The Virginia Symphony Orchestra will perform a free concert, Rhythms of Resilience, Saturday at the Ferguson Center for the Arts in Newport News.
The show features African American composers including William Grant Still, Adolphus Hailstork and Florence Price. The program also includes choral works by Richard Smallwood, Moses Hogan and Duke Ellington’s symphonic jazz suite, “Harlem."
Contemporary composer James Lee III’s “Fanfare for Universal Hope,” which premièred last year with the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra, will open the evening.
VSO principal guest conductor and Norfolk native Thomas Wilkins will conduct.
“I am truly honored to be a part of this project,” Wilkins said in a news release. “The program represents the incredible diversity and richness of our creative spirits and subsequent artistic endeavors, spanning many generations.”
The concert will showcase soprano Symone Harcum and the Norfolk State University Chorus. Harcum was featured last summer during the VSO’s Opera & Oz Summer Concert Series and performed as Donna Anna in Virginia Opera’s 2024-2025 production of "Don Giovanni."
The concert is in recognition of America’s 250th and the annual African Landing Commemoration at Fort Monroe.
Saturday's concert begins at 7:30 p.m.; Ferguson Center for the Arts, Christopher Newport University, 1 Avenue of the Arts, Newport News. The concert is free but registration is required. Visit virginiasymphony.org for more information.