50 YEARS OF CLASSICAL ROOTS: THE EXHIBITION
Celebrating the History, Building the Future
This year marks the 48th annual Classical Roots Concert and 25th anniversary of the Dr. Arthur L. Johnson–Honorable Damon Jerome Keith Classical Roots Celebration–a gala affair established in 2001 to honor artistic, civic, and lifetime achievement leaders. To mark this anniversary and the upcoming milestone of the 50th Classical Roots Concert (2028), we invite you to explore a multi-year exhibition celebrating the history, people, music, impact, and future of Classical Roots.
Across three sections, THE CONCERT, THE CELEBRATION, and IMPACT AND LEGACY, 50 Years of Classical Roots features oral histories, storytelling, and historic artifacts that transports you to a moment of resounding impact and journeys through the evolution of that victorious 1978 collaboration. On view at The Max!
Below, take a deeper dive into the content presented onsite.
On the evening of October 29, 1978, in Detroit, MI, classical music and the Black church converged in a way that had people buzzing with anticipated wonder.
The Brazeal Dennard Chorale, Detroit Symphony Orchestra, and musical voices from 26 Black churches embarked on a unique collaboration that lifted the works of African American composers and musicians.
The location was Bethel A.M.E. Church, in the Cultural Center neighborhood, near the city’s east side. The occasion was the inaugural Classical Roots Concert. The goal: amplify the musical heritage of Black America.
This concert event was the artistic brainchild of Paul Freeman, Resident Conductor of the DSO; Brazeal Dennard, Founder and Director of the Brazeal Dennard Chorale; and civic leaders across the city––including Mayor Coleman A. Young––who together formed a committee that created a spiritual and classical experience like no other in Detroit proper.
“There was excitement,” says Beverly Thomas, former Brazeal Dennard Chorale vocalist and Classical Roots Steering Committee member. “There are certain institutions that we hold as the benchmark for excellence and the DSO was one of those, and here we are going to have a symphony orchestra inside an African American church honoring the music that we’ve been contributing to over the years––classical music and other genres. We were looking forward to the time and what it would mean to the Detroit community.”
A historical moment founded on “bringing the Orchestra to the people and tracing the musical heritage of Black America” instantly turned into a historic movement as the packed sanctuary radiated with applause and appreciation. From concept to execution, that evening assured everyone involved that something truly special was born.
“ We were simply not hearing any music by African American composers. We knew that there was music out there for chorus and symphony orchestra and we wanted to showcase these works. We especially wanted to feature works that used a chorus, because the basis of music in the Black community has always been choral. ”
Brazeal Dennard (1929-2010), The Brazeal Dennard Chorale, founder; Classical Roots, Co-Founder
THE CONCERT
Tracing the musical heritage of Black America
Under the baton of DSO Associate Conductor Paul Freeman, the Brazeal Dennard Chorale, vocalists from Detroit's Black churches, and the Detroit Symphony Orchestra united on stage for the inaugural Classical Roots Concert at Detroit's historic Bethel A.M.E. Church, located at the intersection of Saint Antoine St. and Warren Ave. in Detroit.
The evening program led with Hale Smith’s arrangement of Lift Every Voice and Sing, bridged with William Grant Still’s Scherzo from the Afro-American Symphony, and concluded with Wilhousky’s arrangement of Battle Hymn of the Republic.
The free Classical Roots Concert served as an outreach program in collaboration with Detroit Symphony Orchestra Inc., New Detroit Inc., and the City of Detroit––with significant support from then-Mayor Coleman A. Young. The concert instantly became a beloved annual event in Detroit. In 1981, the abundance of support and attendance overflow prompted the concert’s move to Orchestra Hall. During the DSO’s 1989-1990 season, the concert was added to the orchestra’s subscription offerings—becoming one of the first orchestras in the country to include a Classical Series program that centered music composed, performed, and conducted by African Americans.
"There are certain institutions that we hold as the benchmark for excellence and the DSO was one of those, and here we are going to have a symphony orchestra inside an African American church, not only there, but honoring the music that we’ve been contributing to over the years. We were looking forward to the time and what it would mean to the Detroit community.”—Beverly Thomas, original Brazeal Dennard Chorale member, Classical Roots Steering Committee Member
The Brazeal Dennard Chorale has been the nucleus of the Classical Roots concert from the beginning. Blending spiritual hymns with classical compositions by African American composers; the Chorale sets the tone for each concert experience with the soul-stirring Lift Every Voice and Sing.
