Spirituals, Freedom Songs and “Dear Mrs. Parks”

With Mrs. Rosa Parks as an exemplar, the Berkshire Choral Festival celebrates the music of social change on Saturday, July 18, 2009 at 8:00 p.m. in the Rovensky Concert Shed, Berkshire School.

Down through the years music has been a creative source for social change. People have marched arm-in-arm singing songs like “We Shall Overcome” and “Battle Cry of Freedom” as they took a stand for change. Some of the music will be familiar, though the origins may be new. All of these songs have a message of hope for the future — for us and the generations to come.

Featured on the program is Dear Mrs. Parks, by composer Hannibal Lokumbe, commissioned and premiered by the Detroit Symphony Orchestra in February 2005. The orchestration is compact yet substantial, and even when rhythms are quick, they are still tightly orchestrated. There is a large percussion ensemble which often plays extended African drumming passages. The composer creates a sense of music in unity among the sections of the orchestra, the soloists and chorus. The result is the creation of enthralling atmosphere that also lends clarity to the text. In other places, the composer creates wide-open spaces in both the harmony and instrumentation. Again this illuminates the spiritually-charged text.

A gifted composer and jazz musician, Hannibal Lokumbe draws inspiration from his Texas origins as well as his experiences living and performing in Africa. He has interpreted the Black experience for more than 25 years with the goal of using his musical talents to tell the truth about the tribulations and the triumphs of life in Black America. His choral and instrumental works honor luminaries like Rosa Parks, Medgar Evers, Barbara Jordan and Andrew Young.