Lara Downes - LIGHT: Migration Music Part 1 (EP) (2021) [Official Digital Download]

This initiative is created and curated by iconoclastic Billboard Chart-topping pianist and NPR Music personality Lara Downes, inspired by exploration of her own mixed-race heritage as a trailblazing interpreter of diverse American traditions, and building on the legacies of history, family, and collective memory.

Produced by Downes in collaboration with Grammy award-winning producer Adam Abeshouse, this extensive series features new recordings of composers from William Grant Still, Florence Price, Eubie Blake and Margaret Bonds to Jessie Montgomery, Daniel Roumain, Carlos Simon, and Quinn Mason.

Artists include: Jordan Bak; Nicole Cabell; Regina Carter; Anat Cohen; Helga Davis; Lara Downes; Stewart Goodyear; Ivalas Quartet; Jiji; Bridget Kibbey; Rachel Barton Pine; Davóne Tines; Titus Underwood, and other leading instrumentalists and vocalists whose work defines the creative energy of this generation and the next.

For many years, I've been seeking out forgotten music by Black composers. I’ve been listening for the voices that tell a different story about American music than the one we think we know. A better story. A story of migration and metamorphosis, trial and triumph, courage and creativity—a story about where we’ve been and where we’re going. It’s a long story, and it’s a story that’s still being written. Now it’s time for me to share my discoveries. I think this music will speak to you in a beautiful and familiar language that evokes our memories of lineage and legacy, of the journeys we’ve made, and most of all, our awareness of the places where we come together." (Lara Downes)

Tracklist:
b]1. Lara Downes – Southern Lullaby (Arr. for Piano by Lara Downes) (03:33)
2. Lara Downes – Spiritual Suite (Excerpts): III. Valley of the Bones (02:32)
3. Lara Downes – Out of the South Blew a Wind (Arr. for Piano by Lara Downes) (01:38)
4. Ivalas Quartet – Warmth from Other Suns (Excerpts): I. Rays of Light (05:37)


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