Friday, November 2nd, 7:00 PM.
Admission is Suggested Donation of $20. All ages welcome.
Paul Robeson. Roland Hayes. Nina Simone. Billie Holiday. Robert McFerrin, Sr. Yes, they were all black, but their presence here harks back to lines by Langston Hughes: “What happens to a dream deferred? Does it dry up, like a raisin in the sun?” These artists show us different kinds of lives cut short in some way, if not by early death, then by a stifling of their talents. New York-based baritone James Dargan and pianist Mark Whitlock present Oh, Glory!, a program celebrating these artists and Black history through the music of these five legendary Black singers.
James Dargan is a creative artist and authenticity addict from the Southeastern US; he has played the violin and sung since he was a child, and he is a composer, essayist, poet, and polyglot translator. James has performed at MCC in the past as the baritone soloist at MCC’s Messiah Sing. MCC is excited to welcome him back for this exclusive performance. Recent artistic milestones include his first Schubert’s Winterreise; multiple performances (past and upcoming) of his social justice-oriented recital “Oh, Glory!”; his Manhattan solo debut as the baritone soloist for Musica Viva NY’s April 8th 2018 concert, “Infinite Hope”; four NYC premieres of songs for which James was lyricist, composer, and performer; and the in-progress writing of his first opera: “The Legend of John Henry”.
Mark Whitlock is a freelance piano technician, a part-time pianist, and part-time furniture builder. He has taken care of pianos in the Boston area for over twenty years, and is currently the concert technician at Jordan Hall, New England Conservatory. He has also worked at
Boston Conservatory, Wellesley College and Symphony Hall. He has collaborated with Boston musicians over the years, with a special concentration on Schubert Lieder.