Angela Dunn Jenkins-Bey has been studying West African drum and dance for 10 years and has danced with Lannaya for the past six.  With a strong love for dance, she taught herself, family, and friends all the latest moves growing up in Ft. Worth, Texas.  While attending Angelo State University, she performed and choreographed with the dance team, and taught Hip-Hop aerobics.  Angela would like to thank her husband and children for supporting her love of West African drumming and dancing. 

Elvie is a student of Guinea West African Performing Arts.She began her journey into her cultural heritage in 2003 as a Djembe drum student.Soon thereafter Elvie discovered West African Dance under the teachings of Jean Claude Lessou.In 2004 life took Elvie on a journey to Guinea West Africa under the leadership of Moussa Diabate.This amazing journey to the land of her ancestry impacted her deeply. Changing her perception of whoshe is and offering her the courage to be powerful.
In 2005 Elvie began an intense mission of commitment to study from the masters of the Guinea Dance:Youssouf Koumbassa is from the Landouma and Baga/SuSu tribe. Youssouf is a world renownedteacher. Youssouf performed with Ballet Djoliba the National Ballet of Guinea for 12 years. Youssouf is described as grace in motion. Learning from Youssouf has inspired Elvie to take her time to learn and discover the depth of movement imbedded within and connect to the music of the drum. Moustapha Bangoura is of the Baga and SuSu tribe. Moustapha boast a 22 year career with the National Ballet of Guinea, Les Ballets Africains. Learning from Moustapha has taught Elvie the basic foundation for all Guinea dance rhythms. Elvie has performed as a dancer with various entertaining acts in Austin and in Dubai.
In 2005- to present Elvie has been a member of The Djembabes as primary dancer. Within this circle of all women artist Elvie has felt nurtured and free to be creative.
In 2008 Elvie traveled to Dubai. She continued her study of African dance with classes in Ghanaian music. While in Dubai she traveled the United Emirates with Dubai Drums as a drummer and dancer. 
In spring of 2008 Elvie was honored to perform on the Dubai Jazz International Music Stage. In 2009 Elvie joined Sakebo African Drum and Dance Ensemble as a dancer. This African Drum and Dance ensemble performed traditional music from Ivory Coast and Guinea under the direction of Jean Claude Lessou.
In 2010 Elvie joined Lannaya West African Drum and Dance Ensemble under the leadership of AlsenySylla and Abu Sylla where she is currently a dancer. She also serves as a member of the Board of Directors for Lannaya which holds the status as a 501C 3.
Elvie is also a Licensed Massage Therapist specializing in Myofascial Release and is a Registered Yogateacher. Elvie at present is a student at Texas State University in the School of Social Work.

Kimberly Caterino began studying West African dance & drum in 1996 in Burlington, Vermont. In 2000 she studied in Conakry, Guinea with former members of Les Ballets Africains, and in 2001 joined Burlington’s Jeh Kulu Dance and Drum Theater. Her primary teachers in Burlington were master dancer Sidiki Sylla and master drummer Ismael Bangoura, both from Conakry, Guinea. With Jeh Kulu she performed festivals and conferences in the greater New England area, collaborated to organize Vermont’s Annual West African & Drum Conference, and spearheaded a variety of multicultural professional development workshops for educators. She is a former English Teacher with a M.A. in English and a M.Ed. in Curriculum and Instruction. Her love of music and sunshine inspired her to move to Austin, Texas in 2008.  She is very happy to join Lannaya!

Leida Tolentino grew up in the creole dancing culture of the Cape Verde Islands (West Africa). A passionate student of West African and African diaspora dance and music styles since 2002, Leida performed for five years as a member of the Balafon West African Dance Ensemble and the Nego Gato Afro-Brazilian Music and Dance Ensemble. She currently shares her knowledge and joy of dance with dedicated Austinites through her regular classes. Leida is grateful to all of her teachers and is thrilled at the opportunity for further growth as a member of Lannaya. She holds a Ph.D. in Cognitive Psychology and Neuroscience, her other life passions.

Noah Mosgofian has been drumming for 20 years. His performance career includes 6 years of touring with the international percussion sensation STOMP, and tours with Lost at Last (RCA records), Del Castillo, Atash, and scores of other award-winning bands playing Cuban salsa, afro-beat, funk, Brazilian axé, and many other styles. He has taught thousands of students here and abroad, working with the San Francisco Ballet's dance outreach program and the '99 Edinburgh Int'l Festival.Noah's teachers include the top names in many disciplines: Mamady Keita, "Changuito" Quintana, Mike Spiro, C.K. Ladzekpo, Fara Tolno, Jorge Alabe, Mabiba Baegne, and many more. Noah hopes to build Austin's drum/dance community and introduce a new generation of passionate artists to the power and beauty of West African drumming.-----------------------------

Owen Towles has been a percussionist for approximately 15 years.  He has spent time learning rhythms from two different continents, having traveled to Brazil, Guinea, and Mali.  While in Africa he studied with drummers and dancers from the National Ballet of Guinea. Owen continues to study and perform with Alseny Sylla and Aboubacar Sylla of Austin, Texas.  Owen has been a member of Lannaya West African Drum and Dance Ensemble since it's inception in 2001.  He is also member of Academicos de Opera a Samba School also based in Austin, Texas.

Sevylla del Mazo is a full-time musician, teaching artist, and mother who has been studying and performing West African and Afro-Caribbean traditional music for 15 years, and has over 10 years experience working with “at-risk” youth. In 2000 she received certification in Afro-Cuban drum and dance from the Casa de la Cultura, Old Havana, Cuba, and returned to Cuba in 2001 for additional training. In 2006, she was commissioned to produce a Cuban “carnaval” float for the inaugural First Night Austin festival, a New Year’s celebration of the arts, and in the fall of 2008, was awarded a grant from the City of Austin’s Cultural Arts Division to bring drum programming to the Dove Springs community which now operates in four area public schools, and led to the creation of the Roots & Rhythms program. In addition to her work with youth, she serves as board member, grant writer, booking agent, and veteran performer for Lannaya. She also plays in the Austin area with Latin-Jazz trio, Acoustic Jungle; and finally, performs and facilitates for the Drum Cafe, an international, drum-based, team building organization.