African-American spirituals and poetry to be performed by Cornellians Sunday

By Casey Morse '00

"A Concert of African-American Spirituals and Poetry" on Sunday, Sept. 27, at the Unitarian Church of Ithaca will celebrate the contribution of African Americans both past and present to this country's heritage. The concert at 4 p.m. in the church at 306 N. Aurora St. will feature the participation of many performers from the Cornell community and is free and open to the public.

This is the second year for the performance blending story and song, with the 1997 concert being held during Black History Month in February. Event organizer and performer Tina Snead, director of research communications for Cornell's Office of the Vice Provost for Research, said it is too early to say, because of funding, whether the event will be an annual one.

"We wanted to bring a whole body of music and poetry to Ithaca that people don't usually hear," Snead said.

The concert will present spirituals and poetry, as well as commentary on their history, meaning and interpretations. The performers include members of the Cornell faculty, staff and student body as well as members of the community. The arrangements and compositions of two musicians on the Cornell faculty, Christopher Morgan Loy, pianist with the Sage Chapel Choir, and Karlton Hester, the Herbert Gussman Director of Jazz Studies and assistant professor of music, will be performed, as will the arrangements of local Ithaca historical composer H.T. Burleigh.

Snead, a soprano, will perform with mezzo-soprano Fran Shumway, Cornell student services associate in engineering advising, and baritone Michael Johnson, a Cornell senior. Loy will provide accompaniment on the piano, as will Hester on the flute.

Also premiering will be Loy's settings for the poetry of Kenneth McClane, the W.E.B. DuBois Professor of Literature at Cornell, who will provide commentary earlier in the concert.

"There are many avenues of expression," Snead said. "Spirituals are an indigenous avenue of expression for African Americans, but we bring things right up to the present with McClane's poetry."

In addition to the poetic and musical performances, the paintings of Ithaca artist Zehna Barros will be on exhibit at the event.

The concert is supported by the Community Arts Partnership of Tompkins County/N.Y.S. Council on the Arts Decentralization Program and the Unitarian Church of Ithaca.