The award’s design derives from the station identification that MTV used when it debuted in 1981, which included astronaut images overlain with rock music. Credit: Photo by Eric Long, National Air and Space Museum

Thirty years ago today, MTV went on the air for the first time with footage from the Apollo 11 moon landing–with a twist, of course. The black-and-white image of the American flag was replaced by a technicolor MTV logo. The picture became iconic, and today, at the channel’s famous Video Music Awards, category winners are awarded the “Moon Man”–a silver statuette of an astronaut holding an MTV flag.

Surprisingly, the National Air and Space Museum houses within its collections two of those iconic statuettes, including one that flew to space with Russian cosmonauts in 1996. Space history curator Margaret Weitekamp explained that MTV chose the moon landing as the opening images for their new channel because of the implications of venturing into new territory.

“When MTV started, the idea was that this would be a very different kind of television,” Weitekamp said. “Instead of tuning in to watch a program or a particular star, you would tune in to the network of music videos and current music programming. So what they wanted to do to launch that was the idea that this was a giant leap forward in television programming and thinking about television.”

The network had originally planned to use the audio from the Apollo 11 moon landing, with Neil Armstrong proclaiming, “One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” Two weeks before the planned air date, however, MTV got a call from NASA–they didn’t have permission to use Neil Armstrong’s voice. They scrambled to re-cut the sequence and change the soundtrack, and put music in the background instead of dialogue.

“They had this kind of Andy Warhol-ized, colorized version of these Apollo moonwalkers crossed with the rock and roll,” Weitekamp said. “And I’m not sure people entirely got the connection to the new giant leap forward in the network because the form of it had to change so much in the weeks before they went to air, but it still became very identifiable.”

So identifiable in fact, that for the 1996 VMAs, Pepsi paid to have a moon man statuette flown into space, and planned to have the Russian cosmonauts (wearing Pepsi hats) talk live with the host of the show, comedian Dennis Miller.

“The whole thing turned out to be a little bit of a disaster,” Weitekamp said. “The cosmonauts didn’t speak English, and obviously Dennis Miller doesn’t speak Russian, plus there was a few seconds delay. So on live television, he would ask them a question, and they would be waiting not only for the transmission but for the Russian translation and then finally, around the time that they would start to speak the host would decide it was time to ask another question, so they just talked all over each other.”

The statuette (minus its base, which had been removed for weight purposes) came to Air and Space in 2007 when curators were working on an exhibit about images of astronauts in popular culture. The museum approached MTV, and the network donated the Moon Man, along with another blank statuette with an intact base to show what the entire piece looks like together (seen at left). The statuettes aren’t currently on display, but Weitekamp says that one day she would love to do a popular culture exhibit and allow visitors to see a little bit of MTV history.

The Patent Office Building as it looked before the Civil War. Courtesy of the National Portrait Gallery.

The old Patent Office Building in Washington, D.C. covers an entire city block, and currently houses not just one, but two museums as well as an archive gallery: The Smithsonian American Art Museum, the National Portrait Gallery and the Lawrence A. Fleischman Gallery of the Archives of American Art.

Poet Walt Whitman called it the “noblest of the Washington buildings,” and it was modeled in part after the Parthenon in Athens, Greece. City planner Pierre L’Enfant originally intended the building to house a “church of the Republic,” but although the structure has survived several transformations, it never actually became a church. This week, the American Art Museum’s deputy director emeritus Charles Robertson will lead a now fully-booked tour describing the uses of the historic building during the Civil War. But since the museum is only taking wait-list requests for the popular tour, we took a look back in time to show you the five lives of the old Patent Office Building.

1. Patent Office: Bet you never would have guessed, but the Patent Office moved into the building in 1842, even before the structure was entirely completed. It granted patents from the building until 1932.

2. Civil War Hospital: During the Civil War, which lasted from 1861 to 1865, the Patent Office Building served as a hospital for wounded soldiers, in addition to housing a temporary barracks and a morgue. American Red Cross founder and nurse Clara Barton worked there as a volunteer nurse. Walt Whitman, who also served as a Civil War nurse, often came to the building to read to the wounded.

President Lincoln's second inaugural ball, from the Illustrated London News, April 8, 1965. Courtesy of the National Portrait Gallery.

3. Ballroom: In March of 1865, the building was host to President Lincoln’s second inaugural ball, the first time a government had been used for the event. A ten dollar ticket admitted “one gentleman and two ladies” to the celebration.

4. Civil Service Commission Offices: After the Patent Office left the historic building in 1932, the Civil Service Commission took over. The commission administers the country’s civil service, which is composed of government employees not in the military. It was renamed as the Office of Personnel Management in 1978.

5. Museum: The Patent Office Building was given to the Smithsonian Institution by Congress, and was restored from 1964 to 1967. In January of 1968, the building opened to the public and today houses two museums, the American Art Museum and the National Portrait Gallery (which is currently hosting a series of interviews with curators and historians about the people and events of the Civil War).

A ward in Carver General Hospital, Washington, D.C. Photo courtesy of the Smithsonian Resident Associates Program.

The discovery of anesthesia dates to right around 1842, says Judy Chelnick, a curator who works with the medical history collections at the National Museum of American History. But at the start of the Civil War in 1861, effective techniques of administering drugs such as ether had not yet been perfected. Many patients may have died from receiving too much ether, Chelnick says, while others woke to experience the painful procedure.

Chelnick is standing in a room full of fascinating objects behind an exhibition on the third floor of the museum. It’s a place few tourists ever get to see, but the tools we’re discussing will be on display for visitors attending the Resident Associate program’s Civil War Medicine at the American History Museum event tomorrow, July 26.

I ask about a scary-looking curved metal tool with a sharp point.

“What’s that for?”

“You don’t want to know,” Chelnick responds.

She explains, but it turns out that no, I really didn’t want to know that that tool was used for puncturing the bladder directly through the abdomen to relieve pressure on the organ. I cringe involuntarily. Yes, I could have done without that knowledge.

As we continue our survey of the tools, most of which are still surprisingly shiny but have old wooden handles (“This was before germ theory,” Chelnick says), we come across many other objects that you probably don’t want to see in your next operating room. A brutal-looking pair of forceps that Chelnick says were used for cutting bone, some saws that look just like the ones I used in wood shop in high school and a terrifying object slightly reminiscent of a drill that was used to bore holes in the skull.

The sets of tools are incongruously packaged in elegant wooden boxes with red and purple fabric lining that I suspect is velvet. I can’t help thinking that those are good colors, because blood probably wouldn’t stain too badly.

Chelnick lifts up a tray of knives in one of the kits, and reveals something really amazing. It’s a set of cards, matriculation cards, Chelnick says they’re called, belonging to the doctor who owned this particular set. They’re from his time in

Surgical kit made for the Union Army during the Civil War by George Tiemann & Company of New York City. Courtesy of National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center

medical school (only two years were required back then), and they list his name (J.B. Cline) and the classes he took. It seems that Dr. Cline studied chemistry, diseases of women and children, pharmacy, anatomy and surgery, among other topics. For the sake of the Civil War soldiers he treated, I’m glad this was an educated man, but I still wouldn’t let him near me with any of those knives.

All in all, it’s enough to make anyone uneasy, but Chelnick says that’s part of the point.

“I think that a lot of times people have a romanticized vision of the war in their head,” Chelnick says. “And so I think the medical equipment really brings out the reality of the situation. It’s a reminder that there are consequences–people got hurt, people got killed.”

She adds that gunshot wounds and other battle injuries were not even close to the greatest killers during the Civil War. Rather, most fatalities occurred from diseases or infection spread in the close quarters of military camps.

I point out another tool in one of the kits. Chelnick restates what has become a frequent phrase in our conversation: “You don’t want to know.”

