Josh Henderson, Steven Oerding, and Kyle Hamilton

On the 1/25/23 edition of Dr. Andy’s Poetry and Technology Hour:

Dr. Andy is first joined by Josh Henderson of Warp Trio, Artists-in-Residence at the UC Davis Department of Music. Henderson talks mixing genres, collaborating with spoken word artist DJ LiKWUiD, and the concepts at play in some of Warp Trio’s music, which can be heard at various points throughout the hour. Michael French drops in to share some free arts events, including two Warp Trio concerts and an exhibit at the UCD Design Museum. Emmy Award-winning artist Steve Oerding tells us all about his five-volume comic series Ranger Ralph, including continuing the newspaper comic tradition, turning a passion project into a business, and lessons he learned about the industry through lucky breaks and naive mistakes. Finally, postdoctoral food researcher and poet Dr. Kyle Hamilton joins the show to share a pizza poem about discovering the perfect harmony between two sensory extremes.

Described as “a talented group that exemplifies the genre-obliterating direction of contemporary classical music” (Columbia Free Times), Warp Trio is an internationally touring cross-genre chamber music experience.  The one-of-a-kind trio reflects the combination of Juilliard-trained members juxtaposed with members steeped in rock and jazz styles.

Black Voices is an original concert program that integrates classical, jazz, hip-hop, and spoken word—sounds and poetry created by African-American artists—in an effort to lift up lesser-known contributions that define the multifaceted culture of the United States. Featuring the award-winning artist LiKWuiD, the program utilizes poetry of Langston Hughes, Ntozake Shange, and Maya Angelou. It also features original spoken word material, set against music by Duke Ellington, William Grant Still, Harry Burleigh, and original compositions by Warp Trio members. 

Steven Oerding is an Emmy Award-winning artist and creator of the Ranger Ralph Comic book series. Steve and his wife Sharon run Oerding Illustrated, a mom & pop business in NorCal that does everything in-house but the printing. The Ranger Ralph comic was originally created for the couple’s two small children after Steve attended the San Diego Comic Con in 1995 and couldn’t find anything that served the kids’ age group. The Ranger Ralph comic has grown from humble beginnings as a side project, finally becoming a full-time focus after Steve’s retirement from UC Davis in 2019 after almost 30 years of graphics, media, photography and 2D animation work.

Dr. Kyle Patrick Hamilton is a poet writing about food, machines, and the strangeness of having a body. Their work has featured in Powders Press and will be in the upcoming The World Beyond Our Station charity sci-fi zine. They're also a postdoctoral researcher in food science, specializing in flavor research, computational linguistics, and how we talk to each other about food.

Warp Trio’s free Black Voices event will take place January 26, 2023 from 12:05 pm to 1:00 pm in the Ann E. Pitzer Center at UC Davis. Their second free event featuring works by graduate students will take place January 27, 2023 from 5:00 pm to 6:00 pm, also at the Ann E. Pitzer Center.

Rooja Mohassessy will read with Teresa Pham-Carsillo at the Poetry Night Reading Series on February 2nd, 2023.

Find out more about Dr. Andy's Poetry Night Reading Series in Davis, California by visiting http://www.poetryindavis.com. Invite your friends to sign up for the mailing list. To learn more about Dr. Andy’s tiny media fiefdom, subscribe to his weekly newsletter at https://andyjones.substack.com.