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May 16, 2025
Alternating Fridays in May; future dates to be scheduled.
May 2, May 16, May 23
$20/session
Explore stories of American musical lessons for combatting oppression and erasure that exist in the communities and traditions of the African and Jewish diasporas. Featuring both popular and obscure stories and figures in these cultures, The Rhapsody Project’s leaders and special guests will introduce you to stories and music that contain essential knowledge drawn from cultures where people have been compelled to combat erasure for generations.
Hybrid Format: Attend on Zoom or in person at The Rhapsody Workshop at King Street Station
Dinner included for in-person attendees.
Session 2 with Dr. Daniel E. Atkinson
Friday, May 16 - 5:00 - 8:00 pm
Lessons from the Ancestors: The Vanguard Generation of AfroAmerican Artists (1880-1918)
Ethnomusicologist Dr. Daniel E. Atkinson offers a fresh take on the lives and accomplishments of the “Vanguard Generation" of Afro-Americans who leveraged Black cultural products for profit and prestige between the close of the Civil War and the start of World War I. Gathered from recently digitized newsprint, recordings, film and other media from the beginning of the modern era for the forthcoming book, The Rediscovery of George “Nash” Walker: The Price of Black Stardom in Jim Crow America, the contextual depth of this data enriches the historical record with previously lacking nuance that exemplifies the Black experience, the artistic hamster wheel of ubiquitous Black cultural influence, and perpetual secondary status of Black people in the United States.
