Alabama Arts Radio
By Council on the Arts
Each week, members of the Council staff visit with Alabama’s musicians, painters, sculptors, writers, and other special individuals who contribute to the state’s rich artistic traditions. This special radio series is affiliated with National Public Radio, Public Radio International, the Associated Press and the Alabama Broadcasters Association.
Alabama Arts RadioMar 04, 2014
Jacqueline Viskup, Ren Carroll / the Freedom Quilting Bee
In this episode, Jacqueline Viskup and Ren Carroll learn about the history of the Freedom Quilting Bee in conversations with Kim V. Kelly, volunteer director and board members Lonnie Brown, Jr., Patty Irby, Taylor Irby, and Sheila Smith, all of whom grew up in Alberta, the Wilcox County community where the FQB is located.
Annemarie Anderson / Caitlin Lollar
In this episode, Annemarie Anderson talks with Caitlin Lollar, director of the Folk School at Camp McDowell. They discuss the history of the folk school, what people can expect when they attend classes there, and upcoming classes for the year.
Rosemary Johnson / Tanya Wideman-Davis / Thaddeus Davis, part 2
In this episode, Rosemary Johnson talks with Tanya Wideman-Davis and Thaddeus Davis of the Wideman-Davis Dance Company about their work with the community to create performances based on everyday black life in Montgomery, using archival photographs to spark the process.
Rosemary Johnson / Tanya Wideman-Davis / Thaddeus Davis, part 1
In this episode Rosemary Johnson of the Alabama Dance Council talks with Tanya Wideman-Davis and Thaddeus Davis of Wideman-Davis Dance about their approaches to developing a dance piece in collaboration with a community, referencing Migratuse Ataraxia, which they presented in collaboration with the community of Harpersville, Alabama and Klein Arts and Culture.
Rosemary Johnson / Lindsay Viatorri of Helen Simeneau Danse
In this episode, Rosemary Johnson, executive director of the Alabama Dance Council, talks with Lindsay Viatorri of Helen Simeneau Danse. As one of the largest gatherings of dancers and dance enthusiasts in the Southeast, the Alabama Dance Festival features master classes with world-renowned teachers, audition opportunities, teacher training, networking, performances by regional dance groups, and a guest company. Each year, the Alabama Dance Festival boasts a weekend full of performances. Participants and public alike enjoy work presented in a range of styles and traditions by schools, studios, companies, and choreographers.
Annemarie Anderson / Jennifer McCohnell
In this episode, Annemarie Anderson talks with Jennifer McCohnell, an artist who talks about the traditional arts practiced in her family and how they influence her work and artistic choices. She reflects on how learning from traditional masters gives a depth of understanding of the tradition and her role in its practice.
Amy Jenkins / Ave Maria Grotto
In this episode, Amy Jenkins visits St. Bernard Abbey in Cullman, Alabama to learn more about the Ave Maria Grotto and Brother Joseph Zoettl, the monk who created the miniature buildings that replicate religious and secular sites. She talks with Abbot Marcus Voss, Roger Steele, and Renée Welsh to get perspectives on the significance of the Grotto and what it means to visitors.
Deb Boykin / Debbie Bond
In this episode, Deb Boykin visits with Debbie Bond, a blues singer, guitarist and historian and a co-founder of the Alabama Blues Project. Debbie talks about the artists she’s worked with and documented, describes her songwriting process, and explains a bit about Alabama Blues History. She also talks about her CD, Blues Without Borders.
Annemarie Anderson / Clarke Country Historical Museum
In this episode, Annemarie Anderson talks with Kerry Dunaway, Director of the Clarke County Historical Museum about their upcoming event Pioneer Days. Traditional storyteller Debra Robinson and Winky Hicks, banjo player and luthier talk about their traditions and give a preview of their performances.
Jacqueline Viskup / Norah's Playhouse
In this episode, Jacqueline Viskup talks with Caroline Reddick-Lawson, director, and Mariah Reilly and Chason Marvin, leads in Ashes and Ink, the current production of Nora’s Playhouse. Reilly and Marvin perform an excerpt from the play and all three discuss the process of working with playwright Martha Pichey to develop the show.
Anne Kimzey / Ashley Jones
In this episode Anne Kimzey talks with Ashley M. Jones, poet laureate for the State of Alabama and recipient of a fellowship in poetry from the Alabama State Council on the Arts. Ms. Jones describes the deep feeling she has for her home state of Alabama and how she came to appreciate her identity as an Alabamian after moving to Miami to attend graduate school.
