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CURRENT & UPCOMING EVENTS!!


13th Annual River of Words Awards Ceremony & Announcement of Winners

San Francisco Public Library, Main Branch — Koret Auditorium
Sunday, April 20, 2008
1:30 p.m. - 4 p.m.
Free and Open to the Public!

 

Winners and finalists of the 2008 River of Words Environmental Poetry and Art Contest will be honored at a free, family-friendly ceremony at the San Francisco Public Library. The celebration will include artists and poets displaying and performing their work on stage, music by the Banana Slug String Band, an art exhibit, book-signing and reception.

River of Words will also be releasing two new books of art and poetry by children at the event: one their annual anthology of winning work from the contest, and the other a collection of children's art and poetry from Milkweed Editions, River of Words: Young Poets and Artists on the Nature of Things.

 

 


13th Annual River of Words Awards Ceremony

Library of Congress, Washington D.C.
Rm. 119 of the Jefferson Building
Monday, May 12, 2008
10:00 am
Free and Open to the Public!

 

Winners and finalists of the 2008 River of Words Environmental Poetry and Art Contest will be honored at a ceremony at the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. The ceremony will be emceed by Robert Hass, River of Words co-founder, former US Poet Laureate, and recent winner of the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award for Poetry. Introductory remarks will be made by Ben Grumbles, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Assistant Administrator for Water.

The ceremony will feature children from all over the country reading their winning poems about the natural world. Children from around the world will also be displaying their winning landscape art. John Robrock, from San Benito High School in Hollister, California, will be honored as the 2008 Teacher of the Year.

River of Words will also be releasing two new books of art and poetry by children at the event: one their annual anthology of winning work from the contest, and the other a collection of children's art and poetry from Milkweed Editions, River of Words: Young Poets and Artists on the Nature of Things.

 

 


Elemental Quartet

Trinity Lutheran Church, Walnut Creek, CA
Saturday, May 31, 2008
8:00 pm

First Congregational Church, Berkeley, CA
Sunday, June 1, 2008
4:00 pm


WomenSing teams up with River of Words for their Elemental Quartet concert series — A choral exploration of Earth, Water, Fire and Air and their intersection with music, featuring Ron Jeffers' powerfully ritualistic Indian Singing, the mystical flow of Holst's Hymn to the Waters, Elgar's fiery love song, My Love Dwelt in a Northern Land and popular "airs" of all time.


Visit www.womensing.org for ticket information

 

 


East Bay Open Studios


Young at Art Gallery
Sawtooth Building
8th Street at Dwight Way, Berkeley, CA
June 7-8 & 14-15, 2008


Two weekends, 400-500 artists, 2 counties, across more than 13 cities: East Bay Open Studios is the East Bay's longest-running and largest open studio event!

The Sawtooth Building alone has dozens of participating artists. Lots of free parking. Wheelchair accessible.

Come visit the Young at Art Gallery located in the Sawtooth Building during Open Studios!

For more information, visit www.proartsgallery.org/ebos/index.html


 

 


River of Words
Young Poets and Artists on the Nature of Things

Edited by Pamela Michael
with an Introduction by Robert Hass

In bookstores this spring!

 

Featuring children's poems and works of art from the River of Words annual contests over the past ten years, this delightful anthology showcases the work of children seeking to explore, appreciate, and protect the watersheds in which they live. A remarkable confluence of K-12 curriculum, children's literature, environmentalism, poetry and art, this enchanting volume speaks to the creative spirit in all of us.

The anthology is set to be released April 1, 2008. Look for it in your local bookstore or order it online from the River of Words website!

www.milkweed.org

 

 


Kids for the Bay
Summer Academy for Educators

June 23, 2008 - June 27, 2008

at the River of Words Learning Lab
Berkeley, California

 

Join Kids for the Bay's ground-breaking Summer Academy for Educators! In this exciting environmental action course, educators will participate in five days of experiential learning. The Academy combines fieldtrips and indoor hands-on learning that you can directly apply to any educational setting.

Each day consists of six hours of activities, discussions, and curriculum integration planning. The final day includes an afternoon boat ride on the Bay! Strategies for teaching students with diverse cultural badkgrounds and language needs will be modeled. Kids for the Bay lessons and activities meet many California Science, Social Science and Math Standards.

