Black-tie Classical Roots Celebration on March 1 raises funds to support DSO’s African American music and musician development programs
Concert program on February 28 and March 1 conducted by Na’Zir McFadden features works by Florence Price and Jessie Montgomery with pianist Awadagin Pratt, plus a world premiere by Kris Johnson and a performance by the Brazeal Dennard Chorale
March 1 performance webcast for free at dso.org, YouTube, and via Facebook Live as part of DSO’s Live from Orchestra Hall series; February 28 concert broadcast and streamed live on 90.9 WRCJ in Detroit and network of stations across Michigan
Detroit, (January 23, 2025) – The Detroit Symphony Orchestra (DSO) is pleased to present the 24th annual Arthur L. Johnson-Honorable Damon Jerome Keith Classical Roots Celebration and 47th annual Classical Roots concerts on February 28 and March 1. Classical Roots honors African American composers, musicians, educators, and leaders for lifetime achievement and raises funds to support the DSO’s African American music and musician development programs.
At the black-tie Classical Roots Celebration on Saturday, March 1 beginning at 5 p.m., guests will enjoy a red-carpet entrance with photo opportunities, cocktail reception in the William Davidson Atrium, and a formal seated dinner in the Peter D. and Julie F. Cummings Cube (The Cube), followed by the concert in Orchestra Hall and a dessert and dancing afterglow in The Cube.
The Classical Roots concerts, part of the PVS Classical Series, will take place in Orchestra Hall on Friday, February 28 at 10:45 a.m. and Saturday, March 1 at 8 p.m. and will be conducted by Na’Zir McFadden (DSO Assistant Conductor and Phillip and Lauren Fisher Community Ambassador). The Brazeal Dennard Chorale—a vital part of Classical Roots since its inception—and Artistic Director Alice McAllister Tillman will open both performances with Lift Every Voice and Sing, which has been performed at the beginning of every Classical Roots concert since the event’s inauguration in 1978.
In addition to works performed by the Brazeal Dennard Chorale, the program will include the world premiere of a new work by award-winning Detroit trumpeter, composer, and educator Kris Johnson entitled Marlowe's Wings: Detroit's Champion of Change, which honors the memory of late community leader Marlowe Stoudamire. Johnson is an alum of the DSO’s Civic Youth Ensembles and the 2023 recipient of the Marlowe Stoudamire Award for Innovation and Community Collaboration. The program will also include The Oak by Florence Price, the first Black woman to have her work premiered by a major American orchestra. The program will conclude with two works by Jessie Montgomery: Rounds, which evokes imagery and themes from T. S. Eliot’s Four Quartets and will be performed by virtuoso pianist Awadagin Pratt, and Snapshots, a DSO co-commission which brims with “glowing washes and surges of sound,” (Dallas Morning News). Rounds won a GRAMMY® Award for Best Contemporary Classical Composition in 2024.
At the March 1 Classical Roots Celebration, the DSO will honor acclaimed composer, violinist, and educator Jessie Montgomery and businessman, Detroit civic pioneer, and longtime Classical Roots supporter Walter Douglas Sr. The event will also celebrate Detroit educator, conductor, and Detroit Harmony managing director Damien Crutcher as this year’s recipient of the Marlowe Stoudamire Award for Innovation and Community Collaboration, presented in memory of late Detroit community leader and Classical Roots Steering Committee member Marlowe Stoudamire.
To purchase Classical Roots Celebration tickets or for sponsorship opportunities, please visit dso.org/classicalroots or contact DSO Manager of Advancement Events, Alex Anderson at aanderson@dso.org or 313.576.5448.
Concert-only tickets for the February 28 and March 1 Classical Roots concerts start at $20. Tickets can be purchased at dso.org or by calling the Box Office at 313.576.5111, open Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. 2024–2025 PVS Classical Series and Create Your Own subscription packages are also available.
The Saturday, March 1 performance will be webcast for free at dso.org, YouTube, and via Facebook Live as part of DSO’s Live from Orchestra Hall series; the February 28 concert will be broadcast and streamed live on 90.9 WRCJ in Detroit and a network of stations across Michigan
The title sponsor of the DSO’s Classical Series is PVS Chemicals, Inc. DSO Live is presented by Ford Philanthropy. Technology support comes from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. Digital programming is produced from the Al Glancy Control Room.