Jacqueline Viskup / Huntsville Arts in Medicine
In this episode Jacqueline Viskup talks with Melissa Lofton, director of the Arts in Medicine program and Kate Leonard, music therapist at Huntsville Hospital. Melissa and Kate explain how the arts enable patients to tap into their creativity as part of the healing process and serve as an outlet for staff to renew their energies, especially with the challenges created by COVID.
Anne Kimzey / Jennifer Horne
In this episode, Anne Kimzey talks with Jennifer Horne, poet laureate of Alabama from 2017-2021. They discuss the challenges of being poet laureate through the pandemic, Horne’s works in progress, and her efforts to make poetry accessible and meaningful outside the academic community.
Jacqueline Viskup / Slavery in the Shoals
In this episode, Bryan Murphy, curator at Pope’s Tavern Museum; Nadine Mairesse, exhibit designer, and Valerie Goodwin, artist and architect, join Jacqueline Viskup to talk about the exhibit Slavery in the Shoals. They discuss the piece Valerie was commissioned to create and how it helps to define and illuminate the exhibit space.
Jacqueline Viskup / SAFE Theater Program
In this episode, Jacqueline Viskup visits with Amy McDonald and J. Patrick McDonald of the Southern Dance and Performing Arts Company. They discuss their partnership with the Sylacauga Alliance for Family Enhancement to bring theater and dance to Talladega County schools and communities.
Anne Kinzey / Gwen Chafin
In this episode Anne Kimzey talks with basket maker Gwen Chafin and her apprentice Brenda Powell. Gwen describes learning from her father, who was a skilled white oak basket maker. Brenda tells how she and Gwen met and the two explain how they have come to work with a variety of materials beyond white oak.
Anne Kimzey / Elizabeth Hughey
In this episode, Anne Kimzey visits the Desert Island Supply Company, a Birmingham literary non-profit, to talk with co-founder and programming director Elizabeth Hughey. In addition to discussing the work of DISCO, they talk about Elizabeth's own writing. She received a 2022 Literary Arts Fellowship in Poetry from the Alabama State Council on the Arts.
Anne Kimzey / Don Noble
In this episode, Anne Kimzey talks with Don Noble, editor of Alabama Noir, a collection of short stories set in Alabama, by Alabama writers. Dr. Noble discusses the process of selecting writers and editing the collection. He reads one of the stories, “The Men in the Woods” by Daniel Wallace.
Russell Gulley/Travis Wammack
In this episode, musician and researcher Russell Gulley talks with legendary guitarist Travis Wammack. Travis, who started playing in Memphis as a child billed as "Little Travis Wammack," recalls the time he borrowed Carl Perkins's guitar, which was almost too big for him. He also talks about his songwriting and how both Little Richard and Tom Jones were eager to cut his song "Greenwood, Mississippi." Travis explains some of his technical innovations including the use of a "borrowed" drive-in speaker on his hit instrumental "Scratchy."
Deb Boykin/Stanley Smith
In this episode, Deb Boykin talks with Stanley Smith, recipient of the 2022 Alabama Folk Heritage Award. Stanley is a Sacred Harp singer, composer, and singing school teacher from Ozark, Alabama. He talks about his early experiences with Sacred Harp singing, his friendship with National Heritage Award recipient Dewey Williams, and the importance of Sacred Harp music to the community.
Euri Carr and Jacqueline Viskup / Mary Settle Cooney
In this episode, Euri Carr and Jacqueline Viskup talk with Mary Settle Cooney, who recently retired as executive director of the Tennessee Valley Art Association. Mary Settle, who is the 2022 recipient of the Johnnie Dee Riley Little Lifetime Achievement Award, reflects on her career and the projects she and the TVAA have undertaken and talks about the importance of engaging the community in the work of an arts organization.
Anne Kimzey/Christi Britton/Jonathan Cain/Amita Bhakta
In this episode, Darshan: Visions of India, a series of exhibitions and events at the Tennessee Valley Museum of Art is the focus Anne Kimzey's conversation with Christi Britton, executive director of the Tennessee Valley Art Association, Jonathan Cain, curator, and Amita Bhakta, artist. Exhibitions included Moments of Radiance: Art by Amita Bhakta, the Darshan Invitational Art Show, which featured work from 20 Indian American artists, an exhibition of the work of Geeta Dave, and an installation replicating a rural dwelling in Gurjrat, the most western part of India.
