It’s Been 50 Years?!?
October looks like the beginning of getting back on the road for the fall of 2026 and winter of 2027. It begins the first weekend of October when I’m scheduled to return home for my 50th high school class reunion. I really haven’t kept in contact with any of my classmates, so I’m not looking forward to the coming event with high enthusiasm. Still, one only has one chance to celebrate one’s 50th, so I’m going there.
Time (and gas prices) permitting, I’m seriously thinking about visiting the National Memorial for Peace and Justice in Montgomery, Alabama. The museum had not opened when I visited the state in 2016, so this would be a great opportunity at a time of year when the weather would hopefully be warm and not roasting hot.
Talking Paul Robeson at Princeton U. then Acadia NP
I don’t have a lot of time, however, to drift too far on that trip because I am scheduled to give a presentation on bass-baritone Paul Robeson‘s role in the development of the concert spiritual for the Atlantic regional chapter of the Music Library Association in October at Princeton University in New Jersey. The talk is part of the Atlantic chapter of the Music Library Association’s annual conference.
Afterward, I want to take advantage of the opportunity to finally get to Acadia National Park (yeah, I know that New Jersey and Maine aren’t exactly close to one another, but that excuse works fine for me). If I can work it out, I also want to see the famous fall leaf colors in New England and maybe pick up some authentic maple syrup. I’ve driven and toured the northeastern states as a performer in the past, but I really haven’t played tourist there before. In fact, my last drive through the area in 2011 for The Phenomenon of Singing International Symposium VIII in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, was barely more than a series of pit stops.
(BTW, if you’re wondering why this image is to the right, it’s actually a 2024 poster I made from past trips that I just wanted to display here. Included, though, is a picture taken at St. John’s and of Niagara Falls, which I also visited on that trip.)
California, Here I Come (Again)?!
The African American Art Song Alliance (AAASA) is holding its 30th anniversary conference at the University of California, Irvine in mid-February. I am set to present on “Using Dialect in the Performance of Concert Spirituals” at the conference and am looking forward to touching base with numerous colleagues in the world of classical vocal music.
The current plan is to drive SB there, taking advantage of getting to the Southwest national parks I’ve discussed in past blogs. How far I drift during the trip will depend on how much time I’ve got to travel and, more importantly, how expensive gas is at that time. Prices tend to be lower in the Southwest, but California’s gas prices more than make up the difference.
One More Potential Trip
The reason why time might be short visiting California is that the Music Library Association holds its annual meeting in Detroit, Michigan, the first weekend of March, 2027. I’ve just submitted a proposal to present on “Developing Resources on Solo Concert Spirituals: 1916-1930″ and am awaiting word on whether the submission is accepted. If SB and I go, I want to spend some time with one of my nieces who resides nearby. I am also on the lookout for tickets to the newly opened Obama Presidential Center. According to the site, they update availability on second Wednesdays, so I’ll keep checking. Whenever I can get tickets, though, I’m heading that way, but my preference would be immediately after the MLA conference!
The picture of the center was taken by my eldest sister during a stop in Chicago on our way to Los Angelos in April, shortly before it opened to the public.
