Shawn E Okpebholo
Songs in Flight
Rhiannon Giddens (vocalist), Will Liverman (baritone), Reginald Mobley (countertenor), Paul Sánchez (piano)
Cedille CD 90000 234 63:43 mins
Clip: Shawn E Okpebholo - I Go by Robert (Reginald Mobley and Paul Sánchez)
This outstanding new song cycle by Shawn E Okpebholo offers a painful but vibrant tribute to those who suffered at the hands of North American enslavers. Scored for soprano, countertenor, baritone and piano, Songs in Flight draws on Cornell University’s ‘Freedom on the Move’ database, an archive of some 30,000 newspaper adverts placed by North American enslavers to aid in the capture of runaway enslaved persons. As Okpebholo notes, these ‘dehumanising ads… described the runaways in chilling detail – their physical characteristics, clothing, mannerisms, even fragments of their stories which, ironically, offered a glimpse into these individuals’ humanity.’ Responding to a selection of these adverts, poets Tsitsi Ella Jaji, Tyehimba Jess and Crystal Simone Smith have created a libretto as beautiful as it is harrowing.
- Joseph Emidy - the composer who went from slavery to violin superstardom...
- Research uncovers forgotten abolitionist songs
Never sentimental and sometimes forceful, Okpebholo’s imaginative score often simmers with sharp dissonance but also draws on elements of folk, lullaby, protest song and spiritual. It includes some highly effective moments of spoken narration alongside a mixture of solo and ensemble pieces. The performances are equally outstanding. Folk singer Rhiannon Giddens is mesmerising, most notably in a reimagining of the spiritual ‘O, Freedom’ where her beautiful voice is underpinned by increasingly unsettling piano. Will Liverman also delivers a standout performance that is by turns authoritative and vulnerable.
The album also includes a song from each of Okpebholo’s other song cycles, which feature elegant performances from saxophonist Julian Velasco. Kate Wakeling
