With the World Cup and Olympic Games coming to Brazil in the next few years, bringing unprecedented international attention to the country, the Cultural Sector of the Brazilian Consulate-General in Los Angeles is preparing for its global close-up by expanding its Brazilian Hour radio program into new multimedia platforms, including a new media-rich website as well as a brand new streaming music app.  With a 34-year history showcasing the country’s music and culture, the program is one of the longest running international radio shows in the U.S. – its mission to provide audiences worldwide with a rich and deep taste of Brazilian culture.  The expanded multimedia offerings will allow a new generation of listeners across the globe greater access to enjoy the show’s music along with guest interviews and exclusive features on the web, as well as through the mobile application.

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In response to Metro’s recent announcement of Carmageddon II, a consortium of LA-based artists and arts organizations are uniting to create ARTmageddon, a two-day citywide celebration of the prolific and inspiring art happening all over Los Angeles. At www.ARTmageddonLA.com, Los Angeles residents can discover a comprehensive list of all the great visual, performing and media arts events happening on Saturday, September 29 and Sunday, September 30, 2012.

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The Society for the Activation of Social Space through Art and Sound (SASSAS) presents Fix-It-Up Too, a one-day exhibition and silent auction on Saturday, September 15, 2012 at Blum & Poe in Culver City.  Fix-It-Up Too reprises The Fix-It-Up Show, a project first developed by artists Jeffrey Vallance and Michael Uhlenkott for a 1981 exhibition at Los Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions (LACE) in which well-known artists were asked to contribute works for Vallance and Uhlenkott to alter or “fix.”  Both artists have given SASSAS their blessing to recreate The Fix-It-Up Show as a fundraiser and will also reprise their roles as “fixers.” Nine other internationally recognized artists including Barbara Bloom, Meg Cranston, Lisa Lapinski, Dave Muller, Stephen Prina, Jim Shaw, Alexis Smith, Mungo Thomson, and Christopher Williams have also agreed to alter the works of more than 100 artists for this special exhibition and sale.

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Live Talks Los Angeles, which produces compelling talks, will once again bring an A-list roster of personalities to Los Angeles venues this Fall, launching its new season with Molly Ringwald in conversation with Meghan Daum on Wednesday, September 5, 2012 at Track 16 in Santa Monica.  The new Live Talks LA schedule also includes events with Hollywood legend Penny Marshall, rapper-producer Wyclef Jean, comedian Chris Elliott, atheist magician Penn Jillette, bestselling author Mitch Albom, acclaimed writer T.C. Boyle, bestselling author-physician Oliver Sacks, internationally acclaimed author Sandra Cisneros, author, social critic, and political activist Naomi Wolf, and gay activist Bishop Gene Robinson.

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Brand new electronic dance music label Modular Cowboy announces its inaugural releases, Cheap and Deep Rides Again (featuring remixes by Norman Nodge and Jonsson/Alter) and Mesa Sequences, available on vinyl and digital download exclusively through Hard Wax in late August/early September 2012.  The new Modular Cowboy label is spearheaded by techno artist and music industry veteran Jay Ahern (a.k.a. Add Noise, Cheap and Deep, Hauntologists).  As a label, Modular Cowboy focuses on deep club tracks, live improvisational works, and music apps that share the label’s creative vision of performance-based sound design and strong visual aesthetics with the end user.  In conjunction with its Mesa Sequences EP, Modular Cowboy is also set to release Mesa Sequencer, a ground-breaking companion app for iPad/iPhone, created by musician and programmer Morgan Packard (Anticipate Recordings, Thicket), which radically changes the way audiences consume music – from passive consumers to active producers.
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The Society for the Activation of Social Space through Art and Sound (SASSAS), in conjunction with the MAK Center for Art and Architecture (R.M. Schindler House), presents sound. at the Schindler House: Tape Music, a rare concert of music composed for reel-to-reel tape on Saturday, August 25, 2012.  The unique architecture of the Schindler House creates multiple listening spaces to revisit this historic concert form featuring recent works from John Wiese and William Basinski; historic works from Pauline Oliveros, and the collaborative duo of Mike Kelley and Jim Shaw; as well as selections from Gary Todd’s Cortical Foundation label that were composed for tape, on tape, and originally presented on tape.

