In 2003, Higginsen created the School of Gospel, Jazz, and R&B Arts. Three years later, she formed the award-winning Gospel for Teens program to train youth and “save the music.” According to Lesley Stahl from CBS’s 60 Minutes, “The Gospel for Teens program is not just teaching gospel, it is saving these kids.” Mama Foundation members have performed at numerous special events including the TED2012 Full Spectrum conference, the Congressional Black Caucus, The Stellar Awards, and a reception for Archbishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa. Madonna, Chaka Khan, opera singer Jessye Norman and gospel artist Shirley Caesar are among the many stars that have shared the stage with the Gospel for Teens Choir.

A renovated five-story brownstone on a residential block on West 126th Street between Lenox Avenue and Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Boulevard in Manhattan has been the home of the Mama Foundation for the Arts (MFA) since its inception in 1998. One block away is the foundation’s performance space, The Dempsey Theater, where thousands have enjoyed Mama, I Want To Sing: The Next Generation and Sing Harlem Sing!

What is so wonderful about the work that Mama Foundation is doing is their commitment to bring the arts not just as entertainment but as personal enrichment through the Vy Higginsen’s School of Gospel, Jazz and R&B Arts.

Earlier this year Mama Foundation held a series of lessons for learning to sing gospel. Now Mama Foundation is hosting a series of learning to sing jazz and blues. So step into being a active part of the artistic new Harlem Renaissance. The classes are from 7 to 9pm on four series of Wednesdays: May 22, May 29, June 5 and June 12.  Classes are $80 for the four sessions. To register by phone call (212) 280-1045 or see their website at mamafoundation.org.

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Morningsider is pleased to continue our guest blogger features with food writer Gabrielle Denson who will be writing about the food experience Uptown. 

At last, spring is underway and the weather is tailoring the weekends with sun. With Harlem’s restaurant scene transiting into a lively and colorful scene, unique Brunch events with music are also making their own mark.  With menus ranging from savory to sweet and entertainment as an added touch, Brunch has taken on its own unique identity. This weekend, Harlem has a Brunch scene worth exploring that marrying both music and food.

Harvist Harlem, Brunch Jam

Harvist Harlem and The High End Agency will present Brunch Jam this Saturday May 18 from 11AM-4PM. Brunch Jam will feature a curated pre fixe menu for guest to enjoy alongside DJ Prince spinning Hip Hop, R&B, Reggae, and a collection of rare remixes. Pre-fixe brunch starts at  $39.99 and includes an appetizer, entree, coffee or tea, and unlimited sangria and mimosas. Menu items include Seasonal Vegetable Frittata, Shrimp and Grits, Challah French Toast, and Southern Fried Chicken. For reservations visit www.OpenTable.com/Harvist-Harlem

Harvist Harlem 46 West 116^th Street; @HarvistHarlem www.harvistharlem.com

Beir International, Andrienne Hindmarsh Trio

Beir International creates an ambiance of jazz and blues this Sunday May 19 with a brunch featuring New Zealand artist Adrienne Hindmarsh Trio. Brunch will run from 11:30AM until 4PM and Adrienne Hindmarsh preforming from 1PM-4PM. Bier International is regarded as Harlem’s first biergarten highlighting international and domestic bier and food. Brunch items include Crab Cake Benedict, Buttermilk Pankcakes, and the Norweigian Smoked Salmon Omelet.

Beir International 2099 Fredrick Douglas Blvd; @bierint http://www.bierinternational.com/events

Shells Bistro, Jazz Brunch

Harlem’s newest spot graces Sunday with Jazz Brunch from 2PM-6PM. Offering live music nightly, Shell’s Bistro and Jazz Lounge menu ranges from Curry Chicken Skewers, Rigatoni, and of house specials including Grilled Salmon and Salmon Skewers.

Shells Bistro 2150 5^th Avenue; @ShellsBistro http://www.shellsbistro.com/menu

Harlem Tavern, Jazz Brunch Peter Sparacino

On Saturday, Harlem Tavern will merge jazz and brunch. Brunch begins at 11AM and jazz by Peter Sparacino starts at 12PM. Brunch items include Seafood Gumbo, Croque Madame, Eggs Benedict, and Cornflake Crusted French Toast.

