Black Renaissance in Harlem and Chicago

Thursday 16 September 2021

Pianist Samantha Ege performs Black Renaissance Music from Harlem and Chicago. World Premieres of Florence Price, Margaret Bonds, & others

Post-Concert Q & A Session with Dr. Samantha Eg

In recital on Thursday 16 September, British pianist and musicologist Dr Samantha Ege traces the lives and legacies of a vibrant creative network of Black composers in the transformative Black Renaissances of Harlem and Chicago, including Florence Price, Margaret Bonds, William Grant Still, Nora Holt, and Zenobia Powell Perry and William Levi Dawson. Ege’s programme includes the first public performance of the complete set of all four of Florence Price’s virtuosic Fantasie Nègre showpieces, following her discovery and restoration of Price’s Fantasie Nègre No. 3 following research in Arkansas.

At the beginning of the twentieth century, thousands of African Americans moved to Chicago as part of the Great Migration. The Black Chicago Renaissance was born out of their desire to create better lives than the ones they had left behind. Within Chicago’s South Side neighbourhood, numerous women came together to build communities for Black classical musicians. In doing so, they broke down boundaries in American music and placed African American heritage front and centre.

7:30pm Performance

The Black Chicago Renaissance is understood as an offshoot, picking up after the Harlem Renaissance in the 1930s and continuing through to about 1960. But when we look at the classical music roots of Chicago’s cultural rebirth, a different narrative begins to emerge, one that really suggests that this movement began much earlier and that women were a driving force.

It was said that you could not think of music in Chicago without thinking about the Bonds family and this is where my story begins. SamanthaEge

More Lambeth Listings MORE

Lambeth Tuesday 17 June

Kara Jackson

The singer wields her voice like a honey-coated blade, crafting a blend of emotional folk music and poetic…

Lambeth Wednesday 18 June

Ghetts

Hear the east London artist’s signature combination of razor-sharp, crystal-clear rhymes with smart humour and creative, intelligent wordplay….

Lambeth Thursday 19 June

Nubya Garcia

The London-born saxophonist, composer and bandleader melds jazz, classical, dub and R&B into sweeping, adventurous music to stir…

Lambeth Friday 20 June

Mix & Move: Hip-Hop Grooves

Showcasing dance styles and dancers from across the globe, Mix & Move is our monthly programme of accessible dance workshops…

Lambeth Friday 20 June

MEGA+ Jon Poppii

With a big voice, big heart and big songs that explore vulnerability, self-realisation and empowerment, the vocalist and…

Lambeth Saturday 21 June

Jon Batiste

Be immersed in music from the legendary singer, songwriter and composer, whose piano-playing melds the blues with classical…

Lambeth Sunday 22 June

Little Simz & Chineke! Orchestra

The curator of this year’s Meltdown comes together with Chineke! Orchestra for a one-of-a-kind concert and unmissable closing night of…