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A fresh idea in collaborative fundraising will take place on Saturday, August 4, 2012 at a private home in Los Feliz from early afternoon until late night.  Synergy = Music + Sustainability is an innovative, multicultural, experiential event to help raise funds for two dynamic, solution-based nonprofits based in LA: Arts:Earth Partnership (AEP) and NextAid.  Music and arts producer, Jonathan Rudnick (theLIFT/Noise Pop Culture Club/Giant Step co-founder) is at the helm bringing the best talent Los Angeles has to offer to this consciousness-raising event. The fundraiser will run from 4:00 to 11:00pm and is taking place at Synergy House, a beautiful Mediterranean/Spanish historical eco-home with detached studio space and a lagoon pool just east of Hollywood off of Franklin Blvd.  The exact location will be revealed upon ticket purchase.  Tickets range from $20 to $50 and are available at www.synergy-la.eventbrite.com.

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ARTScorpsLA/ACLA Emerging Producers presents Beat the Drum‘s second annual drum festival, Beat the Drum: East Los Meets West Los, to be held on Sunday, July 15, 2012 at 8:00pm, at the Ford Amphitheatre in Hollywood.  Doors open at 6:00pm for picnicking, drum technique demonstrations from South Mexican and Central American traditions, live screen printing and painting, and dancing by the Capoeira Collective in the Ford Theatre Plaza.  At 8:00pm, audience members will be ushered into the venue in a percussive, celebratory parade led by Aztec drumming.  The main event features performances by Atabey (traditional Puerto Rican Bomba), East LA Taiko (Latin, Afro-Cuban, Japanese fusion) featuring drummer Fredo Ortiz of the Beastie Boys, and CAVA (Bolero/Tropical with primal Taiko & Cajon drumming).  Joining East LA Taiko in a groundbreaking collaboration will be Lysa Flores (Alice Bag, El Vez, Jonathan Richman) who will merge her sultry vocals and feminist Chicana lyrics with the power of Japanese Taiko drums.  Tickets are $20-$40; some discounts apply*.  The event will be held at the Ford Amphitheatre located at 2580 Cahuenga Blvd. East, Hollywood, CA 90068.  For tickets and additional information, please call 323-461-3673 (323-GO-1-FORD) or visit http://fordtheatres.org/en/events/details/id/362 and https://www.facebook.com/BeatTheDrumLA.

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Dance Camera West (DCW), recognized internationally for its annual presentation and celebration of dance on screen, announces its 11th annual Dance Camera West Dance Media Film Festival.  This year’s festival takes place at high profile Los Angeles venues including LACMA and The Hammer Museum, from Thursday, June 28 to Saturday, June 30, 2012.  The festival will feature 20 films in four screenings over three days representing work from Italy, France, the UK, Canada, Sweden, France and the US.  Please visit DCW’s website for continuous updates at www.dancecamerawest.org.

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SASSAS’ concert series, sound., returns for a 14th season, kicking off with the Los Angeles premiere performance of Oakland-based experimental duo myrmyr at the Kings Road Park Pavilion on Saturday, June 30, 2012.  Produced by the Society for the Activation of Social Space through Art and Sound (SASSAS), the sound. concert series pushes new music boundaries by creating unique listening experiences for audiences that combine experimental music and unconventional settings.  Known for entrancing ambiences and intricate layered melodies, myrmyr creates an intimate post-classical atmosphere inspired by folk elements of the duo’s common Eastern European ancestry.  The June 30th myrmyr sound. event starts at 5:00pm.  Advance tickets are $12, $10 for SASSAS members/students/seniors, and can be purchased at www.sassas.org/sound/2012.  Tickets are $15 at the door.  Kings Road Park Pavilion is located at 1000 North Kings Road, West Hollywood, CA 90069.
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