"It was the spiritual song – or Negro Spiritual – that gave hope to American slaves as they cried out to God, asking him to send a “Moses” to lead them out of their bondage as He did with the Hebrew slaves of the Old Testament," writes author Craig von Buseck.
Join CPR Classical Saturday, May 18th for University of Denver's Spiritual's Project Choir's annual spring concert: "Prayer, Protest, and Praise." The program will explore prayer and how it functions as one of the primary themes of Negro Spirituals.
Join CPR Classical hosts Monika Vischer and Jean Inaba, Spiritual's Project Choir director M. Roger Holland II, and guest conductor Dr. Rollo Dilworth for an inspiring evening of songs about hope and faith.
When: Saturday, May 18
Where: Gates Hall at the Newman Center on the University of Denver campus
Time: 7:30 p.m.
The Spirituals Project at DU's Lamont School of Music is a community-based initiative. It aims to preserve and revive the social justice, educational, and artistic teachings of "spirituals," songs that were composed and performed for the first time by enslaved Africans in America in the 18th and 19th centuries. Led by M. Roger Holland, II, the Spirituals Project Choir consists of a core community choir of 55 people from various ethnic backgrounds and age groups. The choir includes members from the University of Denver as well as singers from a variety of communities throughout the Denver metropolitan area.
All of Professor Holland’s monthly musical selections and commentary from his year-long collaboration with CPR Classical are available from our Journey to Freedom: Spirituals page. Download the Colorado Public Radio app, tune in at radio signals around Colorado, or you can tell your smart speaker to “Play CPR Classical."
