Jason Simon-Bierenbaum is an award-winning slam poet. Justin Kang is an admirer of the genre. Together the Brandeis University students are key organizers of "VOCAL 2008: Speaking Up for the Future," a Saturday night benefit for after-school programs in Waltham.
"The event is going to be the most amazing night of poetry anyone will ever be able to witness," said Simon-Bierenbaum, 19, a freshman.
The lineup reads like a who's who of spoken-word performance events, starting with headliner Saul Williams, the 1996 Nuyorican Poets Café Grand Slam champion and star of a 1998 film, "Slam." Other performers are slam champs Carlos Andrés Goméz, Mayda Del Valle and Buddy Wakefield; vocalist/poet Iyeoka; and several young up-and-comers, including Simon-Bierenbaum.
After pursuing arts for most of his life, Simon-Bierenbaum discovered spoken word when he was in high school in Haddon Heights, N.J., outside Philadelphia. He remembers his first exposure well. "I was just swept away with how a bunch of people were just performing, and all you needed was your mind and a microphone if you wanted it," he said.
The potential for addressing social issues also attracted Simon-Bierenbaum. "By that time most of my stuff had some kind of politics or message to it," he said. "This was something where I could fit in and carry my messages."
That inclusiveness made it even more attractive. "I was amazed at the way poetry could transcend backgrounds. Here I was a little Jewish Caucasian high school boy in the middle of an urban, African-American setting," he said. "There was so much positive energy that any differences didn't mean anything."
Kang, though not a poet, finds similar satisfaction from listening. "Spoken word is such an intimate and inviting form of expression that really connects the performer and the audience," the 21-year-old junior said.
Since attending his first spoken-word show, Kang wanted to develop one at Brandeis. He's also a proponent of integrating academics with civic outreach, something Brandeis nurtures with its Community-Engaged Learning Program. After reading about after-school programs being cut in the state, Kang realized he could produce his dream event while helping area youths.
"I just felt like I had the opportunity and resources at Brandeis to try and make some sort of impact," he said.
For both students, the chance to pursue and integrate their various interests makes Brandeis a good fit.
"I'm looking into going into nonprofit work with youth when I graduate, using poetry and the arts as a tool for empowerment," said Simon-Bierenbaum. "I want to give youth a way to express themselves as well as showing that something that has an academic element can be very enjoyable."
"VOCAL 2008" is Saturday, 8 p.m., at the Spingold Theater on the Brandeis campus in Waltham. $16-$21, VIP $36. 781-736-3400, vocal08.com.
SEEDS OF SPRING'S RETURN: At this time of year, when plants lay dormant at the New England Wild Flower Society's Garden in the Woods outdoor museum in Framingham, director of retail operations Nicola Cataldo and her colleagues are not idle. They're busy with its annual seed sale, which opens to the public tomorrow.
"These are native plants that are very hard to find," said Cataldo. "To get a packet of seeds and be able to grow something as rare and unusual as some of these plants is a big deal."
The seeds are gleaned from Garden in the Woods plants and other sources, carefully cleaned and then packaged by hand. "It's a very intensive labor of love," said Cataldo.
The catalog offers detailed information on the plants, some of which can be challenging to grow. "Each kind of seed has a different way of germinating," said Cataldo, and that is only one step in the process. "It's not unlike the development of any other living thing. There are a number of places where something can go wrong. That's what makes growing seeds a challenge and a satisfying thing."
For new growers, virtually fail-proof varieties are available. Many are such a snap that they make great projects for kids. "There are some that are so easy you could just throw a handful of seeds in the snow and at some point there'd be plants," said Cataldo.
Ask which plants she likes best, and Cataldo finds it hard to answer. "I have probably 75 favorites," she said, laughing.
When choosing varieties, she recommends first considering basic growing conditions: "Is it shady, is it dry, or is it wet?" Next, people can consider what they actually want: "Is there a specific color flower, or do you want it not to flower and be interesting all the time?"
As often as not, Cataldo's biggest problem when helping customers choose wildflowers is her botanical expertise. She knows the scientific names of the plants, but often forgets their familiar titles.
Still, the sale is one of the pleasures of Cataldo's work, even if it doesn't have lofty goals or make a ton of money for the society. Really, it's just meant to scatter a little joy.
"Our mission is not to spread wildflowers from one end of the earth to the other," said Cataldo, "but to allow our members and other interested hobbyists to try this out and enjoy the whole process."
The New England Wild Flower Society's seed catalog is available on its website, and orders can be placed by fax, mail and e-mail through March 15, or while supplies last. 508-877-7630, ext. 3601; newenglandwildflower.org.
BLUEGRASS WITH POP: Jake Armerding had his first professional fiddling experience at the tender age of 13, when he joined his father, Taylor Armerding, as a member of acclaimed bluegrass band Northern Lights. On Saturday, he plays a solo show at the Center for Arts in Natick, splitting the bill with his old group, whose early gigs with the ensemble included the Newport Folk Festival and the Gettysburg Bluegrass Festival.
Armerding's father helped him get a good start in music, assisting with classical violin studies and exposing him to various styles. "When he and I started going to gigs together," Jake said, "we had a lot of two-, three-hour drives where we would just sort of listen to music together, compare CDs and stuff like that. We just had a lot of time to hang out and talk music. It's great for a boy to get to hang out with his dad that much."
The senior Armerding has also left Northern Lights, and father and son still play together in some shows. "He'll accompany me on my gigs, which is really fun," said Armerding, noting a Feb. 16 concert at Hingham's Old Ship Coffeehouse.
With musical genes that run as deep as Armerding's, it's no surprise he wasn't satisfied with one instrument. "I started on the violin," he said, "but it didn't take long before I was interested in checking out the mandolin, then the guitar, then singing and writing songs. It was a pretty natural progression."
Armerding, 29, brings all his talents to bear as a singer-songwriter. He's recorded three CDs, the most recent being "Walking on the World." His hard work is paying off. He was one of WUMB-FM's Top Artists of 2007, and won similar accolades in the Boston Music Awards and the Americana Highway HEMI Awards.
While his extensive experience in bluegrass informs his writing, Armerding's adventurous musical mind explores broader territory than that. "Integrity pop is my own label for it," he said, noting influences including Tom Petty and Sting.
"My CDs tend to have songs on them that are reminiscent of pop songs, but often the instrumentation is in the bluegrass vein," he said. "What my career has been about in one way has been justifying the use of those instruments to make a pop song."
Armerding plans to continue trailblazing. "I think every musician who has made his mark has figured out a way to put his own stamp on music," he said. "If I had a goal, I think that would be it, to revolutionize some aspect of music."
Northern Lights With Jake Armerding, Saturday, 8 p.m., at the Center for Arts, 14 Summer St., Natick. $22. 508-647-0097, natickarts.org.
