Calvin Center for Faith & Writing CCFWgr

Ben and Madeline talk vipers, first dates, and Curtis Sittenfeld's newest novel, Romantic Comedy.

Welcome to recordings from the 2017 Festival of Faith & Music. The biennial festival brings together musicians, critics, journalists, artists, and listeners for three days of concerts, lectures, and conversations that explore the intersection of music and spirituality.

What follows is a panel on the role of artists in politically fraught times. Participants include Dr. Daniel White Hodge Director of the Center for Youth Ministry Studies at North Park University in Chicago. David Bazan a musician from Seattle perhaps best know as the chief creative force behind the band Pedro the Lion. Billy Mark, a poet, musician, and performance artist living in Detroit, he was the 2015 Kresge Fellow for experimental poetry. Kirstin Vander Giessen-Reitsma, editor-in-chief of Topology magazine, moderates the conversation, recorded on the campus of Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Michigan on April 1st, 2017. A note to our listeners: some language and content may not be appropriate for younger audiences.

Thank you to everyone who spoke or performed or attended the 2017 Festival of Faith & Music. These recordings were produced in collaboration between the Student Activities Office at Calvin College and the Calvin Center for Faith & Writing. You can find more recordings from the 2017 Festival of Faith & Music and short films from the festival concerts at ccfw.calvin.edu.

Welcome to recordings from the 2017 Festival of Faith & Music. The biennial festival brings together musicians, critics, journalists, artists, and listeners for three days of concerts, lectures, and conversations that explore the intersection of music and spirituality.

What follows is a lecture given by Katelyn Beaty, an editor at large at Christianity Today, an acquisitions editor with InterVarsity Press and the author of A Woman's Place: A Christian Vision for Your Calling in the Office, the Home, and the World. She’s written for The New York Times, The Atlantic, and The Washington Post and lives outside Chicago. In this talk, she reaffirms the importance of creating art in times of political and cultural displacement as a vision of grace and love for the world. This lecture was recorded on the campus of Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Michigan on April 1st, 2017.


Thank you to everyone who spoke or performed or attended the 2017 Festival of Faith & Music. These recordings were produced in collaboration between the Student Activities Office at Calvin College and the Calvin Center for Faith & Writing. You can find more recordings from the 2017 Festival of Faith & Music and short films from the festival concerts at ccfw.calvin.edu.

Welcome to recordings from the 2017 Festival of Faith & Music. The biennial festival brings together musicians, critics, journalists, artists, and listeners for three days of concerts, lectures, and conversations that explore the intersection of music and spirituality.

What follows is a conversation between Jessica Hopper and Hanif Willis-Abdurraqib. Jessica is a music journalist who has written for everyone from Spin to GQ to Rookie. She’s also written two books, The Girls' Guide to Rocking: How to Start a Band, Book Gigs, and Get Rolling to Rock Stardom and The First Collection of Criticism by a Living Female Rock Critic. She currently serves as the executive editor at MTV News. Hanif is a poet, essayist, and cultural critic from Columbus, Ohio. His current poetry collection is titled The Crown Ain’t Worth Much and his first collection of essays, They Can't Kill Us Until They Kill Us, is due out winter 2017. In this session Jessica and Hanif discuss the importance of diverse representation in pop culture and of working in creative communities. The conversation was recorded on the campus of Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Michigan on March 31st, 2017.


Thank you to everyone who spoke or performed or attended the 2017 Festival of Faith & Music. These recordings were produced in collaboration between the Student Activities Office at Calvin College and the Calvin Center for Faith & Writing. You can find more recordings from the 2017 Festival of Faith & Music and short films from the festival concerts at ccfw.calvin.edu.

Welcome to recordings from the 2017 Festival of Faith & Music. The biennial festival brings together musicians, critics, journalists, artists, and listeners for three days of concerts, lectures, and conversations that explore the intersection of music and spirituality.

What follows is a conversation with Julien Baker an independent artist who wrote an album in her first year of college that garnered praise from The New York Times, Pitchfork, and NPR. In this chat with John Williamson from the Student Activities Office at Calvin College, Julien discusses the themes of self-worth, depression, and faith in her music. This conversation was recorded after her show in the Covenant Fine Art Center auditorium on March 31st, 2017.


Thank you to everyone who spoke or performed or attended the 2017 Festival of Faith & Music. These recordings were produced in collaboration between the Student Activities Office at Calvin College and the Calvin Center for Faith & Writing. You can find more recordings from the 2017 Festival of Faith & Music and short films from the festival concerts at ccfw.calvin.edu.

Welcome to recordings from the 2017 Festival of Faith & Music. The biennial festival brings together musicians, critics, journalists, artists, and listeners for three days of concerts, lectures, and conversations that explore the intersection of music and spirituality.

What follows is an interview with Ann Powers, a critic for NPR Music and the author of several books, including her recent Good Booty: Love and Sex, Black and White, Body and Soul in American Music. Here she discusses her path to becoming a music critic, and the politics and power of art. This interview was recorded on the campus of Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Michigan on March 30th, 2017. A note to our listeners: some language may not be appropriate for younger audiences.


Thank you to everyone who spoke or performed or attended the 2017 Festival of Faith & Music. These recordings were produced in collaboration between the Student Activities Office at Calvin College and the Calvin Center for Faith & Writing. You can find more recordings from the 2017 Festival of Faith & Music and short films from the festival concerts at ccfw.calvin.edu.