The Chorale, founded in 1972 by Dr. Brazeal W. Dennard, is one of the longest-standing organized choral groups in the country. For over four decades, they have brought choral music of all genres to audiences while continuing to pursue the mission of their founder to “remember, discover, and preserve the spiritual music of the African American experience.” Currently, under the artistic direction of Alice McAllister Tillman, the Chorale’s musical legacy soars as others remain inspired by the historical and cultural significance of the Negro Spiritual.
THE FIRST CONCERT invites you to settle into an oral history conversation between Beverly Thomas and Wayne Brown, who were instrumental participants in planning the first Classical Roots concert. This conversation was recorded on January 12, 2026, at Bethel A.M.E. Church. Narration is by Daniel Washington, Classical Roots Legacy Committee member.
The Voices
Oral history recorded January 12, 2026, at Bethel A.M.E. Church. Narrated by Classical Roots Legacy Committee member Daniel Washington.
Beverly Thomas: Vocalist and visual artist Beverly Thomas served as an educator in Detroit Public Schools teaching vocal music before leading Detroit Renaissance High School as principal. She holds a close relationship with Bethel A.M.E. Church, where she serves in various capacities, from church missionary to musician, and leader of young people. Beverly, along with Wayne Brown, Paul Freeman, and Brazeal Dennard was part of the early Classical Roots planning committee and performed with the Brazeal Dennard Chorale during the first Classical Roots concert. She is currently a member of the Classical Roots Legacy Committee.
Wayne Brown: Former member of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra staff. After graduating from the University of Michigan, Wayne Brown’s first job was with the DSO as the administrative assistant to the executive director. He then moved on to become assistant manager of the orchestra and worked as project coordinator for the first Classical Roots concert. After his tenure at the DSO, Wayne held positions at multiple symphonies, including serving as director of music and opera with the National Endowment for the Arts from 1997 through 2014, before becoming the President and CEO of the Detroit Opera from 2014 through 2023.
Brazeal Dennard Chorale: The Brazeal Dennard Chorale, founded in 1972 by Dr. Brazeal W. Dennard, is one of the longest-standing organized choral groups in the country.
For more than four decades, the chorale has impressed audiences with excellence in the performance of choral music of all genres, while it continues to pursue the mission of its founder to “remember, discover, and preserve the spiritual music of the African American experience.”
Currently, under the artistic direction of Alice McAllister Tillman, the Chorale’s musical legacy soars as others, particularly young people, remain inspired by the historical and cultural significance of the Negro Spiritual.
LIFT EVERY VOICE AND SING
The Spiritual, Lift Every Voice and Sing was composed by brothers James Weldon Johnson (1871-1938) and John Rosamond Johnson (1873-1954) in 1900.
James, a prominent leader of the NAACP, wrote the soul-stirring Lift Every Voice and Sing as a poem to commemorate President Abraham Lincoln’s birthday. A choir comprised of 500 schoolchildren from the segregated Stanton School in Jacksonville, Florida––the brothers’ hometown–performed James’ lyrics for the President.
The poem was set to music by James in 1905. The Johnson brothers’ composition moved a nation and was adopted by the NAACP as a rallying cry for liberation and freedom during the Civil Rights Movement. For John and James, Lift Every Voice and Sing is a gift that articulates the faith and creative survival of African American lives.
Now recognized as the Black National Anthem, the hymn was entered into the Congressional Record in the 1990s and opens every Classical Roots program.
THE FOUNDERS: FREEMAN AND DENNARD
When speaking of “breaking glass ceilings” in classical music, it’s a must that Paul Freeman is mentioned. Maestro Freeman’s artistic vision and desire for the classical genre to not only acknowledge but to perform the music of African Americans started strong in the late 1960s. While assistant conducting the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, he discovered a plethora of Black composers, that led him into a deep study that revealed a three-century heritage of symphonic music by composers of color. His findings guided his quest to make them known.
“I played cello and clarinet and got into one of the orchestras and was denied the opportunity because of my race, and as a young person, I decided if I ever became involved in making classical music, that this would be one of my aims in life —and that was to make it available to everyone.”
During his time as Associate Conductor of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra (1970-1979), he curated a nine-LP series that follows the history of Black symphonic composers, from the 18th to 20thcenturies. The CBS Records Black Composers Series features the Detroit Symphony Orchestra and was recorded by Columbia Records.
Music attracted Brazeal Dennard at a young age while growing up in Detroit. He started on piano at age 11 and later went on to receive a Master of Arts degree in music education from Wayne State University. It was during his time as President of the National Association of Negro Musicians and attending national conferences that he noticed the significant lack of choral works by Black composers being performed in Michigan. The solution came in 1972 when he founded the Brazeal Dennard Chorale. Comprised of Detroit’s most highly trained vocalists, the chorale was formed with a mission to promote the music of African American composers and to perpetuate the heritage of the Negro Spiritual. Intentions were also set on bringing music to a vast audience.