Euri Carr/Kimberly Copeland
In this episode, Euri Carr talks with Kimberly Copeland, Alabama Reading Initiative Coach for the Montgomery Public Schools. They discuss ways that Ms. Copeland incorporates the arts in her efforts to help students achieve literacy. Ms. Copeland also talks about her new podcast What the Fonics!?, which can be heard at:
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Anne Kimzey/Burgin Mathews
In this episode, Anne Kimzey talks with author and folklorist Burgin Mathews about his forthcoming book on Birmingham jazz and his current research on Alabama fiddler and fiddle maker Earnest Mostella. Mathews is a recipient of both a Literary Arts Fellowship from the Alabama State Council on the Arts and a Cauthen Fellowship from the Alabama Folklife Association.
Russell Gulley/Pierce Pettis
In this episode, musician, songwriter and music historian Russell Gulley talks with his life-long friend, singer-songwriter Pierce Pettis. Both men grew up in Fort Payne, Alabama and worked with the musicians at Muscle Shoals Sound during the 1970's. In addition to discussing Pettis's career, they recall the influence of older musicians they encountered, including former Nashville session player and Fort Payne native Don Phillips and Swamper Jimmy Johnson.
Jacqueline Viskup/Kristy Meanor/Doug Seagrest
In this episode, Jacqueline Viskup talks with Kristy Meanor, artistic director of the Wetumpka Depot Players and Doug Seagrest, journalist and novelist. Kristy and Doug discuss their collaboration to bring Doug's novel A Storm Came Up to the stage as a two-act play. This civil rights era story made its debut in late February, 2022, with the Wetumpka Depot Players.
Anne Kimzey/Sherry Burkhalter
In this episode, Anne Kimzey talks with Sherry Burkhalter, a master quilter in the Folk Arts Apprenticeship program. Sherry describes learning to sew from her mother, who was an accomplished seamstress and then later applying those skills to quilting. As a quilting teacher and owner of a shop specializing in fabric and other quilting needs, Sherry knows that quilting combines creativity and tradition. She talks about ways in which quilting can connect generations in a number of ways.
Jacqueline Viskup / Sam Wooten
In this episode, Jacqueline Viskup talks with Sam Wooten about his role as artistic director at The Cloverdale Playhouse. Sam explains the process by which plays are selected for a season and talks about the long-standing importance of community theater in Montgomery. He explains the need for participation by the city's diverse communities and his plans to bring members of those communities to the table at The Cloverdale Playhouse.
Joey Brackner / Sew Their Names
In this episode, Joey Brackner visits Willing Hill, a community in Lowndes County, to talk with some of the people behind the Sew Their Names project. The project grew out of an effort to identify and commemorate the enslaved parishioners who occupied the slave gallery of a historic church originally pastored and attended by slaveholders. It expanded beyond those individuals to allow community members to add the names of their enslaved ancestors to the final product, a quilt bearing all their names. The church building is currently owned and used by an African-American congregation who partnered with a descendant of the original minister on this project.
Anne Kimzey / Joey Brackner 2
In this episode, Anne and Joey discuss some of the traditional artists Joey has known and worked with during his career as a folklorist in his home state of Alabama. He also talks about his forthcoming book about traditional potter Jerry Brown, who received a National Heritage Fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts.
Anne Kimzey / Joey Brackner, part 1
In this episode, Anne Kimzey talks with Joey Brackner, who retired as Director of the Alabama Center for Traditional Culture in December of 2021. Joey reflects on more than three decades of his work identifying, documenting, and presenting Alabama folk traditions
Amy Jenkins/Joseph Brennan and Glen Robertson
in this episode, Amy Jenkins talks with Joseph Brennan and Glen Robertson of Mobile, who discuss their collaboration on a series of films for the Mobile Museum of Arts.
Amy Jenkins / Fantastical Forest at Mobile Museum of Art
In this episode, Amy Jenkins talks with Lucy Gafford, Ben Kaiser, and Vanessa Quintana about "The Fantastical Forest," an installation at the Mobile Museum of Arts.
Joey Brackner/David Amram part 2
This episode continues Joey Brackner's conversation with David Amram, musician, composer, and by his own description, holder of "a Master's Degree in Hangoutology." Trained as a classical musician, Amram developed his chops as a jazz player by hanging out and working with the likes of Thelonious and Dizzy Gillespie. He talks about these artists and others he's played with, including Willie Nelson, Steve Goodman, and Odetta as well as reminiscing about his friend, author Jack Kerouac.
Joey Brackner/David Amram part 1
David Amram is known for his work as a classical conductor and composer. He is an accomplished jazz musician. His film work includes scores for The Manchurian Candidate and Splendor in the Grass, among others. In this episode, he and Joey Brackner talk about his affinity for understanding and playing in various musical genres. Amram also recalls taking part in a 1971 Birmingham project that still resonates with him.
