Laurelyn Dossett
listen now children a story I’ll tell …

William Christenberry

From the article:

“As Dossett and Frazelle took in the scenery and history of Hale County and the surrounding areas, Frazelle said that poetic ideas began to emerge, which then turned into texture and melody. He began to draw parallels between the Christenberry images and experiences from his own childhood. Some of these experiences appear in the songs as poetic verses, sung by Dossett, with an emotional sensitivity that was readily apparent in her performance. At times, it was as if her voice could be that of your own mother, singing you to sleep, or a young child on the verge of tears. At other times, her voice rose to be loud and clear, commanding the space around her in the theater.”

Read the full article here.

I want to tell you about a new project that is so dear to my heart, and that to me feels so different than anything I have done before. Perhaps it is not so different, maybe all music of the heart is “of a piece” …

I am singing a new song cycle by composer Kenneth Frazelle. In conjunction with Reynolda House Museum of American Art and celebrating their exhibition of the photographs of William Christenberry, Ken’s “Songs in the Rear View Mirror” will premiere on Friday, March 26.

William Christenberry

Ken and I are old friends and we jumped at this chance to work together, even taking a road trip last summer to Hale County, Alabama. We saw the sources of the Christenberry photos, re-connecting to Ken’s rural North Carolina stories, to my rural Alabama roots, and perhaps most importantly, to our old friendship with each other.

“Rear View Mirror” is the result of that journey; Ken has taken all of these images and stories and woven them into a gorgeous and powerful piece for piano and voice.

We will perform it in March at Reynolda House; tenor Anthony Dean Griffey will follow with a performance at the Kennedy Center in May. If you want to see what happens when two old neighbors decide to play music together, please join us.