Margaret Bonds: Credo; Simon Bore the Cross

by Dessoff Choirs, Malcolm J. Merriweather

Overview

The arrangements of spirituals by Margaret Bonds are familiar, but she wrote a good number of larger works that have been neglected by comparison with those of her teacher, Florence B. Price. Partly this is because many remained unpublished; the Credo heard here was published only in 2022, and a number of performances followed. One of these came from New York's Dessoff Choirs and Orchestra under the direction of Malcolm J. Merriweather. The Credo, with a text by W.E.B. DuBois, is paired with an oratorio-like work, Simon Bore the Cross; the text of the latter is by Langston Hughes, a close friend of Bonds. Both pieces artfully weave African American materials with established forms of sacred music; the Credo is not a setting of the Credo of the Catholic mass (although it draws on that) but a set of more general statements of belief, several of them specifically African American. The spirituals influence Bonds' language at many points -- sample the unique treatment of "He Never Said a Mumblin' Word" from the Crucifixion movement of Simon Bore the Cross -- but neither work is simply a chain of spirituals. The music is beautifully performed by the choristers of the Dessoff Choirs, largely not African American but well-drilled in the flavors of Black music by Merriweather, and the sound -- recorded at Manhattan's Church of the Heavenly Rest -- is ideal. Both of these works would be ideal for school and collegiate choirs, and Merriweather and the Dessoff Choirs deserve special credit for inaugurating their revival with such strong performances. ~ James Manheim

Product Details

Release Date:	02/03/2023
Label:	Avie
UPC:	0822252258929
Rank:	116682

Tracks

1. Credo~I. I Believe in God
2. Credo~II. Especially Do I Believe in the Negro Race
3. Credo~III. I Believe in Pride of Race
4. Credo~IV. I Believe in the Devil
5. Credo~V. I Believe in the Prince of Peace
6. Credo~VI. I Believe in Liberty
7. Credo~VII. I Believe in Patience
8. Simon Bore the Cross~I. Prelude
9. Simon Bore the Cross~II. I Find No Fault
10. Simon Bore the Cross~III. The Trial
11. Simon Bore the Cross~IV. Who Is That Man?
12. Simon Bore the Cross~V. Don't You Know, Mary?
13. Simon Bore the Cross~VI. Walkin' to Calvary
14. Simon Bore the Cross~VII. The Crucifixion
15. Simon Bore the Cross~VIII. Postlude: Resurrection

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Dessoff Choirs   Primary Artist,Choir/Chorus
Malcolm J. Merriweather   Primary Artist,Conductor
Dashon Burton   Bass Baritone
Janinah Burnett   Soprano (Vocal)
Dessoff Orchestra   Orchestra

Technical Credits

Malcolm J. Merriweather   Arranger,Editing
W.E.B. Dubois   Text
Marlan Barry   Recording Producer,Mastering Engineer,Mixing Engineer,Engineer
Margaret Bonds   Composer
Langston Hughes   Text
Katherine Wolf   Booklet Editor
Ashley Jackson   Liner Notes
Ian Striedter   Digital Editing