ABOUT ME
Simone Mongelli is an Italian percussion player living in Greece, MA in Music Anthropology, graduated in Traditional Percussion Instruments: the shaping of his personal languages is based on his deep knowledge and long study of traditional techniques, which he applies to his own individual artistic needs of self-expression, of creative research. Without ever forgetting the deep respect that tradition deserves.
He has started dealing with Body Music in 2007, through seminars with Max Pollak (USA - Rumba Tap), Leela Petronio (France - Stomp, Hip-Tap Project) and Simone Clarke (UK - Stomp); since then he has been attending classes and seminars with Keith Terry (USA - Corposonic, Slamming All-Body band), Jep Melendez (Spain, Cambuyòn), Barbatuques, Danny "Slapjazz" Barber, and many other international performers.
In 2008 he founded with Thanos Daskalopoulos the first Greek Body Music project, "Kantu Korpu", which counts a good number of collaborations, with Greek bands "Kitrina podilata" and "Musica mista", with international tap dancers and performers Leela Petronio, Max Pollak, Heather Cornell and Keith Terry, appearances in festivals like "Going Youth" in Athens and "TapMotif Rhythm Summit" in Lefkada, and mainly the participation to the IBMF (International Body Music Festival), directed by Keith Terry, in 2011 and 2013 in San Francisco, and in 2012 in Istanbul.
The core idea of the project is building an innovative Body Music show starting from traditional material: the band has been working on Simone's creations based on traditional Greek rhythms, songs and tunes, with a small reference also to Southern Italian tradition. From the primary sources of inspiration the project gets to a truly outstanding, rich and powerful rhythmic result, where choreographies and a slight touch of humour contribute to the creation of an enjoyable contemporary Body Music show.
Simone follows the same path also as a solo performer, and has been collaborating in live shows and recordings with a lot of artists in Greece and abroad, he has appeared in festivals and in MM.
Lately he is working on his new project, "Bodyterranean", and on the recording of the firts Greek Body Music album, with very important collaborations from Greece and abroad.
He teaches Body Music in Athens and in seminars around the world, and has been using Body Music in custom formative workshops for professional artists, employees, children, teachers, in dance and music classes, in team building activities...