Experience this breathtaking collaboration between Cuban jazz pianist Omar Sosa, and local ethnomusicologist and multi-instrumentalist Tim Eriksen in a new way.

The evening will begin with Eriksen leading attendees, regardless of their musical experience, in four part harmony singing of 18th century New England music repurposed for use in the 19th century Abolition movement by New England residents of African, Native American and European ancestry. This vibrant style of vocal harmony is at the heart of the “shapenote” singing tradition, and a focus of Eriksen’s ongoing collaboration with Sosa.

The workshop will include historical and cultural context of the tradition, and the story of Newport Gardner/Occramar Marycoo, a man who is suspected to be the first known published American composer of African ancestry, and the subject of a new composition by Eriksen and Sosa.

Then, we'll shift gears and listen deeply - sonically connecting histories and geographies.

Card to Culture tickets available.

Funded in part by the New England States Touring program of the New England Foundation for the Arts, made possible with funding from the National Endowment for the Arts Regional Touring Program and the six New England state arts agencies.