First, I miss Agnes. There is nothing else I can say about the loss of yet another family friend right now, and there's nothing else that needs to be said publicly. I miss her, and I always will.

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Second, it is rare that my heart is so artfully assaulted as it was tonight at Montgomery County Community College. As part of the school's Africa: The Call and Response series, formidably startling young percussionist, vocalist, writer and dancer Dobet Gnahoré performed in her Philadelphia-area debut. Personal, political & activist, her music features harmonies and melodic aspects reminiscent of artists made popular in America like Ladysmith Black Mambazo -- but her storyline of both love and great suffering brings to audiences the violence of existence and the beauty of simply drawing breath and movement.

Dobet's art is deeply unsettling in its message and its force. It is not for everyone -- but perhaps it should be seen by those who find it most uncomfortable. Undeniably musically accessible, undeniably entertainment, it is also a challenge and a journey. These peeks, courtesy of YouTube, do not begin to show the anger, catharsis or pathos in her work, but they do show a glimpse of the beauty and joy she also, undeniably, exudes.

The Africa: Call and Response series began in October with Baaba Maal's "Tales From the Sahel." It continues next semester with a February 4 performance by Randy Weston Quintet and concludes with Angelique Kidjo's March 23 concert at the school. The project has been funded by the Pew Center for Arts and Heritage through the Philadelphia Music Project. More information on the project, the performances and other public offerings at the Montgomery County Community College are available at the school's department of cultural affairs at (215) 641-6439.