Harlem Tavern 301 West 116^th Street; @HarlemTavern www.HarlemTavern.com

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Please tell us about Bikram Yoga and how you got started in yoga? 

Bikram Yoga is a series of 26 basic hatha yoga postures including 2 breathing exercises performed in a heated room. The heat is very beneficial and therapeutic. It helps reduce the risk of injury,  detoxifies the body, thins the blood to increase circulation and helps to oxygenate the blood and muscles. The classes are designed for the absolute beginner to the most experienced practitioner. I have been practicing Bikram yoga for over a 25 year period, on and off, throughout my life. I was introduced to it by a fellow dancer in Los Angeles many years ago and fell in love with it from my very first class.

What sets Bikram apart from other forms of yoga?

The obvious difference is the heat, which helps reduce the risk of injury. But I think what really sets it apart is that the practice is perfect for everybody. Although it is a challenging practice, it is not an intimidating practice. You don’t have to change how you eat, how you dress or your religious beliefs to participate — unless, of course, you want to! And while you are busy improving your body and your mind, your spiritual life will automatically improve as well.

How long have you been in business?
The yoga studio has been open 5 years this November.

We know that you experienced a major challenge  last year and avoided disaster in part with the help of some of your fellow Harlem business colleagues. Can you share some background on what happened?

As many small businesses do, we started out undercapitalized. We opened in 2008, right in the middle of the recession, but felt that if there was anytime that people would need yoga, this was the time, with so many people being “downsized” and laid off, we felt they would need a place to de-stress and re-group. We received the normal two months free rent from our building owners, but when construction took longer than anticipated, we began paying rent for almost 4 months before we were able to open. This set us back even more. Then, 2.5 years after we were open, we received a bill in the mail from Con Edison in excess of $45,000. Our electricity was turned off and was not restored until we paid $25,000.

We had been receiving and paying our Con Ed bills, however it turns out that Con Ed was estimating our bills based as they  could not gain access to the meters through the tenant below us, nor did they contact us via phone or mail to inform us that they were estimating our HOT YOGA STUDIO’s  bills for 2.5 years! This event pretty much sealed our financial downward spiral. We began becoming more and more late with rent payments and eventually, when the building owners switched management companies in January of 2013, we were shut down.

How were you able to secure your business?

We initially financed our start-up with personal loans and credit cards, which, of course, lowered our credit scores. After we were shut down, we went to traditional lenders and given the difficulty of the situation, they were unwilling to help us. When we felt we had nowhere else to turn, we turned to our students, fellow business owners, friends, colleagues and the Harlem community. We created a fundraising campaign and pre-sold class packages in anticipation of our re-opening. As difficult as it was for us to ask for help, we were overwhelmed by the outpouring of support, encouragement and love we received from everyone. We would not be back if it had not been for the generosity and support of so many.

What is the greatest lesson you learned from this whole experience?

Although we try to operate with the spirit of a family-owned “mom and pop shop”, it is essential that we make sure every “t” is crossed and every “i” is dotted when it comes to running our business. We have learned, first hand, the importance of focusing on spending time working ON the business and not just IN the business. If there was anything we know we could have controlled and done differently, it would have been to immediately try to find a temporary location for our students to practice in. We got so focused on “operation re-open the studio” that we neglected this very important detail and we lost many regular students as a result. I think we also kept believing we would open much sooner that it took. We are now working hard to re-gain the trust of our former students and hope that they will eventually return.

What are some of your favorite Harlem hot spots?

Very hard to choose, but I do enjoy 67 Orange street and Melba’s.  But overall, I am so thrilled with all the choices that Harlem now has. It was not like this growing up here.

Is there anything else you would like to add?

