January 03, 2002
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — A performance by the internationally renowned Fisk Jubilee Singers, improving Black-Jewish relations through jazz, and music as a means of HIV/AIDS intervention are just some of the highlights Jan. 14-29 during Vanderbilt University’s 2002 Martin Luther King Jr. Commemorative Series – “Music, Memory & The Movement: The Sounds of Liberation.”
Grammy Award-winning a cappella group Sweet Honey in the Rock will also perform as part of the series on Wednesday, Feb. 27, at 7:30 p.m. at Langford Auditorium.
“Music is a means for profound human creativity – giving voice to the times and conditions, hopes and lamentations, sufferings and joys, the wisdom of living – and is often a powerful force for progressive personal and social change. This is as true today as during the Civil Rights Movement,” Lucius Outlaw, director of African-American Studies at Vanderbilt, said. “This year we are using music to commemorate and draw inspiration from the convictions and contributions of Martin Luther King Jr., as we ask ourselves, ‘What work in behalf of peace and justice ought we to be about today?’”
The Fisk Jubilee Singers will give an inaugural concert at 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 15, at the newly completed Ingram Hall at Vanderbilt University’s Blair School of Music. Vanderbilt Chancellor Gordon Gee and Fisk University President Carolynn Reid-Wallace will attend the concert. Tickets are required for the free, public concert. For ticket information, call 322-7651.
Vanderbilt ethnomusicologist Greg Barz will deliver a multimedia presentation on Thursday, Jan.17, at 4:15 p.m. about his study of the indigenous music of Uganda and its use in HIV/AIDS education efforts there. Barz’s talk will be held in Room 114 of Furman Hall on Vanderbilt’s campus.
On Monday, Jan. 21, at 2:30 p.m. African-American jazz pianist Warren Byrd and Jewish-American jazz bassist David Chevan will discuss their work to enhance Black-Jewish relations through transforming music from Jewish and African-American sacred traditions into jazz. The session will be held in Turner Recital Hall at the Blair School of Music. At 8 p.m. the jazz duo will perform at Sarratt Student Center at Vanderbilt.
Sweet Honey in the Rock, a group formed in 1973 by singer, composer, scholar and activist Bernice Johnson Reagon, draws from the Black church, jazz and blues and has African-American, African and Caribbean influences. The group’s performances blend lyrics, movement and narrative to relate history, expose injustice, encourage activism and speak out against oppression and exploitation. One member interprets the lyrics in American Sign Language. The group takes its name from a gospel song first recorded in 1927 in Memphis, Tenn., by blind sanctified singer Mamie Forehand. Forehand titled her song, “Honey in the Rock”; however, random congregations soon added “sweet” to the song’s title and the song has since been known as “Sweet Honey in the Rock.” The song is based on a sacred parable that tells of a land so rich that when you cracked the rocks, honey flowed from them.
Sweet Honey in the Rock received a Grammy in 1989 for their work on the Smithsonian Folkways/Columbia recording “Vision Shared: A Tribute to Woody Guthrie and Leadbelly.” Their latest recording, “Still the Same Me,” a collection of songs for children, recorded for the Rounder Record label in 2000, also received a Grammy nomination.
Tickets for Sweet Honey in the Rock’s 7:30 p.m. concert at Langford Auditorium on Wednesday, Feb. 27, are available through Ticketmaster.
For a complete listing of events scheduled for the 2002 Martin Luther King Jr. Commemorative Series at Vanderbilt, visit www.vanderbilt.edu/mlk/.
**EDITOR’S NOTE: Please see the attached list for a complete schedule of events to be held at Vanderbilt as part of its Martin Luther King Jr. Commemorative Series.
-VU-
2002 Martin Luther King Jr. Commemorative Series
Music, Memory & The Movement: The Sounds of Liberation
Vanderbilt University
Monday, January 14, 2002
Campus Kickoff
5:30 p.m., Benton Chapel
Candlelight march from Benton Chapel to a community gathering and video presentation at Sarratt Cinema with the Blair School of Music African Drum Ensemble.