His dedication to nurturing voices and creating opportunities for vocalists to be heard expanded with the development of the Brazeal Dennard Community Chorus — a community outreach led by the Brazeal Dennard Chorale that provided vocal training and professional performance opportunities. On an overall mission to enhance the art of the chorale to a level of excellence, he developed the Brazeal Dennard Youth Chorale for singers ages 16-22 and challenged them to study and perform complex choral literature.
A decades-long educator in Detroit Public Schools, Dennard led the Fine Arts Department and served as Director of Education and served on the Board of Directors for the Detroit Symphony Orchestra.
THE CELEBRATION
With the concert firmly established as a beloved annual tradition, the Detroit Symphony Orchestra and dedicated community champions, prominently Dr. Arthur L. Johnson, expanded programming to include the Classical Roots Celebration in 2001.
The addition of a black-tie fundraising gala would enable Classical Roots to directly contribute to efforts such as the orchestra's African American Orchestra Fellowship, educational initiatives, the Classical Roots Composer-in-Residence program, commissions, and year-round recording projects. The annual gala also serves as a platform to honor civic and artistic leaders whose work exemplifies the mission. Their stories are told during the concert presentation each season.
The inaugural Celebration was held on February 17, 2001, and named George Walker (1922-2018) as its first honoree. Walker was the first African American to win the Pulitzer Prize for Music.
The repertoire for the evening included Walker’s Trombone Concerto soloed by Kenneth Thompkins (then-DSO Principal Trombone and former African American Orchestra Fellow); Joseph Schwantner’s New Morning for the World with narration by actor Danny Glover; and the Brazeal Dennard Chorale opened the concert with Lift Every Voice and Sing.
“The Classical Roots Celebration is the realization of a dream that I’ve had for a long time. The first event was remarkably successful and was a clear indication that the community is fully supportive of the DSO and, in particular, its efforts to recognize and promote the contributions of African American musicians to the classical repertory.” –Dr. Arthur L. Johnson (1925-2011), DSO Lifetime Director
Along with the concert expansion, the Classical Roots Steering Committee entered a new era and now shepherds this work with the Development, Community Engagement, Event Design, Hospitality, Legacy, and Milestone Taskforce subcommittees —ensuring the mission is sustained for future generations. To date, the Celebration gala has raised 5 million dollars toward the Classical Roots mission.
The 2019 civic honoree, philanthropist and DSO board member, Dr. William F. Pickard, had a vision to honor his personal mentors who had been significant supporters of the mission. That year, the Celebration became the Dr. Arthur L. Johnson - Honorable Damon Jerome Keith Classical Roots Celebration.
THE CELEBRATION pays homage to the vision, the work, and the dedicated people moving it forward.
Johnson and Keith
A champion for civil rights, Dr. Arthur L. Johnson was a prominent community leader. Before moving to Detroit in 1950, he formed a chapter of the NAACP on the Morehouse College Campus in Atlanta. His friend and college classmate, Martin Luther King Jr., occasionally attended meetings in support of the movement. Johnson’s influence grew in Detroit as he became President of the NAACP-Detroit Chapter. He served as an administrator at Wayne State University for 23 years. His love for the arts and celebrating the contributions of African American people played a role in his becoming a Detroit Symphony Orchestra Board Member in 1979 and co-founding the Classical Roots Celebration in 2001.
The Honorable Damon Jerome Keith (1922-2019) was a crusader for justice and equality. In 1950, he volunteered legal services to Arthur Johnson, who served as executive secretary of the NAACP. His tenure as a federal judge began in 1967, after being appointed by President Lyndon Johnson. From 1975-1977, Judge Keith held the position of chief judge of the U.S. District Court of the Eastern District of Michigan and was confirmed as judge of the U.S. Court of Appeal for the Sixth Circuit in 1995.
Seeking justice was the foundation of his life’s work and legacy, and along that journey there was music and the arts. His family home, in northwest Detroit across from Motown artist Marvin Gaye, was filled with the sounds of jazz and blues; he shared family holidays with Aretha Franklin; and served as a board member for the Detroit Institute of Arts and the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. In 2015, Judge Keith was honored at the 15th annual Classical Roots Celebration.
Classical Roots Steering Committee:
Dr. Arthur L. Johnson, former president of the Detroit NAACP, educator and lifetime DSO Board Member, and Vera Heidelberg, philanthropist and co-chair of the first Classical Roots Celebration, developed the framework of the inaugural Classical Roots Steering Committee. The volunteer-based group consisting of civic, community, and business leaders was established in conjunction with the Celebration to amplify the Classical Roots mission through community outreach, fundraising, and educational sessions and workshops with musicians.
