Jessie Montgomery
(Jiyang Chen)
Jeffrey Mumford
Kahil El'Zabar
Alvin Singleton
Seth Parker Woods
Tomeka Reid
Feb. 7, 2017
By Mara Bandy
This Thursday, as part of a month-long collaboration between the
Krannert Center for the Performing Arts and the Illinois School of
Music, Krannert’s Foellinger Great Hall will be home to an evening of
music titled Sonic Illinois: The Black Composer Speaks. The
Sonic Illinois series is intended to celebrate “the enormous diversity
of today’s contemporary music scene” in honor of the university’s 150th
anniversary, and the line-up for The Black Composer Speaks reflects that commitment.
The evening’s program was designed by the Fulcrum Point New Music
Project, a Chicago organization dedicated to championing and
commissioning innovative contemporary classical music. Fulcrum Point
founder and artistic director Stephen Burns describes the event as an
“adventure through the creative landscape of contemporary
African-American concert music” that will highlight, through the
inclusion of three generations of composers, a variety of musical
aesthetics.
After beginning with pieces by composers Alvin Singleton, Olly Wilson, Jessie Montgomery, and Jeffrey Mumford, The Black Composer Speaks will
feature the world premiere of Chicago-based composer Tomeka Reid’s
"Present Awareness" and will then conclude with free-jazz improv led by
Kahil El’Zabar and the Ethnic Heritage Ensemble. The Ethnic Heritage
Ensemble has existed in various configurations for over 40 years and was
formed by El’Zabar with the intent of combining African-American
musical styles with traditional African rhythms and influences.
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