Historical September–October 2011 article. Dates, prices, services and contacts describe the source period; current availability has not been established.
The West End Arts Council BBQ Concert Series aims for a diverse mix of music for the Skinker-DeBaliviere neighborhood. For our first concert this summer, we tried a new approach. Neighbor Liz Johnson has been organizing the M. L. King Commemoration for many years in Skinker-DeBaliviere, carrying on a tradition which her father started nearly twenty years ago.
The commemoration takes place in January or February. Liz has been planning on extending the celebration of Martin Luther King’s message to other times of the year in accordance with her father’s wishes.
The West End Arts Council strives to offer a variety of music to the SD neighborhood and approached Liz with the idea of including the gospel choirs of SD to perform as musical guests for one of our concert nights. We’ve heard one or two selections of each choir at the M. L. King commemorations in the winter – so why not make an evening of great singing and music outof-doors at Greg Freeman Park?
This would be a celebration of our neighborhood’s diversity, and would include all of our churches’ choirs.
It has been a goal of SDCC to reach out to all parts of the neighborhood and make sure all residents feel included. Liz was not only excited about the offer from the concert organizers, but she felt this was the perfect opportunity to work on the outreach project she had been planning; to bring children of diversity together to explore racial harmony.
The children’s activity would happen in the daytime, and their results would be presented during the concert that evening.
The response from the churches was positive and enthusiastic.
The Grace Methodist choir set up their sound equipment and instruments for all the choirs to use. Beautiful voices and arrangements were offered by the Grace and Peace choir and the St. Roch’s choir.
The entire crowd was jumping and clapping to the songs of the Mt. Olivette youth choir.
The audience was singing, dancing, swaying, laughing, and more engaged than any concert we’ve ever had in SD.
When the New Cote Brilliante gospel choir finished their numbers, the audience couldn’t stop applauding, so the percussionist joined in the clapping, then the base joined in, and another verse broke out from the audience – the energy was overflowing!
We are grateful to the five choirs who participated, and to the volunteers who helped us present this inspiring event.
Originally published in The Times of Skinker-DeBaliviere, September–October 2011.
Read this article in the original newspaper issue.
Original source: SD_Times2011_09.pdf, printed page(s) 4; PDF page(s) 4.
