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Henri's Notion creates a musical mix of traditional Celtic and American music as well as their own compositions that have a rhythm and voice reflective of their Southern heritage, which lends a pleasing familiarity to the music.Seasonal music from husband and wife duo, Annette and Bret Heim, who combine the flute and classical guitar in an exquisite, intimate experience. Their ability to bring their audience into their performances ensures repeat request and performances. They present compositions by living American and British composers of note in an audience-friendly way. Their performance at the National Czech and Slovak Museum was described as "absolutely astonishing."A full program of music of The Four Eagles Quartet a capella gospel group is presented from a program originally recorded during the "Sounds of the Seasons" performance series held at the Alabama State Capitol building in 2002.Joey Brackner interviews renowned folklorist Henry Glassie about his life and research of vernacular architecture in the Southern United States, and particularly in Alabama.Joey Brackner interviews linguists Dr. Thomas Nunnally and Dr. Catherine Davies about the new Tributaries: Journal of the Alabama Foliklife Association Vol X that deals entirely with the dialects of Alabamians and southern speech.This program is a rebroadcast of Steve Grauberger interviewing Doug Back on the history of Classic Banjo. The program includes musical examples from Back's CD releases, The Banjo Goes Highbrow and The Big Trio Reprise on the Belmando label.Yvette Daniel interviews actor Ella Joyce about here one woman play A Rose Among Thorns: A Dramatic Tribute to Rosa Parks.ASCA Literature Fellowship Recipient in Poetry, Jennifer Horne talks with Jeanie Thompson, Executive Director of the Alabama Writers' Forum, about Horne's love of Southern farming and gardening, her work as an anthologist, and her forthcoming poetry collection Bottle Tree (WordTech, 2010). Horne's anthologies include Working the Dirt: An Anthology of Southern Poets, published in 2003 by New South Books, and All Out of Faith: Southern Women Writers on Spirituality, edited with Wendy Reed and published by the University of Alabama Press. Horne holds an MFA from the University of Alabama, has published poems online in StorySouth.com and other literary journals, and is poetry book reviews editor for the Forum's Book Reviews on line.Betty Ann Lloyd interviews Kathryn Tucker Windham about the John Reese photo exhibit featuring the people of Gees Bend, now on display at Gees Bend Quilt Collective. Kathryn also discusses her time as a newspaper reporter and amateur photographer.Randy Shoults interviews Jannetta Whitt-Mitchell about various aspects of the Gulf Coast Ethnic and Heritage Jazz Festival that takes place during the first weekend in August each year in Mobile.Arts Council Executive Director Al Head interviews Beth Nielsen Chapman about her life as a popular singer/songwriter and as an educator. They also discuss Chapman's inspirations and her unique process of songwriting.Yvette Daniel, Performing Arts Program Manager interviews George Culver the Executive Director of the Historic Ritz Theatre of Talladega, Alabama. On October 31st and November 1st 2008. the Ritz will be hosting Hal Holbrook in MARK TWAIN TONIGHT. These performances are billed as among the final few of this historic production's run. Culver also discusses educational programs connected to Ritz Theatre presentations and the interesting history of this historic theater in Talladega.Anne Kimzey, folklorist with the Alabama State Council on the Arts, interviews Jefferson County quilter Bettye Kimbrell about her work with 4-H Club students and their quilt exhibit at Birmingham Botanical Gardens. Kimbrell is a 2008 recipient of a National Heritage Fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts. The exhibition The Quilts of Bettye Kimbrell: Celebrating the National Heritage Fellowship is on display at the Alabama Artists' Gallery in the RSA Tower, 201 Monroe Street, Montgomery from September 19 - October 31, 2008. A reception honoring Mrs. Kimbrell is scheduled for Tuesday, October 7, 2008, from 4-6 p.m.Joey Brackner interviews editors Jeff Jakeman, Claire Wilson and Ben Berntson about the new online Encyclopedia of Alabama.Georgine Clarke interviews Tuscaloosa quilt artist Yvonne Wells, whose quilts are known as story or picture quilts. Her hand-stitched fabric constructions use rich symbolism and vivid colors, with themes ranging from religion to social and political issues. She also frequently produces whimsical and humorous pieces. Of particular note are her portrayals of the Civil Rights movement, with quilts depicting the history of slavery as well as icons Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Rosa Parks. She has represented the State of Alabama in international cultural programs in France and Italy. In the interview, Yvonne talks about her choice of materials and also discusses two projects: twelve quilts she describes as "a book" titled On the Move and a group depicting the Seven Deadly Sins.Arts Council Executive Director Al Head interviews Bill Ivey, Director of the Curb Center for Art, Enterprise, and Public Policy at Vanderbilt University. Subjects discussed are Ivey's background as past head of the National Endowment for the Arts, his involvement with the Curb Center and issues concerning Ivey's recently published book, arts, inc.: How Greed and Neglect Have Destroyed Our Cultural Rights. Joey Brackner interviews Eric McKinney and Russell Gulley about the Annual Dekalb Fiddling Convention held in Ft Payne.Joey Brackner interviews Sally Smith and Jamie Lawrence of Alabama Contemporary Theater. They discuss "Birmingham Rhapsody" a play being developed from oral histories that the theater has been collecting about Birmingham's Civil Rights era.
