K. Curtis Lyle
Performance Poet and Creative Director
K. Curtis Lyle was born and raised in Los Angeles, California. He was a founding member of the Watts Writers Workshop, joining it in 1966 thus becoming a prominent member of the Los Angeles renaissance that the group represented. He has taught, lectured and recited his poetry in performance in the major performance, intellectual, and urban centers of North America. From 1969-1973 he was Poet-in- Residence for the Black Studies Department of Washington University, Saint Louis, Missouri. He has also taught at The City University of New York and at Lindenwood University, Saint Charles, Missouri.
Lyle has published widely over the years and been anthologized in the United States, Canada, Latin America and Europe. Lyle’s work has been widely
adapted to music, especially to jazz. He built a performing and recording relationship with the late world renowned saxophonist and composer Julius Hemphill (1938-1995). The text of Lyle’s poem, Drunk on God, was recorded for Julius Hemphill’s Big band (Electra/ Asylum). In June 2003, Lyle published a work of selected poetry entitled, Electric Church. In February of 2008 he published a long prose poem, The Epileptic Camel Driver Speaks to a Refugee Death (Firecracker Press). In November 2008, St. Louis Poetry Scores and Firecracker Press published a new work entitled, Nailed Seraphim.
A major spoken word recording, produced by Josh Weinstein, (KDHX, ALL SOUL NO BORDERS), with Hamid Drake (drums, percussion) and William Parker (bass), entitled THE WILL TO LOVE, is being prepared for release in the fall 2024.
He currently lives in St. Louis, Missouri.
Georg Hofmann
Percussion
Born in Zürich, Switzerland, Hofmann is considered one of the distinct European drummers/ percussionists. Besides leading «The Extensions» with Christoph Baumann, piano and Vinz Vonlanthen guitar, he is a member of «Shades of Time» with Steve Gorn (Bansuri) and Raúl Tudón (Marimba) and «Noru Ka Soru Ka», an improvising quartett with Japanese dancers Mao Arata and Makoto Matsushima and American guitarist Mike Nord.
As a freelancer he worked with Charles Gayle, Steve Gorn, Robert Dick, Trevor Watts, Pierre Favre, Cyro Batista, Christoph Baumann, Hans Koch, Gene Coleman, Aaron Cruz, Remi Alvarez, Brian Allen among others. Georg Hofmann also composes for theater, dance, film and fashionshows and teaches drums and percussion as well as improvisation in different institutions in Switzerland and abroad (e.g. Columbia University, New York, Konservatorium Winterthur).
Since 2019 Georg Hofmann lives with his wife in Merida, Mexico and is a member of the Mexican jazz- and improscene playing with The Tribe (original music with Armando Martin, g and Charles Fletcher, b), The Latin Genetics (music by Ornette Coleman and his sidemen), with Blaise Siwula (new album „dialogues“, nofrillsmusic), Brian Allen (album „El Sur“, ropeadope), Caja de Espejo by Todd Clouser on photos by Jesus Cornejo and many more. Tours and Festivals brought him to Switzerland, Germany, France, Holland, Italy, Serbia, Czech Republic, USA, Mexico, Japan, Hong Kong and China.