THE DUSABLE MUSEUM PRESENTS ADRIAN DUNN”S “EMANCIPATION: ACT 2” FEATURING THE ADRIAN DUNN SINGERS


 

 

THE DUSABLE MUSEUM PRESENTS 

ADRIAN DUNN”S “EMANCIPATION: ACT 2” FEATURING THE ADRIAN DUNN SINGERS


The DuSable Black History Museum and Education Center is pleased to present Emancipation: Act 2 by Adrian Dunn with the Adrian Dunn Singers at the Museum on Sunday, February 26, 2023, at 6:30 PM.

Adrian Dunn’s Emancipation explores Black life in America through genres created by Black Americans. In a fascinating live performance, the acclaimed composer, conductor, and singer merges classical, gospel, hip-hop and spirituals to explore the question: what does it mean to be Black and free in America in the twenty-first century?

Dunn said, “As a classically trained musician, there were things in my childhood that I was forced to discard about my musical upbringing and identity. ‘Emancipation’ is me going back and getting all those things and bringing them to the concert stage. My inspiration for this piece includes the Black sacred texts of Maya Angelou, Kanye West, Tupac, Marlon Riggs, James Baldwin and Audre Lorde, to name a few.”

In the spirit of the West-African principle, Sankofa, Adrian Dunn has curated a musical experience that is liberating, refreshing, and transcends time and space. An all-Black professional ensemble, founded by Dunn, guides this expedition through musical selections that challenge the audience to reflect on their lived experiences – seeking answers that investigate love, loss, queerness, Black liberation, and the human experience.

Tickets and information about the performance can be found at: www.dusablemuseum.org!

About Adrian Dunn

Adrian Dunn is a singer, composer, and conductor who holds a Bachelor of Music and Master of Music degree in voice from the Music Conservatory at Roosevelt University with additional musical studies in opera at The Sibelius Academy of Music in Finland.

In 2021 Mr. Dunn won The American Prize in Composition for Requiem from “The Mass for the Unarmed Child” and was named one of the Top 10 Classical Music and Jazz performances of 2021 by the Chicago Tribune. He made his conducting debut with The Chicago Philharmonic Orchestra in June 2021. His interview on his original composition “The Black Messiah” was published in the Voices: A World Forum for Music Therapy. He and The Adrian Dunn Singers performed for the film score of the 2022 Sundance Film Festival entry, “Honk for Jesus” starring Sterling K. Brown (NBC’s series, “This Is Us”) and Regina Hall.

His composition “Requiem” was performed by the Charlotte Symphony Orchestra and the Morehouse Glee Club in March 2022. He was the chorus conductor for the “Mozart Requiem” with the Elgin Symphony Orchestra and was guest artist in residence at California State University Fullerton. His original work “Hopera: A Hip Hop Opera,” received a MacArthur grant. He’s sung with the Chicago Symphony Chorus and Grant Park Symphony Chorus and was the 2019 Composer in residence for the Lyric Unlimited education program. He was the tenor soloist for Handel’s Messiah at Rockefeller Chapel in 2019 and was the tenor soloist for Puccini’s “Messa di Gloria” with the Northwestern University Orchestra. He has served as the opening act for International Hip Hop recording artists The Roots at Indiana University. He served as the principal vocal coach for Kanye West’s artist development program Donda’s House. He was the featured artist and vocal coach for the live DVD recording of the Higher Ground Gospel Choir in Helsinki, Finland. He has also toured throughout the U.S., South Africa, Italy, Germany, the United Kingdom and Scandinavia.

He is a voice faculty member of the Theater Conservatory at Roosevelt University. Mr. Dunn’s private voice students can be seen in National Tours of Broadway shows including “The Lion King,” Hamilton, “The Color Purple,”and “Kinky Boots,” in addition to the BET program “Sunday’s Best,” and local Chicago-area theaters such as ,Drury Lane, The Paramount Theater and The Black Ensemble Theater. He has also worked with background vocalists for major recording artists on tour throughout the U.S. and abroad.

About the Adrian Dunn Singers

The Adrian Dunn Singers is a group of 12 professional singers of diverse musical backgrounds based in Chicago. Members of the group have trained at some of the top conservatories and Universities in America. They recently performed at the Thomas Dorsey National Convention of Gospel Choirs and Choruses in Dallas and were recently included in the Art Institute of Chicago’s “Prayer” exhibit. In addition to recording “The Revelations Album, they performed for the Payne Theological Seminary Presidential Inauguration in 2017 and provided music for the 2018 Commencement Exercises. The group recently made its National Cathedral debut and has toured Orlando, Los Angeles, Atlanta, and Indianapolis.

About The DuSable Museum

The DuSable Black History Museum and Education Center, a Smithsonian affiliate, is the nation’s first independent museum dedicated to the collection, preservation and study of the history and culture of Africans Americans and people of African descent. For more, visit www.dusablemuseum.org and follow @dusablemuseum.

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