Chineke! Orchestra presents an uplifting and historically rich programme celebrating Black classical repertoire, opening with Carlos Simon’s Four Black American Dances, continuing with Samuel Coleridge-Taylor’s vibrant Violin Concerto, and closing with Florence Price’s landmark First Symphony. The concert forms part of the orchestra’s Spring/Summer 2026 Classical Season, highlighting musical traditions shaped by African and African American creativity.
Written in 2020, Carlos Simon’s Four Black American Dances explores four distinct dance forms rooted in Black American life: the ring shout, the waltz, tap dance and the ecstatic “holy dance” found in spiritual communities. Simon’s orchestration is vivid and rhythmic, illuminating the diversity, ancestry and cultural significance woven through African American movement and music. His work provides a joyful and illuminating opening to the evening.
Samuel Coleridge-Taylor’s Violin Concerto in G minor, premiered in 1912, stands as one of the great concertos of the early twentieth century. Composed in the final months of his life, it is full of warmth, melodic colour and emotional intensity. Tonight’s soloist, Njioma Chinyere Grevious, brings the work’s lyrical richness and technical brilliance to the fore, supported by the dynamic playing of Chineke! Orchestra under conductor Joseph Young. The concerto remains one of Coleridge-Taylor’s most enduring works, reflecting his deep connection to both Black diasporic music and the Romantic European tradition.
The programme concludes with Florence Price’s Symphony No.1 in E minor, a piece that holds a significant place in musical history as the first symphony by an African American woman to be performed by a major US orchestra. Premiered in 1933, the symphony blends spiritual themes, folk idioms, dance rhythms and expressive melody. Price’s writing is full of vitality, tenderness and rhythmic interplay, drawing on musical traditions rooted in the African American experience while employing classical symphonic form with remarkable fluency and originality.
Chineke! Orchestra, renowned for its mission to champion diversity and representation in classical music, brings a distinctive energy to this programme. With sparkling orchestral playing, thoughtful programming and an inclusive ethos, the ensemble continues to illuminate the legacy of Black composers whose contributions have shaped the classical world.
This concert is suitable for ages 7+. Under-12s must be accompanied by an adult.
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