Arts and Culture

Sam Frazier

The Blues run through the blood of Birmingham musician Sam Frazier Jr. He grew up in Edgewater, the son a coal miner who brought home stories that would eventually inspire Frazier's songwriting. His family would host local barbeques and shows at his mom’s house. Performing next to big name artists such as Howl'n Wolf and Jimmy Reed was a typical thing in Frazier's life. Frazier’s latest album is The Long Lonesome Blues.

Gin Phillips

The Los Angeles times called Birmingham author Gin Phillips's first book The Well and The Mine an astonishing new novel. It's been compared to To Kill a Mockingbird and earned Phillips the Barnes and Noble Discover Award. So when Phillips started shopping her next novel, Come In and Cover Me , she admits there was a bit of pressure. Come In and Cover Me follows the story of Ren Taylor -- an archeologist who's on a mission to understand an ancient community, but ends up discovering some things about herself.

Girl Scout Cookie Terrorists

If you're running errands this weekend, possibly doing some grocery shopping, you may run across some very young, but very persistent sales people. Funny Lady Francesca Rosko prefers to call them terrorists...

The Jefferson County Sound

Gospel music has long been a fixture in African American churches around Birmingham. A new documentary film looks at the revolution of a style of gospel music called the Jefferson County Sound. Greg Bass takes a closer look for WBHM’s Tapestry.

Light Skits

After going through some tough times with the death of his father, Light Skits founding member Sam Goodwin needed to express himself creatively. He says the resulting album, Nooks & Crannies, lets listeners inside his mind. With diverse song structures, complex math-pop riffs and screamo vocals, Light Skits lets you rock loud and hard.

Gordon Lightfoot

Over his 50+ year career, singer/songwriter Gordon Lightfoot has produced a string of hits. His songs have been recorded by Peter, Paul and Mary, Bob Dylan, even Elvis. He's mostly remembered in this country for his hits from the 1970s and the occasional public TV fundraiser. But Gordon Lightfoot is nothing short of a national treasure in his native Canada. At the tender age of 73 he still spends a lot of time on the road and this Sunday evening his t our bus stops at the Alabama Theatre . Greg Bass talked to Gordon Lightfoot.

54% of support comes from members

Mo Rocca: A Life on Stage

You may know him from the Daily Show with John Stewart or from NPR's quiz show Wait Wait Don't Tell Me. But Mo Rocca has had an incredibly varied career. He'll talk about that and more when he takes the state at Birmingham's Alys Stephens Center Friday night. He may even talk about his early start in musical theatre...

The Reconstruction of Asa Carter

In 1976, The Education of Little Tree was published as the autobiography of a little known southern author, Forest Carter. Carter's earlier novel, Josey Wales, had been turned into a successful film by actor Clint Eastwood. Little Tree was the story of Carter's childhood as an Indian boy who grew up on a reservation. He was orphaned, then taken away from his grandparents and raised by missionary types. He got through it, though, and got through it well. But the Education of Little Tree wasn't what it seemed. It wasn't even an autobiography, but a work of fiction, by one of the Alabama's most notorious Klan leaders.

Icelanders in the Magic City

A new report shows more than 700,000 foreign students are studying at American universities this year. About 6,300 are in Birmingham. Some students may be fleeing political oppression. Others are simply looking for better opportunities. But for one group of Icelandic students in Birmingham, their attraction to Magic City is soccer - as WBHM intern Kenan Le Parc reports.

Fantasy Football: International Edition

It's football season. College football. NFL football. And Fantasy football. And now, an international Fantasy football league based here in Birmingham (Alabama, not England).

StoryCorps

StoryCorps is an oral history project based on the idea that the stories of everyday people are the most important and interesting of all. Listen to stories from Alabamians.

Hilary Hahn interview

Not only is Hahn one of the world's top violinists, but several years ago she gave the world premier performance and recording of the Violin Concerto by Edgar Meyer. This weekend, with the ASO, Hilary Hahn revisits the Meyer Violin Concerto - a work that was specifically commissioned for her.

Justin Brown interview

In his sixth and final season, Justin Brown conducts the opening weekend of the Alabama Symphony Orchestra's Masterworks Series.

Tragic City Rollers

You're probably familiar with the Blazers and the Barons. But have you heard of the Tragic City Rollers? If not, you're missing out on another home team to root for.

Gil Shaham

Gil Shaham is widely considered to be one of the world's top violinists. This weekend, he performs Beethoven's Violin Concerto with the Alabama Symphony Orchestra. Shaham recently spoke with WBHM's Michael Krall.

Spring Awakening

Nearly 125 years ago a German dramatist penned a play that criticized the sexually-oppressive culture of his country. It offered a vivid dramatization of the erotic fantasies of young teenagers who were just discovering their bodies. As you might expect, it was pretty controversial material. The play was often banned. More than a century later, it still raises eyebrows. And this month, it's on stage at the Alabama School of Fine Arts. WBHM's Tanya Ott pulls back the curtain for an intimate look at Spring Awakening.

