'Music of the People' comes to Aurora's Santori Public Library starting April 27
To honor American culture and the use of creativity and imagination in the service of society, the Aurora Public Library will present three free live performances of American music of social and cultural importance this spring and "Dylan Day" this summer.
Musician, author and cultural historian Bucky Halker will be the featured performer for "Ain't Got a Dollar: Illinois Workers and Protest Songs, 1865-1965," from 6 to 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, April 27, in the Dunham Atrium of the Richard and Gina Santori Public Library, 101 S. River St. in Aurora.
Halker will provide commentary and initiate discussion and audience participation as he reviews a century of songs from Illinois workers. Halker has a Ph.D. in U.S. labor history from the University of Minnesota.
"Oh Freedom!: Songs of the Civil Rights Movement," co-sponsored by the Illinois Humanities Road Scholars Speakers Series, is set for 6 to 7:30 p.m. Thursday, May 25.
In this presentation created to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965, folk singer Chris Vallillo will perform pivotal selections from the music that inspired and sustained this landmark movement.
Intermixed with the music, Vallillo will present firsthand accounts of the historic struggle and discuss the impact of music upon one of our nation's most important social causes.
Performing in a roots-based style on six string and bottleneck slide guitars and harmonica, Vallillo weaves original, contemporary and traditional folk songs and instrumentals into a compelling and entertaining portrait of the history and lifestyle of the Midwest.
On Saturday, Aug. 5, the library will rock Dylan Day with music, a movie, a presentation from a musicologist, live performances and a raffle for a boxed set of Dylan CDs.
The movie to be shown is "No Direction Home," Martin Scorsese's perceptive chronicle of Bob Dylan's life and music, which includes rare concert clips and interviews.
University of Chicago musicologist Dr. Steven Rings will discuss Dylan's life and music. Rings, an associate professor of music, received his Ph.D. from Yale. His book, "A Foreign Sound to Your Ear: Bob Dylan Performs 'It's Alright, Ma (I'm Only Bleeding),' 1964-2009" won the 2014 Outstanding Publication Award from the Society for Music Theory's Popular Music Interest Group.
Half a century ago, Bob Dylan shocked the music world by plugging in an electric guitar and alienating folk purists. For decades, he continued to confound expectations, selling millions of records with dense, enigmatic songwriting. Now, Bob Dylan, the poet laureate of the rock era, has been rewarded with the Nobel Prize in literature.
For more information, contact Dan Smolla at dsmolla@aurorapubliclibary.org or (630) 264-4283.