In addition to the wonderful time spent  re-building BYEH, I am currently performing on Broadway in the musical PIPPIN. We are in previews and open April 25th. Bikram Yoga East harlem has a great campaign going at www.luckyAnt.com where you can get great deals on class packages including one that gives you a year of unlimited classes PLUS 2 premium tickets to PIPPIN with a backstage pass!! I am very excited about this campaign because it is a win-win for both us and our students, plus I get to combine my two worlds together..Bikram and Broadway!
We will never be able to thank our supporters enough for helping to bring BYEH back!

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At Morningsider we are happy to profile Harlem Stage and its ongoing commitment to developing emerging artists.

Harlem Stage will host its signature dance series, E-Moves, which has for over a decade showcased extraordinarily talented choreographers who create fearless, trailblazing works on  Friday and Saturday April 12th and 13th and  the following Friday April 19th.  In a new twist this season, Harlem Stage has invited back nine of these daring dance-makers, all with sharply contrasting styles, placing them in teams of three creating original 30-minute pieces that will leave you breathless. Profiled  E-move dancers include Nia Love, Germaul Barnes & Maurice Chestnut
, Nathan Trice, Marguerite Hemmings & Hattie Mae Williams
,  Adia Whitaker, Satoshi Haga & Nelida Tirado.

Then following up on Saturday April 20^th, Harlem Stage will continue its cultivation of the next generation. Each of the nine profiled E-moves choreographers will select an emerging artist for the closing evening’s Harlem Stage Takeover.  The Harlem Stage Takeover promises to be an exciting creative experience by this collection of promising dance dynamos.  The evening will be topped off by a pulsating DJ dance party.

Harlem Stage is located at 150 Convent Avenue. Tickets can be purchased for $20 for E-moves and $10 for additional ticket to Harlem Takeover. For more information contact the box office at 212.281.9240 ext. 19 or 20.

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Punch Fitness Center

As the daffodils sprout and we head more to Central Park, a pleasing sight is the opening of the new studio of Punch Fitness Center. I was struck by the images on the construction banner and was inspired to find out more about the center. Here is what I found…Welcome to Harlem Adelino!

“The success of every business is dependent largely upon the hard work and sacrifice of an individual. At PUNCH Fitness Center, the cornerstone of our foundation is a man named Adelino DaCosta. Through a childhood of adversity, brought about by harsh Guinean environmental conditions, Adelino was raised to strive for perfection and saw kick-boxing as his escape. The sacrifices and long hours of practice paid off in 2002 when he won the NYC middleweight thai boxing championships. Throughout his quest for excellence, Adelino never lost sight of the lessons afforded him during the time he taught children the boxing skills he so carefully perfected; namely, the belief that kick-boxing could benefit anyone, regardless of age, sex or socioeconomic status.

Motivated by the knowledge that two of his former students had become international champions in their own right, Adelino turned his drive back to teaching. The confluence of Adelino’s meticulous attention to details and his ability to evaluate clients’ specific need and desires, readily translated into tailored solutions that garnered a loyal following. With the explosive growth in client base, and the necessary experience acquired, Adelino decided to open his own private kick-boxing studio.

Punch Fitness Center, with its sleek interior, polished surroundings and personal amenities reflect a lifestyle of luxury very counter to the environment that fostered Adelino DaCosta. However, underscoring the façade of luxury is the gritty hard work put forth by each client and trainer. Donning a pair of gloves and wraps, the average person is transformed into a fighter, goaded on by his or her own trainer. Side by side, lawyers, stay at home moms and every one in between freely give up their titles, accepting only that of fighter.”

Punch Fitness is slated to open in Harlem condominium building of at 110^th and Central Park North. For more information contact harlem@punchfitnesscenter.com.

Blink Fitness

Blink Fitness continues its NYC expansion, bringing the concept of a non-terrifying $20-a-month gym to Harlem at the new retail complex at 125^th and Frederick Douglas Boulevard. Blink is the mass-market spinoff from a respected but expensive Equinox brand. The goal is to reach New Yorkers with minimal workout needs, people who don’t require anything more than some cardio equipment but can’t fit a treadmill in their apartments.

