Octavio Quintanilla Talks about his new Poetry Collection

 By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor Tell us about the genesis of this book?I started writing the poems for this book right after I published my first collection, “If I Go Missing,”back in 2014. I thought this book would be a sort of sequel to the first, but it turned out it wasn’t.In “The Book of Wounded Sparrows,” I wrote everything I …

News Roundup, July 25, 2024

Mid-summer is a pretty quiet time in the performing arts. But there’s still some live music in town. And there’s a film festival. Let’s start with the music! Record-setting, 10-times CMA Musician of the Year, Mac McAnally, is a renowned songwriter, singer and instrumentalist who has written dozens of hits for other artists, several of which peaked at #1. His …

News Roundup, July 18, 2024

Prominent arts organization, URBAN-15 is celebrating its 50th anniversary with a series of Antonio’s community events commemorating the arts and history of the dynamic non-profit led by two San outstanding artists – George and Catherine Cisneros. The organization first attracted attention of the broader public with its Carnaval de San Anto, which performed in parades and city events.  It has …

“Someone Like Us”

Reviewed by Steven G. Kellman With the publication of his plangent first novel, The Beautiful Things That Heaven Bears (2007), Dinaw Mengestu became the most prominent author of the Ethiopian diaspora. The story of an amiable immigrant who attempts to remake his life running a grocery store in Washington, D.C., it is redolent of the desolation of dislocation.             Unlike …

News Roundup,July 5 2024

Now that the 4th of July festivities are mostly behind us, let’s take a look at the arts scene for this weekend and beyond. “Melodies in Motion” is a flute, clarinet and piano recital, featuringGregory Obregon (flute); Stephen Moore (clarinet) and Wayne Ching (piano). The concert promises to be Now a “summer celebration of solos and sonatas for those three …

July 4th Celebrations

The San Antonio Philharmonic will start the day with a special concert to celebrate the 248th anniversary of American independence. It will take place at 1314 Guadalupe Street, where the orchestra’s offices are located, from 10 a.m. to 12 noon. No word about what they will be playing but patriotic music would be a logical choice. Listeners are invited to …

News Roundup, June 27, 2024

San Antonio has numerous outdoor art installations and now there’s one more; actually two, strictly speaking, but the two are connected. El Papaloto and El Trompo were just installed the other day at the intersection of Frio and Commerce streets downtown. The Department of Arts and Culture described them as “monumental emblems of childhood play.” The kite (Papalote) features a …