Georgine Clarke interviews Alabama artist Stephen Savage of Daphne. Savage received the 2002 Alabama State Council on the Arts Individual Artist Fellowship in photography in 2002. He teaches and also produces both commercial and fine art photography. The discussion covers elements of the art form and the uses of digital photography as well as current approaches to teaching. Savage describes the Alabama Photo Book project which he is producing with print maker and art book designer Amos Paul Kennedy, Jr. In this project participating Alabama photographers provide a photograph which is used with limited text to produce a simple eight page bookSand Mountain fiddler Gene Ivey is the subject of this week’s program on Alabama Arts Radio. Folklorist Anne Kimzey talks to Mr. Ivey and his apprentice Joseph Coleman about playing music and making handcrafted fiddles at Ivey’s workshop in Ider.This show is a repeat of an earlier broadcast in acknowledgment of playwright and educator Billie Jean Young as a recipient of the 2008 Alabama State Council on the Arts Fellowship in the area of theater. Fellowships are the most prestigious of grants awarded to individuals by the Council. In this program, Steve Grauberger interviews actor and playwright Dr. Billie Jean Young, in Yantley Alabama, about her play Oh Mary Don't you Weep: The Margaret Ann Knott Legacy. Also interviewed is Choctaw, County educator and civil rights activist Carrie Mae Johnson.In this program, Anne Kimzey, folklorist with the Alabama State Council on the Arts, travels to the Alabama Folk School at Camp McDowell near Jasper. She talks with Folk School director Megan Huston and potter Sandra Heaven about pottery making and other craft and music classes offered in this natural retreat setting.Rebroadcast of Steve Grauberger interviewing Kevin Nutt, of CaseQuarter Records talking about his research on early blues recording artist Ed Bell from Greenville, Alabama. His Tributaries article on the subject can be obtained at Alabamafolklife.org. Kevin can be heard weekly, online, at WFMU with his radio program Sinners Crossroads.This program is a rebroadcast of Steve Grauberger interviewing Stanley Smith, John Etheridge, and Bill Aplin, elected officers of the Sacred Harp Book Company (Cooper revision), includes Sacred Harp singing examples.Meagan Vucovich, summer intern for the Alabama State Council on the Arts, interviews Patti Hendrix Lovoy, director of VSA Arts of Alabama, along with Ali DeCamillis, art therapist, Dr. Rodney Tucker, director of the UAB Palliative Care Unit, Dr. Avi Madan-Swain, a Pediatric Psychologist/Neuropsychologist at UAB. The discussion focuses on VSA Arts of Alabama’s Arts in Healthcare program.
This is a repeat of Gina Clifford, director of Design Alabama, interviewing Cheryl Morgan, Professor at Auburn University and Director of the Center for Architecture and Urban Studies, about Your Town Alabama Workshop. Your Town Workshop is an intensive two-and-half day event that includes: lectures, case-study presentations, and interactive group problem solving scenarios involving community planning and design work in a hypothetical small town.This program is a rebroadcast of Joey Brackner interviewing Alabama's curator of historic song - Bobby Horton. Best known for his CDs of Civil War era music and membership in the popular band Three On a String, Mr. Horton also discusses his family's musical heritage and his work composing songs for numerous Ken Burns' documentary films. Bobby Horton was a recipient of a 2005 Governor's Arts Award.DesignAlabama was honored to have Thomas Hylton, of Save Our Land, Save Our Towns as a speaker at their 2008 DesignAlabama Mayors Design Summit. As a former newspaper, man, this Pennyslvania native and resident has turned a passion for a walkable world into a successful non-profit organization promoting walkable communites, downtown redevelopment and historic preservation. Join us during this radio program as we learn more about what individuals and communties can do to save our land and save our towns.Anne Kimzey, folklorist with the Alabama State Council on the Arts, interviews Birmingham photographer Mark Gooch about his career and his recent project documenting Alabama folk artists for the exhibition Carry On: Celebrating Twenty Years of the Alabama Folk Arts Apprenticeship Program. (click here for PDF)Jeanie