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Savannah Music Festival March 26, 2011

McIntosh County Shouters — Fri, 24 Jun 2011 17:20:53 GMT

Savannah Music Festival-March 26, 2011

The Savannah Music Festival was a sold out event! Festival organizers had to turn away dozens of people at the door because the venue was filled to the gills. The audience didn't want the program to end and the McIntosh County Shouters truly enjoyed performing at the event both on Friday (for 1,100 students) and Saturday for the public. This project was supported by the Georgia Humanities Council and the National Endowment for the Humanities and through appropriations from the Georgia General Assembly as well as the Savannah Music Festival.

34th Annual Georgia Sea Islands Geechee Gullah Festival

McIntosh County Shouters — Fri, 17 Jun 2011 18:37:20 GMT

Please join us!

The Sea Island Singers will be performing at 2pm and the McIntosh County Shouters will be performing at 5pm on Saturday, June 18. The Sea Island Singers will be performing again on Sunday, June 19., Both are MUST-SEE groups!

Click here for more festival information

Savannah and St. Simons Island performances

McIntosh County Shouters — Sat, 11 Jun 2011 14:34:00 GMT

Wednesday, June 15, 2011 6pm

Second African Baptist Church

123 Houston Street

Savannah, GA 31401

Please come early as seating is limited and we have been told a lot of people anticipate coming. Books and CDs will be sold following the performance. This program is being generously sponsored by Imperial Sugar. Thank you!

Saturday, June 18, 2011 5pm

34th Annual Geechee Gullah Festival

To be held at "Epworth-by-the-Sea" in Gasgoigne Bluff on Saint Simons Island, GA

Directions: Follow the causeway to Saint Simons Island and stay on the inside lane. Veer left just after arriving on the Island and proceed straight through the light. Epworth-by-the-Sea will be the first left after the stoplight. Follow signage to the outdoor festival.

We will be giving our program at 5pm on Saturday, June 18 only. CDs and books will be on sale following the performance.

This 2-day annual festival takes place on June 18-19, 2011 and celebrates Gullah Geechee culture and heritage on the Georgia coast. There will be storytelling, entertainment, food, and church services.

Entertainment begins at 2pm on both days. On Sunday, there will be a church service at 12 noon followed by a traditional baptism in the river. Gullah Geechee were baptised for generations on St. Simons Island.

Please come to the annual Georgia-St. Simons Island Geechee Gullah Heritage Festival and learn about the history of the coastal Georgia Geechee. This 2-day festival (june 18-19) will highlight net making demonstrations, basket weaving demonstrations, crochet and quiltmaking demonstrations in addition to gospel and spiritual performances.

The Sea island Singers will be performing both days and will be singing slave songs, demonstrating the hambone, slave games, beating the rice, and jumping the broom ceremony. Other groups will be performing also.

New performance added for Sept 10

McIntosh County Shouters — Mon, 06 Jun 2011 11:24:00 GMT

We are available for private performances as well as for school visits. We just added a public performance for September 10. Please come!

5pm

September 10, 2011

First African Baptist Church

23 Montgomery Street

Savannah, GA

Please contact us if you wish for us to visit your school or private event.

June 15, 2011--Savannah

McIntosh County Shouters — Fri, 06 May 2011 16:36:00 GMT

We will be giving a program in Savannah on June 15, 2011. This event will be free and open to the public. Try to come early to ensure a seat.

Wednesday, June 15, 2011 6pm

Second African Baptist Church

123 Houston Street

Savannah, GA 31401

Please come!

Shrine Fest Savannah!

McIntosh County Shouters — Tue, 26 Apr 2011 18:37:00 GMT

Come see us perform at the Shrine Fest on Sunday, May 1, 2011 at 4pm. We will be in Memorial Stadium in Savannah. We're looking forward to seeing you!

Shrine Fest Savannah 2011

Performing in front of slave cabins on a plantation

McIntosh County Shouters — Thu, 21 Apr 2011 15:03:00 GMT

Someone added our photo to a blog...

