Musician
Music has always been an important part of my life. I grew up singing with my two sisters at Mt. Calvary Baptist Church in Ardmore, PA. I studied piano and violin during my elementary and high school years. However, music took a back seat to my college and law studies until 2003, when I came back to the piano.
I am primarily interested in playing the music of African American composers. Have you ever heard of Valerie Capers, Florence Price, William Grant Still, Joshua McGhee, John Robinson, Regina Harris Baiocchi, or Margaret Bonds? They are among the many gifted Black composers who have given us remarkable music in a variety of genres— classical, art songs, spirituals, jazz, blues, and more.
In 2014, I co-founded the African American Composer Initiative (AACI), an organization whose mission is to bring the music of these composers to the world. Our annual concerts, in which I participate as a pianist and vocalist, have been performed before sold-out audiences at which we have showcased the music of more than 25 African American composers, past and present.
In 2016, Cambria Records published a recording of all of the piano music of Zenobia Powell Perry (1908-2004) a gifted African American composer. The name of the CD is ‘Piano Works—Zenboia Powell.’ In 2021, Cambria Records released ‘Good News,’ a compilation of African American spiritual and art songs. I had the privilege of accompanying, on the piano, talented soprano Yolanda Rhodes, and amazing tenor Othello Jefferson on some of these songs.
Please visit the AACI website where you can watch our past performances; learn about these amazing composers – and Join the AACI Mailing List: https://aacinitiative.org/subscribe-to-aaci-list/
Photo credit: San Jose Mercury News
What's Going On: A Concert of Music by African American Composers
Complete 2024 concert video. January 28, 2024, at Eastside College Preparatory School, East Palo Alto, CA.
A musical response to our times, the program draws from music that inspires, uplifts, and energizes – spirituals, jazz, and classical music, vocal and instrumental. Bay Area musicians were joined by jazz greats pianist Valerie Capers and bassist John H. Robinson.
Composers include Margaret Bonds, John Wesley Work III, Jacqueline Hairston, Valerie Capers, John H. Robinson, Jeremiah Evans, Regina Harris Baiocchi, Valerie Coleman, Shawn Okpebholo, Billy Strayhorn, John Worley, and Marvin Gaye.
Performers:
Soprano: Yolanda Rhodes
Tenor: Othello Jefferson
Piano/Vocals: LaDoris Cordell, Deanne Tucker
Piano: Valerie Capers, Jodi Gandolfi, Jansen Verplank
Violin: Susan C. Brown
Cello: Victoria Ehrlich
Picasso Ensemble
Clarinet: Carol Somersille
Saxophone, Flute: Tod Dickow
Trumpet: John Worley
Percussion: Jim Kassis
Bass: John Robinson
Guest Performers:
Foothill Symphonic Winds Quintet:
Kent Peacock, flute
Carol Somersille, clarinet
Dianne Alexander, oboe
Christopher Lane, bassoon
Nelson Iwai, French horn
What’s Going On, by Renoldo Benson, Al Cleveland, and Marvin Gaye, arranged by Jansen Verplank
January 28, 2024, at Eastside College Preparatory School, East Palo Alto, CA
Performers:
Vocal Solo: LaDoris Cordell
Piano: Jansen Verplank
Vocal Backups: Yolanda Rhodes, Othello Jefferson, Jodi Gandolfi, Deanne Tucker
Violin: Susan C. Brown
Cello: Victoria Ehrlich
Clarinet: Carol Somersille
Saxophone: Tod Dickow
Trumpet: John Worley
Drums: Jim Kassis
Tambourine: Valerie Capers
What’s Going On: A Concert of Music by African American Composers
January 28, 2024 at Eastside College Preparatory School, East Palo Alto, CA
A musical response to our times, the program draws from music that inspires, uplifts, and energizes – spirituals, jazz, and classical music, vocal and instrumental. Bay Area musicians were joined by jazz greats pianist Valerie Capers and bassist John H. Robinson.
Composers include Margaret Bonds, John Wesley Work III, Jacqueline Hairston, Valerie Capers, John H. Robinson, Jeremiah Evans, Regina Harris Baiocchi, Valerie Coleman, Shawn Okpebholo, Billy Strayhorn, John Worley, and Marvin Gaye.
