I am delighted to announce that Dr. Everett McCorvey will be the music director for the 2013 National Festival of Young Preachers.
Furthermore, he is bringing with him to Atlanta the entire American Spiritual Ensemble for the festival!
Everyone remembers with delight the wonderful contribution Dr. McCorvey and (a portion of) the Ensemble made to our PREACHAPALOOZA this past January in Louisville. Among other wonderful things, they taught us all to sing that well-known song, “Walk in the Light, Beautiful Light.”
Not only did they make an impression on us, but McCorvey assures me that we made an impression on them as well. “The Ensemble talked about it for months,” he said.
So we are going to do it again: bigger and better. The Ensemble, all 24 of them, will be on site and singing during ALL of the 2013 National Festival of Young Preachers at the Grand Hyatt in Atlanta. They will provide music at all plenary sessions and, we hope, in all preaching sessions (like the inaugural festival in 2010). We are adding a Gospel Piano Bar after the open worship service, although it will be in the fellowship hall of Peacetree United Methodist Church and not in a bar!
Dr. McCorvey is professor of voice and director of the opera program at the University of Kentucky. He is certainly the most influential and well-known musician in central Kentucky, perhaps in the state. He is known in opera circles all over the country, including in Atlanta.
The American Spiritual Ensemble is the creation of Dr. McCorvey, some 20 years ago. He auditions top tier musicians in New York each fall and selects some to tour with him each spring, generally in the United States but also around the world. The Ensemble is committed to keeping alive the powerful tradition and influence of the African American spiritual song. These talented musicians, however, will include in their National Festival repertoire a much wider assortment of music. See their web site for more information and sample music.
Both of these developments (MoCorvey and the Ensemble) are significant advancements for the National Festival of Young Preachers. They promise a level of excellence, a breadth of musical styles, and a depth of spirituality that will intensify the transformational experience of the National Festival.
Better reserve your spot!
