Witness: singing the legacy of Rosa Parks
Sunday, February 25, 2007 - 4:00pm
The year was 1955, the place was Montgomery, Alabama. En route home after a long day at work, Rosa Parks changed American history when she took a stand against racism by refusing to give up her seat on a bus to a white man. Her action ignited the Montgomery Bus Boycott and set the course of civil rights in America.
Honoring her courage, VocalEssence will perform composer Hannibal Lokumbe’s Dear Mrs. Parks, an oratorio based on fictional letters written to Rosa Parks, at the 2007 WITNESS concert. This music incorporates African and African-American idioms and is based on Lokumbe's own texts.
Building on the theme of social justice, WITNESS will also examine the power of music to bring about positive social change with a selection of freedom songs from around the world.
The concert will feature the full 130-voice VocalEssence Chorus with orchestra and soloists, including Jevetta Steele, who sang the world premiere of Dear Mrs. Parks with the Detroit Symphony in February, 2005, and baritone Kevin Deas.
Honoring her courage, VocalEssence will perform composer Hannibal Lokumbe’s Dear Mrs. Parks, an oratorio based on fictional letters written to Rosa Parks, at the 2007 WITNESS concert. This music incorporates African and African-American idioms and is based on Lokumbe's own texts.
Building on the theme of social justice, WITNESS will also examine the power of music to bring about positive social change with a selection of freedom songs from around the world.
The concert will feature the full 130-voice VocalEssence Chorus with orchestra and soloists, including Jevetta Steele, who sang the world premiere of Dear Mrs. Parks with the Detroit Symphony in February, 2005, and baritone Kevin Deas.
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