Amy Jenkins/Paul Barrett
In this episode, Amy Jenkins talks with Paul Barrett, incoming president of the Alabama Visual Arts Network. The discuss CARE packages, a network project and talk about AVAN's mission.
Amy Jenkins/Joi West
In this episode, Amy Jenkins talks with Joi West, a photographer who received a 2021 Fellowship from the Alabama State Council on the Arts. Joi talks about their creative process and the exploration of identity and relationships in their work.
Rosemary Johnson/George Staib
In this episode, Rosemary Johnson of the Alabama Dance Council talks with George Staib, artistic director of Staib Dance. They discuss Staib's approach to dance and the larger community, which will be reflected in the work Staib Dance will bring to the Alabama Dance Festival in January.
Amy Jenkins/Chris Boyd Taylor
In this episode, Chris Boyd Taylor, 2021 Visual Arts Fellowship recipient, talks with Amy Jenkins about his work, including a project that involves stadia around the Southeast.
Diana Green/Meg Jones
In this episode, Diana Green, Arts in Education program manager, talks with Meg Jones, recipient of an Arts Educator Fellowship from the Alabama State Council on the Arts. Meg talks about her her approach to teaching and the importance of knowing her students as individuals. She also recounts what it means to her to have received the Fellowship and how it is enabling her to advance her own education.
Diana Green/Soojin Park and Poetry Out Loud
In this episode, Arts in Education Program Manager Diana Green talks with Soojin Park of Auburn High School, who represented Alabama in the National Finals of Poetry Out Loud on May 27, 2021. Soojin talks about her participation in Poetry Out Loud, a program sponsored by the National Endowment for the Arts in which high school students throughout the state compete in reciting poetry.
Anne Kimzey/Foster Dickson
In this episode, Foster Dickson, recipient of a 2021 Literary Arts fellowship from the Alabama State Council on the Arts, talks with Anne Kimzey about his previous books and the on-line project he embarked on during his fellowship year.
Joey Brackner/Jason Sylestine
Jason Sylestine was born in East Texas. His mother was Coushatta, while his father was a member of the Alabama tribe. In this episode, Jason talks with Joey Brackner about his tribal culture and how moving to Alabama, the tribe's original homeland, has connected him more deeply with his history and culture.
Joey Brackner/Tommy Wier
Filmmaker Tommy Wier's lifelong interest in Alabama's Native American tribes inspired his film Another River to Cross - The Alabama Indian. In this episode, Joey Brackner talks with Tommy about his film and how the influence of Alabama tribes is deeply ingrained in the state's landscape and history.
Joey Brackner/Mary Palmer
In this episode, Joey Brackner interviews author, playwright, and Mobile native Mary Palmer about Mobile's Boyington Oak. She recounts the legend that inspired her book, The Boyington Oak: A Grave Injustice and talks about events inspired by the legend, including a play, and tours of Mobile locations related to the story. The episode also features, the song "Boyington's Oak," written and performed by Mike Turner.
Deb Boykin/Aaron Head
Fiber artist Aaron Head talks with Deb Boykin about his work with natural dyes and hand stitching. Aaron describes his approach to developing a dye garden, his experiences with working with materials found in nature, and the studio he has opened in his home town of Greensboro, Alabama.
Deb Boykin/Reed Watson
Reed Watson, drummer and label manager at Single Lock Records in Florence, Alabama, discusses his experiences as a musician and the label's philosophy. They seek to be a platform for Southeastern musicians whose work, to quote their website "doesn’t fit neatly into a specific category. Our goal is to gather and release an interesting and accurate collection of the best of Southern American music." He also talks about a collaboration between Single Lock and the Muscle Shoals Music Association to assist artists in financial need due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Joey Brackner/Carole King
Carole King, co-author of Alabama Quilts: Wilderness-WWII 1682-1950, talks with Joey Brackner about the years-long research she and co-author, the late Mary Elizabeth Johnson Huff, conducted for the book. Their work included quilt search days around the state as well as academic research.
Deb Boykin/Andrew Henley
Andrew Henley, deputy director of the Alabama State Council on the Arts, talks with Deb Boykin about his experiences as an arts educator and administrator. He also highlights Council's efforts to support the arts and artists in Alabama.
Joey Brackner/Al Head
In this episode recorded shortly before Al Head retired in 2018, he and Joey Brackner talked about Al's 33 years as Executive Director of the Alabama State Council on the Arts and his work in the arts at the regional and national levels.