Crafts
Ann Arbor Mini Maker Faire
Saturday June 4, 2016: 10:00am to
4:00pm
Downtown Library: 1st Floor Lobby
All Ages.
Blog Post
Care for some Lemonade?
by manz
Beyoncé surprised the world by dropping her visual album Lemonade, which was available for limited viewing on HBO. The album of the same name was then streaming on Tidal, and now the album and video are available for purchase via the usual channels, and soon available at AADL. Lemonade is once again a carefully orchestrated release by Beyoncé, as she continues to control every detail of all things Bey.
Since Lemonade hit the ice cold glass the world has been buzzing, and not just those in the BeyHive. The visual album is rich with imagery and words of infidelity, betrayal, sorrow, self-empowerment, revenge, and feminism, which has caused critics and fans to ponder the validity of her words and how they pertain to her life and family.
The release includes the 12-song album and the hour-long film. The album does not disappoint, and I recommend watching the film first to get the full effect, so that when you then listen to the album you have striking visuals dancing during subsequent listens.
Now underway, The Formation World Tour was announced after Queen Bey's performance at the Super Bowl halftime show. She heads to Ford Field in Detroit on June 14.
Lectures & Panel Discussions
A Listener's Guide to Improvisation with the Ingrid Racine Quartet and A2SF
Saturday July 2, 2016: 1:00pm to
2:00pm
Downtown Library: Multi-Purpose Room
Film & Video Events
Film and Discussion: We Rock Long Distance
Thursday July 7, 2016: 6:30pm to
8:30pm
Downtown Library: Secret Lab
Grade 6 - Adult
Lectures & Panel Discussions
Record Store Day Film Screening And Discussion: All Things Must Pass: The Rise and Fall of Tower Records
Saturday April 16, 2016: 3:00pm to
6:00pm
Downtown Library: Multi-Purpose Room
Grade 6 - Adult
Blog Post
Vinyl Records!
by manz
Saturday, April 16 was Record Store Day! On this day we launched AADL’s circulating vinyl collection. Yes, that’s right, you can check out LP records at the library again! You can browse the little collection online to see what we’ve got, or stop into the Downtown Branch to flip through the stacks of wax. Ah, the joy of flipping through a record bin.
There’s a good mix of classics and contemporary. You’ll find artists such as Taylor Swift, The Cure, Kendrick Lamar, Eminem, The Beatles, and Fleetwood Mac, to name a fabulous few. Can you dig it?
Blog Post
The Hamiltome is Here!
by valerieclaires
Hamilton, the smash-hit Broadway hip-hop musical about Founding Father and America’s first Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton (yes, you read that right), has taken the world by storm. Performances are sold out through the end of this year, and celebrities from Busta Rhymes to Madonna all the way up to Dick Cheney and the Obama family have raved about the show.
If you’ve been listening to the Broadway cast soundtrack non-stop since it came out, you probably already know all about Hamiltome, the nickname for the newest book about the musical. Many Broadway shows publish libretti with music, lyrics, and notes about the show, but Hamilton creator Lin-Manuel Miranda and collaborator Jeremy McCarter have put together something more like a scrapbook. In addition to the traditional libretto, Hamilton: The Revolution features large color photos of the cast, set, and show; plus historical background information, interviews, and footnotes from Miranda and the cast. It was published this week, and you can place a hold on it from AADL!
If you just can’t wait for it, and need to dive deeper into Hamilton and his contemporaries, try one of these:
Ron Chernow’s biography, Alexander Hamilton tops the list of further Hamilton reading, and is in fact the inspiration for the musical. Lin-Manuel Miranda took this 800-page tome on vacation as some nice beach reading, connected with the plight and struggle of a man writing himself out of hard times, and started composing the musical when he got back from vacation. This is the definitive Hamilton biography, a vivid and detailed portrait of a multi-dimensional man who came to a new country and made himself a new man.
Hamilton wrote prolifically, and there’s no better way to understand that than by picking up the 1108-page collection of his writings, which includes letters, speeches, the infamous Reynolds Pamphlet, and all 51 of the Federalist Papers he authored. Flip through, and you might even notice some lines from his actual writing that became lyrics in the show. Be certain to read some of the affectionate letters he wrote to his wife Eliza and the series of letters with Aaron Burr that led to their fateful duel.
After the duel, Aaron Burr would often casually refer to Alexander Hamilton as “my friend Alexander Hamilton, whom I shot.” They were, at the very least, colleagues, and even worked together as attorneys for the defense in America’s first sensational and fully transcribed murder trial. Duel with the Devil, by Paul Collins, shares the scandal of the Manhattan Well Mystery and the trial of suspect Levi Weeks, plus some of the political backstory of the two legendary rivals.
Don’t throw away your shot to learn more about this Founding Father’s fascinating life and career. Placing a hold on one of these books is easy, waiting for it is harder.
Blog Post
AADL in Synthtopia
by valerieclaires
Online electronic music site Synthtopia typically covers all things electronica: electronic music gear, new releases, artists, and synthesizers, but this week they’re covering something a little closer to home: The Ann Arbor District Library!
Synthtopia profiles our Music Tools collection and mentions our wide range of synthesizers, effects pedals, amps, and uncommon musical instruments.
Interested in checking out this equipment for yourself?
Visit aadl.org/musictools to see all our music gear, and see aadl.org/tools for our full range of Tools collections, including Art Tools, Home Tools, Science Tools, and more!
Blog Post
Boom Whacka Boom!
by manz
You may be familiar with the popular Boomwhackers from our music tool collection. They are a set of individual tubes that create notes when gently tapped. Kids particularly enjoy them! We have some new music books in the tools collection that will help you play oodles of songs! Take a look and see the possibilities that lie at your fingertips.
Whack-A-Doodle-Doo!: Color-Coded children's Songs for Boomwhackers Musical Tubes
Whacked on Classics: Music of the Masters for Boomwhackers Musical Tubes
Boom boom!: Classics! for Boomwhacker Musical Tubes
Boom boom! Popular movie and tv songs: For Boomwhackers Musical Tubes
Blog Post
The Whole Gritty City
by manz
If you missed AADL’s screening of The Whole Gritty City last month, fear not, it’s headed to our collection. This documentary film has been one of my favorite films so far this year and it’s well worth the view.
The film centers on three New Orleans school marching bands, who under the direction of their fearless bandleaders, prepare for Mardi Gras and parade season. From the elementary school kids to the high school students, these young people are full of heart and soul, and the emotion and struggle of their daily lives, in addition to prepping for parades, shines through in this film.
At times the kids are handed the camera and act as narrator, sharing bits of themselves both at home and in the band room. Some parts will make you laugh, others will make you cry. The music of New Orleans will surely jump into your ears and make your heart beat with an extra layer of delight while watching these kids and their leaders bring it to life in their gritty city.