Prof. Wald at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

ByGWEnglish
That’s me at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in conversation with Lauren Onkey last week.

Last week I had the pleasure of speaking at a screening of the new documentary Godmother of Rock: The Rosetta Tharpe Story at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum in Cleveland. The event kicked off the Rock Hall’s Black History Month celebration, which this year focuses on black musicians on film.

The screening paired the Tharpe documentary with the 1929 film St. Louis Blues, which contains the only extant footage of blues singer Bessie Smith (who does a nice turn as the Wronged Woman). It was followed after by a lively Q&A session moderated by Dr. Lauren Onkey (an English Ph.D. and former professor!). Click here for footage of the Q&A.

Next month the Rock Hall opens a “Women in Rock” exhibit, which will continue through next year. And book your tickets now for Cleveland in January 2012, when the Rock Hall will open its Library and Archives, a fabulous public facility which will instantly become an important resource for anyone interested in American music.

facebookShare on Facebook
TwitterTweet

Similar Posts

Poem of the Day: Ted Berrigan’s “Sonnet LI”

Poem of the Day: Ted Berrigan’s “Sonnet LI”

ByGWEnglish

Sonnet LI Summer so histrionic, marvelous dirty days is not genuine           it shines forth from the faces littered with soup, cigarette butts, the heavy is a correspondent         the innocence of childhood sadness graying the faces of virgins aching and everything comes before their eyes to be fucked, we fondle their snatches but they that the…

Professor Ayanna Thompson in the New York Times

Professor Ayanna Thompson in the New York Times

ByGWEnglish

GW English Professor Ayanna Thompson The New York Times recently reported on Play On! a project sponsored by the Oregon Shakespeare Festival asking 36 playwrights from diverse backgrounds to translate the language of William Shakespeare into contemporary modern English.  Our own Professor Ayanna Thompson was one of the dramaturges for the project, working with playwright Mfoniso…

Reflections on the GW Digital Humanities Symposium 2013

Reflections on the GW Digital Humanities Symposium 2013

ByGWEnglish

  On January 24-26, GW was the proud host of the university’s first Digital Humanities Symposium  Patty Chu and Peter Feng After all the excitement, some of the symposium participants spoke about the purpose of the symposium, how they became involved, and what digital technology could mean for the future of multiple fields (such as our…