Tomorrow night at 9pm Eastern Time, we will be culminating Jazz Appreciation Month with a very special listening party. Cuban pianist and composer Dayramir Gonzalez will be joining writer and musician Greg Jarrell and thought leader John McKnight for music and conversation as we explore the intersections of jazz, community, and the common good. To get you in the mood, here is Dayramir in concert at the illustrious Kennedy Center on their Millennium Stage.
Narrative Justice
Common Good Collective had the privilege of meeting author, scholar, and founder of Love Without Walls, Terence Lester. We had an invigorating conversation about how we expand our concept of community to include the most often forgotten and marginalized in our neighborhoods — those experiencing homelessness. Listen as Terence describes his journey and how he became a “narrative justice” warrior.
George Floyd: A Bittersweet Victory
The past two weeks have been excruciating for the Black community. As the clouds parted over the Derek Chauvin Trial and he was convicted of his crime, we faced more loss, and more and more. In this moment, your mourning as we mourn is very powerful. Thank you for seeing us, and standing with us in this bittersweet moment.
George Floyd: A Bittersweet Victory
Sherita Donald
This summer, I protested the deaths of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, and Breonna Taylor starting and ending at the same place Dr. Martin Luther King Jr was assassinated – the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee. I had my mask on while we walked around downtown, sometimes kneeling and praying for the lives lost and that of those affected.
I protested to make a statement that their lives mattered and still matter in a country that often demonstrates the contrary. I wanted justice for the brothers and sister that were killed at the hands of white supremacy and questionable police practices.
Fast forward to April 20, 2021, the day America would find out if Derek Chauvin would be convicted for the murder of George Floyd. Truthfully, I had not been keeping up with the Floyd case on purpose. How many times had we been here? Listening to the prosecution and the defense set up their arguments, listening to experts, waiting for a jury verdict only to hear… “NOT GUILTY”.
Building Community in a High Wind
William Faulkner said that writing a novel was like building a chicken coop in a high wind: “You just grab any shingle or loose board flying by and nail it down fast.” An improvising musician and a community developer do their work in similar ways, using different mediums. You just use what is available, and try to create something beautiful.
You are invited to join Common Good Collective for our Jazz Listening Party, April 29 at 9PM EDT/6PM PDT. Special guests Dayramir Gonzalez (award-winning Cuban pianist based in NYC), Greg Jarrell (Charlotte-based saxophonist and CGC contributor) and John McKnight (Asset Based Community Development Institute) will join CGC host Courtney Napier to listen to some music and to discuss its social and creative importance for community building.
*Click the button below* to register and reserve your spot. We’ll send some music to you a few days beforehand, and then listen together on that evening.
“Wholly Earth”
Mrs. Lincoln was known throughout her career for sticking close to social themes in her music. As a songwriter and performer, she always had something to say. This unforgettable track still moves listeners, and we offer it especially as Earth Day approaches.
Wholly Earth
by Abbey Lincoln
Oh the holy earth’s a mural
seen from way up high
abstracted natural bas-relief
witnessed from the sky
clouds that cast a single shadow
drifting moving on the ground
creating an illusion
as the world goes round
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