George King’S Songs Of The Caged Bird At Mjf

Songs of the Caged Bird is a new project by Manchester composer-pianist George King, written for arguably Manchester’s finest jazz diva, Doreen Edwards and the strings of Manchester Camerata. It sets poems, speeches and historic sermons connected to the civil rights period in African-American culture in the form of a song-cycle. This exciting new collaboration between mjf and Manchester Camerata is an mjf originals commission.

A song-cycle for jazz singer is an unusual format and one which George has been determined to realise; the subject matter is threaded through recent history, and although focussed geographically on a part of the world from which the origins of jazz sprung, it still has resonances within the UK and contemporary culture. The libretto includes work by Maya Angelou, Langston Hughes, and a re-setting of the lyrics to Strange Fruit. The music plays to Doreen’s strengths as vocalist and communicator, complemented by the improvisatory piano accompaniment and shimmering strings, and interspersed with original speech samples from the civil rights period.

TICKETS: £17, £14Concessions available£3 tickets for Sonic Card holders

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