NOTE: For "Events," we make the film available on-line for 7-10 days exclusively for your members AND we provide a one-time presentation: a Q&A with the filmmaker, an activity, or a panel discussion (can include someone from your staff). We prefer using Zoom, avoiding travel costs on your part and travel on ours, but can also do in-person. That said --

These are our three documentaries focused on Black History Month: The Artist in Society: Talking with Hershell West (1 hr.), Masters of Rhythm the Afro-Peruvain Way (28 min.), and Rasaki's Drums and the rich rhythms of Nigeria's Yorubá (30 min.).

The Artist in Society: Talking with Hershell West (1 hr.). Mr. West, is a community hero who, prior to his retirement was a muralist, painter, teacher of at-risk youth and arts promoter. Born in the segregated South, neither his family nor the larger community expected him to become an artist but he defied expectations, getting his start in Florida after completing first a BA and then an MBA in art. After several years in the Tampa area, where he was commissioned to paint that city's first public art mural, he moved to the San Francisco Bay Area where he was active as an artist and a teacher for many decades. We recount West's story and contributions though an extensive interview with him supplemented by re-enactments of key moments in his career along with interviews with others who know of him and his work. The documentary also includes footage of him painting, and of him explaining his work. LINK to trailer.

Masters of Rhythm the Afro-Peruvain Way (28 min.) is our first video that aired over national PBS in the United States. Filmed in Peru, it looks at a little-known community and its musical tradition, a tradition that has included the development of many musical instruments including the caj%oacute;n drum, which has since been introduced into jazz flamenco, and other musical forms. The Afro-Peruvian community comes out of the same horendous slavery experience as that which was practiced in the United States prior to the Civil War. The existence of the community, development of a musical tradition and music instruments is a triumph of the spirit over the devastaing situation out of which the community developed. Out three masters not only demonstrate their art, but talk about their childhood and communicate to us, the viewers, their infectious good spirits. LINK to trailer.

In Rasaki's Drums and the rich rhythms of Nigeria's Yorubá (30 min.) we are treated to the lively rhythms of the Yorubá ethnic group of Nigeria. One of the principal ethnic groups of that country, rhythm and drums are an essential part of Yorubá culture and traditional religion, as well as being used for entertainment. Although most Yorubá follow either the Christian or the Moslem religion, they combine these with the traditional religion calling the latter part of their cultural heritage. And this religion has influenced various religious traditions in America, including candomblé and voudou. That, and the fact that many Americans have Yorubáacute; roots ensure that this film should be of interest not only to musicians but also to a much larger portion of the population. LINK to trailer.

With these three films, we learn important things about music, art, and the cultural traditions they embody.