Chicago a cappella presents "Roll, Jordan, Roll" on Feb. 6, 7, 13, and 14. 
 
How did the African-American spiritual come about?  Here are some thoughts about the social background and history of the spiritual, from my program notes for these upcoming performances.   
 
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This is the first in a series of blogs to provide historical context for Chicago a cappella's upcoming February performances of spirituals, Roll, Jordan, Roll.  Some of this material didn't make it into the program notes and so is unique to this blog and this website.  Enjoy, and don't be shy about commenting if you have something to say.

Prior to Light Opera Works's production of "C'est la vie" (which opened on our Second Stage on October 9), the show had a run at the Oxford Fringe Festival in England.  I asked the show's creator, Gregg Opelka, to give us some insight into that production.
 
Here are his comments:
 

Ah, technology!  It seems that the National Symphony Orchestra’s conductor, Emil de Cou, has prepared real-time program notes to Beethoven’s Sixth that will be beamed via Twitter to people sitting on the lawn of Wolf Trap on July 30. According to an NSO press release, “The messages will begin during intermission and provide facts about Beethoven’s life and work. Once the concert begins, the tweets will be sent at specific points in the score, becoming streaming program notes that mark musical signposts depicting Beethoven’s symphonic tribute to a day in the country.”
 

Special Guest, Courtney Perkins and Angela Golden in a dialogue about Million Dollar Quartet.

CP:  One of the benefits of running a blog, or having a co-worker/friend that does, is that you get invited to events with the comical name "blogger night" offering free tickets to an otherwise pricey show that I've wanted to see for some time.  Advertised on cabs and local buses everywhere, Million Dollar Quartet.

AG: I may have ignored those cabby signs, but I paid attention when I got an opportunity to get free tickets. 

CP: Blogger Night became our mantra leading up to the performance --it had a certain ring to it.

AG: But we bloggers didn't get any special recognition which was sort of disappointing.