May 3: Halalisa! Celebrating Roots and Wings

Boston-based world music vocal ensemble The Halalisa Singers led by artistic director Mary Cunningham presents Halalisa! Celebrating Roots and Wings on Saturday, May 3, 7:30 pm at First Parish of Lexington, 7 Harrington Road, Lexington, MA. The celebratory concert honors Cunningham’s 20 years as artistic director and includes favorites from the ensemble’s repertoire plus a stirring selection of works new to the chorus. South African vocalist Nthabiseng Thakadu is featured in pieces reflecting a founding inspiration for Halalisa, the South African apartheid movement. Joining the group are pianist Trevor Berens, percussionist Bertram Lehmann, and bass guitarist Benjamin Green. Tickets $25 at www.halalisa.org. Livestream tickets $15. For more info, email info@halalisa.org.

“It’s been a joy and a privilege to lead Halalisa for 20 years,” says Cunningham. “The ‘roots’ portion of our program includes pieces the chorus has known and loved over that time, like the Zulu marching song ‘Siyahamba,’ and the ‘wings’ reflect our always growing and evolving repertoire.”

Thakadu will raise the roof in South African songs including the African prayer for peace “Ukuthula,” traditional Sesotho hymns “Tshela Moya” and “Ke nna yo Morena,” and the delightful South African folk song “Uma Ngihamba Naw, Thuli,” as well as Gloria Estefan’s “Reach,” the official theme song of the 1996 Summer Olympics.

As part of the celebration of her 20 years with Halalisa, Cunningham takes center stage as soloist in her own arrangement of Eva Cassidy’s gorgeous rendition of the hymn “How Can I Keep from Singing?”

Andrew-John Bethke’s “Graduation Song” opens by proclaiming “Halalisa!,” the Zulu world for “celebration.” Halalisa sings staples from the chorus’s history including “Freedom Is Coming,” “Hava Nashira,” and Mystic Chorale founder Nick Page’s “Lights Upon Our Souls.”

Halalisa audiences may recognize Sweet Honey in the Rock’s Ysaye M. Barnwell’s dynamic call to action “Hope,” Kirby Shaw’s uplifting arrangement of “Bridge Over Troubled Water,” the title tune “Roots and Wings” by Linda Hirschorn, and Brian Tate’s joyful a cappella “We Sing,” commissioned by Halalisa in 2014.

Newer repertoire includes Linda Spevacek’s “Always Something Sings” set to text by Ralph Waldo Emerson, and Kim Andre Arnesen’s lush “Flight Song.” The high voices of Halalisa are featured in Hirschorn’s wondrously winding round “I Have a Million Nightingales,” while the low voices regale the audience with the classic favorite “Stand By Me.”

The Halalisa Singers are a celebrated world music vocal ensemble of Greater Boston dedicated to the performance of music across cultures and nationalities. Halalisa is a Zulu word for celebration, and in that spirit, Halalisa’s repertoire includes African, Latin, American Spiritual, Gospel, Jewish, Folk, and Jazz. Founded by Nick Page in 1992 and under the leadership of Artistic Director Mary Cunningham since 2004, the chorus offers vibrant performances inspired by the belief that music is a universal language with the power to uplift and unite us all.

Nthabiseng Thakadu is a gifted South African vocalist with two decades of experience in Boston's music scene. Her exceptional vocal range pays homage to her parents' legacy. Nthabi has raised the roof of many a venue singing stirring South African classic songs with Boston’s Mystic Chorale.

Artistic Director Mary Cunningham is in her 19th year of leading the Halalisa Singers, creating and directing unique and dynamic world music-themed choral concerts. Following her vision to share their music across the Boston area and beyond, Halalisa continues to reach out to wider audiences to perform an ever-expanding repertoire. She is well known in the Boston area as an active choral conductor, vocalist, and flute soloist. She has directed music ministry since 2008 in the UU churches of both Melrose and Reading, is a member of the American Choral Directors Association and the Association of UU Music Ministries. A member of the New World Chorale and a frequent performer with the Christmas Revels, Mary is on the faculty of the Winchester Community Music School and the Powers Music School in Belmont.

Pianist, composer, and accompanist Trevor Berens plays in many different styles, specializing in avant-garde classical music, traditional classical music, and free improvisation. Trevor holds degrees in piano performance, composition and music therapy from Loyola Marymount University, California Institute of the Arts and Lesley University. As a collaborator, he enjoys working with solo vocalists and instrumentalists, chamber groups, choruses, and with dancers and actors. Trevor is the founder, pianist, and resident composer of the new music ensemble Sonic Liberation Players. Trevor is the Pianist at the First Parish of Stow/Acton and, with his wife Jessica, runs the Berens Voice and Piano Studio out of Pepperell, MA.

Percussionist Bertram Lehmann is a versatile performer who has appeared with artists including Paquito D’Rivera, Danilo Perez, Dave Liebman, Luciana Souza, and Dave Samuel’s Caribbean Jazz Project. He teaches at Berklee College of Music and Phillips Academy, and has conducted clinics and workshops at Harvard University, Princeton University, Wellesley College, Oberlin College, Moscow Conservatory, Keimyung University in South Korea, and elsewhere. He has played on more than 60 recordings with musicians including the Mehmet Sanlikol Big Band, Felipe Salles, Mango Blue, and Anat Cohen, Miguel Zenón, and Randy Brecker. International performances include appearances in Bermuda, Ecuador, Germany, Ghana, India, Israel, Mexico, Russia, South Korea, Spain, and Turkey at venues including Lincoln Center, Boston’s Symphony Hall, the Tchaikovsky Conservatory, and The Kennedy Center.