June 8, 2021
In September 2002, with a generous grant from the NYC Department of Cultural Affairs, Kamala Cesar, Artistic Director of Lotus Music and Dance, and Carl Nelson, Producer, created Drums Along the Hudson®: A Native American Festival. It began as a traditional Pow Wow to celebrate Native American heritage and culture, and also to commemorate the Lenape people who first inhabited Inwood Hill Park, or Shorakapok (“edge of the water”). This event first took place annually in the spring, thereafter we added something new and different each year to make the event more exciting and enjoyable — including a Shad tasting, a White Pine tree planting (the Iroquois symbol of peace), international foods, drummers and dancers and a Native American Arts in Education Initiative. The event has attracted attendees from 400 in the first year to over 8,000 in recent years. Learn More.
Drums along the Soccer Field.
