STEM Café: Musical Bow Research and Creative Artistry in Africa and Brazil

At this festive STEM Café, we’ll hear and learn about the berimbau, a musical bow or single-stringed percussion instrument, from Brazil. Percussionist, composer, teacher and researcher Gregory Beyer will share his knowledge of musical bows from Africa and Brazil, the mathematics behind tuning and the incredible possibilities for creative composition. We’ll also have a chance to play the instruments and experience the joy of learning something new.

Speaker: Gregory Beyer, Professor and Head of Percussion Studies, NIU School of Music