This event is Off-Site @ Epiphany Center for the Arts
201 S Ashland Ave, Chicago, IL 60607

AfriClassical Futures is a quarterly music and conversation series that foregrounds the accomplishments of Black composers and musicians from the diaspora and beyond that are educated or working in, around, or influenced by Western Classical music and classical traditions more broadly.

This program features works that invoke contemplation, memory, and ecstatic vision towards a liberated world, finding joy in the ordinary and extraordinary alike. Julius Eastman’s The Holy Presence of Joan D’Arc for 10 cellos and the Prelude for solo voice meditate on the saintly visions a young Joan D’Arc received during periods of religious ecstasy in her youth and the message to “speak boldly.” One More Angel by guest conductor/composer Ahmed Al Abaca, written in honor of their Aunt Ra, is a reflection on the fullness and complexity of life and the cherished memories we create with our elders. This program will also feature a new composition for 10 cellos and voice with text by olula negre, an aubade on the quotidian and transitory nature of dawn as it relates to the experience of queerness. A brief conversation between Ahmed Al Abaca and series curators Julain Otis and olula negre will follow the music.

This event is free and open to the public. This AfriClassical Futures program is made possible by support from: The Paul M. Angell Family Foundation, Prince Charitable Trust, Aaron Copland Foundation, Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events, New Music USA and Elastic Arts Foundation. 

Artist Bios:

Ahmed Al Abaca | conductor/composer

Ahmed Al Abaca is a composer and conductor based in Chicago. Ahmed has had the fortune of being commissioned and performed by ensembles [The Florida Orchestra, San Jose Chamber Orchestra, The Atlanta Symphony, Grant Park Music Festival, D-Composed String Quartet] national radio [Performance Today, MPR], and Theatre companies [Olympia Children Theatre] throughout the United States and Europe. Ahmed has had the pleasure of working as both conductor and composer with Chicago Civic Orchestra Fellows, Chicago Sinfonietta (conductor) and D-Composed (composer). Ahmed focuses on performing music by not only living composers but composers from the Chicago area, with an emphasis on women and composers of color. Ahmed believes in the transformative power of music, and to continue to inspire up-and-coming composers, we must show them, through programming, that they have a place in this industry and on American stages.

Julian Terrell Otis | vocalist, curator

Julian Terrell Otis is a vocalist dedicated to the advancement of Black music in America, spanning genres from creative music and jazz, to contemporary classical. His work explores the limitless possibilities of his instrument’s expressive capacity through song, improvisation, and theater. Known for bringing fresh perspective, nuance, and “high drama” to the contemporary music world, the integration of performance “live art” elements is of particular interest to him. Otis’s experiences have led him to create the male soloist role in George E. Lewis’ chamber opera, Afterword, on both domestic and international stages. In exploring the life and work of Julius Eastman, Otis has performed his solo work, Prelude for the Holy Presence of Joan of Arc. He revived Peter Maxwell Davies’ Eight Songs for a Mad King at the inaugural Bang on a Can All Star’s Loud Weekend, and is devising works focusing on improvisation, electronics, and movement. All the Pretty Flowers is his first recording project of improvised music and poetry. Committed to community empowerment, he led an improvised jam for South Side Chicago communities called Self Care = Resistance! And curates the AfriClassical Futures series at Elastic Arts in Chicago’s Logan Square/Avondale neighborhood.

olula negre | cellist, curator

The rustbelt grandchild of twin migrations from Alabama and Puerto Rico, olula negre, is a creative musician (cello/voice/banjo), avant-folklorist and multi-disciplinary artist based between Cleveland and Chicago. olula creates multi-instrumental electroacoustic music blending cello, voice and effects to create music that queers contemporary classical, experimental jazz, and folk traditions with deep reverence for Black diasporic traditions.

olula holds a bachelors from The Hartt School in Cello Performance and a masters from The Boston Conservatory at Berklee in Contemporary Classical Performance Practice. They have been in-residence at CUNY Hunter College, The Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity, the Atlantic Center for the Arts and Elastic Arts. They are co-curator, alongside Julian Terrell Otis, of AfriClassical Futures, a quarterly music and conversation series at Elastic.

Julius Eastman | composer

Julius Eastman (1940-1990) was a Black American, gay composer and pioneer of post-minimalist music, challenging the conventions of classical music during the 70s and 80s. Eastman was a defining voice of New York’s contemporary classical scene. His music, largely forgotten after his early passing, has seen a resurgence in the 21st century.

Cello Ensemble

Eve Sanchez, olula negre, Lindsey Sharpe, Sajdah Muhammed, Alex Moore, Nick Reeves, King Sophia, Omkara Gil, Luis Gonzalez, Malik Johnson