Doing the Ring Shout in Georgia, ca. 1930s Members of the Gullah community express their spirituality through the “ring shout” during a service at a local “praise house.” Image courtesy of Lorenzo Dow Turner Papers, Anacostia Community Museum Archives, Smithsonian Institution

The Anacostia Community Museum is sadly at the end of one of its most visited exhibitions in recent history—the show “Word, Shout, Song” was so popular, it had been extended for four months. This weekend the show closes. But don’t worry, it it is slated to make a reappearance as a traveling exhibition.

“Word, Shout, Song” traces the social and linguistic history of the Gullah people back to their ancestral homeland of Africa, following the work of 20th-century linguist and professor Lorenzo Dow Turner.

Turner became fascinated by the language of the Gullah people, which was previously dismissed simply as “bad English,” and discovered that the dialect was actually a mix of 32 diverse African languages. The Gullah people have their roots among the 645,000 Africans captured, enslaved and brought to America between the 16th and 19th centuries.

On Saturday, July 23, the museum will hold a special event celebrating the final days of the exhibition. “Family Day: All Things Gullah” will include everything from storytelling to food, music and crafts. Around 3:30 p.m., the Geechee Gullah Ring Shouters and the Santa Barbara Shout Project will attempt to lead the crowd in an attempt to break the record for the world’s largest ring shout.

A ring shout is a traditionally religious African-American dance in which participants dance counterclockwise in a circle to the beat of clapping and a stick that is banged on a wooden surface. The stick takes the place of drums, said Griffin Lotson, manager of the Geechee Gullah Ring Shouters, because slaves were forbidden to beat drums on plantations in the 18th century.

“People really love it,” Lotson said. “For us, it’s basically about keeping the culture alive and pumping in some new life.”

Lotson said only a handful of groups that practice the tradition remain in the U.S., so his group does their best to preserve and protect the culture of the Gullah people, who today live in areas of South Carolina and Georgia.

He added that part of the reason the tradition has faded out is that after the Civil War, many Gullah did their best to adapt to mainstream American culture in order to better fit in, often abandoning traditions like the Gullah language of Geechee and rituals such as the ring shout.

“Being a Geechee was super unpopular–I was taught not to be Geechee,” said Lotson, who was born in 1954. “‘You’re too Geechee, boy,’ they’d say. Because it wasn’t mainstream, you couldn’t get the better jobs, you talked funny.”

Today, Lotson said, he and his group do their best to maintain what has been an unbroken thread of a unique culture within the U.S. through traveling and performing across the country. Lotson and most of his group are direct descendants of plantation slaves, and Lotson’s grandfather and mother were both involved in preserving the ring shout tradition.

“I think this exhibition is great,” Lotson said. “’It be my people,’ as we say in Geechee.”

Denis Leary donated props from the show "Rescue Me." Courtesy of the National Museum of American History.

The National Museum of American History gained a little star power yesterday when actors Denis Leary and Lenny Clarke stopped by to donate a few objects from their hit television show, Rescue Me.

Rescue Me, which airs on FX, follows a community of post-9/11 New York City firefighters in and out of burning buildings, high-drama relationships (it’s complicated) and other volatile situations. The show just premiered the first episode of its seventh and final season on Wednesday.

Leary and Clarke, joined by executive producer and writer Peter Tolan, donated objects including Leary’s firefighter’s costume, props such as an axe, flashlights and helmets and Tolan’s annotated script from the pilot episode, all of which will be added to the museum’s popular culture history collections.

Co-creators Leary and Tolan said they were honored and amazed to have objects from their show displayed at the Smithsonian.

“This is kind of a big thing for me–this is one of the few things in my career, in my life, that impressed my mother when I called her and told her,” Leary said.

The donation ceremony is the first in a series of events sponsored by the museum that will commemorate the 10^th anniversary of September 11. Rescue Me was inspired in part by the tragedy, and Leary’s character on the show, Tommy Gavin, is haunted by his cousin, a firefighter who died in the 9/11 attacks.

“Rescue Me isn’t the end all of the examinations of 9/11 in entertainment, but I think once enough time has passed, and people are able to look at this tragedy, they will see it as a small step on the road to healing and acceptance for an awful day in our history,” Tolan said.

Museum curators said the donations will help to represent the place that popular culture, and in particular television, has in telling the story of 9/11.

“Americans rely on popular culture, our movies, our TV shows, to touch on and reflect on what happens in real life,” said Melinda Machado, the museum’s

Donated bunker gear worn by Leary in the show "Rescue Me." Courtesy of the National Museum of American History.

director of public affairs.

The Smithsonian was designated the national repository for September 11 collections by Congress in 2002, and other items in the collections include photographs, parts of the planes, parts of the fire trucks and first responder uniforms, as well as oral histories, scrapbooks and personal memorials. This fall many of those artifacts will go on temporary display from September 3 through September 11 between 11 and 3 at the museum.

“In many ways, Denis and Peter’s donation today is their own personal memorial,” said Cedric Yeh, the collections manager for the September 11 collection. “Some people raised flags, others made banners, still more sent cards and volunteered their services to the public. Denis and Peter chose to create a TV series, one that is consistently recognized for its accurate portrayal of a post-9/11 world amongst firefighters in New York City.”

The next event in the series commemorating the attacks will be “The Public Memory of September 11,” a discussion featuring representatives from the memorial projects at Ground Zero, the Pentagon and the Flight 93 site in Pennsylvania, who will talk about the challenges of commemorating recent history. The event will take place at the National Building Museum on July 26 from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Donated props from the show "Rescue Me." Courtesy of the National Museum of American History.

Donated props used in the show "Rescue Me." Courtesy of the National Museum of American History.

Colombian carnival performers at the 2011 Smithsonian Folklife Festival. Image by Julie Mianecki.

Welcome to the final day of the Smithsonian Folklife Festival. Make the most of the last events by trying Amazonian tucupí broth, made of scalded cassava, or try your hand at the tango. Look forward to the next 50 years of the Peace Corps at the Peace Porch and reflect on stories from the festival at the Session stage. There are no evening concerts tonight.

COLOMBIA

Al Son Que Me Toquen Stage:

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Chirimía la Contundencia

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      El Pueblo Canta

12:30 PM–1:15 PM         Aires del Campo

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Don Abundio y sus Traviesos

2:00 PM–2:45 PM          Grupo Cabrestero

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Aires del Campo

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Chirimía la Contundencia

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          Amazonian Ceremonial Music & Dance

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Tango de Medellín

El Rumbiadero Stage:

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Aires del Campo

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Joropo Contrapunteo Workshop

12:30 PM–1:15 PM         Tango Workshop

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Salsa Workshop

2:00 PM–2:45 PM          Baudilio y sus Marimba and Cantaoras de Alabaos

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Circo Ciudad

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Carranguera Music & Dance Workshop

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          Carnival Workshop

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Salsa Workshop

Me Contaron Los Abuelos Stage:

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Hat-Making Traditions

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Instrument-Making Tradidions

12:30 PM–1:15 PM         Ceremonial Music & Dance at Amazonian Circle

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Religious Sculpture

2:00 PM–2:45 PM          Working with Clay

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Fish in the Amazon

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Andean Highland Crafts with Fibers

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          Filigree Craft & Design

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Conversation with Artists

Sabores y Saberes Stage:

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Llanero Stew

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Smoked Chicken Stew

12:30 PM–1:15 PM         Afternoon Snacks

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Sweets from Cali

2:00 PM–2:45 PM          Amazonian Tucupí Broth

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Rice Bread

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Regional Empanadas

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          Rice across the Regions

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Regional Drinks

THE PEACE CORPS

World Stage

11:00 AM–12:00 PM     Tinikling Dancers from Philippines

12:00 PM–1:00 PM       Garifuna Collective featuring Umalali

1:00 PM–2:00 PM         San Dancers from Botswana

2:00 PM–3:00 PM         Opika Performance Group from Ukraine

3:00 PM–4:00 PM         Tinikling Dancers from Philippines

4:00 PM–5:00 PM         Garifuna Collective featuring Umalali

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Final Gathering

Peace Porch

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Diversity in the Peace Corps

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Sharing the United States with the World

