Afrocentric Voices in Classical Music: A Journey through Time, Land, and Culture

Soprano Brenda Marie Turner, pianist Kyle P. Walker, and kora player John Hughes presented Afrocentric Voices in Classical Music: A Journey through Time, Land, and Culture at Clemmons Family Farm in Charlotte, Vermont. This 2025 program explored classical works by Black composers from Europe, North America, and Africa, blending piano, voice, and West African kora music. The performance featured music by Oswald Russell, Samuel Coleridge-Taylor, Florence Price, Undine Smith Moore, Margaret Bonds, Hale Smith, Calvin Taylor, and Moses Hogan. Highlights included Jamaican Dance No. 2, Dream Variation, There is a Balm in Gilead, and Troubled Water. The trio also offered Alla La Ke, a Malinke song performed with audience participation. Presented as part of Clemmons Family Farm’s African Diaspora Classical Music series, the concert celebrated cultural exchange and the enduring influence of the African diaspora on classical traditions.