McIntosh County Shouters — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 18:39:00 GMT

musicaafroamericana.wordpress.com

This blog is all about African American Music and it looks like the blog was originally written in Spanish. One thing that people need to know about the shout is that it is not "screaming," as the blog indicates; rather, a shouter is one of the women who shuffle their feet and move in a counter clockwise motion while singing. This photo you see are 4 of the shouters in the midst of a performance.

This blog included the McIntosh County Shouters in it which is interesting. The photo they used in this blog is below.

Confusion re: Shouters Groups

McIntosh County Shouters — Tue, 19 Apr 2011 17:00:00 GMT

Over the years, we have had to respond to various questions about which group is US (THE MCINTOSH COUNTY SHOUTERS) and which is the group that formed 15 years after we began performing professionally. Another group has purposely tried to confuse people into thinking they are us. We want to clear the air on this issue: We are--and have ALWAYS been--known as the McIntosh County Shouters. WE have been performing the ring shout all our lives but we formed a professional group in 1980 when we were requested to travel around the United States to educate people about the ring shout.

Another group formed in the mid-1990s and essentially copied our entire program, taking the songs of our ancestors and trying to sing them...trying to perform the ring shout, etc. That other group has changed names several times over the years. Currently, they are the "Geechee Gullah Shouters of McIntosh County." While they do live in McIntosh County, they are NOT ....THE MCINTOSH COUNTY SHOUTERS. When people do web searches, the results are confusing since the other group has incorporated all the words in our name into theirs. It has come to a point where we simply have to address this situation directly.

Our group is known by internationally acclaimed by renowned ethnomusicologists, folklorists, linguists, professors, and humanities professionals. Those educated in the ring shout understand that we are the authentic group. We have been invited to many venues and platforms over the years. Following our performances, people may end up contacting the other group and think that they are getting our group for the next performance. Inevitably, audiences are disappointed because they thought they were going to see/hear us.

1984 Recorded "The McIntosh County Shouters: Slave Shout Songs from the coast of Georgia"

1993 National Endowment for the Arts National Heritage Fellows

2008 Named Master Artists by the National Endowment for the Arts in New York City

2008 Founding Partners/Producers of Distinction--Georgia Made Georgia Grown

2010 Georgia Governor's Award in the Humanities Award recipients

2010 Performed at the Library of Congress and the J.F. Kennedy Center in December 2010

2011 American Legacy Magazine's First American Heritage Award recipients

Please do NOT confuse the two groups. WE are THE MCINTOSH COUNTY SHOUTERS.

Union Baptist Church

McIntosh County Shouters — Sat, 02 Apr 2011 15:58:00 GMT

Our trip to Alabama in February was wonderful! Pastor Stewart had seen us years ago and invited us to his church for Black History Month. He also invited a 108 year old Bishop Otis Clark who gave a great sermon. We had such a great time there and would like to thank Pastor Stewart for his hopsitality! We are looking forward to next year!

http://www.shelbycountyreporter.com/2011/02/28/108-year-old-clark-speaks-at-columbiana-church/

Savannah Music Festival Feedback

McIntosh County Shouters — Wed, 30 Mar 2011 13:15:00 GMT

We received this email recently and were delighted to hear the children enjoyed our performance so much that they would like us to visit their school next year. Educating students is of paramount importance to us. Unfortunately, our Gullah Geechee culture is dying and there is very little information about black history in school books. The one way we know of to keep our history alive is to actually visit the schools to educate the children about our family's history in coastal Georgia during slavery.

We were especially delighted that they want to get the book. The book gives you a greater understanding about the ring shout and our culture/family/heritage. If anyone wishes to receive a book in the future, please email the website: info@mcintoshcountyshouters.com .

Our fifth grade class here at ______________ School saw you perform here in Savannah last week they were amazed at your performance. I was asked by the teachers if it would be possible for you to perform at our school during Black History Month 2011-2012 school year. Would you let me know the cost for you to perform at our school? We have pre-k through eight grades. We have a wonderful library here at our school; I will ask our librarian if she can get a copy of your book, “Shout Because You’re Free.” I look forward to hearing from you.