12:30 PM–1:15 PM         Sharing the World with the United States

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Capturing the Peace Corps Experience

2:00 PM–2:45 PM          The Peace Corps’ Inspiration

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Being “The American”

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Peace Corps Families

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          Capturing the Peace Corps Experience

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         The Next Fifty Years

Home Cooking Stage

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Jamaican Cooking

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Georgian Cooking

12:30 PM­–1:15 PM         Zambian Cooking

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Moroccan Cooking

2:00 PM–2:45 PM          Malian Cooking

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Guatemalan Cooking

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Kyrgyz Cooking

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          Tongan Cooking

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Just Desserts

RHYTHM AND BLUES

Session Stage

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Vocal Roots

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Globe Posters and R&B

12:30 PM­–1:15 PM         Musical Crossroads

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Stories from the Studio

2:00 PM–2:45 PM          Doo-Wop with the Swallows

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Music Communities

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Marketing & Promotion

4:15 PM–5:30 PM          Stories from the Festival

Soulsville Stage

11:00 AM–12:05 PM     Fred Wesley and The New JBs

12:05 PM–1:10 PM        The Swallows

1:10 PM–2:15 PM           The Jewels

2:15 PM–3:20 PM          Smooth & EZ Hand Dance Institute

3:20 PM–4:25 PM          Fred Wesley and The New JBs

4:20 PM–5:30 PM          The Swallows

Motor City Stage

11:00 AM–12:05 PM     The Dixie Cups

12:05 PM–1:10 PM        Smooth & EZ Hand Dance Institute

1:10 PM–2:15 PM           The Monitors

2:15 PM–3:20 PM          Wind Workshop (Cross Program)

3:20 PM–4:25 PM          The Dixie Cups

4:20 PM–5:30 PM          The Monitors

A visitor samples southeast Asian food at the 2011 Smithsonian Folklife Festival. Image by Julie Mianecki.

Welcome to day nine of the Smithsonian Folklife Festival. Fuse two dance traditions at the event “Tango meets Salsa” at the El Rumbiadero stage today and learn about Colombian mask-making traditions at the Me Contaron Los Abuelos stage. Across the Mall, get a lesson in sharing the United States with the world from the Peace Corps or head over to the R&B section to listen to The Swallows and The Dixie Cups. Tonight, spend an evening with songwriter-producer team Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff or enjoy a performance of Peruvian music and dance.

COLOMBIA

Al Son Que Me Toquen Stage:

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      El Pueblo Canta

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Grupo Cabrestero

12:30 PM–1:15 PM         El Pueblo Canta

1:15 PM–2:00 PM           Aires del Campo

2:00 PM–2:45 PM          Chirimía la Contundencia & Cantaoras de Alabaos

2:45 PM–3:30 PM           Amazonian Ceremonial Music and Dance

3:30 PM–4:15 PM           Don Abundio y sus Traviesos

4:15 PM–5:00 PM           El Pueblo Canta

5:00 PM–5:30 PM          Parranda Paisa: Aires del Campo & Ayombe

El Rumbiadero Stage:

11:00 AM–11:45 PM       Tango Workshop

11:45 PM–12:30 PM       Circus Workshop

12:30 PM–1:15 PM         Carranguera Music & Dance Workshop

1:15 PM–2:00 PM           Salsa Workshop

2:00 PM–2:45 PM          Joropo Workshop

2:45 PM–3:30 PM           Tango meets Salsa

3:30 PM–4:15 PM           Baudilio y su Marimba

4:15 PM–5:30 PM           Carnival Workshop & Procession

Me Contaron Los Abuelos Stage:

11:00 AM–11:45 PM       Amazonian Crafts

11:45 PM–12:30 PM       Craft Market Strategies

12:30 PM–1:15 PM         Mask-Making Traditions

1:15 PM–2:00 PM           Making & Using Hammocks

2:00 PM–2:45 PM          Building with Guadua Bamboo

2:45 PM–3:30 PM           Creating Collectives

3:30 PM–4:15 PM           Traditional Games

4:15 PM–5:00 PM           Ceremonial Music & Dance at Amazonian Circle

5:00 PM–5:30 PM          Conversation with Artists

Sabores y Saberes Stage:

11:00 AM–11:45 PM       Preparing the Mamona Beef Roast (Part 1 of 2)

11:45 PM–12:30 PM       Boyacense Stew

12:30 PM–1:15 PM         Momposino Cheese

1:15 PM–2:00 PM           Aborrajados from Cali

2:00 PM–2:45 PM          Rice Dishes

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Tamales

3:30 PM–4:15 PM           Momposino Fish Stew

4:15 PM–5:00 PM           Preparing the Mamona Beef Roast (Part 2 0f 2)

5:00 PM–5:30 PM          Regional Exchange: Parrado

THE PEACE CORPS

World Stage

11:00 AM–12:00 PM      Garifuna Collective featuring Umalali

12:00 PM–1:00 PM        Opika Performance Group from Ukraine

1:00 PM–2:00 PM          Tinikling Dancers from Philippines

2:00 PM–3:00 PM          San Dancers from Botswana

3:00 PM–4:00 PM          Garifuna Collective featuring Umalali

4:00 PM–5:00 PM          Opika Performance Group from Ukraine

5:00 PM–5:30 PM          Peruvian Dance

Peace Porch

11:00 AM–11:45 PM       Teaching & Learning

11:45 PM–12:30 PM       Capturing the Peace Corps Experience

12:30 PM–1:15 PM         Life after Peace Corps

1:15 PM–2:00 PM           Peace Corps Families

2:00 PM–2:45 PM          Being “The American”

2:45 PM–3:30 PM           What Peace Corps Volunteers Do

3:30 PM–4:15 PM           Sharing the World with the United States

4:15 PM–5:00 PM           Sharing the United States with the World

5:00 PM–5:30 PM          Thinking Globally, Living Locally

Home Cooking Stage

11:00 AM–11:45 PM       Ukrainian Cooking

11:45 PM–12:30 PM       Kenyan Cooking

12:30 PM­–1:15 PM         Trees, Water & People

1:15 PM–2:00 PM           Ghanaian Cooking

2:00 PM–2:45 PM          Kyrgyz Cooking

2:45 PM–3:30 PM           Zambian Cooking

3:30 PM–4:15 PM           Peruvian Cooking

4:15 PM–5:00 PM           Moroccan Cooking

5:00 PM–5:30 PM          Just Desserts

RHYTHM AND BLUES

Session Stage

11:00 AM–11:45 PM       Vocal Roots

11:45 PM–12:30 PM       Getting the Music Heard

12:30 PM­–1:15 PM         Globe Posters and R&B

1:15 PM–2:00 PM           R&B through the Decades

2:00 PM–2:45 PM          Musical Crossroads

2:45 PM–3:30 PM           Social Dance

3:30 PM–4:15 PM           Marketing & Promotion

4:15 PM–5:00 PM           Doo-Wop with the Swallows

5:00 PM–5:30 PM          Interview with Fred Wesley, Sam Lathan

Soulsville Stage

11:00 AM–12:05 PM      The Swallows

12:05 PM–1:10 PM         Fred Wesley and The New JBs

1:10 PM–2:15 PM            The Dixie Cups

2:15 PM–3:20 PM           The Swallows

3:20 PM–4:25 PM           Fred Wesley and The New JBs

4:20 PM–5:30 PM           The Dixie Cups

Motor City Stage

11:00 AM–12:05 PM      The Monitors

12:05 PM–1:10 PM         Fernando Jones

1:10 PM–2:15 PM            Smooth & EZ Hand Dance Institute

2:15 PM–3:20 PM           The Jewels

3:20 PM–4:25 PM           The Monitors

4:20 PM–5:30 PM           Fernando Jones

EVENING CONCERTS

World Stage

5:30 PM–7:00 PM          Peruvian Music and Dance

Motor City Stage

6:00 PM–8:00 PM          An Evening with Kenneth Gamble & Leon Huff and a Tribute to Philadelphia International Records

An abstract sculpture representing Colombian urban buildings at the 2011 Smithsonian Folklife Festival. Image by Julie Mianecki.