The DSO is grateful for the leadership of 2025 Classical Roots steering committee co-chairs Mable Jones and Nicole Brown.
About Classical Roots
The first Classical Roots concert took place in 1978 at Detroit’s historic Bethel AME Church. Co-founded by the DSO’s then-Resident Conductor Paul Freeman, along with other prominent African American leaders including choral director and artistic administrator Brazeal Dennard, Classical Roots soon outgrew Bethel AME and moved to Orchestra Hall in 1981, where it has been a beloved annual tradition ever since. The gala Classical Roots Celebration and lifetime achievement component were added in 2001. The Celebration was named the Arthur L. Johnson – Honorable Damon Jerome Keith Classical Roots Celebration in 2019 following a generous endowment gift from Dr. William F. Pickard, who counted Johnson and Keith as his two biggest mentors.
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Concert experience:
PVS Classical Series
Friday, February 28 at 10:45 a.m.
Saturday, March 1 at 8 p.m.
Orchestra Hall
Na'Zir McFadden, conductor
Kris Johnson, trumpet
Awadagin Pratt, piano
Brazeal Dennard Chorale, choir (Alice McAllister Tillman, Artistic Director)
Acclaimed composer Jessie Montgomery is one of today’s “most distinctive and communicative voices” (BBC). Experience two of her recent masterpieces. Co-commissioned by the DSO, Snapshots brims with “glowing washes and surges of sound,” (Dallas Morning News). Her Grammy Award-nominated Rounds, played by virtuoso Awadagin Pratt, evokes imagery and themes from T. S. Eliot’s Four Quartets. Opening the program is a world premiere by award-winning Detroit composer and trumpeter Kris Johnson.
Program to include:
JOHN ROSAMUND JOHNSON / ARR. CARTER Lift Every Voice and Sing
KRIS JOHNSON Marlowe's Wings: Detroit's Champion of Change (World Premiere)
FLORENCE PRICE The Oak
JESSIE MONTGOMERY Rounds
JESSIE MONTGOMERY Snapshots (Co-Commission)
Full gala experience:
Saturday, March 1, 2025 at 5 p.m.
The Max M. and Marjorie S. Fisher Music Center
EVENING SCHEDULE:
5 PM - Doors Open and Cocktail Reception—William Davidson Atrium
6 PM - Seated Dinner—The Peter D. & Julie F. Cummings Cube
8 PM – 47th Annual Classical Roots Concert—Orchestra Hall
10:30 PM – Dessert and Dancing Afterglow—The Peter D. & Julie F. Cummings Cube
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About the DSO
The acclaimed Detroit Symphony Orchestra is known for trailblazing performances, collaborations with the world’s foremost musical artists, and a deep connection to its city. Led by Music Director Jader Bignamini since 2020, the DSO makes its home at historic Orchestra Hall within the Max M. and Marjorie S. Fisher Music Center, offering a performance schedule that features the PVS Classical, PNC Pops, Paradise Jazz, and Young People’s Family Concert series. In addition, the DSO presents the William Davidson Neighborhood Concert Series in metro area venues, as well as eclectic multi-genre performances in its mid-size venue The Cube, constructed and curated with support from Peter D. & Julie F. Cummings. A dedication to broadcast innovation began in 1922, when the DSO became the first orchestra in the world to present a live radio broadcast of a concert and continues today with the groundbreaking Live from Orchestra Hall series of free webcasts.
Since its first school concerts a century ago, and particularly since the founding of the Civic Youth Ensembles in 1970, the DSO has been a national leader in bringing the benefits of music education to students, teachers, and families in Detroit and surrounding communities. The DSO remains committed to expanding its participation in the growth and well-being of Detroit through programs like its Detroit Neighborhood Initiative—cultural events co-created with community partners and residents—and Detroit Harmony, a promise to provide an instrument and instruction to any student in the city who wants to learn. With unwavering support from the people of Detroit, the DSO actively pursues a mission to impact lives through the power of unforgettable musical experiences.