Fall 2010
December 1
Joan Baez at Spring Hill College: A Study of Intersecting Histories
Stephen Kelly, Carleton College
Alumni Lounge, Brooklyn College Student Center
On May 7, 1963, Joan Baez gave a concert at Spring Hill College in Mobile, Alabama. This might seem an unremarkable event. After all, Baez performed on many college campuses, and this event evokes no stirring memories in the public mind. However, this performance, occurring the day after Baez attended the Birmingham Civil Rights demonstrations, takes on significance when viewed from the intersection of social, musical, institutional and personal histories. Stephen Kelly is Dye Family Professor of Music at Carleton College. He received his M.A. from Rutgers University and his Ph.D. from Ohio State University. He has been a Fulbright Scholar and has published editions of Niccolò da Perugia's music.
November 15
The DJ Hangs Himself? Authenticity in the Face of Extinction
Peter J. Vasconcellos, CUNY Graduate Center
Alumni Lounge, Brooklyn College Student Center
Two turntables, a mixer, and some crates full of records: the DJ's tools have barely changed since the late 1970s. But in recent years, new playback technology has stormed the market. The crates of records stay home while the modern DJ needs little more than a laptop. DJ software was heralded as a blessing, but is it? Startup costs for new DJs have dropped sharply and deejaying techniques have become push-button simple. What happens to the art of deejaying when "everyone's a DJ"? This talk discusses the effects of a flooded market and the defiant resurgence of the "vinyl-only" DJ. Live deejaying will be a part of this talk. Peter J. Vasconcellos is a Ph.D. candidate in ethnomusicology at the CUNY Graduate Center, a lecturer at Brooklyn College and a DJ.
October 23
Black Brooklyn Renaissance Concerts
The Harlem Renaissance is the project's symbolic point of departure, in that the literary and jazz-infused Harlem era of the early-20th century finds a powerful counterpoint in Brooklyn of the mid- to late-20th century to the present. In this era, Brooklyn has evolved as a site of diverse black cultures: African American, Afro-Caribbean, and West African diasporic.
Music Performances
- 1 p.m., Brooklyn College Library—Afro-Caribbean Drumming and Up-rocking Brooklyn Style, with Frisner Augustin, José Ortiz, the Dynasty Rockers and others
- 6 p.m., Levenson Recital Hall—Brooklyn Jazz with the New Cookers, featuring Kenyatta Beasley (trumpet), Keith Loftis (sax) and Anthony Wonsey (piano)