Free parking: Wesley Place Garage, spaces 404-788.
Tuesday, January 15, 2002
Fisk Jubilee Singers
8 p.m., Ingram Hall, Blair School of Music
The Blair School welcomes the internationally renowned Fisk Jubilee Singers for an inaugural concert at the newly completed Ingram Hall.
Free parking: Capers Garage. Limited seating; call 322-7651 for free tickets.
Wednesday, January 16, 2002
Realizing Dr. King’s Dream, or Not? – Personal Choices and Obstacles…
Kevin Lavender, executive vice president, MediSphere Health Partners
Noon, 202 Light Hall (Brown bag lecture)
Pay parking, $2: 25th Avenue Garage; use 25th Avenue entrance.
Thursday, January 17, 2002
Singing for Life: Music and HIV/AIDS Intervention in Uganda
Greg Barz, Vanderbilt ethnomusicologist
4:15 p.m., 114 Furman Hall
A multimedia presentation of the indigenous music used in the fight against HIV/AIDS. Free parking: Terrace Place Garage, spaces 93-640; use entrance closest to 21st Avenue South.
Monday, January 21, 2002
Jazz Workshop
2:30 p.m., Turner Recital Hall, Blair School of Music
African-American jazz pianist Warren Byrd and Jewish-American jazz bassist David Chevan will discuss Black-Jewish relations and demonstrate the collaborative process of transforming sacred music into jazz.
Free parking: 25th Avenue Garage, Levels 2-6; enter from Highland Avenue.
Candlelight Vigil
6 p.m., Benton Chapel
Free parking: Wesley Place Garage, spaces 404-788.
Byrd/Chevan Jazz Concert
8 p.m., Sarratt Cinema
Free parking: lots 16 (University Club, visitor spaces only), 18 (Garland Avenue),
71 (25th Avenue South).
Thursday, January 24, 2002
Constitutional Allegory and Affirmative Action Babies: Stephen Carter’s
Talk of “Dissent’
Houston Baker
Susan Fox Beischer & George D. Beischer Arts & Sciences Professor of English,
Duke University
4:15 p.m., 114 Furman Hall
Free parking: Terrace Place Garage, spaces 93-640; use garage entrance closest to 21st Avenue South.
Tuesday, January 29, 2002
MLK Lecture
David Williams
Vice Chancellor and General Counsel, Vanderbilt University
4:10 p.m., Flynn Auditorium, Law School
Free parking: Terrace Place Garage, spaces 93-640; use garage entrance closest to 21st Avenue South.
FEBRUARY
Saturday, February 9, 2002
Birmingham Civil Rights Institute Trip
The Office of University Chaplain and Affiliated Ministries will sponsor a bus trip to the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute in Alabama for Vanderbilt students. For more information, call 322-2457.
Wednesday, February 27, 2002
Sweet Honey in the Rock
7:30 p.m., Langford Auditorium
This Grammy Award-winning, a cappella group draws from the Black church, jazz and blues and has an African-American, African and Caribbean influence. The performance examines history and injustice and promotes activism. The performance is also interpreted in American Sign Language.
Tickets: $15, $10 with student ID, available through Ticketmaster and the Sarratt Box Office.
Free parking: 25th Avenue Garage, Levels 2-6; enter from Highland Avenue.
Events sponsored by:
African-American Studies Program
Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center
Blair School of Music
Chancellor’s Lecture Series
Margaret Cuninggim Women’s Center
Martin Luther King Jr. Commemorative Series Committee
Office of Student Life
Office of University Chaplain and Affiliated Ministries
Organization of Black Graduate and Professional Students
The Presbyterian Student Fellowship
Project Dialogue
School of Engineering
School of Nursing and the School of Medicine
Vanderbilt Catholic Community
Vanderbilt Hillel
Vanderbilt News Service
The Wesley Foundation
Contact: Princine Lewis, (615) 322-NEWS
princine.l.lewis@vanderbilt.edu