Savannah Music Festival Recap

McIntosh County Shouters — Tue, 29 Mar 2011 13:03:00 GMT

We performed at the Savannah Music Festival last weekend and really enjoyed it. Both programs were sold out. On Friday, March 25 we did a special educational program for 1,100 students at the Trustees Theater. The children were highly complimentary of our program and we were very happy to hear all their wonderful comments. Performing for children is of paramount importance to us.

We are always open to performing at schools. If you would like for us to give a program at your school, please email info@mcintoshcountyshouters.com. We travel all over the United States to educate children about our heritage.

On Saturday, March 26, our public performance was sold out! We are sorry that festival organizers unfortunately had to turn away over 75 people but they just couldn't add any more tables or chairs because of fire code regulations. The program was extremely well received and the audience didn't want it to end!

We also had a great time and we'd like to thank Mr. Gibson, Jane Levy, the production crew, Savannah Music Festival, and the Georgia Humanities Council for your support.

This project is supported by the Georgia Humanities Council and the National Endowment for the Humanities and through appropriations from the Georgia General Assembly as well as the Savannah Music Festival.

Thank you very much for your support!

Do not confuse the McIntosh County Shouters with any other group

McIntosh County Shouters — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 16:08:00 GMT

Please note that this group has only been known by this name: McIntosh County Shouters. This is a very important thing to note or you will be confused with something else. The McIntosh County Shouters have no other adjectives in its name. They are Gullah Geechee, yes. And if you want to be sure you are dealing with THIS group, make sure it says, "McIntosh County Shouters"...in that specific order. If you don't see that exact name, then you very well may not be working with our group. We just don't want you to be disappointed. If you want OUR group, then ask for THE McIntosh County Shouters. Thank you.

We had a great time in Washington, DC last December but we are not planning to be back there anytime soon, unless we are invited. There is another group that is trying to come as shouters but they are NOT our group. If you saw us in December, you know the quality of our program. We just want to be sure you are aware that we have not planned any more trips to Washington in the near future. If you are disappointed with the other group, we are sorry but please be sure you understand that that group is NOT us. We just don't want you confusing our two groups. Our group is the original McIntosh County Shouters. Others try to imitate but they will never duplicate our work.

Savannah Music Festival is sold out!

McIntosh County Shouters — Thu, 17 Mar 2011 15:17:00 GMT

Our program is scheduled for March 26 at 12:30pm (Charles H. Morris Center) and it is sold out! We are looking forward to this program and being back in Savannah. If you are interested in having us do another program in Savannah later this year, please let us know!

Tribute to the McIntosh County Shouters

McIntosh County Shouters — Mon, 07 Mar 2011 12:54:00 GMT

Click here to listen: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gidyRNYjwFo&feature=player_embedded#at=24

This is a link to a YouTube video someone did in honor of the McIntosh County Shouters and Black History Month. The song, "Move Daniel," is introduced by Lawrence McKiver, patriarch emeritus of the McIntosh County Shouters. Says McKiver, "I want to sing a song about 'Move, Daniel.' See, Daniel was a slave, and the slaves all were havin' a little party across the field one day. And the smoke-house was up there--we call it the smoke-house, the place that the old boss keep all his meat. And they wanted to steal some of the meat, you know, and they send Daniel in to get a piece of meat so they could put the party on sure enough! And old boss was coming down through there so the slaves going to sing a song to let Daniel know to get out the way. 'Cause Daniel could pick it up and put it down! You know, I mean that fast run, that's what I'm talking about. So old boss thought they was singing a party song, but they was telling Daniel how to get out the way, so that old boss wouldn't put that whiplash on him. So I'm goin' to sing the song--I jus' want to let you all know why we sing the song 'Move, Daniel.' "--Excerpt from "Shout Because You're Free" by Art Rosenbaum, University of Georgia Press, 1998.

Howfyl Broadfield Plantation February 19

McIntosh County Shouters — Wed, 16 Feb 2011 18:50:00 GMT

Please join us at Howfyl Broadfield Plantation on Highway 17 between Brunswick and Darien, GA on Saturday, February 19 at 11am.

