This special Juneteenth Evensong Service will celebrate the resiliency of the spirit and reflect on the inherent nature of unity, hope, and liberation.

Music for the service is comprised of an eclectic blend that includes the Kora, a West African string instrument, familiar hymns and chants that compel us to honor our ancestors and uplift us, Spoken Word, and the music of H.T. Burleigh.

Mr. Burleigh‘s legacy is one of grace and courage giving invaluable serv­ice to preserve Negro spirituals, which may have been lost without his work. He was not only a pioneer in singing spirituals on the concert stage, but he was also one of the first to set down on paper the Negro folk songs, that, until that time, had been handed down orally.

The service features an array of talented artists, featuring:

Malong Jubate, Kora, and Chelsea Randall, Piano
Vocalists Chelsi Clarke, Kofi Hayford, Larry Marshall, and Anthony Turner
Spoken Word Artist Bettina Wilkerson ‘POET GOLD’ (Poet Laureate of Poughkeepsie, NY)
The Diocesan Choir of NY

Music coordinated by Jeannine Otis of Saint Marks Church in the Bowery in collaboration with Kent Tritle and Bryan Zaros of the Cathedral of St. John The Divine.