Photo by Ryan Stevenson

The Rozsa and Michigan Tech Music Presents Sō Percussion with Shodekeh Talifero, March 2 

HOUGHTON, MI (February 27, 2023) – The Rozsa Center for the Performing Arts and Michigan Tech Music present Sō Percussion with Shodekeh Talifero this Thursday, March 2, at 7:30 p.m. at the Rozsa Center as part of the Rozsa Presenting Series. They will also offer workshops that are free and open to the public on Wednesday, March 1 and Thursday, March 2. This event is made possible with funding from the Michigan Arts and Culture Council and the National Endowment for the Arts. 

For twenty years and counting, Sō Percussion (Eric Cha-Beach, Josh Quillen, Adam Sliwinski, and Jason Treuting) has redefined chamber music for the 21st century through an “exhilarating blend of precision and anarchy, rigor and bedlam” (The New Yorker). They are celebrated by audiences and presenters for a dazzling range of work: for live performances in which “telepathic powers of communication” (The New York Times) bring to life the vibrant percussion repertoire; for an extravagant array of collaborations in classical music, pop, indie rock, contemporary dance, and theater; and for their work in education and community, creating opportunities and platforms for music and artists that explore the immense possibility of art in our time. 

Dominic “Shodekeh” Talifero is a groundbreaking beatboxer, vocal percussionist, composer, and breath artist who pushes the boundaries of the human voice within and outside the context of Hip Hop music and culture. Recently featured by the Kennedy Center in a concert testimonial and master performance, Talifero’s career explores innovative and convergent collaborations with a wide range of traditional artists. He serves as the Beatboxer and vocal percussionist for the globally renown Alash, one of the world’s leading Tuvan Throat Singing ensembles and collaborates with the exquisite Silkroad Ensemble based at Harvard University founded by legendary cellist Yo Yo Ma. He is the resident Beatboxer and cultural ambassador of the local Baltimore chapter of Classical Revolution.

Always innovating, Talifero has become immersed within the realm of Hip Hop-inspired Science Communication. His work includes creating the math and music based course Beatbox Algebra in collaboration with the Homewood Arts Center of Johns Hopkins University; serving as the host for World Voice Day presented by the Johns Hopkins Voice Center; and serving as a panelist and musician for The Neuroscience of Art, a weeklong conference presented by the Salzburg Global Seminar in Salzburg, Austria. 

In addition to the Thursday night concert, Sō Percussion and Shodekeh will offer two workshops that are free and open to the public. Shodekeh’s workshop is on Wednesday, March 1, at 1 p.m. on the Rozsa stage. Sō Percussion will offer Making Art in the 21st Century with Sō Percusion at 2 p.m. on Thursday, March 2. 

Get tickets to Sō Percussion with Shodekeh Talifero online at mtu.edu/rozsa, by phone at (906) 487-1906, or in person at the Rozsa Box Office. The Rozsa Box Office is open 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday through Friday and for one hour before shows. 

Michigan Technological University is an Equal Opportunity Educational Institution/Equal Opportunity Employer that provides equal opportunity for all, including protected veterans and individuals with disabilities.