University of Michigan Men’s Glee Club Perform #BlackLivesMatter Anthem in D.C.
The evening of May 19, Classical Movements will present the 80-strong, 158-year-old University of Michigan Men’s Glee Club at National City Christian Church in Washington, D.C. on the final stop of their spring tour. Under the direction of Dr. Eugene Rogers , the men from Ann Arbor will perform a diverse, expertly curated program, highlighted by Atlanta-based composer Joel Thompson ‘s powerful opus, Seven Last Words of the Unarmed.
Performed during UMMGC’s South African tour last May (their 4th overall with Classical Movements) and orchestrated for this February’s 20th anniversary of the Sphinx Competition, Thompson’s work—featured in the documentary Love, Life & Loss — commemorates the lives of seven African-American men tragically lost at the hands of authority figures: Kenneth Chamberlain, Trayvon Martin, Amadou Diallo, Michael Brown, Oscar Grant, John Crawford and Eric Garner. Setting these men’s own final words to music, Seven Last Words of the Unarmed aims to evoke meaningful and thoughtful discussion through gripping and engaging performance.