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Margaret Bonds’s The Ballad of the Brown King

December 25, 2021, 4:30 pm

Margaret Bonds

Margaret Bonds’s charming The Ballad of the Brown King focuses on Balthazar, the dark-skinned king who journeyed to Bethlehem to witness the birth of Jesus Christ. First premiered in 1954, the revised and orchestrated version was dedicated to Martin Luther King, Jr. in 1960. For Christmas Day, Oliver presents the complete 24-minute work for three soloists, chorus, and orchestra.

Playlist

Margaret Bonds: The Ballad of the Brown King
Libretto by Langston Hughes
Laquita Mitchell, soprano
Lucia Bradford, mezzo-soprano
Noah Stewart, tenor
The Dessoff Choirs & Orchestra
Malcolm J. Merriweather, conductor
Recorded in 2018
Avie Records AV-2413

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Meet the Host

Oliver Camacho joined the announcer team in February of 2019. He is the co-host and creative consultant of Opera Box Score and co-host of OperaNow! Podcast. A proud graduate of Chicago’s Lane Technical High School, where he was mentored by George Rico, Oliver went on to study music at Northwestern University, and historically informed performance practice at the Amherst Early Music Festival and Early Music Vancouver. His musical passions are opera, art song, choral music, Early Music, and discovering new composers as well as those who have been previously marginalized or disenfranchised. In January of 2021, Oliver began hosting Listening to Singers, and in October of the same year, he was named WFMT’s Music Director.

Midday with Lisa Flynn

Midday with Lisa Flynn

Margaret Bonds’s The Ballad of the Brown King

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