Ginga and Ginga Grande: Bio
Greg LaLiberte - Flute, saxophones, percussion, vocal
Greg, a woodwind specialist, has performed with the Colorado Symphony Orchestra, the New Mexico Symphony Orchestra, The Temptations, The Four Tops, the Boulder Philharmonic, Rita Moreno, Barry Manilow, the Opera Orchestra of Albuquerque, Paul McCandless, Art Lande, Kai Eckhardt, Ty Burhoe, Bill Douglas, and his pianist mother, Patricia LaLiberte, in the LaLiberte Duo. He has won several competitions with the National Flute Association, is recorded on many CD’s as a sideman, and performs regularly throughout Colorado and the Midwest as a classical and jazz musician. Formerly the Instructor of Flute at Colorado State University and Instructor of Saxophone at the University of Colorado, Denver, Greg currently lives in Boulder and teaches privately.
Francisco Marques - Guitar, Vocal, Cavaquinho, Percussion, Bass
BA in Music, Colby College, Waterville ME
Francisco is actively engaged in the creation and dissemination of Brasilian music in the RockyMountain area has played with a multitude of Brasilian music ensembles based out of Boulder, CO. Born in Sâo Paulo, Brasil, he was raised in the Washington D.C. area and graduated from Colby College in 2000 where he received a BA in Music with a focus on classical guitar. He has been playing in the Boulder area since June of 2000 with many bands in a variety of styles. He teaches privately on a variety of instruments with a focus on Brasilian music and rhythms. Along with guitar, Francisco actively plays the electric bass guitar, cavaquinho, pandeiro, cuica, repinique, repique de mao, tamborim, caixa, surdo, tantan with local Brasilian ensembles: Sambadende, Ginga, Ginga Grande, Bateria Alegria, Beco do Choro, Sambasong, Kid Akimbo.
Bill Kopper - Guitar, percussion, vocal
Boulder guitarist, Bill Kopper, who grew up on the Mississippi River, is also a percussionist and joins in on Ginga’s vocals. His extensive musical experience includes R&B, pop music, jazz and blues. He commented, “I also love the music of Brazil and have gotten into a branch of it called Choro - a sort of jazz music in Brazil.” He played for several years with Billy Tolles, “a masterful tenor saxophonist.” He said he has also had, “...a long-time musical friendship with Sonya Vallet, who conjures an incredible Gypsy-Flamenco-Carioca spirit.” Bill has also, “... done some gigs lately with MaxJazz artist, Rene Marie.” He is also a member of the Bob Montgomery quartet, “...who has put together a group that integrates guitar into the horn section in a very unique way.” In addition, he plays with Brazilian drummer, Henrique de Almeida's band, The Brazilian Jazz Project. Bill has recorded with: Peter Yellen, Rehka Ohal, Mike Pagan, Henrique de Almeida, Garner & Geena Pruit and others. Check him out at: billkopper.com
Raoul Rossiter - Drums, percussion, vocal
Raoul has been playing the drums for nearly 20 years. He started off playing simultaneously in a Christian dixieland band, a fairly 'out' jazz trio, and a prog-rock outfit called "Frogpile". The rest is ... the rest. Some highlights along the way include: meeting and performing Brazilian music with Mitchell Long (6 years), completing a five-45-minute-sets-per-night-for-28-days-in-a-row stint with a latin/pop band at a club in Zürich (not so much a highlight as a feat ... or something), jamming at El Chapultapec with Fred Wesley, playing with the amazing Renée Marie, and joining Hamster Theatre (www.hamstertheatre.com). Recently he has performed with Kenny Walker, Bill Kopper, Erik Deutsch, Sonya Valet, Marguerite Juenemann, Dexter Payne (www.dexterpayne.com), Diane French (www.dianefrench.net), Lois LaFond (loislafond.com), Tina Marx, Hamster Theatre, and many others. Currently he's the regular drummer for Hamster Theatre, Ginga, the Dexter Payne Quartet, Diane French, Lois LaFonde, and Tina Marx.
Carl Dixon - Percussion, vocal
Versatile percussionist Carl Dixon is at home with many different aspects of music. He has performed with the Central City Opera, Colorado Symphony, Boulder Philharmonic, and Greeley Philharmonic Orchestras, the Elevations Jazz Orchestra, Pat Bianchi, Kailin Yong, Dexter Payne, and many others. He is a member of the popular Brazilian music band Ginga Grande and is the musical director of the Boulder Samba School and Bateria Alegria, a Brazilian percussion ensemble. He teaches private lessons in all areas of percussion and holds a teaching position at the University of Colorado at Boulder, and holds degrees in percussion from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the University of Colorado-Boulder. More info and music at: www.carldixondrums.com.
Bijou Barbosa - Bass
For Bijoux's extensive bio and more info, see his myspace page:
www.myspace.com/bijouxmusic
Ken Walker - Bass
Ken Walker, Instructor of Jazz Bass at University of Denver Lamont School of Music, started playing upright bass when he was a student at Arkansas Tech University, where he received his bachelor of music education degree. He has performed as the regular bassist at El-Chapultepec, and with groups including the Art Porter Trio and the popular Artistry. As house bassist for jazz clubs, Walker has accompanied entertainers and international jazz recording artists such as Mose Allison, Eddie Harris, Jon Abercrombie, Clifford Jordan, Eddie Daniels.