Art and Inspiration with William Rock

The Huffington Post noted Vanessa German is “one of 30 contemporary art makers under 40 that you should know about.” Vanessa German is the founder of “The Love Front Porch” and the “Art House” in Pittsburgh’s Homewood section. Her “Stop Shooting We Love You” yard signs have garnered international attention. In this interview with William Rock on Art and Inspiration, Vanessa speaks of fully embracing creativity and imagination and to thoroughly trust the eternal wisdom of our deepest instincts. She speaks of how the neighborhood kids themselves created “The Love Front Porch" and how “Art House" has tapped into a momentum for giving. Vanessa’s art and sculpture is exhibited worldwide and she states she is proud of being a self-taught artist. Vanessa German has pioneered the spoken-word opera and in this Art and Inspiration interview you will hear her perform her piece “If my hands were anything other than hands.”

Pat DiCesare promoted the Beatles concert in Pittsburgh on September 14, 1964.

In this interview on Art and Inspiration with William Rock, Pat DiCesare shares details of promoting and financing the historic Beatles concert. He also speaks of encounters with Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison and others. In this Art and Inspiration interview you’ll hear some rare audio from the concerts including Pat DiCesare telling the frenzied Led Zeppelin crowd, “we gotta keep it cool.”

Pat DiCesare was a hit songwriter and recording artist at the dawn of the rock n’ roll era and then he went on to promote every major concert act in the last half of the 20th century including The Rolling Stones, The Who, Led Zeppelin, Bruce Springsteen and hundreds of others. Pat was a pioneer in the birth and development of the modern rock concert and large stadium shows. His Pittsburgh based company called DiCesare Engler Productions was among the top grossing concert production companies in the United States. Pat DiCesare’s book is called Hard Days Hard Nights.

Jeff Berman is a multi-instrumentalist, improvising artist, and composer whose work reflects his global musical vision. He has developed a genre-extending concept on mountain dulcimer, vibraphone, and percussion, that has allowed him to collaborate across stylistic boundaries with a diverse group of artists from across the globe. In this interview on Art and Inspiration with William Rock, Jeff articulates the somewhat mysterious history of the dulcimer and shares some of his experiences of playing cross-culturally with musicians worldwide - including Tuvan throat singers. He also plays several songs on two different types of dulcimers.