Welcome to day eight of the Smithsonian Folklife Festival! Check out presentations about weaving and the environment and recycling in the arts this morning in the Colombia tents, then head over to the Peace Corps area to try out some Ukrainian, Jamaican and Georgian cooking. Later on, enjoy interview with musicians from The Jewels, The Monitors and The Dixie Cups. Tonight’s evening events include a memorial concert for Kate Rinzler, wife of Ralph Rinzler, the late founder of the Folklife Festival, and a concert of traditional Colombia music with Aires del Campo and Ayombe.

COLOMBIA

Al Son Que Me Toquen Stage:

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Grupo Cabrestero

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Don Abundio y sus Traviesos

12:30 PM–1:15 PM         El Pueblo Canta

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Encuentro: Don Abundio y sus Traviesos & Ayombe

2:00 PM–2:45 PM          Chirimía la Contundencia

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Aires del Campo

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Grupo Cabrestero

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          Chirimía la Contundencia

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Salsa de Cali

El Rumbiadero Stage:

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Circus Workshop

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Salsa Workshop

12:30 PM–1:15 PM         Aires del Campo Workshop

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Tango Workshop

2:00 PM–2:45 PM          Joropo Workshop

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Carranguera Music & Dance Workshop

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Circus Workshop

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          Carnival Music Workshop

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Tango Workshop

Me Contaron Los Abuelos Stage:

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Weaving & the Environment

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Recycling in the Arts

12:30 PM–1:15 PM        Ceremonial Music & Dance at Amazonian Circle

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Cooking & the Environment

2:00 PM–2:45 PM         Afro-Colombian Hairstyles

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Amazonian Ceremonial Stools

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Sustainable Gardening

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          Ceremonial Music & Dance at Amazonian Circle

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Conversation with Artists

Sabores y Saberes Stage:

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Amazonian Casabe

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Regional Corn Arepas

12:30 PM–1:15 PM        Regional Baked Breads

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Antioqueño Beans

2:00 PM–2:45 PM         Coconut Rice

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Onces Santafereñas

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Macetas: Decorating with Candy

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          Chocoano Wraps

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Regional Exchange

THE PEACE CORPS

World Stage

11:00 AM–12:00 PM     Tinikling Dancers from Philippines

12:00 PM–1:00 PM       Garifuna Collective featuring Umalali

1:00 PM–2:00 PM         San Dancers from Botswana

2:00 PM–3:00 PM         Opika Performance Group from Ukraine

3:00 PM–4:00 PM         Tinikling Dancers from Philippines

4:00 PM–5:00 PM         Garifuna Collective featuring Umalali

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         San Dancers from Botswana

Peace Porch

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Sharing the United States with the World

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Sharing the World with the United States

12:30 PM–1:15 PM         Peace Corps Families

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Life after Peace Corps

2:00 PM–2:45 PM         The Peace Corps’ Inspiration

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Being “The American”

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Teaching and Learning

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          Capturing the Peace Corps Experience

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Local Clothes, Food & Customs

Home Cooking Stage

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Peace Corps Staff Cooking

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Peace Corps Staff Cooking

12:30 PM­–1:15 PM        Trees, Water & People

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Malian Cooking

2:00 PM–2:45 PM         Tongan Cooking

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Jamaican Cooking

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Ukrainian Cooking

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          Georgian Cooking

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Just Desserts

RHYTHM AND BLUES

Session Stage

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Interview with Bill Myers and The Monitors

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      R&B through the Decades

12:30 PM­–1:15 PM        Stories from the Road

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Interview with The Jewels

2:00 PM–2:45 PM         Interview with The Dixie Cups

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Doo-Wop with The Swallows

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Getting the Music Heard

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          Learning through Music

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Social Dance

Soulsville Stage

11:00 AM–12:05 PM     The Jewels

12:05 PM–1:10 PM        Fernando Jones

1:10 PM–2:15 PM           The Monitors

2:15 PM–3:20 PM          Fred Wesley and The New JBs

3:20 PM–4:25 PM          The Jewels

4:20 PM–5:30 PM         The Monitors

Motor City Stage

11:00 AM–12:05 PM     Smooth & EZ Hand Dance Institute

12:05 PM–1:10 PM        The Dixie Cups

1:10 PM–2:15 PM           The Swallows

2:15 PM–3:20 PM          Smooth & EZ Hand Dance Institute

3:20 PM–4:25 PM          The Dixie Cups

4:20 PM–5:30 PM          The Swallows

EVENING CONCERTS

Al Son Que Me Toquen Stage

6:00 PM–8:00 PM         Aires del Campo and Ayombe

World Stage

5:30 PM–7:30 PM          Ralph Rinzler Memorial Concert: Remembering Kate Rinzler with Elizabeth Mitchell, Suni Paz, Chip Taylor and the Grandkids and others

Presenters discuss the Peace Corps at the 2011 Smithsonian Folklife Festival. Image by Julie Mianecki.

UPDATE: The Folklife Festival will close today at 4 p.m. due to severe thunderstorms. It will reopen tomorrow at 11 a.m.

Welcome to day seven of the Smithsonian Folklife Festival! This morning, learn a thing or two about improvisation at the El Rumbiadero stage or immerse yourself in the culture of Colombia’s coffee region next door at the Me Contaron Los Abuelos stage. Explore diversity in the Peace Corps later in the day then head over to the R&B tents to discuss music and communities. Tonight, choose between two great options: A musical journey through Colombia and an evening with The Dixie Cups, the 1960s girl group behind the song “Chapel of Love.”

COLOMBIA

Al Son Que Me Toquen Stage:

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Aires del Campo

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Don Abundio y sus Traviesos

12:30 PM–1:15 PM         Grupo Cabrestero

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          El Pueblo Canta

2:00 PM–2:45 PM          Don Abundio y sus Traviesos

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Chirimía la Contundencia

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Tango de Medellín

4:15 PM–5:30 PM          Parrada Paisa: Aires del Campo & Ayombe

El Rumbiadero Stage:

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Improvising Workshop

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Circus Workshop

12:30 PM–1:15 PM         Voice Workshop

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Tango Workshop

2:00 PM–2:45 PM          Instrument-Making Workshop

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Salsa Workshop

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Carranguera Music & Dance Workshop

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          Chirimía Music Workshop

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Circus Workshop

Me Contaron Los Abuelos Stage:

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Mining & Fishing

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Coffee Culture

12:30 PM–1:15 PM         Ceremonial Music & Dance at Amazonian Circle

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Ranching in the Plains

2:00 PM–2:45 PM          Maintaining Languages

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Maloquero Wisdom

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Highlands & Coffee Region Basketry

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          Ceremonial Music & Dance at Amazonian Circle

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Conversation with Artists

Sabores y Saberes Stage:

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Mote de Quesoo Soup

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Momposino Cheese

12:30 PM–2:00 PM       Regional Sausages

2:00 PM–2:45 PM         Baked Regional Breads

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Amazonian Tucupí Broth

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Sweet Corn Arepas

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          Candied Lime Rind

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Regional Exchange

THE PEACE CORPS

World Stage

11:00 AM–12:00 PM     Garifuna Collective featuring Umalali

12:00 PM–1:00 PM       San Dancers from Botswana

1:00 PM–2:00 PM         Opika Performance Group from Ukraine

2:00 PM–3:00 PM         Tinikling Dancers from Philippines

3:00 PM–4:00 PM         Garifuna Collective featuring Umalali

4:00 PM–5:00 PM         San Dancers from Botswana

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Opika Performance Group from Ukraine

Peace Porch

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Thinking Globally, Living Locally

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Peace Corps Families

12:30 PM–1:15 PM        Sharing the World with the United States

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Sharing the United States with the World

2:00 PM–2:45 PM         Capturing the Peace Corps Experience

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Diversity in the Peace Corps

