The uplifting spirit of Black roots music will ripple through two weekends this July as part of Bard SummerScape.
Conceived as a platform to create a creative healing space for a troupe of predominantly BIPOC artists to develop a series of new concerts in collaboration and fellowship with one another, Black Roots Summer will convene a group of over 20 vocalists, musicians, dancers, and creative artists for a two-week residency resulting in three original concerts.
Black Roots Summer is presented as part of SummerScape in association with Electric Root. The events are curated by producer Jono Gasparro and musician Michael Mwenso. Michael and his band Mwenso and the Shakes will perform on 7/23 and 7/24. Genius Mother Mary: A Sonic Retrospective of Mary Lou Williams will be on 7/29 and "The Sound of (Black) Music" will ring out on 7/30 and 7/31.