Our Song, Our Story: The New Generation of Black Voices
Thursday July 25, 2024 at 7:00pm
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Overview
Thursday July 25, 2024 at 7:00pm
This vibrant showcase will highlight some of the world’s best-known operatic arias, art songs, and spirituals, paying homage to the eternal legacies of operatic legends Marian Anderson and Jessye Norman. Created and directed by composer, conductor, and multi-genre musician Damien Sneed, this powerful program symbolically passes the torch to two of today’s most exciting operatic voices, Justin Austin and Jacqueline Echols McCarley, and features works by African American composers past and present — including Margaret Bonds, Harry T. Burleigh, Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson, Wynton Marsalis, Terence Blanchard, and Damien Sneed — plus works by Copland, Mozart, Puccini, Gershwin, and Strauss.
Artists
Damien Sneed, music director and piano
Jacqueline Echols McCarley, soprano
Justin Austin, baritone
Griot String Quartet
Amyr Joyner, violin
Messiah Ahmed, violin
Edward W. Hardy, viola
Miles Goosby, cello
Program
Hale Smith: Evocation
Arr. by Shawn Okpebholo: Oh Freedom
Arr. by Damien Sneed: Great Is Thy Faithfulness
Wynton Marsalis: The Lord’s Prayer from Abyssinian Mass
Terence Blanchard: There was a Storm from Fire Shut Up In My Bones
Giacomo Puccini: Ch’il bel sogno from La Rondine
Damien Sneed: It Is Done from Treemonisha
George Gershwin: Summertime from Porgy & Bess
Terence Blanchard: Duet from Fire Shut Up In My Bones
Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson: String Quartet, No. 1 “Calvary” – Allegro
Richard Strauss: Morgen, Op. 27, No. 4
Aaron Copland: Little Horses from Old American Songs, Set 2
Harry T. Burleigh: Till I Wake
Margaret Bonds: Minstrel Man from Three Dream Portraits
Damien Sneed: I Hear The Stars Still Singing from The Earth Sings
Damien Sneed: I Dream A World
Arr. by Margaret Bonds & Damien Sneed: He’s Got The Whole World In His Hands
“Damien Sneed is an ambassador for classical and gospel music who brings positivity, optimism, and thoroughness to every occasion. In the realest sense, he uses his artistry to make our world a better place.”
— Wynton Marsalis
Seating Options
Seating for this Concert / This concert is general admission seating, with premium reserved seating available.
Know Before You Go
Summer Season Shuttle / Take the FREE shuttle from Metro North’s Katonah train station to and from Caramoor! The shuttle runs before and after every summer afternoon and evening concert. There is no RSVP to get on the shuttle, it will be there when you arrive (in the parking lot side of the station). If it’s not there, it’s just making the loop and should be back within 5–10 minutes. The shuttle will start running 2.5 hours before the concert, and 30 minutes after the concert ends.
Rain or Shine / All events at Caramoor take place rain or shine. In the event of bad weather, this Spanish Courtyard concert will move under the Venetian Theater tent (with open-air sides) or into the Music Room (fully indoors).