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Life Peace Corps

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          Being “The American”

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         What Peace Corps Volunteers Do

Home Cooking Stage

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Filipino Cooking

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Peruvian Cooking

12:30 PM­–1:15 PM        Kyrgyz Cooking

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Moroccan Cooking

2:00 PM–2:45 PM         Ghanaian Cooking

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Guatemalan Cooking

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Kenyan Cooking

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          Jamaican Cooking

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Just Desserts

RHYTHM AND BLUES

Session Stage

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Social Dance

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Stories from the Road

12:30 PM­–1:15 PM        Musical Crossroads

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Doo-Wop with the Swallows

2:00 PM–2:45 PM         Interview with The Jewels

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Radio as Promotion

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          R&B through the Decades

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          Learning through Music

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Music Communities

Soulsville Stage

11:00 AM–12:05 PM     The Swallows

12:05 PM–1:10 PM        The Jewels

1:10 PM–2:15 PM           Fred Wesley and The New JBs

2:15 PM–3:20 PM          Smooth & EZ Hand Dance Institute

3:20 PM–4:25 PM          The Jewels

4:20 PM–5:30 PM          Fred Wesley and The New JBs

Motor City Stage

11:00 AM–12:05 PM     Fernando Jones

12:05 PM–1:10 PM        The Monitors

1:10 PM–2:15 PM           The Dixie Cups

2:15 PM–3:20 PM          Fernando Jones

3:20 PM–4:25 PM          The Monitors

4:20 PM–5:30 PM          Smooth & EZ Hand Dance Institute

EVENING CONCERTS

Al Son Que Me Toquen Stage

6:00 PM–8:30 PM         Musical Journey through Colombia: Dancing Salsa, Carranguera and Joropo featuring Salsa de Cali, El Pueblo Canta and Grupo Cabrestero

Motor City Stage

6:00 PM–7:30 PM          An Evening with the Dixie Cups

Dancers from the National Hand Dance Association at the 2011 Smithsonian Folklife Festival. Image by Julie Mianecki.

Welcome back to day six of the Smithsonian Folklife Festival! Settle in to today’s scheduled events with some cowboy stories in the Colombia tents, then head next door to try cholado, a common Colombian drink made from crushed ice, fruit and sweetened condensed milk. Later in the day, watch traditional dancers from the Ukraine and the Philippines and hear R&B artists tell stories from the road. Tonight, head over to the Motor City stage for an Evening with Fred Wesley and the New JBs.

COLOMBIA

Al Son Que Me Toquen Stage:

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Don Abundio y sus Traviesos

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Aires del Campo

12:30 PM–1:15 PM         Chirimía la Contundencia & Cantaoras de Alabaos

1:15 PM–2:00 PM           Aires del Campo

2:00 PM–2:45 PM          El Pueblo Canta

2:45 PM–3:30 PM           Grupo Cabrestero

3:30 PM–4:15 PM           Aires del Campo

4:15 PM–5:00 PM           Chirimía la Contundencia

5:00 PM–5:30 PM          Salsa de Cali

El Rumbiadero Stage:

11:00 AM–11:45 PM       Circus Workshop

11:45 PM–12:30 PM       Salsa Workshop

12:30 PM–1:15 PM          Joropo Music & Dance Workshop

1:15 PM–2:00 PM           Tango Workshop

2:00 PM–2:45 PM           Circus Workshop/Baudilio y su Marimba

2:45 PM–3:30 PM           Voice Workshop

3:30 PM–4:15 PM           Carranguera Music & Dance Workshop

4:15 PM–5:00 PM           Momposino Carnival Procession

5:00 PM–5:30 PM          Tango Workshop

Me Contaron Los Abuelos Stage:

11:00 AM–11:45 PM       Amazonian Occupations

11:45 PM–12:30 PM       Cowboy Stories

12:30 PM–1:15 PM         Ceremonial Music & Dance at Amazonian Circle

1:15 PM–2:00 PM           Ranching & Fishing

2:00 PM–2:45 PM          Transportation in the Coffee Region

2:45 PM–3:30 PM           Andean and Pacific Crafts

3:30 PM–4:15 PM           Urban Artistic Alternatives

4:15 PM–5:00 PM           Ceremonial Music & Dance at Amazonian Circle

5:00 PM–5:30 PM          Conversation with Artists

Sabores y Saberes Stage:

11:00 AM–11:45 PM       Cholado from Cali

11:45 PM–12:30 PM       Momposino Hayaco Stew

12:30 PM–1:15 PM         Regional Wraps

1:15 PM–2:00 PM           Medellín Fritters

2:00 PM–2:45 PM          Momposino Candy

2:45 PM–3:30 PM           Cali Fritters

3:30 PM–4:15 PM           Pacific Seafood

4:15 PM–5:00 PM           Cali Carnitas Costillas

5:00 PM–5:30 PM          Regional Exchange

THE PEACE CORPS

World Stage

11:00 AM–12:00 PM      Garifuna Collective featuring Umalali

12:00 PM–1:00 PM        Opika Performance Group from Ukraine

1:00 PM–2:00 PM          Tinikling Dancers from Philippines

2:00 PM–3:00 PM          Garifuna Collective featuring Umalali

3:00 PM–4:00 PM          San Dancers from Botswana

4:00 PM–5:00 PM          Opika Performance Group from Ukraine

5:00 PM–5:30 PM          Tinikling Dancers from Philippines

Peace Porch

11:00 AM–11:45 PM       The Peace Corps’ Inspiration

11:45 PM–12:30 PM       Life after the Peace Corps

12:30 PM–1:15 PM         Being “The American”

1:15 PM–2:00 PM           Capturing the Peace Corps Experience

2:00 PM–2:45 PM          Teaching & Learning

2:45 PM–3:30 PM           Peace Corps Families

3:30 PM–4:15 PM           Sharing the United States with the World

4:15 PM–5:00 PM           Sharing the World with the United States

5:00 PM–5:30 PM          Local Clothes, Food & Customs

Home Cooking Stage

11:00 AM–11:45 PM       Colombian Cooking

11:45 PM–12:30 PM       Malian Cooking

12:30 PM­–1:15 PM         Kyrgyz Cooking

1:15 PM–2:00 PM           Georgian Cooking

2:00 PM–2:45 PM          Ukrainian Cooking

2:45 PM–3:30 PM           Zambian Cooking

3:30 PM–4:15 PM           Filipino Cooking

4:15 PM–5:00 PM           Ghanaian Cooking

5:00 PM–5:30 PM          Just Desserts

RHYTHM AND BLUES

Session Stage

11:00 AM–11:45 PM       Learning through Music

11:45 PM–12:30 PM       Interview with Fred Wesley

12:30 PM­–1:15 PM         R&B through the Decades

1:15 PM–2:00 PM           Globe Posters and R&B

2:00 PM–2:45 PM          Music Communities

2:45 PM–3:30 PM           Social Dance

3:30 PM–4:15 PM           Marketing & Promotion

4:15 PM–5:00 PM           Stories from the Road

5:00 PM–5:30 PM          Doo-Wop with the Swallows

Soulsville Stage

11:00 AM–12:05 PM      The Dixie Cups

12:05 PM–1:10 PM         The Monitors

1:10 PM–2:15 PM            Fernando Jones

2:15 PM–3:20 PM           The Dixie Cups

3:20 PM–4:25 PM           Fernando Jones

4:20 PM–5:30 PM          Smooth & EZ Hand Dance Institute

Motor City Stage

11:00 AM–12:05 PM      Smooth & EZ Hand Dance Institute

12:05 PM–1:10 PM         The Swallows

1:10 PM–2:15 PM            Fred Wesley and The New JBs

2:15 PM–3:20 PM           The Jewels

3:20 PM–4:25 PM           The Swallows

4:20 PM–5:30 PM          The Jewels

EVENING CONCERTS

Motor City Stage

6:00 PM–7:30 PM          An Evening with Fred Wesley and the New JBs

Janice Waugh eating a cricket on the Riviera Maya, Mexico. Image courtesy of the Smithsonian Associates.

