MASTERED FOR
Nkeiru Okoye Courtesy of the composer
8.559953 Release date: 27 Mar 2026
Click to listen to Part I: Gather Together in My Name: Who am I supposed to be? LISTEN Tracklist
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Nkeiru OKOYE (b. 1972) When the Caged Bird Sings Rita Coburn, Narrator • Angela Brown, Soprano Christie Dashiell, Mezzo-soprano • Issachah Savage, Tenor Jubilant Sykes, Baritone • Cyrus Chestnut, Piano EXIGENCE • University of Michigan Choirs Eugene Rogers, Chorus Master University of Michigan Symphony Orchestra Kenneth Kiesler Nkeiru Okoye’s When the Caged Bird Sings is a large-scale contemporary concert work that follows the journey of Cerise, whose story weaves together personal and collective aspects of Black experience. Through movements such as The Beatitudes and Sometimes Life Gets Ugly , the piece explores adversity, resilience, and transformation with a musical language rooted in classical and operatic traditions and enriched with African American folk-music influences and minimalist processes. Scored for vocal soloists, chorus, and orchestra, the work blends elements of oratorio, opera, and communal expression to create an expansive, emotionally resonant narrative inspired in part by themes found in the life and writings of
1 – 4 Part I: Gather Together in My Name 5 – 8 Part II: Now Sheba Sings the Song 9 – 0 Part III: And Still I Rise ! – @ Part IV: I Shall Not Be Moved # – & Part V: A Song Flung up to Heaven
University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre & Dance Choirs
Maya Angelou. Key features: •
Award-winning director Rita Coburn produced Maya Angelou’s Oprah Radio programme and co-directed the acclaimed Maya Angelou: And Still I Rise (2016), which won a Peabody Award. Angela Brown made her debut at the Metropolitan Opera in Aida she earned international acclaim, with The New York Times declaring, ‘At last an Aida’. Christie Dashiell ’s When soprano
EXIGENCE
Rita Coburn
Angela Brown
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University of Michigan Symphony Orchestra
Christie Dashiell
Issachah Savage
debut solo album, Time All Mine (2016), charted on Billboard’s Jazz and Contemporary Jazz Albums, as well as Jazz Times’ Top 50 Writer’s Ballots, Critics’ Poll. Tenor Issachah Savage has sung roles in Tannhäuser , Otello , Aida , Rienzi , and others with top opera companies, including The Metropolitan Opera.
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