Culture and Arts Events

Make Music New York: Underground Horns

Underground Horns is a Brooklyn based 6-piece brass band playing Afro Funk Bhangra New Orleans grooves and beyond. Make Music New York is a live, free musical celebration across the city that takes place each June 21, the longest day of the year. On that day, hundreds of public spaces throughout the five boroughs become impromptu stages for over 1,000 free concerts.

Lunchapalooza Kids! Storytelling

Kids can enjoy stories told by professional performers. Flor Bromley tells “Cuentos de mi abuela”: Bilingual stories from my grandma to you! A collection of Flor's favorite stories from Peru and South America.

Lunchapalooza! Isle of Klezbos

ISLE of KLEZBOS approaches tradition with irreverence and respect. This soulful, fun-loving powerhouse all-women’s klezmer sextet has toured from Vienna to Vancouver since 1998. Band repertoire ranges from rambunctious to entrancing: neo-traditional folk dance, mystical melodies, Yiddish swing and retro tango, and genre-defying originals.

Great Books Discussion Series: Latin American Literature: Fuentes

We’ll discuss Carlos Fuentes’s novel The Death of Artemio Cruz, which is considered to be a milestone in the Latin American literary movement.

This series is made possible through Brooklyn Public Library’s Fund for the Humanities, established through the generous support of the National Endowment for the Humanities. Additional funding was provided by The Hearst Foundation, Inc.; the Horace W. Goldsmith Foundation; The Starr Foundation; the Leon and Muriel Gilbert Charitable Trust; the Henry and Lucy Moses Fund, Inc., and a gift in memory of Samuel and Pauline Wine.

bklynpubliclibrary.org/infocommons

Plaza Swing Series: Swingtime Big Band

This 20-piece band plays authentic recreations of the timeless swing music of such great Big Band leaders as Count Basie, Artie Shaw, Glenn Miller, Benny Goodman, Tommy Dorsey, Duke Ellington among many others. Dance lessons are at 6:30, band starts at 7 pm. In case of rain, event will be held in the ballroom of Union Temple at 17 Eastern Pkwy.

This series is made possible with public funds from the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo and the New York State Legislature.

Conversations with People Who Create in Brooklyn - Design Craft

Photographer Randy Duchaine will chat with individuals featured in his photographic exhibition, "Created in Brooklyn". Learn how their dedication to their craft, shaped their careers and led them to extraordinary accomplishments

Avi Abel, Watermark Designs © Randy Duchaine www.bklynpubliclibrary.org/infocommons

Great Books Discussion Series: Latin American Literature: García Márquez

After finishing the Fuentes discussion, we will begin discussion of Gabriel García Márquez’s novel, One Hundred Years of Solitude, which tells the multi-generational story of the Buendía family.

This series is made possible through Brooklyn Public Library’s Fund for the Humanities, established through the generous support of the National Endowment for the Humanities. Additional funding was provided by The Hearst Foundation, Inc.; the Horace W. Goldsmith Foundation; The Starr Foundation; the Leon and Muriel Gilbert Charitable Trust; the Henry and Lucy Moses Fund, Inc., and a gift in memory of Samuel and Pauline Wine.

www.bklynpubliclibrary.org/infocommons.

Plaza Swing Series: Mona’s Hot Four

Clarinetist Dennis Lichtman leads the quartet through trad-jazz gems such as, “My Blue Heaven”, “Tiger Rag”, “Avalon” and many more. Vocalist Tamar Korn sits in for the show. Dance lessons are at 6:30, band starts at 7 pm. Rain date is July 11

This series is made possible with public funds from the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo and the New York State Legislature.

Conversations with People Who Create in Brooklyn – Urban Adventures

Photographer Randy Duchaine will chat with individuals featured in his photographic exhibition, "Created in Brooklyn". Join us to hear about how and why they pursued these extraordinary activities in the urban environment.

Lance Pinn, Brooklyn Boulders © Randy Duchaine www.bklynpubliclibrary.org/infocommons

Plaza Swing Series: Paulo Stagnaro Quartet

Berkelee College of Music presents this rising percussionist and composer, who has shared the stage with with Marcus Miller, Danilo Perez, Paquito D'Rivera, and Gloria Estefan, among many others. He’ll lead his band through the Salsa, Timba, Bolero, and Cha Cha Cha. Dance lessons are at 6:30, band starts at 7 pm. Rain date is July 18.

This series is made possible with public funds from the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo and the New York State Legislature.

Conversations with People Who Create in Brooklyn – Art & Music

Photographer Randy Duchaine will chat with individuals featured in his photographic exhibition, "Created in Brooklyn". Meet Brooklynites whose vision has advanced our access and enjoyment to music, art, theater and more.

Lucien Zayan, Invisible Dog Art Space, copyright Randy Duchaine www.bklynpubliclibrary.org/infocommons

Great Books Discussion Series: Latin American Literature: García Márquez

Finish discussing One Hundred Years of Solitude.

This series is made possible through Brooklyn Public Library’s Fund for the Humanities, established through the generous support of the National Endowment for the Humanities. Additional funding was provided by The Hearst Foundation, Inc.; the Horace W. Goldsmith Foundation; The Starr Foundation; the Leon and Muriel Gilbert Charitable Trust; the Henry and Lucy Moses Fund, Inc., and a gift in memory of Samuel and Pauline Wine.

www.bklynpubliclibrary.org/infocommons.

Plaza Swing Series: Eliano Bráz: The Forró Fiddler

Bráz and his Forró group fuse the popular Brazilian music from the Northeastern region of the country with complex rhythms and lyrical melodies. Bráz, a native of Fortaleza, Ceará, Brazil, has performed with classical orchestras and popular music groups, playing with musicians such as Ermeto Pascal,Rita Lee, Belchior, J’ Quest and many others. Dance lessons are at 6:30, band starts at 7 pm. This event is part of Brasil Summerfest. Rain date is July 25.

This series is made possible with public funds from the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo and the New York State Legislature.

Plaza Swing Series: Harlem Blues and Jazz Band

These veteran jazz and blues musicians have roots that reach to the 1920s and ‘30s, when they really did stomp at the Savoy! This jump band performs hard-driving Kansas City stompers and sultry blues. Featuring Zeke Mullins on keys; Michael Max Fleming on bass; Jackie Williams, drums; Fred Staton on tenor sax; Ruth Brisbane, vocal; Joey Morant on trumpet and flugelhorn. Dance lessons are at 6:30, band starts at 7 pm. Rain date is August 1.

This series is made possible with public funds from the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo and the New York State Legislature.

Mailer’s Brooklyn

Brooklyn Public Library and the Norman Mailer Center present a discussion of American writer Norman Mailer and his impact on the literary culture of Brooklyn. Having spent 40 years of his career living and writing in his Brooklyn Heights home, Mailer’s rich history of iconic literature contributed over 30 pieces of fiction, non-fiction, and plays to the American canon, including his second novel, Barbary Shore, which was written during this time in Brooklyn. Brooklyn author, Evan Hughes, Literary Brooklyn: The Writers of Brooklyn and the Story of American City Life, will lead this discussion with other Brooklyn historians, which will tackle Mailer’s Brooklyn during his active years as well as take a look at Brooklyn’s current literary boom.