Most of Monday, Sept. 20, belonged to the rain and fog. The walk to my classes, holding a broken umbrella above my head, had set me in a decidedly uncreative frame of mind. I wanted nothing more than to sit in my room for the rest of the day. However, my music professor required a concert attendance as part of our grade, so I went to see Karen Slack and Casey Robards perform in the chapel at 7 pm. The concert lasted about an hour, and by the end, I had nearly forgotten about the rain and drudgery outside. While I am not a music or art major, the concert nonetheless touched and challenged me in ways I could not have predicted.
The concert was a part of the John Hamm performing arts series. Hamm was a professor at Covenant and was well known for his passion for community enrichment. The program is now overseen by Assistant Professor David Tahere, but still follows Professor Hamm’s legacy by bringing artists to Covenant College and the surrounding area.
To say Ms. Slack is an amazing singer would be an equally amazing understatement. Obviously, her vocal range was impressive, but I found her ability to switch between English, French, and German pieces equally remarkable. Her accent sounded good in each one, but when she switched to English, she used her facial expressions and hand gestures to complement her singing, further adding to the experience.
While Ms. Slack was in the spotlight for most of the night, if I had focused exclusively on her, I would have missed out. Casey Robards, the pianist, was an equally talented performer, albeit in a subtler way. She proved well versed in many different styles of music. Like Ms. Slack, her facial expressions complemented her playing. She performed feats such as directly plucking or laying objects on the piano’s strings during her pieces. Both her accompaniment and solo pieces were performed with incredible skill and dexterity, and I was glad I was there to witness it.
The concert was titled “My Sister’s Keeper” and according to Ms. Slack, had two goals. The primary purpose was to draw attention to different composers than most people are used to hearing. We know the names Beethoven, Bach, and Mozart, but there are other composers, (in this case, female or African American) whose works are not usually highlighted. While many of them were similarly talented, they were not recorded or properly recognized, because of their social status. Ms. Slack and Ms. Robards were working to change that. By singing and playing pieces by relatively obscure artists, they expose the audience to a different side of art history.
The second purpose was more somber. Their centerpiece song “Say their Names” functioned as a dirge for victims of police violence. Ms. Slack and a composer named Jasmine Barnes felt that some victims were not getting the public attention they deserved, and they sought to change that. This project, also called “Say their Names,” is what ultimately inspired the concert.
This concert challenged me and made me think. While I did not agree with everything Ms. Slack said, listening to her certainly broadened my understanding of art and culture. The John Hamm performing arts series has two more events in the spring semester, the first on Feb. 10, featuring Drew Petersen, and the second on March 16, featuring Time for Three. Even though I won’t be required to see them, I will nonetheless try to do so, and I suggest you do the same. Attending this concert was an unexpected delight.