James Lee III
Vincent Dion Stringer
Eric Conway writes:
Hello Morgan Fine and Performing Arts Community,
This
evening, the Morgan Fine and Performing Arts Department will produce
the collaborative piece by both James Lee, composer, and Vincent
Stringer poet, entitled Mother’s Lament. The
composition was written as a musical response to the senseless killing
of African-American men in our society. This piece beckons the
question: What can we do about the killing of our young Black men in
America? Upon hearing the piece, one responds with: "We MUST do
something to stop this from happening!” This piece will be premiered,
this evening, September 17th, at 8PM in the Gilliam Concert Hall at
Morgan State University. If you have every studied Art or History in
school, you know that often the Arts -visual art, theatre art, and music
often react to what is happening in society at the time. Mother’s Lament
is a direct response to what is occurring in our society in the year
2016! Beyond the political statement made by the music, James Lee’s
music aptly captures the strength of the words of Vincent Stringer, who
has told me that this piece has turned into a “calling.” Although I
presume that this piece will be picked up by other musical organizations
across the country, that is not for certain. Tonight may be the only
opportunity you may get to hear this piece, performed by soprano soloist
- Marquita Lister, the Morgan State Univeristy choir, and the
Mid-Atlantic Symphony Orchestra directed by Julien Benichou. Today, on
the front page of the Baltimore Sun Newspaper is an article about the
premier by Music critic Tim Smith, which goes into more detail about the
genesis of this piece. See links to the official flyer of the concert.
See link below to Sun Paper Article. As I often do, please see
attached a short soundfile of the piece to spark your interests. If you
listen to the soundfile, you will be compelled to attend this evening.
Tickets are $25 and still available. You will be transformed if you
come! See you tonight!
Best,
EC
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit. - Aristotle
************************************
Eric Conway, D.M.A.
Fine and Performing Arts Department, Chair
Morgan State University
1700 East Cold Spring Lane
Carl Murphy Fine Arts Center, Room 329C
Baltimore, MD 21251
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