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"Go Down Moses" is an African American spiritual that describes the Hebrew exodus, specifically drawing from Exodus 5:1: "And the LORD spoke unto Moses, Go unto Pharaoh, and say unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Let my people go, that they may serve me", where God commands Moses to demand the release of the Israelites from bondage in Egypt. As is common in spirituals, the song discusses freedom, referring both to the freedom of the Israelites, and that of runaway enslaved people. As a result of these messages, this song was outlawed by many enslavers.
Clara Mae Ward was an American gospel singer who achieved great artistic and commercial success during the 1940s and 1950s, as leader of the Famous Ward Singers. A gifted singer and arranger, Ward adopted the lead-switching style, previously used primarily by male gospel quartets, creating opportunities for spontaneous improvisation and vamping by each member of the group, while giving virtuoso singers such as Marion Williams the opportunity to perform the lead vocal in songs such as "Surely, God Is Able", "How I Got Over" and "Packin' Up".
Jerico-Jim Crow is a 1964 musical, with a book written by Langston Hughes and William Hairston. It was a pioneering work in the urban contemporary gospel musical style, based on the themes of the Civil Rights Movement in the United States. According to Hughes scholar and biographer Arnold Rampersad, Hughes "virtually pioneered" the black gospel musical, first with Black Nativity (1961) and then with Jericho-Jim Crow.
Black Nativity is an adaptation of the Nativity story by Langston Hughes, performed by an entirely black cast. Hughes was the author of the book, with the lyrics and music being derived from traditional Christmas carols, sung in gospel style, with a few songs created specifically for the show. The show was first performed Off-Broadway on December 11, 1961, and was one of the first plays written by an African American to be staged there. The show had a successful tour of Europe in 1962, one of its appearances being at the Spoleto Festival of Two Worlds in Italy.
El Niño is an opera-oratorio by the contemporary American composer John Adams. It was premiered on December 15, 2000, at the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris by soloists Dawn Upshaw, Lorraine Hunt Lieberson and Willard White, the vocal ensemble Theatre of Voices, the London Voices, La Maîtrise de Paris, and the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, with Kent Nagano conducting. It has been performed on a number of occasions since, and has been broadcast on BBC Television.
Margaret Allison Bonds was an American composer, pianist, arranger, and teacher. One of the first Black composers and performers to gain recognition in the United States, she is best remembered today for her popular arrangements of African-American spirituals and frequent collaborations with Langston Hughes.
Michael John Hurd was a composer, teacher and author, principally known for his dramatic cantatas for schools and for his choral music.
Nehemiah Brown is an American gospel music singer, songwriter, arranger, professional musician, teacher, vocal coach and choral director.
Western University (Kansas) (1865–1943) was a historically black college (HBCU) established in 1865 (after the Civil War) as the Quindaro Freedman's School at Quindaro, Kansas, United States. The earliest school for African Americans west of the Mississippi River, it was the only one to operate in the state of Kansas.
James Mercer Langston Hughes was an American poet, social activist, novelist, playwright, and columnist from Joplin, Missouri. One of the earliest innovators of the literary art form called jazz poetry, Hughes is best known as a leader of the Harlem Renaissance. He famously wrote about the period that "the Negro was in vogue", which was later paraphrased as "when Harlem was in vogue."
Unser Mund sei voll Lachens, BWV 110, is a church cantata by Johann Sebastian Bach. He composed the Christmas cantata in Leipzig for Christmas Day and first performed it on 25 December 1725.
Nativity: A Life Story is an African American Christmas-themed musical based on the Black Nativity written by Langston Hughes, that was intended to become a holiday tradition, appearing annually in various venues in New York City since its inception in the mid-1990s. The performances have been sponsored by the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture. Bruce Weber of The New York Times called it "a quirky combination of spiritual fervor, showbiz glamour, African-American pride and a celebration of women".