The Academy is for formal and non-formal educators alike who work with elementary and middle school aged youth. Sign-up by May 9, 2008 to participate in this exciting course!

www.kidsforthebay.org

 

 

 

 


 

Works of Heart: Building Village Through the Arts
edited by Lynne Elizabeth and Suzanne Young

Citizen artists revitalize place, celebrate culture and inspire social change in this book of exemplary community–based arts projects.

Includes an article by ROW Executive Director Pamela Michaels and ROW 2003 Teacher of the Year Alicia Hokanson and numerous beautiful ROW images! For sale in our store.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Frederica von Stade Sings Brubeck’s River of Words’ Poems

Singing “River of Song” is always a special event as the poetry was written by children and the piece was conceived for children so it has a great significance. Plus, who can resist the beautiful and touching melodies of Chris Brubeck, his imagination, his humor and his affection not just for music but the whole human race!

                        —Frederica von Stade

In 2002, a friend of River of Words, Paul Strasburg, gave Chris a copy of the River of Words annual anthology, The Natural World as Viewed by Young People. Brubeck had been commissioned to write a piece for Frederica von Stade and was casting about for inspiration and lyrics suitable for the song suite he was composing. The resulting River of Song, features a libretto containing five River of Words’ young poets: Shawna Eiermann (12), Kevin Brown (5), Alice Goldfuss (12), Stefani Galik (8), and John Keogh (13), as well as ee cummings.  !!!

Composer, trombonist, bassist, pianist, singer, guitarist and all around musical bon vivant is one of the most talented members of the Brubeck family. As a composer, Chris represents all that is fascinating about Americana: the diversity, the spirit—part Copland, part Ellington, part wide open spaces, and part New Orleans.

http://www.brubeckmusic.com

Frederica von Stade, described by the New York Times as “one of America’s finest artists and singers.” One of the music world’s most beloved figures, the mezzo-soprano has enriched the world of classical music for over three decades.

http://www.fredericavonstade.com

While part of River of Words’ mission is to give young people an avenue for expression and a voice, we never imagined that voice would be Frederica von Stade’s. Our thanks to Mr. Brubeck and Ms. von Stade for expanding the reach and depth of our young poets’ work beyond our wildest dreams.

Convergence CD (Koch Classics) contains:

Convergence (2001)
The Journey
Reminiscence in Blues
La Grande Parade du Funk

Performed by Czech National Symphony Orchestra
Paul Freeman, conductor

River of Song (2002)
Water
The Storm is Coming
Moon Song
Goldfish
The River
maggie and millie and molly and may

performed by Tassajara Symphony
Sara Jobim, conductor
Frederica von Stade, mezzo soprano
Rachel Luxon, soprano

Prague Concerto for Bass Trombone and Orchestra (2004)
The Return of the Prince
Song of the Mountains
Dance of the Neocons

Performed by Czech National Symphony Orchestra
Paul Freeman, conductor
Chris Brubeck, bass trombone

To order Convergence, visit the River of Words online Store or your local record store.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

RIVER OF WORDS INCLUDED IN NEW PUBLICATION—

Ecological Literacy:

Educating Our Children for a Sustainable World

Edited by Center for Ecoliteracy senior editor Michael K. Stone
and executive director Zenobia Barlow

This book presents the Center's conceptual foundations, from ancient wisdom to contemporary science. It chronicles some of the most exciting work that the Center has supported over the last decade, diverse projects (including River of Words) that have creatively put those concepts into practice. Authors include Wendell Berry, Alice Waters, David W. Orr, Fritjof Capra, River of Words co-founder Pamela Michael, Donella Meadows, and (ROW board member) Malcolm Margolin. Ecological Literacy is the third volume in the Bioneers Book Series published by Sierra Club Books and distributed by University of California Press. $16.95, 279 pages. Available in October, 2005.

 

 

                 

                                 


River of Words Opens Children's Art Gallery
BERKELEY, CALIFORNIA….Over one hundred people joined us on November 13, 2003 to celebrate the opening of our new gallery, Young at Art. Board chair and cofounder Robert Hass read several poems from our annual anthology of children’s poetry to the assembled guests, gathered in the grand (but funky) lobby of our building, a ninety-year old former mattress factory.

Come visit the gallery whenever you are in the Berkeley area!
2547 8th Street, Studio 13B- near the corner of 8th and Dwight
Hours:
By chance or by appointment

It's always a good idea to call before you come to make sure someone will be here to receive you!
(510) 548-POEM (7636)

 

 

 

 
 
 
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