Ever wondered what it would be like to travel the world alone but been too scared to try? Solo travel specialist and blogger Janice Waugh says it’s never too late to go for it. “When you travel alone, you discover who you are when nobody’s looking, you learn what you’re capable of, and it’s incredibly empowering,” she said. Waugh will join Washington Post food and travel editor Joe Yonan next week in a lecture for Smithsonian’s Resident Associate Program to discuss their tips and tricks for traveling, cooking and eating solo. We caught up with Waugh before the event to get the skinny on what to do–and what not to do–when you’re traveling alone.

1 ) Smile.

“The smile is an international symbol of being friendly, safe and open,” Waugh said. Being friendly and approachable will make locals and other tourists more likely to help you out, start a conversation, or give you advice about where to go and what to do.

2 ) Eat at the bar.

When choosing places to eat, Waugh said, pick a restaurant with a bar or communal tables that will naturally foster conversation between you and other diners. Look for welcoming places with lots of locals. “When I sit at the bar, I rarely end up without a conversation at some point over the course of the evening.”

3 ) Stay in a B&B.

Again, Waugh said, be social. Instead of a generic hotel, try a B&B where you can have breakfast with other guests and maybe make a few new friends. “If you want to kind of tuck yourself away and have some quiet time, then a hotel is going to be better, but in just about every case, a B&B will be more social,” Waugh said. If B&Bs aren’t your thing, go for a boutique hotel instead of a chain.

4 ) Stay in public.

Waugh’s number one safety tip is to stay in public when you’re traveling alone. Going into a private area, with our without others, is putting yourself in an unnecessarily risky situation, so play it safe and just don’t do it.

5 ) Try an unexpected destination.

Although Waugh recommends inexperienced solo travelers try out a destination close to home or somewhere that English is spoken to get their sea legs, she suggests those with a few more miles under their belts try somewhere a little off the beaten track. Jordan, Chile and India are all great locations for solo travelers, she said.

6 ) Don’t get drunk.

Whether you’re at a local pub or headed to a concert, keep the drinking to the minimum. “If you enjoy going out to the bar and having a few drinks when you’re at home, don’t do that when you’re on the road,” Waugh said. “You don’t have the same ability to read a room, read a person or read a situation when you’re in a different culture.”

7 ) Try a day tour.

Longer tours can stifle your wanderlust, but a day tour can be a good way to meet others and see the sights without having your whole vacation pre-scheduled for you. Waugh recommends scoping out groups of visitors on the tour and identifying the most approachable person to connect with. “Usually in that type of group, there’s the gregarious person, and you can catch their eye and they’re generally very happy to talk.”

8 ) Go to an independent coffee shop.

Although chain stores can work as well, independent coffee shops are a good place to meet locals as well as get a jolt of caffeine. “Chains tend to be a little cooler, where local coffee shops tend to be more neighborhood-based,” Waugh said. She added that you’ll often find freelance writers, who tend to be very open, curious and helpful, working there.

9 ) Don’t be flashy.

Don’t flaunt expensive jewelry or gear or wear revealing clothing. You don’t want to have a possession stolen in a place that you’re not staying permanently and might not be able to communicate easily with police. Waugh also advises dressing significantly more conservatively than you would be at home to avoid attracting unwanted attention while you’re unfamiliar with your surroundings and the local customs.

10 ) Choose a traditional pub at night.

A local pub is probably a better choice for a solo traveler than a trendy bar or flashy dance club, because it’s easier to interact with and meet others, and less likely to be full of tourists. “Most pubs have a bank of seats with tables set up in an L-shape,” Waugh said. “Sit at the short end of the ‘L’ and then you’ve got more command of the room and you can see what’s going on and who you want to talk to.”

An example of Colombian highland weaving at the 2011 Smithsonian Folklife Festival. Image by Julie Mianecki.

Welcome to day five, the Fourth of July, at the Smithsonian Folklife Festival! Today, broaden your horizons with Tango de Medellín, a pair of dancers who teach tango as an alternative activity to counteract the violence in the Medellín, a former drug capital once known as the world’s most violent city. Just down the Mall, learn about how Peace Corps members deal with what it means to be “the American” during their time abroad or watch the National Hand Dance Association perform their unique form of swing dancing. There are no evening concerts tonight because of the holiday, but stick around the Mall for a magnificent fireworks display after sunset.

COLOMBIA

Al Son Que Me Toquen Stage:

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      El Pueblo Canta

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Grupo Cabrestero

12:30 PM–1:15 PM         Aires del Campo

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Don Abundio y sus Traviesos

2:00 PM–2:45 PM          Chirimía la Contundencia & Cantaoras de Alabaos

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Aires del Campo

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Chirimía la Contundencia

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          Grupo Cabrestero

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Tango de Medellín

El Rumbiadero Stage:

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Aires del Campo Workshop

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Tango Workshop

12:30 PM–1:15 PM         Amazonian Ceremonial Music & Dance

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Carranguera Music & Dance Workshop

2:00 PM–2:45 PM          Salsa Workshop

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Regional Songs

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Instrument-Making Workshop/Circus Workshop

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          Carnival Workshop

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Salsa Workshop

Me Contaron Los Abuelos Stage:

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Hat and Weaving Traditions

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Instrument-Making Traditions

12:30 PM–1:15 PM        Religious Sculpture

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Andean Highland Crafts with Fibers

2:00 PM–2:45 PM         Fish in the Amazon

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Working with Clay

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Filigree Craft and Design

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          Ceremonial Music & Dance at Amazonian Circle

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Conversation with Artists

Sabores y Saberes Stage:

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Amazonian Tucupí Broth

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Momposino Cheese

12:30 PM–1:15 PM        Llanero Stew

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Boyacense Stew

2:00 PM–2:45 PM         Cholado from Cali

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Momposino Cuisine

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Llano Wraps

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          Regional Empanadas

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Beverage Traditions

THE PEACE CORPS

World Stage:

11:00 AM–12:00 PM     Garifuna Collective featuring Umalali

12:00 PM–1:00 PM       Tinikling Dancers from Philippines

1:00 PM–2:00 PM         San Dancers from Botswana

2:00 PM–3:00 PM         Opika Performance Group from Ukraine

3:00 PM–4:00 PM         Tinikling Dancers from Philippines

4:00 PM–5:00 PM         Garifuna Collective featuring Umalali

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         San Dancers from Botswana

Peace Porch

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      What Peace Corps Volunteers Do

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Peace Corps Families

12:30 PM–1:15 PM        Capturing the Peace Corps Experience

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Being “The American”

2:00 PM–2:45 PM         Sharing the World with the United States

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Sharing the United States with the World

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Teaching & Learning

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          Life after the Peace Corps

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         The Peace Corps’ Inspiration

Home Cooking Stage

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Kenyan Cooking

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Guatemalan Cooking

12:30 PM­–1:15 PM        Ukrainian Cooking

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Ghanaian Cooking

2:00 PM–2:45 PM         Malian Cooking

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Kyrgyz Cooking

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Peruvian Cooking

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          Trees, Water & People

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Just Desserts

RHYTHM AND BLUES

Session Stage

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Learning through Music

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Radio as Promotion

12:30 PM­–1:15 PM        Social Dance

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Interview with William Bell

2:00 PM–2:45 PM         Vocal Roots

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Stories from the Studio

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          The Music Industry

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          Doo-Wop with Sonny Til’s Orioles

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Stax Music Academy

Soulsville Stage

11:00 AM–12:05 PM     Stax Music Academy

12:05 PM–1:10 PM        Shirley Jones of The Jones Girls

1:10 PM–2:15 PM           Swamp Dogg

2:15 PM–3:20 PM          Sonny Til’s Orioles

3:20 PM–4:25 PM          Stax Music Academy

4:20 PM–5:30 PM         Shirley Jones of The Jones Girls

Motor City Stage

11:00 AM–12:05 PM     National Hand Dance Association

12:05 PM–1:10 PM        The Funk Brothers

1:10 PM–2:15 PM          Nat Dove

2:15 PM–3:20 PM          National Hand Dance Association

3:20 PM–4:25 PM          Nat Dove

4:20 PM–5:30 PM         The Funk Brothers

Smithsonian Castle serves as a backdrop to the the Motor City stage at the 2011 Smithsonian Folklife Festival. Image by Julie Mianecki.

