through sound

In Concert

“Downes’ keen music choices and her thoughtful performances evoke a brilliantly curated art exhibit.
On display here — with all its regret, hope and pride — is America.”
— Tom Huizenga, NPR Music

Lara’s vibrant performances, whether virtual or live onstage, draws inspiration from the legacies of history, family, and collective memory to trace American stories and journeys through our music. From her 2016 project America Again, which was inspired by Langston Hughes’s timeless poem Let America Be America Again, to her most recent survey of freedom songs and Spirituals titled Some Of These Days, Lara excavates all corners of the American musical landscape to unite her audiences on common ground, showing the beauty that grows out of even our most tangled roots.

 

AMPLIFY: Some Of These Days (NPR Tiny Desk Concert)

 

AMPLIFY: Meditations on Freedom

AMPLIFY: Oh Beautiful

 

through words

In Conversation

We are living through a time of transformation, of reckoning, reimagining and joining together in a historic cultural shift towards greater diversity, equity and inclusion in the arts.

Lara shines a light on the visionary work that will define the next stage of this journey, hosting intimate and revealing conversations with emerging BIPOC artists and creators. Inspiration, collaboration, innovation and future-forward leadership - amplified.