Contact

For information, booking, or inquiries, please contact royal hartigan at royaljhartigan@yahoo.com or (508) 999-8572

Credits

Website designed by Andrew Bourne, Ogunquit, ME.
The 305 Creative Co. | abourne@305c.com

Additional assistance by Ted Williams at Half Moon Bay, CA; previous site design by Kevin Goode at San Jose, CA, and updated by James Bohn, New Bedford, MA.

African cloth designs by the people of Kopeyia and Anyako villages, Volta Region, Ghana, West Africa.

Blood Drum Spirit double CD produced by John Hilton and royal hartigan, Virtual Studios, Albany, N.Y. It was recorded between January and March 1993 and mixed by Ted Malia, Virtual Studios in May 1993, with additional mixing and mastering by Tom Tedesco, Wavelength Studios, Portland, OR, 1997. It was reissued by Innova Records, Philip Blackburn, director, St. Paul, MN, 2003. Artwork and design by Albert Edmonds. Photography by Tim Kao, John Hilton, Weihua Zhang, and Heidi Mitchem. It features musicians Kevin McNeal, Wes Brown, David Bindman, Michele Navazio, and Brad Jones. The Eve enhanced video on disc 2 features the ensemble and dancer Tysehaya D. Smith of Albany, NY, and the people of Ghana, West Africa.

ancestors double CD produced by royal hartigan. It was recorded and mixed between January 2000 and August 2007 by Daniel Sabanovich at his Creative Percussion and Recording Studio at Willow Glen in San Jose, CA. Editing and mixing by Jon Rosenberg at the Corner Store, Brooklyn, NY, July 2006 and January 2007. Mastering by Sean Flynn in Albany, NY, January-March 2008. Artwork and design by Andrew Bourne. Additional design elements by Sarah Muskie Stanton. Photography by Weihua Zhang, Andrew Nozaka, Ziddi Msangi, Raymond Librizzi, Victor Gay, Marie Hartigan, Donald Harris, Ben Polin, Hazel Clark Gay Hartigan, Frank Hartigan, Tassone Studio, and Sidney Kantor. It features musicians Baomi, Weihua Zhang, Danongan Kalanduyan, Yu Fuhua, Sandra Poindexter, Timothy Volpicella, Conrad Benedicto, C. K. Ladzekpo, Masaru Koga, and Hafez Modirzadeh.

blood drum spirit: the royal hartigan ensemble live in china double CD produced by royal hartigan. Sponsored by Zhangfan. It was recorded in May 2006 by Lorenz Kirchner assisted by Xie Ming at the Midi School for Music, Haidan, Beijing, China. Editing and mixing by Jon Rosenberg at the Corner Store, Brooklyn, NY, July 2006 and January 2007. Mastering by Sean Flynn in Albany, NY, January 2008. Chinese calligraphy by Chung ho Chang. Artwork and design by Andrew Bourne and Lindsay Amaral Schwer. Photography by Weihua Zhang, Andrew Nozaka, Ziddi Msangi, Wes Brown, Art Hirahara, Li Tienan, Thinking Hands, and the Dashanzi International Arts Festival. It features musicians Art Hirahara, Wes Brown, and David Bindman.

Eve video (also as enhanced CD video on the Blood Drum Spirit CD, Innova 2003) produced by John Hilton and John Rafalak, Virtual Studios. Videography by John Rafalak, Jake Diefendorf, Weihua Zhang, Godwin Kwasi Agbeli, Heidi Mitchem, and royal hartigan. It features musicians Kevin McNeal, Wes Brown, and David Bindman, dancer Tysehaya D. Smith of Albany, NY, and the people of Ghana, West Africa.

Blood Drum Spirit: Drum Languages of West Africa, African America, Native America, Central Java, and South India, a 1700-page book with text and music, published by UMI/ProQuest 1986 (Ann Arbor, MI, www.proquest.com). With Freeman Kwadzo Donkor, Abraham Kobena Adzenyah, Edward Blackwell, David Park McAllester, Paul Hadzima, I. M. Harjito, Sumarsam, and Tanjore Ranganathan. Audio recording and photography by Robert Lancefield. Text realization by Mary Chin.

West African Rhythms for Drumset book with CD, with Freeman Kwadzo Donkor and Abraham Kobena Adzenyah. Dan Thress editor, Dorian Romer photography, Areta Buk layout, Jack Waltrip cover design, cloth weaved by Isaac Gedzah. Audio recording by Andruid Kerne. Additional assistance by Emily Morefield and John Riley. Manhattan Music/Warner Brothers, Miami, FL 1995, and Alfred Publishers, Los Angeles, CA, 2004. It features musicians Abraham Kobena Adzenyah, Kwabena Boateng, Martin Kwaakye Obeng, Maxwell Akomeah Amoh, Sarah Thompson, and Aziz Botchway.

Rudiments on Parade by percussionist Clifford Adams of Pittsfield, MA, Print Tech Publishers, Burlington, VT, 2004. Consulting with Ben and Susan Ghobadi. Produced and edited by royal hartigan. Book design and layout by Ben Ghobadi and royal hartigan. Finale music notations by Tim Swan. Photographs by Alex Valdivia, Kristina Hines, James Almo, royal hartigan, the Reilly Raiders of Philadelphia, PA, and the Cadets of Bergen, NJ. Photo scanning by Alexander H. Harrington and royal hartigan.