Welcome to day four of the Smithsonian Folklife Festival! This morning, watch Aires del Campo, a traditional string music ensemble from the coffee region of Colombia, perform on the Al Son Que Me Toquen stage. Check out dancers from Botswana and the Philippines in the Peace Corps tents, and head over to the R&B area to enjoy performances by Swamp Dogg, Nat Dove, Sonny Til’s Orioles and more. Tonight, choose between an evening with The Funk Brothers and The Garifuna Collective featuring Umalali.

COLOMBIA

Al Son Que Me Toquen Stage:

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Aires del Campo

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Chirimía la Contundencia

12:30 PM–1:15 PM         Don Abundio y sus Traviesos

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Grupo Cabrestero

2:00 PM–2:45 PM          Aires del Campo

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Encuentro: El Pueblo Canta & Cimarrón

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Tango de Medellín

4:15 PM–5:30 PM          Encuentro: Chirimía la Contundencia & Don Abundio y

sus Traviesos

El Rumbiadero Stage:

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Drumming and Drum-Making Workshop

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Tango Meets Salsa

12:30 PM–1:15 PM         Bandolas across Traditions

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Carranguera Music & Dance

2:00 PM–2:45 PM          Instrument-Making Workshop/Circus Workshop

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Voices of the Pacific

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Circus Workshop

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          Carranguera Music & Dance Workshop

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Salsa Workshop

Me Contaron Los Abuelos Stage:

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Amazonian Crafts

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Craft Market Strategies

12:30 PM–1:15 PM         Ceremonial Music & Dance at Amazonian Circle

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Making & Using Hammocks

2:00 PM–2:45 PM          Building with Guadua Bamboo

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Mask-Making Traditions

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Creating Collectives

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          Ceremonial Music & Dance at Amazonian Circle

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Conversation with Artists

Sabores y Saberes Stage:

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Preparing the Mamona Beef Roast (Part 1 of 2)

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Coffee Regions Cuisine

12:30 PM–1:15 PM         Momposino Cheese

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Corn & Wheat Arepas

2:00 PM–2:45 PM          Amazonian Tucupí Broth

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Rice across the Regions

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Macetas: Decorating with Candy

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          Preparing the Mamona Beef Roast (Part 2 of 2)

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Regional Liquors

THE PEACE CORPS

World Stage

11:00 AM–12:00 PM     San Dancers from Botswana

12:00 PM–1:00 PM       Tinikling Dancers from Philippines

1:00 PM–2:00 PM         Opika Performance Group from Ukraine

2:00 PM–3:00 PM         Garifuna Collective featuring Umalali

3:00 PM–4:00 PM         San Dancers from Botswana

4:00 PM–5:00 PM         Tinikling Dancers from Philippines

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Opika Performance Group from Ukraine

Peace Porch

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Diversity in the Peace Corps

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Life after Peace Corps

12:30 PM–1:15 PM         Sharing the United States with the World

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Sharing the World with the United States

2:00 PM–2:45 PM          Being “The American”

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Local Clothes, Food & Customs

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Peace Corps Families

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          Capturing the Peace Corps Experience

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Thinking Globally, Living Locally

Home Cooking Stage

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Filipino Cooking

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Zambian Cooking

12:30 PM­–1:15 PM        Georgian Cooking

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Trees, Water & People Cooking

2:00 PM–2:45 PM         Tongan Cooking

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Kyrgyz Cooking

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Jamaican Cooking

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          Peruvian Cooking

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Just Desserts

RHYTHM AND BLUES

Session Stage

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Interview with Nat Dove

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Interview with Beverly Lindsay-Johnson

12:30 PM­–1:15 PM        Stories from the Studio

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Getting the Music Heard

2:00 PM–2:45 PM         Keeping the Legacy Alive

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          R&B through the Decades

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Social Dance

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          Voices (Cross Program)

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Interview with Sonny Til’s Orioles

Soulsville Stage

11:00 AM–12:05 PM     Sonny Til’s Orioles

12:05 PM–1:10 PM        Swamp Dogg

1:10 PM–2:15 PM           Nat Dove

2:15 PM–3:20 PM          Sonny Til’s Orioles

3:20 PM–4:25 PM          Nat Dove

4:20 PM–5:30 PM         Swamp Dogg

Motor City Stage

11:00 AM–12:05 PM     Shirley Jones of The Jones Girls

12:05 PM–1:10 PM        Stax Music Academy

1:10 PM–2:15 PM          National Hand Dance Association

2:15 PM–3:20 PM          The Funk Brothers

3:20 PM–4:25 PM         Shirley Jones of The Jones Girls

4:20 PM–5:30 PM         Stax Music Academy

EVENING CONCERTS

World Stage

6:00 PM–7:30 PM         The Garifuna Collective featuring Umalali

Motor City Stage

6:00 PM–7:30 PM         An Evening with The Funk Brothers

Presenters at the Peace Corps Home Cooking stage at the 2011 Smithsonian Folklife Festival. Image by Julie Mianecki.

Welcome to day three of the Smithsonian Folklife Festival! Check out the Peace Corps events today to try some traditional Moroccan food or attend their session on what it’s like to be the family of a Peace Corps volunteer. Head over to the Colombia tents to try your hand at the marimba and get schooled on Afro-Colombian hairstyles, or stop by the R&B section to listen to Nat Dove. Tonight, join the crowds at the R&B tents for an evening with soul artist Swamp Dogg or at the Colombia tents for Chirimía la Contundencia, a traditional brass band, and Grupo Cimarrón, an all-star team of instrumentalists and singers from the joropo llanero tradition.

COLOMBIA

Al Son Que Me Toquen Stage:

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Aires del Campo

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Don Abundio y sus Traviesos

12:30 PM–1:15 PM         Chirimía la Contundencia & Cantaoras de Alabaos

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          El Pueblo Canta

2:00 PM–2:45 PM          Aires del Campo

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Chirimía la Contundencia

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Grupo Cabrestero

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          El Pueblo Canta

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Salsa de Cali

El Rumbiadero Stage:

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Women’s Voices in Music

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Carranga Music & Dance Workshop

12:30 PM–1:15 PM         Bandolas across Traditions

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Tango Workshop

2:00 PM–2:45 PM          Marimba & Drums Workshop

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Salsa Workshop/Circus Workshop

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Aires del Campo Workshop

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          Carnival Workshop

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Tango Workshop

Me Contaron Los Abuelos Stage:

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Weaving & the Environment

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Recycling in the Arts

12:30 PM–1:15 PM         Ceremonial Music & Dance at Amazonian Circle

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Cooking & the Environment

2:00 PM–2:45 PM          Afro-Colombian Hairstyles

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Amazonian Ceremonial Stools

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Sustainable Gardening

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          Ceremonial Music & Dance at Amazonian Circle

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Instrument Making Traditions

Sabores y Saberes Stage:

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Corn & Wheat Arepas

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Aborrajados from Cali

12:30 PM–1:15 PM        Regional Wraps

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Boyacense Appetizers

2:00 PM–2:45 PM         Baked Regional Breads

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Macetas: Decorating with Candy

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Amazonian Tucupí Broth

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          Momposino Cuisine

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Regional Exchange

THE PEACE CORPS

World Stage

11:00 AM–12:00 PM     Garifuna Collective featuring Umalali

12:00 PM–1:00 PM       Opika Performance Group from Ukraine

1:00 PM–2:00 PM         Tinikling Dancers from Philippines

2:00 PM–3:00 PM         San Dancers from Botswana

3:00 PM–4:00 PM         Garifuna Collective featuring Umalali

4:00 PM–5:00 PM         Opika Performance Group from Ukraine

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Tinikling Dancers from Philippines

