on a Saturday afternoon while they pound away on mismatched conga drums.

Ah, that’s not what this is. Not by a longshot.

Celebrating the various global traditions of drumming, the free Drum Boogie Festival takes place in Cornell Park in Kingston’s Rondout Historic District on Saturday, September 19. The fest begins with an opening ceremony at 12noon featuring 100 drummers.

Here’s the rest of the mind-boggling line-up of powerhouse percussionists:

12noon: Opening ceremony
12:30pm: The Jack DeJohnette Trio featuring former E Street Band keyboardist David Sancious and Roberto Quintero
1:30pm: Pook, children’s percussion orchestra
2:10pm: Liam Teague, solo pan drummer
2:30pm: Nexus, contemporary percussion ensemble featuring Bob Becker, Russell Hartenberger, Bill Cahn & Garry Kvistad with guests Liam Teague and Tasa & Rob
3:30pm: Silver Cloud Native American Singers and Drummers
4:10pm: Liam Teague, solo pan drummer
4:30pm: The Not-So-Traditional American Rudimental Drummers featuring Dominic Cuccia, Therese Cuccia and Nick Attanasio with guests Nexus
5:10pm: Giri Mekar Balinese Gamelan Orchestra with dancers
5:50pm: The Jerry Marotta Band featuring Tony Levin, Pete Levin, Jesse Gress
6:50pm: The closing Drum Boogie featuring the Jerry Marotta Band, NEXUS, Liam Teague, Tasa & Rob, more