Gelobet seist du, Jesu Christ, BWV 91, is a church cantata by Johann Sebastian Bach. He wrote the Christmas cantata in Leipzig in 1724 for Christmas Day and first performed it on 25 December 1724. The chorale cantata is based on the hymn "Gelobet seist du, Jesu Christ" (1524) by Martin Luther.
Christen, ätzet diesen Tag, BWV 63, is a church cantata by Johann Sebastian Bach. He composed the Christmas cantata for the First Day of Christmas, possibly in 1713 for the Liebfrauenkirche in Halle. He performed it again for his first Christmas as Thomaskantor in Leipzig, on 25 December 1723.
A Christmas cantata or Nativity cantata is a cantata, music for voice or voices in several movements, for Christmas. The importance of the feast inspired many composers to write cantatas for the occasion, some designed to be performed in church services, others for concert or secular celebration. The Christmas story, telling of music of the angels and suggesting music of the shepherds and cradle song, invited musical treatment. The term is called Weihnachtskantate in German, and Cantate de Noël in French. Christmas cantatas have been written on texts in several other languages, such as Czech, Italian, Romanian, and Spanish.
Aaron Robinson is an American composer, conductor, and musicologist. He is the author of Does God Sing? – A Musical Journey. He created the musical work Black Nativity – In Concert: A Gospel Celebration. He also served as conductor and musical director in the PBS documentary On This Island. In 2013, he was nominated for an Emmy Award for composing Maine Public Broadcasting Network's Maine Arts series theme music.
Jan Meyerowitz was a German–American composer and writer.
Jauchzet, frohlocket! Auf, preiset die Tage, BWV 248I, is a 1734 Christmas cantata by Johann Sebastian Bach that serves as the first part of his Christmas Oratorio. Bach was then Thomaskantor, responsible for church music at four churches in Leipzig, a position he had assumed in 1723. For the oratorio, the libretto by an unknown author followed the nativity of Jesus from the Gospel of Luke, interspersed with reflecting texts for recitatives and arias, and stanzas from Lutheran hymns.
John Andrew Ross was an African American jazz musician, composer, musical director, and choral conductor. Ross was born and raised in Roxbury, Massachusetts and remained in the Boston, Massachusetts area for his whole life. While growing up in Roxbury, Ross's home was frequently visited by his father's college roommate, Langston Hughes. The relationship shared between Hughes and Ross would later manifest as Ross becoming the musical director of Langston Hughes's gospel play "Black Nativity". Acquaintances of Ross, recall him as a welcoming man with a glowing presence and a knack for fine foods.
References
- 1 2 3 4 5 Walker-Hill, Helen (2007). From Spirituals to Symphonies: African-American Women Composers and Their Music . University of Illinois Press. pp. 162–163. ISBN 9780252074547.
the ballad of the brown king.
- 1 2 "Harlem School of the Arts presents 'The Ballad of the Brown King' and the 'Black Nativity'" . New York Amsterdam News. 88 (49). 4 December 1997. Retrieved 24 January 2016– via EBSCO.
- 1 2 Ammer, Christine (2003). Unsung: A History of Women in American Music (2nd ed.). Amadeus Press. p. 177. ISBN 9781574670615.
- ↑ "MARGARET BONDS: The Ballad of the Brown King & Selected Songs". New Music USA. Archived from the original on 2019-12-13. Retrieved 2021-05-17.
- ↑ "Tuskegee University Lyceum Series to Feature Metropolitan Star for Holiday Concert". Tuskegee University. 17 November 2015. Retrieved 24 January 2016.
- ↑ Zick, William J. (4 December 2010). "'The Ballad of the Brown King' by Langston Hughes & Margaret Bonds in Long Beach Dec. 4 & 12". Africlassical. Retrieved 24 January 2016.
- ↑ McLaren, Joseph (2007). "From Protest to Soul Fest: Langston Hughes' Gospel Plays". In Bloom, Harold (ed.). Langston Hughes. New York: Infobase Publishing. p. 81. ISBN 9780791096123.