Peace Porch

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Sharing the World with the United States

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Sharing the United States with the World

12:30 PM–1:15 PM        Life after Peace Corps

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Peace Corps Families

2:00 PM–2:45 PM         Capturing the Peace Corps Experience

2:45 PM–3:30 PM         Teaching & Learning

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Being “The American”

4:15 PM–5:00 PM         What Peace Corps Volunteers Do

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         The Peace Corps’ Inspiration

Home Cooking Stage

11:00 AM–11:45 PM     Moroccan Cooking

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Kyrgyz Cooking

12:30 PM­–1:15 PM        Guatemalan Cooking

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Kenyan Cooking

2:00 PM–2:45 PM         Malian Cooking

2:45 PM–3:30 PM         Filipino Cooking

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Ghanaian Cooking

4:15 PM–5:00 PM         Jamaican Cooking

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Just Desserts

RHYTHM AND BLUES

Session Stage

11:00 AM–11:45 PM    Interview with Bob Babbitt and Eddie Willis

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Learning through Music

12:30 PM­–1:15 PM        Getting the Music Heard

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          From Gospel to R&B

2:00 PM–2:45 PM         Social Dance

2:45 PM–3:30 PM         R&B through the Decades

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Marketing & Promotion

4:15 PM–5:00 PM         Songwriting

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Doo-Wop with Sonny Til’s Orioles

Soulsville Stage

11:00 AM–12:05 PM    Nat Dove

12:05 PM–1:10 PM        Sonny Til’s Orioles

1:10 PM–2:15 PM           Stax Music Academy

2:15 PM–3:20 PM          Sonny Til’s Orioles

3:20 PM–4:25 PM          National Hand Dance Association

4:20 PM–5:30 PM         Stax Music Academy

Motor City Stage

11:00 AM–12:05 PM     Shirley Jones of The Jones Girls

12:05 PM–1:10 PM        National Hand Dance Association

1:10 PM–2:15 PM          The Funk Brothers

2:15 PM–3:20 PM          Swamp Dogg

3:20 PM–4:25 PM         Shirley Jones of The Jones Girls

4:20 PM–5:30 PM         The Funk Brothers

EVENING CONCERTS

Al Son Que Me Toquen Stage

6:00 PM–8:00 PM        Chirimía la Contundencia and Grupo Cimarrón

Motor City Stage

6:00 PM–7:30 PM        An Evening with Swamp Dogg

Kenyan basket weavers at the 2011 Smithsonian Folklife Festival. Image by Julie Mianecki.

Welcome to day two of the Smithsonian Folklife Festival! This morning, enjoy some music from South America with Chirimía la Contundencia. This group, composed of wind and percussion instruments, jams to traditional rhythms of the Colombian Pacific.  Later on, take a trip back in time to the era of doo-wop with Sonny Til’s Orioles or head over to the Peace Corps’ Home Cooking stage to sample cuisine from Peru, Mali and more.  Tonight, check out the Motor City stage for an evening with Miss Martha Reeves, legendary lead singer of Martha and the Vandellas, the group behind “Dancing in the Street,” or join Circo Ciudad, Tango de Medellín and Don Abundio y sus Traviesos for a musical journey through Colombia.

COLOMBIA

Al Son Que Me Toquen Stage:

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Chirimía la Contundencia

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Aires del Campo

12:30 PM–1:15 PM        Grupo Cabrestero

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          El Pueblo Canta

2:00 PM–2:45 PM         Chirimía la Contundencia

2:45 PM–3:30 PM         Don Abundio y sus Traviesos

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Aires del Campo

4:15 PM–5:30 PM          Improvising Verses: El Pueblo Canta, Cimarrón & Grupo Cabrestero

El Rumbiadero Stage:

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Joropo Contrapunteo Workshop

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Carnival Workshop

12:30 PM–1:15 PM        Baudilio y su Marimba

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Salsa Workshop/Circus Workshop

2:00 PM–2:45 PM         Vocal Workshop

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Carranguera Music & Dance Workshop

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Tango Workshop

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          Mompox Dance Workshop

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Salsa Workshop

Me Contaron Los Abuelos Stage:

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Mining & Fishing

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Coffee Culture

12:30 PM–1:15 PM        Ceremonial Music & Dance at Amazonian Circle

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Ranching in the Plains

2:00 PM–2:45 PM         Maintaining Languages

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Malquero Wisdom

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Highlands & Coffee Region Basketry

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          Ceremonial Music & Dance at Amazonian Circle

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Conversation with Artists

Sabores y Saberes Stage:

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Momposino Cheese

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Mote de Queso Soup

12:30 PM–2:00 PM       Regional Sausages

2:00 PM–2:45 PM         Amazonian Tucupí Broth

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Candied Lime Rind

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Pandebono Bread & Manjar Blanco

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          Building a Bread Oven

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Regional Exchange

THE PEACE CORPS

World Stage

11:00 AM–12:00 PM     Tinikling Dancers from Philippines

12:00 PM–1:00 PM       Garifuna Collective featuring Umalali

1:00 PM–2:00 PM         San Dancers from Botswana

2:00 PM–3:00 PM         Opika Performance Group from Ukraine

3:00 PM–4:00 PM         Tinikling Dancers from Philippines

4:00 PM–5:00 PM         Garifuna Collective featuring Umalali

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         San Dancers from Botswana

Peace Porch

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Thinking Globally, Living Locally

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Deaf Peace Corps Volunteers

12:30 PM­–1:15 PM        Being “The American”

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Life After the Peace Corps

2:00 PM–2:45 PM         Peace Corps Families

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Local Clothes, Food & Customs

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Sharing the World with the United States

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          Sharing the United States with the World

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Diversity in the Peace Corps

Home Cooking Stage

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Ukrainian Cooking

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Kenyan Cooking

12:30 PM­–1:15 PM         Tongan Cooking

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Zambian Cooking

2:00 PM–2:45 PM          Georgian Cooking

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          Trees, Water & People

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Peruvian Cooking

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          Malian Cooking

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Just Desserts

RHYTHM AND BLUES

Session Stage

11:00 AM–11:45 PM      Women’s Voices

11:45 PM–12:30 PM      Interview with Swamp Dogg

12:30 PM­–1:15 PM        Keeping the Legacy Alive

1:15 PM–2:00 PM          Social Dance

2:00 PM–2:45 PM         Doo-Wop with Sonny Til’s Orioles

2:45 PM–3:30 PM          R&B through the Decades

3:30 PM–4:15 PM          Musical Crossroads

4:15 PM–5:00 PM          Getting the Music Heard

5:00 PM–5:30 PM         Stories from the Studio

Soulsville Stage

11:00 AM–12:05 PM     Stax Music Academy

12:05 PM–1:10 PM        Sonny Til’s Orioles

1:10 PM–2:15 PM           Swamp Dogg

2:15 PM–3:20 PM          Stax Music Academy

3:20 PM–4:25 PM          National Hand Dance Association

4:20 PM–5:30 PM         Swamp Dogg

Motor City Stage

11:00 AM–12:05 PM     National Hand Dance Association

12:05 PM–1:10 PM        The Funk Brothers

1:10 PM–2:15 PM          Nat Dove

2:15 PM–3:20 PM          Shirley Jones of The Jones Girls

3:20 PM–4:25 PM         The Funk Brothers

4:20 PM–5:30 PM         Nat Dove

EVENING CONCERTS

Al Son Que Me Toquen Stage

6:00 PM–8:30 PM      Musical Journey through Colombia: City Expressions and Caribbean Rhythms featuring Circo Ciudad, Tango de Medellín and Don Abundio y sus Traviesos

Motor City Stage

6:00 PM–8:00 PM        An Evening with Miss Martha Reeves