The Marsh Launches New Solo Performance Musical Series Highlighting Art Songs Of Black Composers

African American art song and stories will be spotlighted when The Marsh launches its new solo performance musical series The Art Songs of Black Composers on its digital platform MarshStream.

The series kicks off May 22 and 23 with noted soprano and actress Dr. Candace Y. Johnson's Music to My Ears - Hearing Adolphus Hailstork. Joined by San Francisco Symphony pianist Marc Shapiro, Johnson shines a light on acclaimed modern composer Hailstork's song cycle Ventriloquist Acts of God, blending singing with theatrical storytelling to depict a university professor and her students discussing how to hear the music - and each other - in a whole new way. Immediately following the performance Johnson and Shapiro will be joined by The Marsh Founder/Artistic Director Stephanie Weisman for an exclusive Q&A. Music to My Ears - Hearing Adolphus Hailstorkwill be streamed 7:30pm (PDT), Saturday, May 22 and 5:00pm (PDT), Sunday, May 23. Prior to the Solo Performer Spotlight performances of this work, Johnson and Dr. Adolphus Hailstork will appear on Stephanie's MarshStream at 7:30pm (PDT), Thursday, May 20 to discuss his work. For more information, please visit www.themarsh.org/marshstream.

Praised by Opera Wire for her vocal clarity, dramatic presence, and expressive interpretation, Oakland-based soprano Candace Johnson has concertized widely, including guest appearances at Carnegie Hall and The Manhattan Center. A familiar face to The Marsh audiences, Johnson premiered her one-woman show, Vox in a Box, at UC Berkeley in 2018, followed by a 2019 Marsh Rising performance. In February 2021, Johnson appeared on MarshStream in An Evening of Negro Spirituals: Crossing Rivers and Building Bridges through Song. She also currently leads a truly out-of-the-ordinary virtual singing class for all levels that combines physical activity with vocal training in CJ'sa??FitnesSing! - offered free at 12:00pm every Friday via MarshStream. Dr. Johnson serves on the Music Faculty at UC Berkeley, where she teaches voice classes and specializes in the research and performance of classical works by African American composers. She earned her doctorate in Voice Performance from the University of Michigan.

Pianist Marc Shapiro is an acting member of the San Francisco Symphony, where he has toured the United States, Europe, and Asia. As featured soloist with the orchestra, he has performed Stravinsky's Les Noces, Saint-Saens's Carnival of the Animals, Frank Martin's Petite Symphonie Concertante, and James P. Johnson's Yamekraw. Shapiro is also Principal Keyboardist with the California Symphony and Berkeley Symphony, and was the San Francisco Symphony Chorus accompanist for nearly 20 years. He has partnered with distinguished soloists including John Mack, Timothy Day, David Wilson-Johnson, Geraldine Walther, William Bennett, and The Martha Graham Dance Company. Shapiro can be heard on the soundtracks of Mars Attacks, House of Yes, and Hellboy, and has recorded with the heavy metal group Metallica. He has appeared on four continents as solo pianist for the touring orchestra concert Bugs Bunny at the Symphony, and is a frequent performer for Composer's Inc., Chamber Music Sundae, San Francisco Symphony Chamber Music Series, Sierra Chamber Music Society, and Mainly Mozart Festival in San Diego. Shapiro received his Bachelor and Master of Music from The Peabody Conservatory of Music.

Lauded contemporary composer Adolphus Hailstork has written numerous works for chorus, solo voice, piano, organ, various chamber ensembles, band, orchestra, and opera. His works have been performed by major orchestras including those of Philadelphia, Chicago, and New York, led by conductors such as James de Priest, Paul Freeman, Daniel Barenboim, Kurt Masur, Lorin Maezel, Jo Ann Falletta, and David Lockington. Notable works by Dr. Hailstork include Rise For Freedom, an opera about the Underground Railroad; Set Me On A Rock, a work about Hurricane Katrina; the choral ballet, The Gift Of The Magi; and I Speak Of Peace, commissioned by the Bismarck Symphony in honor of President John F. Kennedy. Recent works include The World Called, based on Rita Dove's poem Testimonial (2018) and Still Holding On (2019), an orchestra work commissioned and premiered by the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Dr. Hailstork is currently working on two major pieces: A Knee On A Neck, a tribute to George Floyd for chorus and orchestra, and his fourth Symphony, SURVIVE, whose first movement Still Holding On (2019), was commissioned and premiered by the Los Angeles Philharmonic.

MarshStream launched in April 2020 and has received overwhelmingly enthusiastic
response, garnering over 80,000 viewers over the past year. Notable MarshStream moments thus far include the debut of MarshStream International Solo Fest, The Marsh's first- ever digital festival, and the U.S. premiere of The Invisible Line, a new documentary about one of the world's most famous social experiments gone wrong.

MarshStream programming varies daily, with Monday Night MarshStream (short performances by a variety of artists), Wild Card Tuesdays (everything from book/writer discussions, sing-a-longs, Tell It On Tuesday, to Sound Healing and Restorative Yoga), Wednesday Solo Arts Heal (offering stories of health, advocacy, and inspiration), Stephanie's MarshStream on Thursday nights (interview and performance excerpts, moderated by The Marsh Founder/Artistic Director Stephanie Weisman), BINGO! hosted by Josh Kornbluth, and weekend Solo Performance Spotlight featuring live full-length performances. MarshStream also offers performance development classes, a noon series that includes CJ's FitnesSing weekly singing lesson/fitness class, and a Zoomba Room. Content is typically offered at 7:30pm nightly, and mid-day throughout the week via Zoom and YouTube LIVE. Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic MarshStream has hosted over 500 LIVE streams, providing some 200 performers a platform to continue developing and producing art.

MarshStream viewers are asked to contribute whatever they can afford. Donations can be made by joining The Marsh's membership program and via a virtual "tip jar" on the website, with funds going to support The Marsh and its artists. For more information, the public may visit www.themarsh.org/marshstream. NOTE: Most performance streams from earlier MarshStream dates are also available on the website for viewing.

In addition to nightly program offerings on MarshStream, The Marsh has also launched Marsh Youth Theater (MYT) MarshStream, classes offered daily and taught by MYT instructors. From Creative Dramatics to Storytelling, Dancing, and more, class types, instructors, and age levels vary for each class. For weekly class schedules and additional information, please visit themarsh.org/mytmarshstream.

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