With the hoopla of seasonal frolic behind us, we here at the “Negro Spiritual” Scholarship Foundation band together and turn again to the hard but joyous  tasks of celebrating great American music, uncovering tremendous talent, and supporting great futures in 2010.

In two weeks we will join the City of Orlando in commemorating a U.S. National Holiday that honors the birth of Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.  Our Foundation’s perennial role in marking the citywide observance is to present a program of cultural offerings that reflect the passion of the American spirit expressed in the talents of various artists, primarily those who live, work and perform in the metropolitan area local to us. The 2010 ‘CITY OF HOPE’ program will be presented on Friday 15th January 2010 at 7 p.m. in the Community Room of the Villas at Hampton Park, 325 North Hillside Avenue in Orlando.  Special guest artist  Azschrielle Jackson will perform.  Currently a freshman music major at the University of North Florida in Jacksonville, Miss Jackson holds our  2009 (Florida) GRADY-RAYAM PRIZE as the winning Female Vocalist.  Her budding contralto voice is hauntingly beautiful, and she is not to be missed!  Round up a few friends and come celebrate the spirit of community with us.  The program is free and open to the public.

The final round of  the 2010 (Florida) GRADY-RAYAM PRIZE Competition will be sung on the campus of  Florida Southern College in Lakeland on Saturday, 13th February from 12:30 until 3:00 in the afternoon. Only a limited audience is allowed, so to gain free admission you must call Music & Education Director Tai Oney at 407/841-NSSF (6773) or e-mail him  toney@negrospiritual.org with your request for seating.

Reservations can be made for our  World-Premiere Gala on Saturday 6th March 2010 by calling our office at 407/841-NSSF (6773).  We are returning to the fabulous banquet halls of Loews Portofino Bay Hotel at Universal Orlando for this incredible black-tie evening of fine dining, stellar performances by classically-trained singers, and our signature ”afterglow” reception featuring scrumptious desserts with champagne service and  live jazz for dancing. The event gets underway at 6:30 p.m.  Tickets are $150.00 per person, with great corporate purchase and sponsorship options available as well. I hope to see you there.

I want to share with all of you a bit of news that is personal, the truth of which is best learned directly from me rather than by hearsay or rumor.  Early in the month of December, I was diagnosed with a strain of cancer.  All tests indicate that the disease is local to the site where it was discovered.  Two weeks ago I began a course of treatment that looks promising as regards shrinking and containing the cancer, with further treatment planned that aims to eradicate it altogether.   Effects of the treatment are predicted to be more of a nuisance than an impediment to my functional lifestyle, and my general health should remain as strong overall moving forward  as it is now.  The medical team involved in designing and executing the treatment plan is first-rate, as is my primary care physician.  Please be assured that all is well .  For now, I need nothing from friends and colleagues beyond kind thoughts and the prayers of those who do pray. I value every instance of the compassion you hold for me, and thank you in advance for doing so.

I am leaning forward into the 2010 calendar year with characteristic hopefulness, and the full expectation that those who love and support the “NS”SF mission will continue to help us put flesh on the bones of our dreams.  Our Board of Directors is fully engaged in the pursuit of the funding we need; they have my untold admiration and gratitude for all their hard work and dedication.  For your part, please continue to be generous as you are able.

In earnest,

Rudi Cleare

The weeks just past have been a time of trial and perseverance. 

I cried at the death of a young man of nineteen, holding tightly to his parents and other relatives as we struggled to absorb the shock.   Andrew Siebenaler’s death gave me pause to remember how distressing it was to watch the mother of my dear friend Darlean Coleman bear up under the loss of her child early last year. There is something horribly inexplicable about children dying before their parents; it is simply not the way of the order.  I rushed home to find Barbara Kingsolver’s novel Animal Dreams and read again the passage where the main character, commenting on the news that her sister had been murdered in a foreign country says, “Life is so stupid I can’t stand it.”  There are moments and days when one feels this way – and it takes a trip far into the recesses of the heart to resist staying in that sad frame of mind.

Just prior to the above episode, I had rejoiced at a special celebration in honor of my foster mother, at a dinner with a long unseen schoolmate from childhood and her family, and again at a birthday party for one of my closest friends.  On each occasion there was restorative laughter and that certain sense of renewal brought on by rich camaraderie. I was also reveling at the time in having international opera star Marquita Lister visit with us to present a simply delightful recital for some patrons and friends of the Foundation.  Joining Ms Lister on that program was a young man who is eighteen and a freshman majoring in vocal performance at a Florida university.  Emorja Roberson had a remarkable story to share with our guests, and followed his brief comments about the value of our Foundation for him and others like him with an impressive performance of his own.  Young people of his ilk bring joy to me and cause me to think that — when lived with gusto and purpose — life is not so stupid after all.

 Our Board of Directors used the recital dinner occasion to kick off a month-long effort to garner generous year-end gifts from our patrons.  The monies raised will primarily support  our recent move to leased office quarters of our own, and all the attendant costs.  It is my hope that every person who has not yet done so will send a donation to help the cause.  We need your investment right now if we are to continue to thrive in such a tough climate.  Please contribute whatever you can.

