On February 9, 1964, The Beatles’ group appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show electrified the nation. Four months later, a young Steven Van Zandt had an “epiphany” while watching The Hollywood Palace, another variety show. That night, singer Dean Martin hosted—and then teased—The Rolling Stones, representing a generational shift. The past met the future, and … Continued
Charles Frazier recalls when the North Carolina Symphony traveled to the small towns of western NC on their annual state tour. The symphony’s visit to the rural and relatively isolated communities exposed Frazier and his classmates to a bold new type of sound—and a new way of thinking about art.
I first discovered what being a global citizen meant when I was just thirteen and a part of the MTV Generation. MTV debuted in 1981, but in rural Virginia I didn’t get my MTV until 1986. It was the era of the super group. The famine relief charity, Band Aid, had surprised everyone with the … Continued
A single book forever changed the way young Bill Carbone thought not only about drumming, but the world. Grateful Dead percussionist Mickey Hart’s Drumming at the Edge of Magic illuminated the connections between spirituality and music. It also introduced Carbone to the world of ethnomusicology, or the study of music and cultures.
Butthole Surfers was the band. Locust Abortion Technician was the album. Bob Schneider’s life would never be the same.
When I was young my father, knowing of my interest in music and war, gave me a book entitled “Singing the Vietnam Blues: Songs of the Air Force in Southeast Asia.” Actually, he had it hidden so well he lost it and gave it to me years after he intended. I ended up losing it … Continued
Fresh out of graduate school, Jon Parrish Peede embraced the chance to travel, arriving in Eastern Europe during the dissolution of Czechoslovakia. A last-minute decision to see the opera Don Giovanni in Vienna—and a startling conversation with a local ticket-taker—opened his eyes to the double-edged legacy of American military intervention. During that same trip, a … Continued
Some years ago, I was asked to give a lecture to students enrolled in a small university’s humanities program describing the personal epiphany I experienced which led to my passion for the humanities. Try as I might, I could not think of an isolated, single experience but rather a series of moments that stretch back … Continued
Some would say music is the most powerful of the arts. The album To Pimp A Butterfly by Kendrick Lamar is just that, powerful. The overall theme of the album revolves around the black experience in America. This album is an emotional, gut wrenching roller coaster. With George Clinton and Thundercat production, To Pimp A … Continued
Juan Felipe Herrera, a performance artist, activist, and U.S. poet laureate in 2015, recalls how his third-grade teacher’s compliment on his singing voice led to his lifelong belief in using his voice to encourage the beauty in the voices, stories, and, experiences of others. He goes on to speak about the power of the humanities … Continued