Thompson, executive director of the Alabama Writers' Forum, interviews poet and Gadsden, Alabama native Jake Adam York, whose collection A Murmuration of Starlings was recently published by Southern Illinois University Press. The book won the Crab Orchard Review Open Poetry Competition in 2007. Thompson talks with York about the elegies for slain civil rights workers and other individuals, including Emmit Till who was killed in Money, Mississippi, that comprise the collection. York's previous book, Murder Ballads, contains the first of these elegies, and he plans to continue the sequence through several more poetry collections. He teaches at the University of Colorado in Denver where he directs the undergraduate creative writing program.In this program Anne Kimzey, folklorist with the Alabama State Council on the Arts, interviews Jefferson County quilter Bettye Kimbrell about her work with 4-H Club students and their quilt exhibit at Birmingham Botanical Gardens. Kimbrell is a 2008 recipient of a National Heritage Fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts.Jeanie Thompson, executive director of the Alabama Writers’ Forum, interviews two writers who participated in the 3rd Annual Alabama Book Festival on April 19. Kate Gale, founding editor of Red Hen Press of Los Angeles, California, and Richard Goodman, author of French Dirt and The Soul of Creative Writing, also taught writing techniques and discussed publishing on April 18 at the inaugural creative writing workshop open to the general public as part of the Festival outreach.Yvette Daniel interviews Alabama Shakespeare Festival's Chief Operating Officer Michael Vigilant about upcoming events and his new play Bear Country. Also on this program is an interview with Elyzabeth Wilder about her new play Furniture of Home. Both plays were developed through the Southern Writers Project at the Alabama Shakespeare Festival.Deborah Boykin interviews Mary and Bill Smith about their work in the Folk Arts Apprenticeship program.Part III of our Series on the Alabama Arts Education Summit held in Troy, Alabama February 21-23, 2008. Focusing on the essential link of communities and K-12 schools, Diana Green interview Dr. Lisa Stamps, principal at Gordo Elementary in Pickens County, about the partnerships she has developed to enhance the arts in her school, and how the Summit supported her efforts.Part II of our Series on the Alabama Arts Education Summit held in Troy, Alabama February 21-23, 2008. Focusing on the essential link needed between higher education and K-12 schools, Diana Green, arts in education program manager interviews Professor and arts educator Larry Percy, who hosted the Summit at Troy University in Troy Alabama. Mr. Percy discusses the potential for higher education to take a leading role in providing quality arts education in K-12 schools.Part I of a 4-Part Series on the Alabama Arts Education Summit held in Troy, Alabama February 21-23, 2008. The theme for this statewide conference was “Creating partnerships to ensure quality arts education in Alabama.” As an introduction to this series, performing arts program manager Yvette Daniel interviews the four partners that were instrumental in the planning and implementation of the Summit: Diana Green, arts in education program manager at the Council, Donna Russell, executive director of the Alabama Alliance for Arts Education, Martha Lockett, executive director of the Alabama Institute for Education in the Arts, and Sara Wright, director of academic innovative initiatives at the Alabama State Department of Education.Jeanie Thompson, executive director of the Alabama Writers’ Forum, interviews Ace Atkins and Rheta Grimsley Johnson, two authors who will be joining 70 others at the 3rd Annual Alabama Book Festival, April 19 in Montgomery’ Old Alabama Town from 9 a.m. – 4 p.m.This weeks program features Georgine Clarke interviewing Dan Halcomb, Deputy Director of the Huntsville Arts Council. Subjects discussed deal with issues of Huntsville area arts organizations, educational programs and various attributes of this year's Panoply Festival, to be held April 25th the 27th, 2008.Jeanie Thompson, executive director of the Alabama Writers’ Forum, interviews Montgomery author Kirk Curnutt. Curnutt is a 2007 Literature Fellowship recipient from the Alabama State Council on the Arts. His novel called Breathing Out the Ghost has just been released from River City Publishing in Montgomery. Kirk Curnutt is the author of several scholarly works, most recently The Cambridge Introduction of F. Scott Fitzgerald, and Coffee with Hemingway (an entry in Duncan Baird Publishers’ series of imaginary conversations with leading historical figures). He is also the author of a collection of short stories, Baby, Let’s Make a Baby, also from River City Publishing. He is a former finalist for both the Tennessee Book Award/Peter Taylor Prize and the Dana Literary Awards. Curnutt is a three-time consecutive winner of the Hackney Literary Award for short stories. Thompson speaks with him about the craft of writing, shaping the structure of a novel, and the relationship of an author’s mythic