Anthony R. Green
F
Feb. 2, 2018
The Providence Public Library was where Anthony R. Green discovered he wasn’t alone.
It’s
where he would spend his afternoons after high school practicing on the
library’s piano. It’s where he would purchase old sheet music, which he
still owns today.
The Providence Public Library was where Green discovered he could be a black pianist and a black composer.
“As
a studying musician, I didn’t come across a lot of black composers,”
Green said. “I feel like the up-and-coming generation of black composers
shouldn’t go through my experience, shouldn’t feel like there aren’t
any of us, when in fact there are hundreds throughout history.”
Green
now composes pieces, collaborates with visual and musical artists on
projects, performs piano and founded Castle of Our Skins, an
organization dedicated to celebrating black artistry. The performer,
composer and social justice advocate will introduce audience members to
black composers at an intimate recital and lecture at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 8
at The Rep Theatre, 216 Quincy Circle, Seaside.
Tickets are $25. To purchase tickets, visit LoveTheRep.com.
Green,
a resident of the Netherlands, did a phone interview with DN to tell us
about what he has planned for his recital at The Rep Theatre and why
celebrating black artistry is important.
How did you choose these pieces to perform at The Rep Theatre?
I
chose these pieces because most of them I have performed before. It’s
always good to revisit a piece of music and try to find new things
within that music for a performance. I also think this program shows
quite a wide variety of the type of music black composers have composed
in the past and present. Scott Joplin, as we all know, is the king of
ragtime. A lot of people don’t know he also composed waltzes. I’ll be
performing one of his waltzes and talking about his relationship to the
waltz.
Margaret Bonds is a composer who was active in the Harlem
Renaissance. The piece I’m performing of hers is this piano
transcription of a traditional slave song, “Wade in the Water.” What she
does with the melody is super fascinating. The piece itself shows how
accomplished of a pianist she was.
The music by Ed Bland is contemporary. He passed away in March of
2013. He has a self-described style called urban classical funk. It’s
very edgy, raw and emotional. But, there’s also something super groovy
about it, because he wanted to compose music that’s fun.
The Robert Nathaniel Dett pieces are also rooted in lyrical composition and melodic spiritual type music. The piece I’m performing by him is called “In the Bottoms” and that has five different movements that are lyrical but are also influenced by dance. The last movement is called “Juba Dance.” The Juba dance is a traditional African dance that the slaves used to do, one of the many things they tried to do to keep up their spirits in an oppressive situation.
The Robert Nathaniel Dett pieces are also rooted in lyrical composition and melodic spiritual type music. The piece I’m performing by him is called “In the Bottoms” and that has five different movements that are lyrical but are also influenced by dance. The last movement is called “Juba Dance.” The Juba dance is a traditional African dance that the slaves used to do, one of the many things they tried to do to keep up their spirits in an oppressive situation.
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