Today, the committee continues to lead fundraising efforts that support DSO programs such as the African American Orchestra Fellowship designed to foster career development and address the shortage of African Americans in professional orchestras; and the African American Composer Residency, which invites a living composer to Detroit to speak with students, community members, and witness their work performed by the DSO during the Classical Roots concert.
The Marlowe Stoudamire Award for Innovation and Community Collaboration
The Marlowe Stoudamire Award for Innovation and Community Collaboration signifies the importance of putting foot to pavement and doing the work required to create a connected and collaborative community across Detroit.
Established annually in memory of late Detroit community leader Marlowe Stoudamire, the award honors individuals who embody his spirit of innovation, collaboration, and commitment to community advancement. Stoudamire helped guide the mission of Classical Roots and inspired creativity as a member of the Steering Committee for six years. He was an enthusiastic and engaged supporter of the arts and youth development in Detroit and served as a mentor to innumerable young professionals and leaders in the community.
Marlowe was founder of MASH Detroit, a neighborhood incubator that encouraged people to reimagine shared physical spaces and systemic change through collaboration. He was also the owner of the consulting boutique, Butterfly Effect Detroit, that operated to empower the city with community and business-driven projects. Known for his love of Detroit––its history and its people––Marlowe served as project director for the award-winning Detroit 67: Looking Back to Move Forward exhibition in collaboration with the Detroit Historical Society. The multi-year community project became part of DHS’s permanent exhibitions in 2021, in his honor and remembrance.
“If you knew Marlowe, you know that Marlowe was about access and exposure for everybody. This award allows us to do that; allows us to acknowledge our hometown heroes and individuals that I think Marlowe would be proud of—those who’ve made an impact and represent Detroit globally.” – Valencia Stoudamire, wife of Marlowe
Recipients of the award are individuals who embody what Stoudamire represented as an institution-builder, leader, change agent, and connector in the city.
“ The Detroit Symphony is one of the key artistic components of life in Detroit. Bringing everyone into this space, celebrating the achievements of African Americans in classical music, and acknowledging that these musicians exist, these people in the community––making the community a better place to exist––is extremely important. ”
Kenneth Thompkins, DSO Principal Trombone (1997-2024), former DSO African American Orchestra Fellow, 2026 Classical Roots Honoree
IMPACT & LEGACY
Joyous reactions to the very first Classical Roots Concert made it evident that it could not end after one special experience. The mission not only resonated, but expanded, and for nearly five decades, Classical Roots has stood as a powerful testament to the enduring influence of African American artistry in classical music and spiritual traditions.
Brazeal Dennard and Paul Freeman paved a clear pathway to elevating African American composers and musicians while creating community impact. At the root is one element that connects us all regardless of race, class, or gender: music.
The Concerts sold out, the Celebration followed, and the impact has spread across stages, communities, classrooms, and the orchestral industry at large. Classical Roots set a profound platform for Black classical musicians and composers to be seen, heard, felt, and celebrated.
May this ambition, vision, and community collaboration live on.
IMPACT illustrates the opportunity pipeline and focuses on representation that grew from ambition and intentional, collaborative action. LEGACY pays homage to the path paved, and all the roads to build.
THE AFRICAN AMERICAN ORCHESTRA FELLOWSHIP
In 1982, the Music Assistance Fund paved the way to establish an enduring fellowship program. Since that time, the DSO has awarded fellowships to 28 individuals across instrument sections. While in residency at the DSO, fellows play multiple programs across all series and community concerts, work with mentors, and participate in mock auditions.
“The fellowship, specifically the musicians both directly and indirectly involved, believed in me at a time where I didn’t feel like I belonged and was discouraged. Without those two years, I might not have pushed myself as hard as I did to ensure that I would succeed. Beyond that, they were supportive through my cancer battle and my protest against Kansas City. This fellowship has changed my life, and I will continue to succeed to honor their investment in me.”
–Josh Jones, Principal Percussion Grant Park Music Festival, DSO African American Orchestra Fellow (2014-2016)
Community engagement is central to the work of the Classical Roots Steering Committee. Reaching beyond the concert hall, the committee has worked with the DSO’s Learning & Engagement team to plan school visits, chamber recitals at Detroit churches and hospitals, walking tours, talks, and other activities. Virtual school visits took place during the height of the Coronavirus pandemic. Since 2023, hundreds of school children have visited Orchestra Hall annually for Classical Roots workshops led by artists and community figures involved in the program, such as Detroit Poet Laureate jessica Care moore and WRCJ 90.9 FM host Cecelia Sharpe.