To that end, Blink program generally offers no classes and few amenities—if you want a towel, you’ll have to rent one from a vending machine. Where they didn’t skimp was design or equipment—the interior has an industrial modern feel, and the appliances are the same Life Fitness and Precor devices that Equinox uses. In a typical gym there is an area for stretching and one for socializing near at the entrance, where members can find reasonably healthy food in vending machines (ideally not the same ones where they keep the towels.)  Apparently 16,000 sf has been leased for the Harlem location.

For more information visit the Blink website at Blink website or the marketing offices at 122^nd and Adam Clayton Powell Boulevard.

My Gym

On April 4, a new My Gym facility will open in the space previously occupied by the Little Gym of Harlem.   My Gym has developed an extraordinary program and facility devised to help children 6 weeks thru 13 years of age develop physically, cognitively and emotionally. My Gym has  over 200 locations in more than 25 countries offering structured, age-appropriate, weekly classes that incorporate music, dance, relays, games, special rides, gymnastics, sports and more. Children have loads of fun as they gain strength, balance, coordination, agility and flexibility while developing social skills, confidence and self-esteem. Their state-of-the-art facility, extensively trained staff, award-winning class programs, and excellent student/teacher ratio have earned My Gym the reputation as the best early learning program of its kind.

For its Harlem opening, My Gym is making a new member offer to try 4 weeks of gymnastics, dance, yoga, theatre or martial arts classes (1 class per week), or for just $10 more you can also get 4 open play sessions. For more information contact My Gym in Harlem or check out the class schedule online.

The post Energizing new fitness options for Harlem! appeared first on MORNINGSIDER.

Easter Egg Hunt in Marcus Garvey Park

This Saturday, March 30, 11:00AM-2:00 PM

There will be an Easter Egg Hunt at Marcus Garvey Park, Lawn next to the Pelham Recreational Center at Mount Morris Park West and 122nd Street.  Easter activities for ages 3-12 at Marcus Garvey Park including egg decorating, Easter Egg hunt along with prize giveaways and refreshments. The event is sponsored by the Marcus Garvey Park Alliance, the City of New York Parks & Recreation and the Mount Morris Presbyterian Church.

Dinosaur Egg Decorating & Egg Hunt

Sunday, March 31at 2pm
Bank Street Bookstore, 610 West 112th Street at Broadway

An egg hunt with a prehistoric twist: Instead of looking for plastic or hard-boiled chicken eggs, kids can search the bookshop for dinosaur eggs, and then work on dino-themed arts and crafts.

Easter Activities at the Children’s Museum of Manhattan

Saturday, March 30 and Sunday, March 31 10am-4pm
212 West 83rd Street between Amsterdam Avenue and Broadway

Free with admission of $11.
The tot spot offers a trio of holiday activities. Preschoolers can create Easter collages while school-age kids decorate actual eggs. CMOM also hosts a twist on the usual egg hunt: Visitors search for half a dozen paper eggs that are hidden throughout the museum. Once located, kids can redeem their completed hunt sheets for Easter prizes.

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Highlights include a curated series of green-focused panel discussions, with topics that include Farm to Table, Active Living and Beautifying Urban Spaces. The series will take place on 3 Wednesday evenings between April 3 to April 17, at MIST (My Image Studios) at 116st between 5th and Lenox Avenues. Community events include a full day of activities presented by HP2P members in Morningside Park, that include yoga for children, an adult fitness boot camp, bike safety and dog training demos, health screenings and more.

The program will culminate with the actual Global Earth Day celebration in Marcus Garvey Park on Sunday, April 21, with family oriented offerings like arts and crafts, gardening, outdoor yoga, live music and more. A full outline of the program and participants is below:

COMMUNITY FITNESS DAY:

Sunday, April 7th, Morningside Park (10 am to 2 pm)

Adult fitness boot camp with Brownstone Fitness
Children’s yoga workshop with Chloe the Yogi;
flat fix workshop with MODSquad Cycles; mini dog training sessions/dog watering and treat station with Doggedly Devoted ; and healthy beverages and snacks with Body Local.