landscape to his work. This week, Joey Brackner, Director of the Alabama Center for Traditional Culture, interviews Anne Kimzey, folklorist with the Alabama State Council on the Arts.They discuss the state’s master artists whose craft and music traditions are featured in an exhibit titled Carry On: Celebrating Twenty Years of the Alabama Folk Arts Apprenticeship Program.Diana F. Green, arts in education program manager, visits with Vassie Welbeck-Browne and Malik Browne, after a performance of Langston Hughes: Emperor of the Muse, which was held for students at Demopolis High School on Friday, February 28th . Vassie & Malik are teaching artists from StoryTree Company, participating with the Alabama Institute for Education in the Arts, as part of a Dana Foundation project. This project trains artists in the Black Belt region to partner with local schools to implement arts integration programs. Vassie and Malik work primarily in Greene County, where they have developed an anti-violence/conflict resolution drama program for high school students.This is a rebroadcast of executive director of the Alabama Writers’ Forum Jeanie Thompson interviewing Sena Jeter Naslund, 2000 Harper Lee Award Winner, Hall-Waters Award Winner and recent participant in last year's 2nd Annual Alabama Book Festival. Sena Jeter Naslund is the author of five novels, Abundance: A Novel of Marie Antoinette , Four Spirits, Ahab's Wife; Or, the Star-Gazer, Sherlock in Love, and The Animal Way to Love, also two short story collections, The Disobedience of Water and Ice Skating at the North Pole. Naslund founded and directs the Spalding University Brief Residency MFA Writing Program in Louisville, KY and is Writer in Residence at the University of Louisville. She is currently the Kentucky Poet Laureate.This is a rebroadcast Anne Kimzey, Folklife Specialist for the Alabama Center for Traditional Culture, interviewing Sudha Raghuram a dancer in the Indian classical tradition of Bharatanatyam (Bah-rah-tah Nah-tee-yahm). She is a master artist with the Alabama State Council on the Arts' folk arts apprenticeship program. In the interview, Sudha describes this ancient dance form and tells about teaching it here in Alabama.For this program, Joey Brackner interviews David Johnson, director of the Alabama Music Hall of Fame, about the 2008 Induction Banquet and Awards Show presented February 22nd at the new Marriott Renaissance Hotel and Convention Center in Montgomery. Johnson discusses this year's award recipients and the talent to perform during the event. Musical examples are included.In this program, Visual Arts Program Manager Georgine Clarke interviews Mobile Museum of Art director Tommy McPherson. McPherson discusses the various collections and educational programs his museum has to offer the public. Also discussed are future exhibits and the museum's connection to the immediate community of contemporary artists in the Gulf Coast area.In this program, highlighting Black History Month, Steve Grauberger interviews actor and playwright Dr. Billie Jean Young, in Yantley Alabama, about her play Oh Mary Don't you Weep: The Margaret Ann Knott Legacy. Also interviewed is Choctaw, County educator and civil rights activist Carrie Mae Johnson. To help promote the 23rd Alabama Clay Conference, to be held this year at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa on February 8-10, this program is a rebroadcast of Georgine Clarke interviewing two Alabama ceramic artists who taught at the 21st Alabama Clay Conference. Larry Percy is on the Art faculty at Troy University. His work has been inspired by the time he has spent in the Southwest, particularly New Mexico. He talks about that influence of the land in his sculptural, vessel forms. He also discusses his ways of teaching at a college level. Scott Bennett owns Red Dot Gallery in Birmingham, where he produces his work and also teaches classes. As a relatively new Alabama resident, Scott talks about the strong clay community of artists in the state and also describes approaches to his own work.This program is a rebroadcast of Alabama shapenote music and its history in preparation for this year's Annual Capitol Rotunda Four-Book Shapenote Singing that will be held on Saturday, February 2nd. Due to a scheduling conflict, the singing will not be in the Capitol Rotunda but at the Alabama Department of Archives and History off of Union St between Adams and Washington in Montgomery. The singing will start at 9:30 am and end at 3Pm. The public is welcome to come and listen or sing. Afterwards, at 3pm, there will be reception for the exhibition "Carry On: Celebrating Twenty Years of the Alabama Folk Arts Apprenticeship Program" at the Alabama Artists Gallery located on the first floor of the RSA Tower at 201 Monroe Street. In this program Joey Brackner interviews storyteller Donald Davis and the Brundidge Historical Society's Johnny Steed about this year's Piddler's Storytellin' Festival that will feature Sheila Kay Adams, Kathryn Tucker Windham, Donald Davis and Andy Offutt Irwin. Included in the program are stories told by Donald Davis, Kathryn Tucker Windham and Andy Irwin.