In earnest,

Rudi Cleare

When the news came earlier in this year that the opera company which we collaborated closely with for such a long time would cease operations, our “NS”SF Board of Directors and staff members immediately huddled  to strategize a future that would see us in new space adequate to our needs and affordable within our budget.  Now, after months of leading a transient existence in very nice quarters provided us by Board member Harold Mills and the good folks at ZEROCHAOS, we are in the process of moving into a new office home where we hope to be for some time to come. 

Our newest physical location is in an office park west of downtown Orlando and south of Interstate Highway 4 near the John Young Parkway exchange,  along 33rd Street.  The interior of our suite is spacious and well-laid out, giving us room for a library/archives room, music practice studio, central office modular working hub with six stations,  and a large flexspace suitable for meeting and/or chorus rehearsal purposes.  Added amenities include an interior restroom, a break room, adequate parking, easy off-road access, and full security.  We have our good friend and realtor Craig Kesler to thank for negotiating our access to this space, along with our Board member S. Allister Fisher who guided us through the lease agreement process with great skill.    JCB Construction President/CEO and board Treasurer Brian Butler must be acknowledged for providing us with access to storage space during the interim period. Volunteers Christopher Wilson and Edward Washington II respectively donated transportation and sweat equity to aid the move.

In a few weeks, after we settle in properly and arrange space and furnishings to our satisfaction, we will schedule an “open-house” opportunity to have you visit and inspect our new digs if you care to do so. Remember that while our physical location is changed, the avenues by which you have contacted us in recent months all remain the same, meaning that our postal box continues to be the principal and ordinary mailing address for the Foundation,  our telephone number stays the same, and our respective e-mail addresses do so as well.  Please stay in touch!

Our dear friend and National Spokesperson soprano Marquita Lister will visit Central Florida to sing a closed recital to benefit the Foundation on Sunday 15th November, featuring a selection of songs that are among her personal favorites.  We thank Steve and Kathy Miller for hosting this special gathering at their Winter Park home.  Their gift of hospitality is a priceless one.  With any luck, we will be able to post some images from this event to our website very soon, so be on the lookout.  You should also keep in mind that Miss Lister will return to Orlando early in 2010 to sing as Bess in the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra concert staging of  the Gershwin classic Porgy and Bess. You must plan now so as not to miss what will surely be a fine performance by a stellar cast of soloists and chorus!

In earnest,

Rudi Cleare

It was an unscripted moment which I did not foresee.  With Terrance Lane (Minister of Music at Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church) conducting from a podium, the audience for ‘Suitable Airs’ XI was participating in a spirited sing-along segment that has become a tradition at these annual concerts.   The last of four tunes on the songsheet was the old standard “We Shall Overcome” — a virtual anthem to anyone familiar with the mid-twentieth century era of struggle for civil rights in America. Soon after the song was raised, members of the audience rose to their feet  and — with crossed arms and linked hands — began swaying back forth in the familiar gesture of solidarity.  Within minutes the entire audience had joined in the ritual; every person linked to someone else.  Once again, the American Negro spiritual song had done its work of unifying and strengthening the human family.

I have a need to publicly thank each individual who contributed to the success of ‘Suitable Airs’ XI.  Our entire cast of artists turned in stellar performances.  My staff co-workers made the hours of preparation seem easy and enjoyable.  The Board of Directors cannot be lauded enough for the leadership they gave to the project. Our presenting, underwriting and sponsoring patrons saw to it that this would be the most profitable benefit concert event in our history to date. The leadership and congregation at Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church flung open  their doors  to welcome the entire community with a gracious  hospitality.  A small army of volunteer ‘angels’ took care of the myriad small details that keep things from going off the rails  before and during a major undertaking.  And a remarkably diverse group of folk left other things behind to come and spend the evening with us as an audience.  I am deeply grateful.

With ‘Suitable Airs’ behind us, we return to the task of ensuring that our agency remains viable in order to fulfill its mission; no easy feat  these days.  If you wonder how we pass the time when not making beautiful music, the laundry list should be familiar to you by now: convincing present benefactors to continue investing in us, planning a total of nine vocal competitions nationwide,  cultivating new individuals as donors in support of our program, scrambling to acquire and move into long-term operating quarters ASAP, writing and defending grant applications for major program initiatives, working with collaborative partners such as the Orlando Philharmonic on a pending  operatic project, adding new forces to our board ranks, working with a local high school to audit its music library, increasing the number of  contributing annual members (Funding Friends) dramatically, working to implement an afterschool vocal academy for senior high school students in Orange County, vying for increased corporate funding to support our direct service projects, and guiding our own GRADY-RAYAM vocalists through a season of activity for their musical and personal development. Oh, and did I mention raising money in any of that?

Seriously, if you have not been involved with us before and are willing to invest dollars or time in a good program that makes a difference, please contact me or any Board member to let us know of your interest.  Walking hand in hand, we can overcome.

