Recap

Recap consists of four percussionists—Arlene Acevedo, Alexis Carter, Tiahna Sterling, and Aline Vasquez—who are all women of color and actively promote greater diversity within percussion performance. The ensemble issued its first recording, Count to Five, on the Innova label in 2021.

The members describe themselves as “a new percussion quartet from a new generation of musicians seeking to redefine what classical music ensembles can be,” adding that they “embrace their diverse backgrounds as well as the history and culture of their city to create a musical identity uniquely their own.” Acevedo has stated, “We want to show the world that anyone can do this. We're young women of color doing this ... and you can too!” The four first met as close friends while attending high school in Rahway, New Jersey, and later joined the tuition-free youth ensemble Mantra Youth Percussion, which operates under the Mantra Percussion organization.

After presenting concerts throughout the New York metropolitan region, the quartet gained wider notice in 2021 with an appearance that August at the New Music Gathering in St. Paul, Minnesota. Count to Five presented newly commissioned pieces by Angélica Negrón, Allison Loggins-Hull, Ellen Reid, Lesley Flanigan, Mary Kouyoumdjian, and Caroline Shaw, highlighting the group’s command of an extensive array of percussion instruments and found objects alike. Looking ahead, Recap intends to undertake international tours of contemporary works, encourage younger musicians considering careers in new music, and, in 2022, partner with indigenous Alaskan artists on a hybrid project that merges live performance with documentary film, supported in part by Found Sound Nation, the Wildshore Festival for New Music, and the U.S. National Park Service.