Remembering Virginia Samford Donovan

The namesake of Birmingham's Virginia Samford Theatre has died. Virginia Samford Donovan passed away Tuesday at the age of 90.

Anne Frank and Me

What happens when a young holocaust denier travels back in time and finds herself sharing a cattle car ride to Auschwitz with Anne Frank.

Interview: Fred Schneider of The B-52’s

In the late 1970’s Athens, Georgia didn’t have much to offer in the way of music. One night, a group of friends were hanging out and decided to write a song. After all, it was something to do. A few months later, the B-52s were playing their first gig. Thirty-two years later they’re still making […]

Musical Examines Atlanta Lynching

The Civil War left Atlanta in ruins, but after the war the city quickly rebuilt and became a dynamo for the New South. But the tensions between the old and new boiled over in 1913. That's when frenzy erupted over the rape and murder of a young girl. Accused of that murder: a Jewish businessman from New York named Leo Frank.

saturn
cavu
54% of support comes from members

Stantis Leaves for Chicago

For Birmingham News editorial cartoonist Scott Stantis, Alabama's political world has not disappointed. For 13 years he's drawn on an array of characters for fodder, from former Governor Fob James to Birmingham Mayor Larry Langford. But after this weekend, Stantis trades in that scene for world of the Daleys and Blagojevich. Monday, Stantis becomes the editorial cartoonist for the Chicago Tribune. He tells WBHM's Andrew Yeager, his thoughts about the move are all over the place.

City Stages Vendors Left with Bill

It's been several weeks since City Stages announced it was taking its final curtain call. The non-profit music festival had struggled for many years with a deficit. And now, local businesses who provided services for this year's festival say they're scrambling to make ends meet because they weren't paid for their work.

Not Knowing Does Hurt: Dan Carsen on Science

What do Alvin the Chipmunk, pretzels, and the Internet have in common? Believe it or not, WBHM commentator Dan Carsen (who may soon become a dolphin) sees a disturbing pattern here.

Willie King Remembered

Fans remember Alabama bluesman Willie King, who died of a heart attack at his home in Pickens County on Sunday. Before his death, King talked with WBHM's Greg Bass about his life and music.

Considering Faith: Emuna

Religion has inspired art in the western world for centuries. Da Vinci's 'The Last Supper' or Michelangelo's 'David' are just two examples. In Birmingham, one group of artists is also drawing on religion, but not so much for inspiration - rather as a platform for discussion. WBHM's Andrew Yeager introduces us to Emuna

On The Line: Funding Arts

When the Jefferson County Commission eliminated its $4.2 million a year allocation for arts and cultural organizations it sent local arts groups scrambling to replace the funding. On the next On The Line (March 31), County Commissioner Sheila Smoot joins the leaders of local arts organizations to talk about Funding the Arts.

Public arts funding

The world of arts funding can be challenging. There are artists that rely on the marketplace for all of their support. There are artists who only take money from private donors. And then there are arts organizations that support themselves with local, state and federal funds. And it's the latter group that, for nearly a quarter century, has been at the center of a fiery philosophical debate. WBHM's Steve Chiotakis reports.

Cave 9

There are a lot of well-known arts organizations around Birmingham. Big ones like the symphony and ballet and smaller ones like Red Mountain Theatre Company and Space One Eleven. But there's one very small non-profit that's doing something pretty unusual, as WBHM's Tanya Ott reports.

NonProfit Management

Used to be, it was enough for nonprofits to be run by someone with a big heart and a passion for a cause. Board members were friends and board meetings were more social than business. But, times have changed. A growing number of nonprofits are scrambling for a limited amount of donations, and many nonprofits are adopting for-profit business models to ensure their survival. In the latest installment in our weeklong series "Funding the Arts", Les Lovoy reports on how the executive directors and boards of non-profits are having to use both halves of their brains to manage their organizations.

ASO Bankruptcy Lessons

For many people, there's just something distinctive about taking in an orchestra concert. Maybe it's the feel of the auditorium or seeing the array of instruments on stage. For a time though, this orchestral thrill was not something Birmingham could offer. Fifteen years ago the Alabama Symphony Orchestra filed for bankruptcy and stayed silent for four years. While the ASO's rebirth represents hard work and dedication by many, it also contains lessons for any organization in turmoil. WBHM's Andrew Yeager continues our weeklong series on arts funding.

Loss of Arts Funding

The delicate balance of keeping an arts organization afloat, whether it be a symphony, theater, ballet or museum, relies on a constantly fluctuating web of private, corporate and governmental funding. What happens when a mainstay of that web disappears? In part one of a weeklong series, Reporter Haden Holmes Brown examines the repercussions of the loss of governmental funding.

Urban Divide: Arts & Economy

Over the last several months, there have been storm clouds on the Birmingham arts and culture horizon. Jefferson County faces a $30 million budget shortfall for 2008, and commissioners say some things may have to go. At the top of that list: eliminating $4.2 million in funding for the arts and culture. Les Lovoy examines how this could affect downtown Birmingham.