Journey: A Soulful Music Celebration Returns to Aaron Davis Hall

NEW YORK — A moving voyage through the sounds of the Black American experience returns to Aaron Davis Hall as City College Center for the Arts (CCCA) and Marvin Lowe present JOURNEY: A Soulful Music Celebration on Friday, October 11, at 7 p.m. The concert, featuring acclaimed bass-baritone soloist Marvin Lowe and friends — including jazz trombonist Wycliffe Gordon, soprano Brandie Sutton and vocalist Marcelle Davies-Lashley — will take audiences on a journey through the music created by Africans and African-Americans in response to their trials and triumphs over the centuries. The soulful trek also seeks to inspire contemporary listeners to use their own voices to create change and help unite all people in these trying times.

A musical tour de force featuring genres spanning from Negro spirituals and religious hymns to the modern sounds of gospel, blues and jazz, JOURNEY: A Soulful Music Celebration was an immense hit with audiences when it was performed at Aaron Davis Hall in 2018 and 2019. Now back by popular demand, the show takes music lovers even further back in time with performances showcasing the African drum and dance, centering the rhythmic beat that gave much of Black American music its lifeblood. Under the musical direction of Vinroy D. Brown, Jr., Lowe along with an array of talented performers, including vocalist C. Anthony Bryant, Davies-Lashley and Sutton, will offer new takes on songs such as “Lord, How Come Me Here,” “Hold on Just a Little While Longer” and Ragtime’s “Make Them Hear You.” Obediah Wright will serve as choreographer for the concert.  

Offering audiences historical background and context for songs during the concert will be the show’s narrator, the Rev. Dr. S. Raschaad Hoggard.

“I created this concert to help bring this musical history to center stage and to also show that we are all connected through music and love,” said Lowe, who organized the concert. “There is so much division and injustice in our world right now. It is my hope that each person leaves the concert reminded that their voice must be used and be heard. No one can afford to sit silently anymore.”

Tickets for JOURNEY: A Soulful Music Celebration are $35 general admission and $25 for students and seniors and can be purchased online at www.citycollegecenterforthearts.org or in person at the Aaron Davis Hall box office weekdays 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., except on Wednesday when the box office is closed. For full details, visit the CCCA website at www.citycollegecenterforthearts.org or call the Aaron Davis Hall box office at (212) 650-6900.

Aaron Davis Hall is located on the campus of the City College of New York, at 129 Convent Avenue at West 135th Street. Follow City College Center for the Arts on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at @ccnyarts.

ABOUT THE ARTISTS:

Marvin Lowe is native of Philadelphia who has toured extensively throughout the United States, Canada, South America, Europe, Australia and New Zealand. He has performed with the New York City Opera, Washington Opera, Los Angeles Opera, Opera Ebony and Virginia Opera. On the concert stage his credits include solo performances with the National Cathedral Choral Society and a performance in Abyssinian 200: A Celebration at Jazz at Lincoln Center with Wynton Marsalis. In addition to classical and theatrical performances, his television and film credits include Live from Lincoln Center as well as appearances in Boomerang, starring Eddie Murphy, and Spike Lee’s Malcolm X.

Vinroy D. Brown, Jr., holds credits in conducting, sacred music and music education. He is a member of both the Performance Studies and Baccalaureate Honors Program faculty at Westminster Choir College, where he conducts the Westminster Jubilee Singers and previously taught African American Choral Literature. A church musician, he is director of music & worship arts at Elmwood United Presbyterian Church. Maintaining an active conducting schedule, he is founder and artistic director of Elmwood Concert Singers and is artistic director and conductor of Capital Singers of Trenton. He holds a Master of Music in choral conducting from Temple University, where he was the recipient of the Elaine Brown Choral Award and the inaugural recipient of the Alan Harler Choral Award; a Master of Arts in practical theology from Regent University; and Bachelor of Music in sacred music and music education from Westminster Choir College. Currently, Brown is pursuing a Doctor of Philosophy in music, musicology concentration, from Temple University.

C. Anthony Bryant is a renowned vocalist who stands out as one of the most versatile and technically sound singers of his generation. With an unparalleled ability to perform every genre of music, he has garnered widespread acclaim for his powerful and emotive voice. Bryant graduated from the famed HBCU Morehouse College and the Manhattan School of Music. Along with being a gifted vocalist, Bryant is an accomplished composer, conductor and music program manager. Bryant is a true force to be reckoned with in the world of music and beyond. His talent, versatility and commitment to social justice make him a unique and valuable voice in today’s society.

Marcelle Davies-Lashley, a Brooklyn native and baby of seven children born to West African parents from Liberia and Sierra Leone respectively, is a psalmist extraordinaire. She began singing lead in the church choir at the age of 5 and never stopped performing as a musical theater artist throughout her childhood. The sultry sound of the warm musical instrument of her voice will melt your heart and feed your soul. Davies-Lashley has traveled to five of seven continents, soothing and exciting the world in melody and song with a stage presence and sincerity that is mesmerizing and second to none. She toured Paris and Turkey with Craig Harris and the Nation of Imagination.

Wycliffe A. Gordon is a gifted trombonist, conductor, composer and arranger. A native of Waynesboro, Georgia, Wycliffe was musically influenced at a young age by his father, Lucius Gordon, a classical pianist and teacher. His musical prowess has been captured on numerous recordings, including over thirteen solo albums with the Wycliffe Gordon Quartet and seven co-leader albums. With a loyal following, Wycliffe has won scores of awards, including the Trombonist of the Year Award from the Jazz Journalists Association, which he has won five times. He is a former veteran member of the Wynton Marsalis Septet and Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra and has been a featured guest artist on Billy Taylor’s “Jazz at the Kennedy Center” series. Wycliffe’s extensive performance experience includes work with many of the most renowned jazz performers of the past and present. His work with young musicians and audiences from elementary schools to universities all over the world is extensive, and includes master classes, clinics, workshops, children’s concerts and lectures. Wycliffe is widely respected for his powerful sound, distinctive techniques and funky performance style, all factors which make him one of the world’s most popular trombonists.

Brandie Sutton is hailed by the New York Times for her “warm, ample voice” and “distinctive, earthy coloring,” and by Opera News for “her sumptuous mid-weight soprano.” Sutton recently had a great personal success in the leading role of Rautendelein in New York City Opera’s very successful production of Respighi’s rarely-performed La Campana Sommersa. Her performance was received with unanimous acclaim, both by critics and audiences.

Obediah Wright, a native of Brooklyn, New York, is an internationally renowned creative director and two-time Honorary Doctorate Nominee, who has received numerous accolades for his multifaceted career as a choreographer, master teacher, director and producer, impacting youth and adult cultural development. An alumnus of LaGuardia High School of Performing Arts and Julliard, his impressive journey began with a professional Sears catalogue advertisement at the age of 9.

ABOUT THE CITY COLLEGE CENTER FOR THE ARTS:

The City College Center for the Arts hosts an ambitious, year-round calendar of student and professional performances. The mission of the City College Center for the Arts is to provide a creative arts center and focal point for the City College of New York, building a sense of community within the College, elevating the profile of Aaron Davis Hall in the greater New York area, and connecting the College to the surrounding community through the arts.

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Cheryl L. Duncan
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cheryl@cdcprnews.com