Join us for “Autumn Leaves,” a program that brings together the muses of poetry and music on the same stage. Presenting will be Michael Kiesow Moore with cellist Lars Ortiz, Ardie Medina with the Asiginaak Women’s Handdrum Group, Diane Jarvenpa with guitar and Finnish harp, and Thomas R. Smith giving us poetry and song accompanied by his faithful guitar. The event begins at 4:30 pm in the Robbins Parlor at 732 Holly Ave, Saint Paul. Accessible parking lot and wheelchair entrance on East of the building off of Holly. Refreshments will be offered.

Performer bios:

Thomas R. Smith is a poet, essayist, teacher, and editor living in River Falls, Wisconsin. He’s the author of numerous books, most recently Medicine Year (poetry) and Poetry on the Side of Nature: Writing the Nature Poem as an Act of Survival (prose). He teaches poetry at the Loft Literary Center and posts poems and essays at www.thomasrsmithpoet.com. He is also a passionate songster and performs occasionally with the folk trio Catbird.

Ardie Medina with the Asiginaak Women’s Handdrum Group: Ardie Medina is an Anishinaabe poet and playwright from Lac du Flambeau, Wisconsin. She became involved in the Twin Cities writing community soon after moving to the area in 1993. Her poems have been published in various anthologies—Loonfeather Press, Yellow Medicine Review, The Saint Paul Almanac, and two self-published anthologies, Gatherings and In the Company of Others, with fellow poets from the Loft Literary Center’s former Foreword Apprenticeship program. Two of her plays are included in Alexander Street Press’s American Indian Drama Collection. Ardie resides in Northeast Minneapolis with her husband Mike and their two Affenpinchers Chito and Sundae.

Michael Kiesow Moore is the author of the poetry collections What to Pray For and The Song Castle (Nodin Press). His work has appeared in many journals such as International Times, Poetry City, and Water~Stone Review, anthologies like Queer Voices, Among the Leaves: Queer Male Poets on the Midwestern Experience, and The Writer’s Almanac. Michael is the founder of the Birchbark Books Reading Series. When he is not drinking too much coffee, he can be found in Saint Paul dancing with The Braggarts Morris dancers.

Lars Ortiz (cello) began his career as an English teacher in Denver Public Schools. He later became principal cellist of the Civic Orchestra of Minneapolis as well as a founding member of Lux String Quartet, where he worked with both Minnesota Public Radio and Schubert Club to promote music education. Although he has performed in both concert halls and coffee shops, he is most happy in his studio teaching budding cellists of all ages.

Diane Jarvenpa is the author of six books of poetry, her most recent Shy Lands published by Blue Light Press. She is a teaching artist with the Alzheimer’s Poetry Project MN and the East Side Arts Council. As a singer-songwriter she performs under the name Diane Jarvi.