Dancin' on the Time book with DVD, Tap Space Publishers, Portland, OR, 2006. Edited and produced by Murray Gusseck, video production by Eric Neil, 180 Films. Videography by Ziddi Msangi and Murray Gusseck. Photography by Aziza Akiah Williams, Angela Cerci, Joshua Nierodzinski, Amanda Fraser, Victor R. Grant, Andrew Nozaka, Ariel Hall, Ray Hart, and Hazel Clark Gay Hartigan. In Ghana 2002 ensembles the musicians included the Dzigbodi Boboobo ensemble and the Lashibi community ensemble of Anyako Village, Volta Region, Ghana, West Africa, and the Adzohu ensemble of Aflao, Volta Region, Ghana. The ancestors concert ensembles included Baomi, Weihua Zhang, Danongan Kalanduyan, Conrad Benedicto, C. K. Ladzekpo, Masaru Koga, Hafez Modirzadeh, Simon Desjardins, Art Hirahara, and John-Carlos Perea. The Trio and Tap musicians included Kurt Ribak, Masaru Koga, and Roosevelt 'The Preacher' Jackson.

West African Eve Rhythms for Drumset, Print Tech Publishers, Burlington, VT, 2009, with Samuel Elikem Nyamuame, Abraham Kobena Adzenyah, Helen Abena Mensah, Emmanuel Kwaku Agbeli, Kwabena Boateng, Godwin Kwasi Agbeli, Edward Tekpah, Yaotse Agbeli, Agbeko Sodzedo, Mary Agama, Blankston Sodzedo, C. K. Ladzekpo, Kpeglo Kofi Ladzekpo, Emmanuel Kwasi Yevutsey, Daviza Damali, Olu Nudzor Gbeti, the Dzigbodi Boboobo ensemble, Aflao Adzohu Society ensemble, Lashibi Community ensemble. Videography by Ziddi Msangi, with assistance from Gamali Kwami Ladzekpo, Kpeglo Kofi Ladzekpo, Kobla Dogbe, and Daniel Nocero. Digital video editing, authoring, and mastering by Joel Fuller, Plebeian productions. Photography by royal hartigan, Hazel Clark Gay Hartigan, James Hartigan, Ray Hart, Weihua Zhang, Susan McAllester, Godwin Kwasi Agbeli, Ziddi Msangi, Heidi Mitchem, Idit Kubitsky, Victor R. Grant, Nancy Lane, Robert Lancefield, Robert Levin, Andy Nozaka, Dee Confar, Heather Tripp, Kristina Hines, James Almo, Tim Kao, Amanda Fraser, Angeli Cerci, Aziza Akiah Williams, Joshua Nierodzinski. Music engraving by royal hartigan, Anna Davidson, Douglas O'Grady, and Tim Swan.

Adinkra symbols from Adinkra Symbols and Their Meaning by Prof. Abade Glover, College of Art, University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana, West Africa, and from Meaning of Symbols in Adinkra Cloth by Kwaku Ofori Ansa, Sankofa Publications, Hyattsville, MD. Used with permission.

Additional videography for my website:

Heather Tripp, Ziddi Msangi, Roberto 'Bo' Razon, Verne dela Pena, Weihua Zhang, royal hartigan, Wu Wen-guang, Xujie, Zhangfan, Li Tienan, Leon Lee, Ann Condon, Murray Gusseck, Mr. Zhu, Allison Yii, Luo Yong, Jia Lu, Godwin Kwasi Agbeli, John Schoenoff, Mark Gawlak, Emmanuel Kwaku Agbeli, Bernard Woma, Mark Kearley, Gerald P. Dyck, I. M. Harjito, Fred Ho, Big Red Media, Brooklyn Academy of Music.

Additional audio for my website:

John Jannis, James Bohn, Tim Swan, Jayson Newell.

Additional photography for my website:

Allison Yii, Zhang Yii, Oren Slor, Rob Mayer, Niki Magtoto, Jayson Newell, Dee Confar, Hafez Modirzadeh, Xie Tan, Charles Slay, Hazel Clark Gay Hartigan, James Hartigan, royal hartigan.

Other Publication Credits

Articles

“The American Drum Set: Black Musicians and Chinese Opera along the Mississippi River,” in Afro-Asia: Revolutionary Political and Cultural Connections between African Americans and Asian Americans, eds. Fred Ho and William Mullen, Duke University Press, Durham, NC, June 2008.

"The Beijing Midi School of Music's Modern Music Festival in May 2006 and royal hartigan's Blood Drum Spirit Ensemble Tour in Southern China" and "A Field Trip to West Hunan Province, P. R. China: Daliuzi and Wei Gu Percussion Music," with ethnomusicologist Weihua Zhang, publication pending.

“Jazz in Beijing,” with Weihua Zhang, Music in China, 2004, Los Angeles, CA.

“Ongoing Report from Beijing,” with Weihua Zhang, Music in China Vol. 3 No. 2 October 2001, Los Angeles, CA.

“Ghanaba and the Heritage of African Jazz,” The Annual Review of Jazz Studies 9, 1999, Rutgers University, NJ.

“The Heritage of the Drumset,” The African American Review spring 1995.

“Let Me Play My Drums,” transcription and article; and “The Role of the Drumset in Ghanaian Highlife,” transcription and article, Percussive Notes, Vol. 31 No. 4, April 1993, Lawton, OK.

Book Reviews/Interviews

“Thinking in Jazz - the Infinite Art of Improvisation,” by Paul Berliner, The Annual Review of Jazz Studies 9, 1999, Rutgers University, NJ.

“New Musical Figurations – Anthony Braxton’s Cultural Critique,” by Ronald M. Radano, World of Music, Vol. 37(2) 1995

Interview 'Playing Other People's Music' from book Sounding Off! edited by Fred Ho and Ron Sakolsky; published by Autonomedia Press, Brooklyn, N.Y. Jim Fleming, general editor.