PANEL DISCUSSION SERIES:

Wednesday evenings, April 3rd through April 17th, MIST (My Image Studios), 116th Street between Lenox Avenue and 5th Avenue (7 pm to 8:30pm)

April 3rd

Farm to Table: The New Food Movement will be reviewed with focus on farm fresh/organic foods. The session will explore the benefits of locally produced foods to our every day lives
food supply.  It will also explore the fresh food supply chain (grocer, farmer’s markets, urban gardening). The session will also address teaching nutritional value to children.

Confirmed panelists: Marcus Samuelsson, chef/owner, Red Rooster Harlem;
 Candice Kumai, chef/author, Cook Yourself Sexy; 
Elly Truesdale, northeast regional local forager, Whole Foods Market; Kathy Karp, President, Karp Resources; Ken Migliorelli, Owner Migliorelli Farms; Rhys Powell, President Red Rabbit LLC; Cassandra Quinlan-Ashford, Chef, Harvist at MIST Harlem.

April 10th

Environmental justice/active living: This panel will explore how our external environment influences our internal environment.

Confirmed Panellists: Peggy Shephard, Environmental Activist, We Act; Donnel Baird, BlocPower;
Hunter Armstrong, Executive Director, CIVITAS; and Tony Hillery, Founder, Harlem Grown.

April 17th

Beautifying urban spaces: Transforming a community/neighborhood

This panel will focus on recyclable materials — reusable materials in art and architecture. Also it will address sustainable transformation — creating green space in urban environments.

Confirmed Panellists: Carlton Brown, Chief Operating Officer Full Spectrum; New York
Recyclable Materials Artist selected by the Studio Museum of Harlem;
Chris Vanterpool, Dir. of Capital Administration of the New York Restoration Project.

GLOBAL EARTH DAY

Sunday, April 21st, Marcus Garvey Park (10 am to 2 pm)

A full day of activities will take place in Marcus Garvey Park to coincide with Global Earth Day:

• Bottle cap picture frame art project with Barbara Coccioletti and Papa John’s; Harlem Face painting with Layla Jade;
Earth Day Parade with PS180;
Urban gardening, planting/window box with Harlem Flo – A Flower Boutique
• Earth friendly bristle robot art project with Robofun
Mini dog training sessions with Doggedly Devoted;
Nutrition for children sampling with Red Rabbit
Outdoor adult; children’s yoga with Bikram Yoga East Harlem and Chloe the Yogi; Flat fix workshop with MODSquad Cycles
• Energy saving demonstration with Con Edison Green Team;
Recycling demonstration with Glen Nison, Outreach NYC Department of Sanitation;
Farmers market information with Community Markets;
Health and wellness table vendors with Harlem Skin Clinic (Skin care demo); Lenox Coffee (Fair trade coffee sampling); United Healthcare
Live music/entertainment provided by Sundae Sermon and Kwame and the Uptown Shakedown
Guest speaker

The post Celebrate Harlem Earth Day 2013! appeared first on MORNINGSIDER.

Since the beginning of 2013 there have been major advances in planning underway at key retail development sites on the 125^th Street corridor.

125^th and Frederick Douglas Boulevard (“FDB”) – northwest  corner

The Adjmi family and Aurora Capital Associates, a New York development company, are building four-story 100,000-square-foot shopping center.  The project will be anchored by a 30,000 square-foot Designer Shoe Warehouse, the city’s first Joe’s Crab Shack, a health club under Equinox’s lower-priced Blink brand, as well as a party supplies store.

125^th and FDB – southwest  corner

Grid Properties and the Gotham Organization, the developers of Harlem U.S.A., indicated in a recent NYTimes article that they expect to lease the shopping mall’s only current vacancy — an 11,000-square-foot space that was previously occupied by a bookstore and the Hip-Hop Culture Center — to a casual sit-down restaurant.

125^th between Adam Clayton and FDB

Grid Properties and the Gotham Organization are constructing a $14 million, three-story retail next to the Apollo Theater, which will include a Red Lobster restaurant.

125^th and Lenox

Retail developer Jeff Sutton is planning a 180,000 sf five-story glassy building with national anchors including a 40,000-square-foot Whole Foods supermarket, a 70,000-square-foot Burlington Coat Factory and a 8,500 sf American Eagle store.

