By Steve Cowley

Hoboken, NJ (February 24, 2009) – For a second consecutive year the St. Matthew Trinity Lutheran Church played host to the Annual Concert of Spirituals, Sweet Chariot this past Saturday to celebrate Black History Month. The concert starring Soprano LaTanya Hutchins, who was also the Executive Producer and Creative Director, featured the Stevens Choir conducted by Bethany Reeves, and other guest performers.

As the audience entered, pianist Alvin McCray, percussionist Lorenzo Holloway and organist Richard Brode played an overture of spiritual selections. Mr. McCray, who’s been a music director at several churches over the past twenty years, enhanced many of the melodies he played during the show and complemented Ms. Hutchins’ singing beautifully as well as the rest of the guest artists he played with.

Pastor Mary Forell warmly welcomed the 100 or so people who braved frigid waterfront winter temperatures to attend the show and opened it with a prayer.

Keeping with the theme for the evening, the audience sang the patriotic hymn, “Lift Every Voice and Sing”. Written by brothers James Weldon Johnson and J. Rosamond Johnson, it was adapted as the official song of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and has since become the Black National Anthem.

Of particular interest was the concert’s 12-page program. In addition to the usual “About the Artists” section it described the history of Spirituals, the difference between spirituals and Gospel, a short piece on Slavery in New Jersey and the history of the song “Lift Every Voice and Sing.”

Returning from last year’s inaugural Sweet Chariot event was narrator and host, Jim Cyrus. He introduced the first selection of the evening, “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot”, sung with panache by Ms. Hutchins accompanied by the Sweet Chariot Community Choir.

On the next two spirituals Ms. Hutchins was once again accompanied by the Sweet Chariot Community Choir. On “You Better Min”, various members from the choir took turns on the chorus. Ms. Hutchins was then joined by her long-time friend, Mrs. Jerona Babb, soprano, on “Scandalize My Name.” The exchange between them on the song was charmingly performed and lent an air of frivolity to the concert. They soon had the entire congregation laughing at the scandal of it all.
 

Ms. Hutchins then introduced the always magnificent Stevens Choir. The choir sang three selections: “Duond Akuru”, “Going Over Home”, based on the combination of an Appalachian spiritual, ”Poor Wayfaring Stranger” and the African-American spiritual, “Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child”, and finally, “Dide ta Deo”, a Nigerian Folksong.

Conductor Bethany Reeves said of the song “Duond Akuru”, “Those are Kenyan words, specifically the Luo language, or the Duoluo language. The Luo people of Kenya. Which is the same group that President (Barack) Obama’s father is from. So in a certain sense it’s a tribute.” Percussionist Peter McCauley played a genuine African drum called the Djembe. Stephanie Safko played the piano.

With the last selection, “Dide ta Deo”, arranged by Uzee Brown, Jr., Stevens Choir brought the song to an inspirational crescendo, blending their voices beautifully in rhythm with McCauley’s tribal drumming. It brought the audience to their feet for a standing ovation.

For the closing of the program were songs from Sisters of Freedom, a Cantata based on the lives of Harriet Tubman and Sojourner Truth. It is Ms. Hutchins’ goal to present the Cantata in its entirety at next year’s Black History Celebration. This year’s selection, “Changed My Name”, “The Old Ship of Zion”, and “I’m Going Through”, was written by Linda Twine.

Ms. Hutchins shined on “Changed My Name”. She was in full tonal control on the melodies easily reaching the higher scales and turning the song into a haunting hymn at times. Throughout the singing, host ersonName w:st="on">Jim CyrusersonName> would interject narrations from Twine’s cantata. With a twinkle in her eye, Ms. Hutchins skillfully took the lead and hit her notes on “The Old Ship of Zion”, as the community choir behind her welled up and burst out energetically with the song’s chorus. Everyone in the audience seemed to inhale as one when her soprano filled the church at the end of the song.

Ms. Hutchins sent everyone home with the infectious “I’m Going Through”, the program’s finale.

                                                  

About the author:

Steve Cowley, Cree, from Manitoba, began his career as a journalist in early 90’s in Canada. As a New Yorker since 1993, Steve is currently the CEO of Tâpwê Production Projects.