Mausiki Scales has been a force in the Atlanta indie music scene for over two decades as a sought-after keyboardist and founder/musical director of the critically acclaimed ensemble Mausiki Scales and the Common Ground Collective. A recipient of the 2015 Georgia Governor’s Award for the Arts and Humanities, Mausiki is also a folklorist and historian who translates his knowledge into musical arrangements that leave his audiences moved and moving...literally. Whether performing as a trio or a full ten-member-plus ensemble, Mausiki Scales and the Common Ground Collective are known for taking fans on a fearless exploration of the pulsating rhythms of the African Diaspora, seamlessly connecting the dots between afrobeat, funk, hip hop, soul and New Orleans jazz in a single performance. They have performed in numerous celebrations, concerts, and special events throughout Africa and the Americas, including Ghana's Golden Anniversary Celebration, the National Black Arts Festival, Funk Jazz Café, and the Atlanta Jazz Festival. They have also collaborated with artists such as Roy Ayers, Babatunde Olatunji, Les Nubians, Stevie Wonder, The Last Poets, Third World, Russell Gunn, and Julie Dexter. Together Mausiki Scales and the Common Ground Collective have released four albums, the most recent, Passages: The Water Brought Us. They were recently featured on the Roy Ayers Fela-fied afrobeat version of “Everybody Loves the Sunshine.” Mausiki Scales’s project “Drums and Shadows” featured the juke joint-invoking single “No Tables, No Chairs” inspired by his 2nd-line parade and concert on the Atlanta Beltline. Mausiki recently released his latest CD project “WestWest Africa”. The single “Kaleidoscopic Universe” has achieved worldwide acclaim, and is a featured track on Spotify’s 'Jazz Funk' playlist.
Mausiki Scales and the Common Ground Collective | 2014
The purpose of this project is to create a culturally relevant, interactive musical experience using Afrobeat and Funk as a musical medium. Funk, Jazz, Soul and its African counterpart Afrobeat, have proven their ability to remove social barriers, regardless of age/gender/ethnicity. At this critical time in history, as many music and arts programs are being phased out of the schools, these genres have withstood the test of time and have recently inspired a Broadway musical, FELA! These expressions have also energized a new generation of musicians that use improvisational performance styles to express themselves. Historically, these performance ensembles were extensions of the communities where they honed their skills; Think 70s style bands like The JBs, Parliament, Mandrill and Earth, Wind & Fire; 2nd Line Jazz Parades in New Orleans; Afrobeat and Palmwine music in Nigeria, Highlife in Ghana; Calypso, Junkanoo or Carnival in the Caribbean; Atlanta’s HBCU Marching Bands. Mausiki Scales and the Common Collective seek to use the Beltline as an “urban interactive stage” to engagingly perform in the spirit of the “old school” musical traditions mentioned above.