Mark Stone - founding partner of Jumbie Records

Mark Stone,
Jumbie Records Co-Founder

As a performer and educator, Mark Stone has an extensive knowledge of global percussion traditions. He has performed with the foremost percussion groups of Uganda, Ghana, Trinidad, and the United States. Mark was a Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar at Makerere University where he researched traditional Ugandan music and performed with the Nakibembe Xylophone Group. As a member of the Bernard Woma Ensemble he has performed at the Filmua Kukur Bagr Festival in Ghana, with the New York Philharmonic at Avery Fisher Hall, and recently performed the first-ever concerto for gyil trio and orchestra with the South Dakota Symphony and Minnesota Orchestra. During a research trip to Trinidad, Mark joined the steel drum ensemble, Scrunters Pan Groove, performing in the finals of the individual steel drum competition and throughout the carnival festivities. He later brought his own Michigan-based steelband, Southpaw Isle, to Trinidad to take part in the World Steelband Festival.

In the United States, Mark is a founding member of the New York based jazz ensemble Imaginary Homeland and the Michigan based Oakland Jazz Quartet. As a member of Imaginary Homeland, he performed at the Zacatecas Cultural Festival in Mexico in 2008. Mark also leads the Biakuye Percussion Group and the Southpaw Isle Steelband. These groups perform frequently at concert venues, festivals, art institutes, universities, and K-12 schools. Both groups have performed many times at the Max M. Fisher Center as part of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra's Tiny Tots Concert Series. In addition, Southpaw Isle has presented the New York debut of the large Ugandan embaire and the world premier of Glen McClure's “A Caribbean Christmas Mass” for symphony orchestra, chorus, and steelband. The Biakuye Percussion Group recently toured South Korea and performed at the Sacheon International Percussion Festival.

As co-founder and partner of Jumbie Records Mark has produced and recorded eleven different CD's. Through Jumbie Records, he has sponsored annual music festivals in both Ghana and Uganda. He has also produced two African Xylophone Festivals in New York City and two Michigan Steel Drum Festivals in Detroit. Mark holds a Master's degree in Percussion Performance from the World Music Center of West Virginia University and a Bachelor's degree in Percussion Performance from the University of Michigan School of Music. His research in Ugandan music has been published in African Music, the Journal of the International Library of African Music in South Africa. Mark is currently a Special Instructor at Oakland University where he coordinates the World Music and Percussion Programs, directs the African Ensemble and Steel Band, and teaches courses in ethnomusicology and international studies.

		artists



See Other Artists		Mark Stone, Jumbie Records Co-Founder As a performer and educator, Mark Stone has an extensive knowledge of global percussion traditions. He has performed with the foremost percussion groups of Uganda, Ghana, Trinidad, and the United States. Mark was a Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar at Makerere University where he researched traditional Ugandan music and performed with the Nakibembe Xylophone Group. As a member of the Bernard Woma Ensemble he has performed at the Filmua Kukur Bagr Festival in Ghana, with the New York Philharmonic at Avery Fisher Hall, and recently performed the first-ever concerto for gyil trio and orchestra with the South Dakota Symphony and Minnesota Orchestra. During a research trip to Trinidad, Mark joined the steel drum ensemble, Scrunters Pan Groove, performing in the finals of the individual steel drum competition and throughout the carnival festivities. He later brought his own Michigan-based steelband, Southpaw Isle, to Trinidad to take part in the World Steelband Festival. In the United States, Mark is a founding member of the New York based jazz ensemble Imaginary Homeland and the Michigan based Oakland Jazz Quartet. As a member of Imaginary Homeland, he performed at the Zacatecas Cultural Festival in Mexico in 2008. Mark also leads the Biakuye Percussion Group and the Southpaw Isle Steelband. These groups perform frequently at concert venues, festivals, art institutes, universities, and K-12 schools. Both groups have performed many times at the Max M. Fisher Center as part of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra's Tiny Tots Concert Series. In addition, Southpaw Isle has presented the New York debut of the large Ugandan embaire and the world premier of Glen McClure's “A Caribbean Christmas Mass” for symphony orchestra, chorus, and steelband. The Biakuye Percussion Group recently toured South Korea and performed at the Sacheon International Percussion Festival. As co-founder and partner of Jumbie Records Mark has produced and recorded eleven different CD's. Through Jumbie Records, he has sponsored annual music festivals in both Ghana and Uganda. He has also produced two African Xylophone Festivals in New York City and two Michigan Steel Drum Festivals in Detroit. Mark holds a Master's degree in Percussion Performance from the World Music Center of West Virginia University and a Bachelor's degree in Percussion Performance from the University of Michigan School of Music. His research in Ugandan music has been published in African Music, the Journal of the International Library of African Music in South Africa. Mark is currently a Special Instructor at Oakland University where he coordinates the World Music and Percussion Programs, directs the African Ensemble and Steel Band, and teaches courses in ethnomusicology and international studies.

Home Touring Artists Recordings Concerts Press Kit Contact Mailing List Privacy Policy

Copyright 2010 Jumbie Records