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African American Voices / Gray, Royal Scottish National Orchestra
Linn Records

African American Voices / Gray, Royal Scottish National Orchestra

$20.99

Details

Composer
William Levi Dawson, William Grant Still, George Walker
Artist
Kellen Gray
Format
CD
Label
Linn Records
Released
Oct 28, 2022
Catalog #
CKD699
UPC
691062069922

About

The Royal Scottish National Orchestra teams up with its Assistant Conductor Kellen Gray to record works by three of the twentieth century’s greatest African American voices. Released to coincide with Black History Month, the two symphonies by William Levi Dawson and William Grant Still proved to be fundamental in the utilization of Afro-American idioms within the symphonic form. Each composer focused on one of the two original staples of African American music: folk and jazz.

William Levi Dawson’s Negro Folk Symphony takes its inspiration from West African folk idioms, American Negro spirituals and early African American folk rhythms and songs from Gullah culture. William Grant Still’s Symphony No. 1 draws its influence from elements popular in jazz and pre-jazz popular genres. Although the latter is the more well-known figure in American music, Dawson was every bit as significant in the timeline of African American music, and his only published symphony is astonishingly mature for a composer’s earliest efforts at symphonic writing. This program also celebrates the centenary of George Walker’s birth with the inclusion of his Lyric for Strings.

Tracklist 8 tracks

  1. 1 I. The Bond of Africa 11:49
    Track
    1
    Title
    I. The Bond of Africa
    Duration
    11:49
    Composer
    William Levi Dawson
    Ensemble
    Royal Scottish National Orchestra
    Conductor
    Kevin H. Gray
  2. 2 II. Hope in the Night 10:52
    Track
    2
    Title
    II. Hope in the Night
    Duration
    10:52
    Composer
    William Levi Dawson
    Ensemble
    Royal Scottish National Orchestra
    Conductor
    Kevin H. Gray
  3. 3 III. O, le' me shine, shine like a Morning Star! 08:18
    Track
    3
    Title
    III. O, le' me shine, shine like a Morning Star!
    Duration
    08:18
    Composer
    William Levi Dawson
    Ensemble
    Royal Scottish National Orchestra
    Conductor
    Kevin H. Gray
  4. 4 Lyric for Strings 05:22
    Track
    4
    Title
    Lyric for Strings
    Duration
    05:22
    Composer
    George Walker
    Ensemble
    Royal Scottish National Orchestra
    Conductor
    Kevin H. Gray
  5. 5 I. Moderato assai "Longing" 07:07
    Track
    5
    Title
    I. Moderato assai "Longing"
    Duration
    07:07
    Composer
    William Grant Still
    Ensemble
    Royal Scottish National Orchestra
    Conductor
    Kevin H. Gray
  6. 6 II. Adagio "Sorrow" 05:47
    Track
    6
    Title
    II. Adagio "Sorrow"
    Duration
    05:47
    Composer
    William Grant Still
    Ensemble
    Royal Scottish National Orchestra
    Conductor
    Kevin H. Gray
  7. 7 III. Animato "Humor" 03:13
    Track
    7
    Title
    III. Animato "Humor"
    Duration
    03:13
    Composer
    William Grant Still
    Ensemble
    Royal Scottish National Orchestra
    Conductor
    Kevin H. Gray
  8. 8 IV. Lento, con risoluzione "Aspiration" 08:28
    Track
    8
    Title
    IV. Lento, con risoluzione "Aspiration"
    Duration
    08:28
    Composer
    William Grant Still
    Ensemble
    Royal Scottish National Orchestra
    Conductor
    Kevin H. Gray