December
17, 2014 Charleston, SC—1965:
A Martin Luther King,
Jr., Reflection Tribute Performance
featuring the
CSO Gospel Choir and
CSO Spiritual Ensemble,
in collaboration with the City of North Charleston Cultural Arts
Department, brings the legendary civil rights leader’s legacy to life
through music, imagery and narration Saturday, January 17, 2015 with a 3:00pm matinée
and 7:00pm
evening performance
at
Cathedral of Praise, 3790 Ashley Phosphate Road, North Charleston SC.
These
performances are free and open to the public. Entry ticket required; freewill donations accepted.
Directed
by Atlanta-based guest conductor Jason Ikeem Rodgers, moving orchestral
and choral selections, spirituals and gospel will be woven together
with historical
images of Dr. King and the Civil Rights Movement with narration
provided by Dr. Karen Chandler of the College of Charleston.
Reflecting on the
50th anniversary of
pivotal year 1965 and civil rights changes ushered in by Abraham Lincoln’s 1865
Emancipation
Proclamation, Dr.
King’s galvanizing persona, John F. Kennedy’s
and Lyndon B. Johnson’s steadfast
and progressive political moves,
the Civil Rights movement was in full swing.
Malcolm X would live for one month that year and in August the
landmark Voting Rights Act was passed by Congress granting any one 21
years and older the right to vote no matter the color of their skin.
“Once again I am honored to partner with the City of North Charleston
to bring
our three musical elements, orchestral players, and singers from both
groups together as we honor Dr.
King’s contribution to civil rights and economic equality. The event is
a way for the community to reflect upon his wisdom, sacrifice and hope
that inspire our nation,” says Lee Pringle, President and Founder of the two choirs, the Colour of Music Festival
Orchestra and executive producer of the event.
“Conducting
performances honoring Dr. King is a career highlight for me. I look
forward to showcasing moving choral and orchestral selections carefully
chosen to tell Dr. King’s
extraordinary, epic story,” says, Jason Akeem Rodgers, Guest Conductor.
WHAT:
1965: A Martin Luther King, Jr., Reflection
Martin Luther King, Jr. Tribute Performance
Approximate running time: Two hours
WHO: CSO Gospel Choir
and CSO Spiritual Ensemble
with members of Colour of Music Orchestra
Jason Ikeem Rodgers, Conductor
WHEN: Two performances:
Saturday, January 17, 2015, 3:00pm and 7:00pm
WHERE: Cathedral of Praise, 3790 Ashley Phosphate Road, North Charleston SC
TICKETS:
FREE ADMISSION: Ticket required for entry.
FREE entry tickets (four per request) available in person at Cultural Arts Department Office at North Charleston City Hall, Charleston County Public Library (downtown Charleston)
and Cathedral of Praise.
Freewill donations encouraged to support
CSO Spiritual Ensemble and CSO Gospel Choir community outreach efforts
Generously sponsored by the City of North Charleston Cultural Arts Department
About Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Prime mover of the Montgomery bus boycott, keynote
speaker at the March on Washington, youngest Nobel Peace Prize laureate,
Dr. King’s policy of nonviolent protest was the dominant force in the
civil rights movement during its decade of
greatest achievement, from 1957 to 1968. Dr.
King was assassinated on April 4, 1968, in Memphis, Tennessee.
Commemorating the life of a tremendously important leader, we celebrate
Martin Luther King Day each January.
For fourteen years, the Charleston Symphony Orchestra (CSO) Gospel Choir,
Charleston’s celebrated culturally diverse choir, performs gospel, spirituals and sacred music
for annual concert events including a Palm Sunday performance, CSO
Gospel Christmas, Piccolo Spoleto, regional events throughout the
southeast and numerous engagements in Europe including Paris, London,
Rome and Prague and Ghana, West Africa.
About the CSO Spiritual Ensemble
Founded in 2008, the Charleston SC based, 35-member CSO Spiritual Ensemble
honors the “spiritual,” the historical musical form born of the
suffering and endurance of African slaves after arriving to the southern
shores of
this country. The CSO Spiritual Ensemble performs throughout the
southeastern US and regularly for local and regional special events.
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