2020 Colour of Music Festival Returns to Charleston January 29-February 1
Black Professional Classical Musicians Festival Honors Octets, Quintets, Winds, and Brass
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE—January 13, 2020 Charleston SC —The Colour of Music Festival announces the eighth annual Colour of Music Festival (COMF) January 29-February 1, 2020 at three historic Charleston locations showcasing leading black classical artists from France, Britain, Colombia, and the Caribbean. The 2020 winter Chamber Series will feature members of an ‘elite’ Colour of Music Festival Octet and Quintet group of musicians highlighting performances that include Felix Mendelssohn’s Grand Octet and Florence B. Price’s and Johannes Brahms Piano Quintets.
Since 2013 the Colour of Music Festival (COMF) has brought international, national, and regional classically trained black musicians of African descent to share their musical talents, knowledge, and inspiration to Charleston. Since 2018 the Festival has also traveled to leading collegiate venues and performance halls in Washington DC, Atlanta, Houston, Nashville, Pittsburgh, and Richmond.
Winter 2020 Colour of Music Festival Highlights
Performances will take place in intimate settings for audiences to experience up close and feel the magic of how classical music originated, i.e., in salon settings.
Featured highlights include one of COMF’s star musicians, clarinetist Robert L. Davis, who served as principle clarinetist for four years and was also noted in a COMF CBS Evening News feature in 2015. Mr. Davis will perform Mozart’s and Samuel Coleridge Taylors’s Clarinet Quintets. Also débuting is the new all-star Colour of Music Festival Octet, an elite group of eight black string instrumentalists, performing Mendelssohn’s Octet in E-Flat Major, Op. 20 and Fugues by Mozart and Bach.
Anyango Yarbo-Davenport, violinist, will join her touring colleague pianist Kyle P. Walker to present Florence B. Price’s Piano and String Quintet in A Minor and Johannes Brahms’ Piano and String Quintet in F Minor, Op. 34 in a grand setting in historic Murray Center Salon in Spoleto Festival USA.
Additional performances will take place at the historic Edmonston-Alston House Museum Salon, 21 East Bay Street and Middleton Place Pavilion, 4300 Ashley River Road (Hwy 61) surrounded by ancient live oak trees in a new state-of-the art facility.
“Coming off of a remarkable fall season of Masterwork gems with 88 musicians on stage at Nashville’s Vanderbilt University and 60+ musicians at historic Chappelle Auditorium at Allen University we are thrilled to showcase a more intimate program which we are calling our Charleston winter showcase.” said Lee Pringle, Founder and Artistic Director of the Colour of Music Festival.
CALENDAR OF EVENTS |2020 COLOUR OF MUSIC FESTIVAL
Wednesday, January 29
Spotlight Piano Recital • 2 p.m.
Leonard Hayes, pianist
Murray Center Salon
Wednesday, January 29
Chamber Music I • 7 p.m.
Mozart Clarinet Quintet
Robert L. Davis, Clarinet
Florence B. Price String Quartet in G-Minor
Edmonston-Alston House Salon
Thursday, January 30
Vocal Recital • 2 p.m.
Indra Thomas, soprano
Marcena Kinney, Accompanist
Murray Center Salon
Thursday, January 30
Chamber Music II • 7 p.m.
Samuel Coleridge Taylor’s Clarinet Quintet
Robert L. Davis, Clarinet
Mozart String Quartet/Divertimento
Edmonston-Alston House Salon
Friday, January 31
Spotlight Brass Ensemble • 2 p.m.
Eganam K. Segbefia, Trumpet
Jahleel Smith, Trombone
Leonard Hayes, Piano
Murray Center Salon
Friday, January 31
Chamber Music III
Felix Mendelssohn Octet • 7 p.m.
Middleton Place Pavilion
Saturday, February 1
Johannes Brahms & Florence B. Rice Piano Quintets • 7:30 p.m.
Murray Center Salon
Colour of Music Festival Tickets and Information: $15-$35
By phone (866) 811-4111
Online: www.colourofmusic.org
At door: (credit card, cash or check) before each performance
About the Colour of Music Festival
Based in Charleston, South Carolina and organized in 2013, the Colour of Music Festival, Inc. presents a diverse classical repertoire of baroque, classical and 20th century music at the highest of musical standards to diverse audiences throughout the Lowcountry, regionally, and nationally.
The Festival has also presented performances in Washington, DC, Atlanta, GA, Houston, TX, Nashville, TN, Richmond, VA and Pittsburgh, PA and Columbia, SC.
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Michiel is a Black Southern Belle living a lowcountry life. I love all things fashion, home decor and southern! When I am not running around doing fun stuff for Black Southern Belle, I live in antique stores and have a minor obsession with historic homes :)
