Learn about the Native artists who have helped shape contemporary music for the past century in “Up Where We Belong: Native Musicians in Popular Culture,” opening Aug. 4 at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian in New York. With music, instruments and awards from artists Buffy Sainte-Marie (Cree), Mildred Bailey (Coeur d’Alene), Robbie Robertson (Mohawk), Rita Coolidge (Cherokee) and Link Wray (Shawnee), the exhibition describes the contribution of Native artists to jazz, rock and blues. The exhibition, an expanded and revised version of the original that premiered in Washington, D.C., will close Aug. 11, 2013.
To celebrate “Up,” the museum will host two free concerts on the outdoor cobblestones at Bowling Green in Lower Manhattan. Guitarist Stevie Salas (Apache) will host the opening-night concert featuring Julia Keefe (Nez Perce), Bill Miller (Mohican) and Martha Redbone (Choctaw/Cherokee heritage) Thursday, Aug. 2, at 4 p.m. The Inuit and Yup’ik world music group Pamyua will play Thursday, Aug. 9, at 5 p.m. All concerts are free. For details, visit www.AmericanIndian.si.edu