Thursday, February 20, 2020, 8pm Zellerbach Hall We Shall Overcome A Celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., featuring Damien Sneed With the Oakland Interfaith Gospel Choir

Damien Sneed, bandleader, piano, keyboards, vocals Chenee Campbell, vocals Matia Washington, vocals Anitra McKinney, vocals Alicia Peters-Jordan, vocals Linny Smith, vocals Marquéz Cassidy, organ Arthur Sutton, bass Joel Tate, drums

Oakland Interfaith Gospel Choir Terrance Kelly, artistic director

Tonight’s concert will be performed without intermission and last approximately 90 minutes.

Cal Performances’ 2019–20 season is sponsored by Wells Fargo.

15 PROGRAM NOTES

nspired by the words and actions of Dr. including Howard University, where he earned Martin Luther King Jr., We Shall Overcome a bachelor’s degree in music performance showcases repertoire from across African- (piano); the Peabody Conservatory of the Johns IAmerican music traditions that electrifi ed gen- Hopkins University; New York University, erations of civil rights activists and defenders, where he earned a master’s degree in music interweaving that music with spoken-word technology: fi lm scoring and multimedia; and excerpts from Dr. King’s recorded speeches. the Manhattan School of Music. Th is year, Producer and music director Damien Sneed’s Sneed will also graduate with his doctorate career covers an incredible breadth of genres. in orchestral conducting from USC. He was He has conducted and collaborated on major a member of the faculty at the Clive Davis original works by Wynton Marsalis, accompa- Institute of Recorded Music at New York nied the late Jessye Norman, collaborated with University’s Tisch School of the Arts and Nyack Lawrence Brownlee, and toured extensively College. Sneed’s other professional affi liations with Diana Ross, Aretha Franklin, and the have included the Juilliard School as a staff Clark Sisters. accompanist, Jazz at Lincoln Center as an artistic Th is production ties together a living lineage consultant, and the City University of New of music and culture that includes traditional York (CUNY) as a professor of music. In 2015, and modern gospel tunes, spirituals, classical Sneed established the Damien Sneed Performing music, jazz, and Broadway. Sneed employs se- Arts Institute, a division of the Damien Sneed lections that range from traditional favorites Foundation. He recently joined the faculty of the and Aretha Franklin hits to music by Wynton Manhattan School of Music. Marsalis, Duke Ellington, Stevie Wonder, Nina Simone, and songs from Th e Wiz, his unique Under the direction of the Emmy-winning understanding of each genre allowing him to Terrance Kelly, the Oakland Interfaith cover an amazing range of musical ground in a Gospel Choir (OIGC) brings together sing- single performance. ers and instrumentalists who embody a community of diverse races, cultures, and Multi-genre recording artist faiths. Th e group’s mission is to inspire joy and instrumentalist Damien and unity among all people through black Sneed is a pianist, organist, gospel and spiritual music. Founded in composer, conductor, ar- 1986, the OIGC was born out of a gospel ranger, producer, and arts music workshop led by the exuberant Terrance educator. A recipient of the Kelly at Living Jazz’s Jazz Camp West. It became prestigious Sphinx Medal of an independent nonprofi t organization in 1991, Excellence, he has worked and since then, the award-winning choir’s ex- with jazz, classical, pop, quisite harmonies and stirring gospel repertoire and R&B legends including the late Aretha have led to performances with a wide variety of Franklin and Jessye Norman (Sneed is featured esteemed groups, such as the Five Blind Boys on Norman’s fi nal recording, Bound For Th e of Alabama, the Duke Ellington Orchestra, and, Promised Land). He has also worked with artists more recently, Edwin Hawkins, Cece Winans, including Wynton Marsalis, Stevie Wonder, Vanessa Williams, and Lenny Kravitz. Th e choir Diana Ross, Ashford & Simpson, J’Nai Bridges, also appears on Grammy-winning albums by and Lawrence Brownlee. Linda Rondstadt, MC Hammer, and Tramaine A graduate of John S. Davidson Fine Arts Hawkins, among others, and was invited to per- School in his hometown of Augusta (GA), form at the Chase Center’s ribbon-cutting cere- Sneed has studied at some of the finest mony this past fall. Find out more about OIGC American conservatories and universities, and its current season at www.oigc.org.

15b PLAYBILL ABOUT THE ARTISTS

Oakland Interfaith Gospel Choir Terrance Kelly, artistic director Soprano Elizabeth Colt Marcel McClain Nicolia Bagby Gooding Lindsay K. Elam Manuel Mendoza Brenda Bailey Powell Cheryl Espinosa-Jones Jae Phoenix Meliney E. Brooks Danielle Furman Kai Pierce Amy Clark Cheryl Garner Daniel Pinkham Leola Clark Katherina Guido-Respicio Carl Resnikoff Mary Ford Katherine Harry Jeff Stange Jennifer W. Grace Sharon Hymes-Off ord Daniel Strauss Lynne Gurewitz Jennifer Little Asha Howard Stephanie Miller Bass Grace Kamau Emily Neigel Arthur Barker Ani Lee Julianne Pearson Jeff Benson Heather Figueroa Becky Watson Paul Daniels Maria Long Danielle Y. White Jim Fisher Linda Mack Jim Hooper Teresa Mack Tenor Jason Horlador Frances Messano Jeff Bellaire J e ff L a n d a u Kellie Morlock Don Bonner Jack Mahan Valeria Scott Michael Callahan Bernadette McDonald Alexa Shelley Cyril Drame David Page Jennifer G. Shelton Aaron Draper James Powell Sophie Speer Renee EB-Walton Benjamin Schleifer Cathy Warren Don Gossette Joseph Hawkins Sr. OIGC Band Alto Lara Hermanson David Belove, bass Ashley Anderson Gene Ho Tina Bryant, keyboard Isa S. Chu Gracie Jones Louis Burrell, keyboard Annette Coff ey Ryoko Kobayashi Miles Lathan, drums Madeline Cohen Tessa Loehwing Jae Phoenix, tambourine

16