IT’S THIS SUNDAY!! - MUSICA VOCALE PRESENTS UNSUNG: CELEBRATING AMERICA’S HIDDEN MUSICAL HEROES

On this episode of The KC Arts Beat Report, Patrick Neas visits with Jay Carter, Artistic Director of Musica Vocale, to explore Unsung: Celebrating America’s Hidden Musical Heroes — a richly conceived program honoring the composers who shaped American classical music yet rarely appear on our stages. Drawing inspiration from Dvořák’s famous 1893 call to build an American musical tradition rooted in Black and Native American artistry, the concert brings long‑overlooked voices into full light.

The afternoon features R. Nathaniel Dett’s expansive Chariot Jubilee, Jerod Impichchaachaaha’ Tate’s Visions of a Child: A Pueblo Lullaby, and Adolphus Hailstork’s luminous Nocturne, alongside works by Undine Smith Moore, Margaret Bonds, Evelyn Simpson‑Curenton, and Maria Isabel Valverde. Each piece stands on its own as superb choral writing, revealing a broader, deeper American story than the one usually told.

Musica Vocale presents Unsung Sunday, May 31 at 3:00 PM at Immanuel Lutheran Church, 42nd and Tracy, in the historic Mannheim Park neighborhood. Admission is free, thanks to the generosity of Musica Vocale’s donors and musicians. To learn more about the ensemble or to support its work, visit musicavocale.org.