The WITNESS: Let Freedom Ring concert on Sunday, February 8, will find Orchestra Hall ringing with uplifting messages of love and peace for all humankind, brought by the Grammy Award-winning Sounds of Blackness, directed by Gary Hines, as they join with the VocalEssence Chorus in paying tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and the music that inspired him: freedom songs, spirituals, the music of the movement, the soundtrack of societal change. The South High School Varsity Choir will lend their voices, too, as VocalEssence celebrates 25 years of WITNESS!

The concert also includes performances by Talented Tenth Apprentices from Fellowship Missionary Baptist Church, and presentation of the ninth annual Reatha Clark King Award, which recognizes outstanding leaders who are empowering young people through direct contact.

Hear a preview of what you’re in for with “March Song Medley” and “Hold On (Change Is Comin’)” performed by Sounds of Blackness, and the VocalEssence Chorus singing “We Shall Overcome.” You can also watch the Sounds of Blackness touring ensemble’s impromptu “Hold on Just a Little While Longer,” below, in an interview with Mi-Soul during England’s Southport Heritage Weekender festival in October, or see the full interview.

WITNESS: Let Freedom Ring tickets are on sale now online or at 612-371-5656.