Bound for the Promised Land
Ben Leaptrott, Atlanta Music Festival Childen's Choir, Dwight Andrews, Timothy Miller, Robert M. Franklin, Taylor Branch, Kevin P. Johnson, Julia Dennis, Damien Sneed, Jessye Norman (soprano), Morehouse College Glee Club, Vega Quartet, Brent Runnels, Arietha Lockhart, Brent Davis, Cynthia Shepherd
This live recording of the Atlanta Music Festival 2016 comprises a unique combination of music, literature, and history, addressing the African American journey from slavery to an as yet unachieved dream of a "more perfect union." Beginning with Atlanta school children singing Lift Every Voice and Sing, the CD proceeds with music and spoken dialogue extolling "liberty and justice for all" through the words of Barack Obama, James Dickey, Robert Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Langston Hughes. Of special note are the performances of the beloved Jessye Norman singing songs by Duke Ellington and spirituals. The Atlanta Music Festival has its origins in the Atlanta Colored Music Festival, begun in 1910, four years after the Atlanta race riots, by Rev. Henry Hugh Proctor to promote racial reconciliation through the arts.
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Track Listing
| Title | Composer | Performer |
|---|---|---|
| Lift Every Voice and Sing | Rosamond Johnson | Atlanta Music Festival Children's Choir; Ben Leaptrott (piano); Steven Darsey (conductor) |
| Welcome | Dwight Andrews, writer | Dwight Andrews (speaker) |
| Frederick Douglass: Act II: Scene 3 | Dorothy Rudd Moore | Timothy Miller (tenor); Meridian Chorale & Orchestra; Steven Darsey (conductor) |
| 50th Anniversary of the Selma March & A More Perfect Union speeches (excerpts) | Barack Obama, writer | Robert M. Franklin (speaker) |
| Notes on the Decline of Outrage (excerpt) | James Dickey, writer | Taylor Branch (speaker) |
| Wade in the Water | Hall Johnson | Julia Dennis (soprano); Spelman College Glee Club; Kevin P. Johnson (piano); B.E. Boykin (conductor) |
| Notes on the Decline of Outrage (excerpt) | James Dickey, writer | Taylor Branch (speaker) |
| A More Perfect Union speech (excerpt) | Barack Obama, writer | Robert M. Franklin (speaker) |
| Come Sunday | Duke Ellington | Jessye Norman (soprano); Damien Sneed (piano) |
| Gospel Train | Traditional | Jessye Norman (soprano); Damien Sneed (piano) |
| 50th Anniversary of the Selma March speech (excerpts) | Barack Obama, writer | Robert M. Franklin (speaker) |
| My Soul's Been Anchored | Moses Hogan | Morehouse College Glee Club; David Morrow (conductor) |
| Statement on the Death of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (excerpt) | Sen. Robert F. Kennedy, writer | Taylor Branch (speaker) |
| Meditations | T.J. Anderson | Vega Quartet |
| Notes on the Decline of Outrage (excerpt) | James Dickey, writer | Taylor Branch (speaker) |
| Essays (excerpt) | Langston Hughes, writer | Robert M. Franklin (speaker) |
| Prophets for a New Day (excerpt) | Margaret Walker, writer | Taylor Branch (speaker) |
| Toccata (Ride On King Jesus) | John Carter | Timothy Miller (tenor); Brent Runnels (piano) |
| Between Black and White (excerpt) | Henry Hugh Proctor, writer | Robert M. Franklin (speaker) |
| Heaven | Duke Ellington | Jessye Norman (soprano); Damien Sneed (piano) |
| He's Got the Whole World in His Hand | Margaret Bonds | Jessye Norman (soprano); Damien Sneed (piano) |
| Frederick Douglass: Act II: Scene 3 - Finale | Dorothy Rudd Moore | Megan Brunning (soprano); Cynthia Shepherd (soprano); Brent Davis (baritone); Arietha Lockhart (soprano); Timothy Miller (tenor); Meridian Chorale & Orchestra; Steven Darsey (conductor) |
| Voting Rights Speech to Congress, March 15, 1965 (excerpt) | Lyndon B. Johnson, writer | Taylor Branch (speaker) |
| 50th Anniversary of the Selma March speech (excerpts) | Barack Obama, writer | Robert M. Franklin (speaker) |
| Bound for the Promised Land | Adolphus Hailstork | Wanda Yang Temko (soprano); Timothy Miller (tenor); Spelman & Morehouse College Glee Clubs; Chancel Choir of the First United Church of Christ; Meridian Chorale & Orchestra; Steven Darsey (conductor) |
*Album cover provided for Editorial use only. ©Albany Records. The Albany Imprint is a registered trademark of PARMA Recordings LLC. The views and opinions expressed in this media are those of the artist and do not necessarily represent or reflect the views and opinions held by PARMA Recordings LLC and its label imprints, subsidiaries, and affiliates.