April 16, 2009

David Rizzi is a poet/drummer/composer living in Seattle. He reads, performs, and facilitates poetry workshops around the Pacific Northwest. David was the winner of the first WordStorm Poetry Competition held on Vancouver Island in British Columbia, and a winner of the 2008 Jeanne Lohmann Poetry Prize. He currently performs with a musical/poetry collaborative group, Band of Poets. His first poetry collection, Vibrant City of Bones, came out in 2006. Since then, he has published Conversations with Jack and Declaration. David’s latest project is a five-volume epic tale that deals with a succession of physical and spiritual journeys, and eccentric adventures told from multiple perspectives. More at www.davidrizzi.com.

Nashira Priester is a veteran producer of public broadcasting programs. Longtime host of radio broadcasts showcasing jazz artists, Nashira was a founder of KPOO-FM community radio (San Francisco) and Women in Film/Seattle. As a crew person, she works as a set decorator/dresser/buyer for films, music videos, and industrials. Her credits include work with Academy Award–winning director Alan Parker (Come See the Paradise), Nancy Savoca (Dogfight with River Phoenix), and Stephen King’s Rose Red. Also a published writer of poetry and essays, Nashira has had her work appear in anthologies (The Next World) and she has written for a variety of publications, including recently in Ishmael Reed’s online magazine Konch and Audience magazine. Her first collection of poems, Mystic Glyphs from Onyx Larynx, will be available soon. Nashira is married and lives with her jazz composer/performer/educator husband in Seattle. They have two grown sons.

Author photo by Poppy Barach.