ADAM KAMPE

moving sounds, pictures, and words.

Fifty-five mallets beat against fifty-five drums. Boom. Clack. Clack. Ba-da-da-da-dah, boom. Can you hear that? Da-da-da-DA-DA-DA. Boom! An occasional collective chant, "Batala!" rises up from the sea of drummers. Row upon row of women -- drums strapped around their waists -- rhythmically swing their arms as they attack and release. Click here to read the full article from the NEA Magazine.

Women, with mallets raised, march to the beat of their own drums in the DC Funk Parade.. Literally. — Batala drummers, mallets raised, march in the DC Funk Parade, to the beat of their own drums. Courtesy of Getty Images

Sparking Memories with Poetry: The Alzheimer's Poetry Project

Poet Gary Glazner bounded into the New York Memory Center with a dozen roses and an infectious smile. “My love is like a red, red, rose,” he called out to the students, who called back the same line with enthusiasm. Suddenly, the roomful of seniors in varying stages of memory loss came alive! Click here to read more. You can also listen to the accompanying audio at the bottom of the page.

Poet and educator claps along with two senior students in his workshop to trigger memories via poetry recitation — Poet and educator, Gary Glazner, claps along with two senior students in his workshop designed to trigger memories via poetry recitation. Image by Michael Hagedorn

Ken Brecher on the Power of Libraries in the 21st Century

Ken Brecher, library advocate, stands arms akimbo in a sharp blazer and blue polka dot tie. Image by Ryan Miller.

With a shock of white hair and colorfully clad, Ken Brecher, emitted a kind of magnetic forcefield that drew you to him, like a moth to a flame. Until his death in 2023, Brecher was one of those people you really want to sit next to at a dinner party—well-traveled, well-read, a cultural savant, and a fantastic storyteller to boot. He had a long, illustrious career in arts education--he once ran the Sundance Institute and the Boston Children's Museum, respectively--and was the President of the Library Foundation of Los Angeles. Click here to read a bit more about him and here to listen to him share some of his boundless knowledge.

W R I T I N G

¡Vamos a la calle! Celebrating DC's Latino Arts and Culture

Sparking Memories with Poetry: The Alzheimer's Poetry Project

Ken Brecher on the Power of Libraries in the 21st Century