The all-new Emelin Performance Series Made In Westchester kicks off with New Rochelle native Kaya Nicole & Samba Soul.

The vocalist, songwriter and classical guitarist, is known for her robust mezzo-soprano range, her rhythmic vocal style and her frequent use of dramatic dynamic changes. Her sound has been compared to "Esperanza Spalding, but with a dash of funk," (New Rochelle Now), and in the Latin world more rhythmic singers such as Gal Costa and Carmen Miranda. Kaya was raised on everything from Biggie to Bachata, and Nina Simone to Buena Vista Social Club.

‘Samba Soul’ is a collective of musicians that combine Afro-Brazilian and Afro-Cuban rhythms with soulful horn lines, creating a larger than life fusion of New Orleans and Brazilian fanfare. The performances bring together local soul musicians in New Orleans and the batucada of Brazilian percussive elements. Influenced by artists like Bill Summers, Seu Jorge and Gal Costa, Kaya and Samba Soul offer a robust selection of music, with exciting and progressive takes on retro tango vibes, and soulful renditions of Samba and Popular Brazilian Music.

Featured Artists

Dennis Dempsey (New Rochelle)

Dennis Dempsey, New Rochelle native is a BFA graduate of SUNY Purchase College and also attended Pratt Institute.

Fascinated by food based nostalgia like Carvel, Hostess Cakes, and The California Raisins, 70’s and 80’s nostalgia and Japanese art including the thematic 17th century puppet theater art of Bunraku.

You can also check out some of Dennis' work out in the wild with the New Rochelle statue project "Stacked!," as well as a large mural in Tequila Sunrise in Larchmont, NY.

 

Beth Nadler (New Rochelle/Mamaroneck)

Always an artist, Beth Nadler has been painting since she cold hold a paintbrush. The artist graduated from Carnegie-Mellon University with a BFA and continued her studies at Parsons School of Design. Beth has had a long-time career designing for the wholesale gift market and in licensing her work. Right now she's spending most of her time painting and selling her work from her light filled studio in Mamaroneck, NY. "Color and design are my passion and If I can add a bit more beauty to this world then I'm doing what I'm meant to do".

Kat Sayegh (New Rochelle)

The driving forces behind my work are the deep emotions that only my subconscious can reach.  Within these feelings live the traumas that I have experienced throughout my life as an injured athlete.  These memories are released through my work, which makes art my therapeutic process. My memories, my struggles, my x-rays, my MRI images and the organic shapes of the nervous system serve as the basis of my inspiration.

My creative process begins with an intuitive idea and then I construct my artwork.  I force my acrylic on canvas paintings to go through what I went through. I cut them.  I rip them. I paint with only my hands, which allows me to have a more personal connection with the painting, as I feel it come to life.  I paint on the floor and walk around the canvas as I paint. This allows my entire body to become part of the painting process.

I have an intense fixation with ideas of protection and healing.  I layer different materials such as tape, paper, string, netting, raw canvas and paint.  I focus on colors that relate to wounds, bruises, blood and scars as they heal. I also combine linear elements with organic shapes that suggest nerves.  All these themes coincide with my main concept that everything I create is an inner self-portrait fueled by repressed memories and emotions.

 

Stefanie Wolfson (Yonkers)

Stefanie is a trained print maker who graduated from SUNY Purchase. Her work deals with the way humans interact with landscapes specifically how they relate to personal memories and dreams. In the novel, The Poetics of Space, Gaston Bachelard writes: “Daydream transports the dreamer outside the immediate world to a world that bears the mark of infinity.” Her work is created to have a tension between the personal memories and dreams of the viewer and the impersonality of the landscape itself.