Also in earlier stages of development is the mixed used redevelopment of the Victoria Theatre site on 125^th between Adam Clayton Powell and FDB as well as the redevelopment of the Taystee Bakery site on 125^th through 126^th Street between Morningside and Amsterdam Avenues.

Combined the retail projects currently in development or under planning would add over 300,000 sf of retail and restaurants to the 125^th Street corridor in Central and West Harlem. This count does not include the pipeline of retail and mixed used developments being considered for the East Harlem portion of the 125^th Street corridor.  The look and feel of 125^th is surely positioned to be in transition just in time for the current 200^th anniversary of 125^th Street. For more information on the 125^th Street do check out the 125^th Street Business Improvement District at http://www.125thstreetbid.com.

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The March program will feature special film premieres. The world premiere of  School of My Dreams by Barbara Rick and Deborah Santana, provides  a portrait of the teenage students of Daraja Academy, a free Kenyan boarding school for exceptional girls. This film demonstrates how education is expanding their vision and unlocking their dreams. The Silent Treatment by Martine Jean will have its New York premier and features a unique period piece, where a young woman is giving her cheating man “the silent treatment”.  Also highlighted is an appearance by the Diva of Calypso, Calypso Rose: A Lionness in the Jungle courtesy of Women Make Movie. Calypso Rose a creative documentary film about memory and the exchange and discovery of world cultures, combined with the story of the journey of a remarkable Afro-Caribbean woman and an exemplary artist.  Rose will be present for the Q&A for the film, followed by an abbreviated performance.

For more information, contact MIST Harlem

46 West 116^th Street

http://www.myimagestudios.com

646·688·5886

The post Celebrate Women’s History Month 2013 at MIST Harlem appeared first on MORNINGSIDER.

Africa Now! Artist Talk Panel 
March 15 at 7:30 to 8:30 pm on Apollo Soundstage

Come participate in a meet-the-artist panel discussion with Africa Now! artists and hear how their cultural identities inform their unique brand of music and how, in turn, that music fosters global exchange and transformation. Participants include Blitz the Ambassador, Lokua Kanza, Nneka, and members of Freshlyground and The Soil.

The discussion will be moderated by WBAI’s Esther Armah.

The Soil 
March 15 at10 pm (bar and dooors 0pen at 9pm) on 
Apollo Soundstage

The Soil, a 4-member acapella singing group whose music can best be described as ‘Kasi Soul, performs the next generation of South African choral singing. The group brings soulful new anthems from the townships in lush 4-part harmonies punctuated with percussive beat boxing.  The Soil fuse their voices to deliver melodic and harmonious messages that uplifts the world and heals souls!

Family Showtime: Freshlyground
March 16 at 11am on
Apollo Soundstage

Freshlyground is Cape Town-based, multi-racial septet that has achieved superstardom in South Africa and Europe. Their upbeat, easy-on-the-ear Afropop blend has earned them number-one hits, including the 2010 FIFA World Cup theme “Waka Waka,” which they sang with Shakira. At times referencing a maskanda rhythm or incorporating mbira (thumb-piano), or singing Xhosa, Freshlyground’s infectious grooves delight stadiums of fans.  As said in Boston.com, the group provides “a better image of harmonious post-apartheid Africa than any tourism board advertisement could.

 Mainstage Concert March 16 at 8PM
 in Apollo Theater

A blow-out concert featuring Blitz the Ambassador, a Ghanian-born rapper who, with his brass-heavy Embassy Ensemble, unites worlds of hip-hop, Afrobeat, highlife and soukous; Nneka, the Nigerian-German hip-hop/soul songstress who draws on reggae, blues, folk and rap in her anthems of protest and struggle; the Cape Town-based, multiracial pop sensation Freshlyground; and Congolese troubadour Lokua Kanza, whose haunting voice and folk-like songs have made him out of the most beloved African stars of the last 20 years.

Tickets: $30, $40, $55

In person at the Apollo Theater Box Office

By phone call Ticketmaster (800) 745-3000

Online at Ticketmaster.com

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