Sweet Honey in the Rock has maintained a rich and distinguished legacy as one of the most revered and treasured a cappella ensembles in contemporary music. Over the past four decades the Grammy Award nominated group has stayed true to its adventurous and diverse mixture of blues, African, jazz, gospel and R&B music, with more recent excursions into symphonic music and collaborations into the dance/theater genre.
Last year they celebrated their 40th Anniversary performing a series of special performances across the nation. The ensemble has embarked on a new chapter in the musical journey this year with their five core members Louise Robinson, Carol Maillard (both founding members) Nitanju Bolade Casel, Aisha Kahlil and Shirley Childress (American Sign Language Interpreter who has been performing live with the group since 1981). The group has added guest performers for some performances, with bassist Romeir Mendez getting most of the work. Their traditional show integrates some of their most popular songs, along with renditions of classic hits. Sweet Honey's patented fusion of varied music genres coupled with inspiring songs that embody social commentary, activism, and uplift the human spirit remain to be at the core of their unique artistry. They recently finished working on a new album, #LoveInEvolution, which will be released on January 22, 2016. The album will feature several new compositions fused with some songs they have either covered and/or performed live that have the ensemble has previously not recorded. ...
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Sweet Honey in the Rock has maintained a rich and distinguished legacy as one of the most revered and treasured a cappella ensembles in contemporary music. Over the past four decades the Grammy Award nominated group has stayed true to its adventurous and diverse mixture of blues, African, jazz, gospel and R&B music, with more recent excursions into symphonic music and collaborations into the dance/theater genre.
Last year they celebrated their 40th Anniversary performing a series of special performances across the nation. The ensemble has embarked on a new chapter in the musical journey this year with their five core members Louise Robinson, Carol Maillard (both founding members) Nitanju Bolade Casel, Aisha Kahlil and Shirley Childress (American Sign Language Interpreter who has been performing live with the group since 1981). The group has added guest performers for some performances, with bassist Romeir Mendez getting most of the work. Their traditional show integrates some of their most popular songs, along with renditions of classic hits. Sweet Honey's patented fusion of varied music genres coupled with inspiring songs that embody social commentary, activism, and uplift the human spirit remain to be at the core of their unique artistry. They recently finished working on a new album, #LoveInEvolution, which will be released on January 22, 2016. The album will feature several new compositions fused with some songs they have either covered and/or performed live that have the ensemble has previously not recorded.
“This ensemble is the gold standard…their voices are all fabulous, and they unite to create a sound so pure, smooth and homogenous that it does not seem humanly possible” – Fort Worth Star Telegram
“Even as the melodies, harmonies and rhythms soar, one is immediately struck by the message of the songs, for the message is what Sweet Honey is all about” – PBS
In 2014 Ladysmith Black Mambazo, the South African a cappella group formed by Joseph Shabalala during the 1960’s, was awarded their fourth Grammy Award for the CD Singing For Peace Around The World. Not just a CD title but a statement of the group’s career mission. It was Nelson Mandela who designated Ladysmith Black Mambazo “South Africa’s Cultural Ambassadors to the world.” It’s a title Ladysmith Black Mambazo holds quite dearly to their hearts. Nelson Mandela passed away just over a year ago and the group dedicated the Grammy Award to him. They have been celebrating Mandela’s message of peace at every concert they perform.
Ladysmith Black Mambazo returns to the USA in 2015 for their annual celebration of South African culture and history. They will sing songs of Peace, Love & Harmony to the world as they have since their very beginnings.
During the 1970's Ladysmith Black Mambazo established themselves as the most successful singing group in South Africa. In the mid-1980s, Paul Simon visited South Africa and incorporated the group's rich tenor/alto/bass harmonies into his famous Graceland album – a landmark recording that was considered seminal in introducing world music to mainstream audiences.
In addition to their work with Paul Simon, Ladysmith Black Mambazo has recorded with numerous artists, including Stevie Wonder, Dolly Parton, Sarah McLachlan, Josh Groban, Emmylou Harris, Melissa Etheridge, and many others. They have provided film soundtrack singing for Disney’s The Lion King, Part II as well as Eddie Murphy’s Coming To America, Marlon Brando’s A Dry White Season, James Earl Jones’ Cry The Beloved Country and Clint Eastwood's Invictus. A film documentary titled On Tip Toe: Gentle Steps to Freedom, the Story of Ladysmith Black Mambazo, was nominated for an Academy Award. They have even appeared on Broadway where they were nominated for a Tony Award.
“It isn’t merely the grace and power of their dancing or the beauty of their singing that rivets the attention, but the sheer joy and love that emanates from their being.” -Paul Simon
“Above all LBM leave their audience in awe of the power and variety of the human voice and its ability to conjure up sound which evoke the beauty and atmosphere of a land far way. What a gift.” -Yorkshire Post - See more at: https://www.tobincenter.org/box-office/2016-03/ladysmith-black-mambazo-sweet-honey#sthash.51rUUUIo.dpuf
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