Howfyl Broadfield Plantation has a full day of activities that will be enjoyed by all audiences. Admission is just $6 for adults, $5.50 for Seniors over 62, $4 for children 6-17 years, and children under 6 are free.

The weather should be perfect so bring your family and learn about Georgia coastal history!

Savannah Music Festival

McIntosh County Shouters — Fri, 21 Jan 2011 16:58:00 GMT

March 26, 2011
12:30pm

Charles H. Morris Center
10 East Broad Street
Savannah, GA 31405

Please join us! Tickets are $12.00. Go to www.savannahmusicfestival.org for more information.

Black History Month

McIntosh County Shouters — Fri, 21 Jan 2011 16:51:00 GMT

We have been receiving a lot of requests for Black History Month. If you would like for us to visit your school or venue, please contact us as soon as possible. Email: info@mcintoshcountyshouters.com or call 912-399-2466.

We are kicking off Black History Month with a performance at the Savannah Technical College. Please join us!

February 1, 2011 at 5pm
Savannah Technical College
5717 White Bluff Road
Savannah, GA 31405

This is the only Savannah-area public performance we are doing before we perform at the Savannah Music Festival on Saturday, March 26 at 12:30pm. On March 26, we will be performing at the Charles H. Morris Center on 10 East Broad Street in Savannah. Please check www.savannahmusicfestival.org for more information on the festival!

Washington, DC wrap up

McIntosh County Shouters — Mon, 17 Jan 2011 15:52:00 GMT

NOTE: If you hear that a group of Shouters from McIntosh County will be visiting Washington, D.C. for the closing of the Lorenzo Dow Turner exhibit in July 2011, please understand that they are not our group. That is a group that formed in the mid-1990s, approximately 15 years after we began to perform professionally. We truly enjoyed our trip to Washington D.C. in December 2010 but scheduling conflicts prevent us from returning to Washington D.C. in July. You will be hearing an entirely different group and we want to be sure this is clear. We do not want anyone to be misled.

The trip to Washington DC was terrific and everyone had a fabulous time. Every event was seamless and the transportation that the Kennedy Center arranged was perfect which added to a wonderful trip. We'd like to thank the Library of Congress, Kennedy Center, Smithsonian Institution, and Anacostia Museum for all their help in making this such a successful trip. We'd also like to thank our friends and family and Reverend Harris for coming to Washington, DC to support us.

With this trip behind us now, we are looking forward to 2011 and all it has to offer. It will be exciting to learn what activities and programs are planned for this "International Year for People of African Descent."

We have many private events planned for the next couple of months and our next major Savannah area event will be kicking off Black History Month at the Savannah Technical College on February 1st.

Savannah Music Festival
March 26, 2011, 12:30pm

Charles H. Morris Center
10 East Broad Center
Savannah, GA 31401

Look for us to perform at the world famous Savannah Music Festival. We are thrilled to be performing at this wonderful event and hope to see you there!

For more information about our performance, please go to the Savannah Music Festival website.

A great time in Washington DC!

McIntosh County Shouters — Sun, 19 Dec 2010 18:07:00 GMT

We are back now and had a wonderful visit.

Both programs at the Kennedy Center and the Library of Congress were extremely well received and we got standing ovations. It was interesting to speak with people who were in the audience who were African or had been missionaries in countries such as Liberia and how they said some of our movements were similar to those in Africa.

While we were there, we had a chance to see the Lorenzo Dow Turner exhibit at the Anacostia Museum. This comprehensive exhibit showed a lot of fabulous things about the Gullah culture and its ties to Africa, the Caribbean, and to Brazil. It's a great exhibit; if you have the chance to go to it while you are in Washington, you won't be disappointed. This exhibit originally was supposed to close in March 2011; however, due to its popularity, it has been extended to July 2011. One of the directors of the museum told us that he had no idea that so many Gullah Geechee lived in and around Washington, D.C.

On our last day of the trip, we toured the White House which was decorated for Christmas.

It was great to share these experiences with family members and friends who came with us on the trip, including Reverend Harris.

We wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a happy, healthy, Blessed New Year.