In earnest,

Rudi Cleare

The middle of September meant saying ‘goodbye’ to Sherina Johnson as a member of our staff here at the “NS”SF.  It already seems odd to go through a workday without the dedication she brought to our agency and the laughter she often introduced to the office.  Hopefully. she will forgive us if we post here a little bit of prose that was given to her as a framed memento on her last day.  I call it SHERINA By Name , and believe that it reveals her personality and character much the same as a mirror might reflect them.  We wish the best for her.

SHERINA  By Name 

She cares for others

Her heart is pure

Everyone she touches feels blest 

Reliance on God is her stronghold

Inspiration guides her choices

Nothing in life defeats her spirit

Angels shield her from harm

The Staff of the “Negro Spiritual” Scholarship Foundation

Celia Cole

Rudolph Cleare

Tai Oney

Darin Whyland

11 September 2009

The call was from an acquaintance of mine who shares my enjoyment of music and the cultural arts. It came  late in the evening after a particularly long work day when I had stretched my gangly frame out along my sofa, waiting to regain enough energy to fix a late meal that I would eat alone.    “I got the flyer about your upcoming concert” said the voice, “and was more than a little disappointed to see  non-African Americans involved in the program.  Why would you use other artists when there are so many of us available?  And now I realize from reading your past blogs that you’ve formed a mixed Master Singers chorus, even though there are all-Black groups you could hire for something like this.  It seems to me as if you are taking the Negro spiritual song away from our community.”   After a little moment of surprise I sat up and began laying out for the umpteenth time in our history the philosophy that has supported the mission and work of this Foundation from inception. Simply put, the white Catholic bishop Thomas J. Grady and black opera singer Curtis Rayam who started this project  enlisted the help of a widely diverse group of supporters in order to celebrate the Negro spiritual as an American art form, and to assist minority youth in their quest for higher education. From the beginning it was clear that the project intended to cross many of the racial, social and cultural lines that were traditional barriers in places like Central Florida, and those of us present with them at the start understood that we would go anywhere and ask anyone for help to make the dream a reality.

So there are two schools of thought, one of which sees the need for a degree of separation when preserving a cultural treasure like the Negro spiritual, another that wants the ‘our” in my caller’s complaint to mean all of those who value such cultural treasures, without separation.  The Foundation’s response, to quote the vernacular, is a ’no-brainer’.  We teach in the school of inclusion, and we walk its hallways without apology or shame.  True, the Negro spiritual song arose in an Afro-ethnic context and is cradled and kept there still .   But it is equally true that this song is America’s hymn, and that every voice can lift it.  Our task is to find and present the best of these voices among the Afro-ethnic youth population and well beyond it too.  We are going about our work undeterred by economic hardship or petty complaints.

Now, the lesson learned.  Two days before I took the upsetting call, my friend David Michael (he of the stenorous bass voice and villainous operatic personae) wrote an e-mail in response to his having seen the flyer in question.  David said he was glad to see us stretching the limits of the Negro spiritual a bit and, with unerring foresight, he warned that we might take some hits for doing so. Today’s lesson from the curriculum of the school of inclusion comes from professor David Michael himself, the last line of whose message to me reads “… if you are not risking enough to offend the few you are not really making anything worthy to be called art by the many.”  Enough said.

I am looking forward to Suitable Airs XI on Sunday, 4th October .  I hope, and now fully expect, that the sanctuary of  Eatonville’s Madeconia Missionary Baptist Church will be crammed to the hilt with people of every sort and kind who love America’s musical heritage and who value our community’s spirit of inclusion.  We’ll have a song or two ready to celebrate the moment…..

In earnest,

Rudi Cleare

Over the course of two weeks since his arrival Music & Education Director Tai Oney and I have had occasion to meet (and meet! and meet!) with a representative cross-section of individuals and groups who either support or collaborate with our Foundation in the quest to fulfill our mission.  Along the way we heard from persons of both sexes hailing from a wide array of religious traditions, ethnicities, political affiliations, races, socio-economic circles, life stages and disciplines of work.  A central point of reference quickly emerged from these encounters: that the Negro spiritual song we seek to preserve and celebrate is a cultural jewel loved by virtually every American who has heard the art form presented with feeling and with style.  

It is clear that, acting surreptitiously over time, the Negro spiritual has achieved what so many struggling artists and their overpriced agents can only dream of; it became a crossover hit of gigantic proportions, one capable of enticing a first time hearer and long time listeners alike to fall in love for keeps. Moreover, each of the persons we talked with had reason to lay claim to the Negro spiritual as a treasure that, by dint of our intermingled history and the tangled web of shared experiences we’ve endured living together on the same societal landscape, we all identify with somehow.   Time and time again we were made to understand that this music is deeply imprinted on the national psyche to such an extent that, despite the unique role African-Americans have played in originating and keeping the spiritual, it fairly resonates with all Americans, and in fact belongs in some peculiar way to all Americans.  

The realization that our Foundation only holds the Negro spiritual in common for everyone will be evident in the array of artists slated to perform in the sanctuary of Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church located at 412 E. Kennedy Boulevard in Eatonville on Sunday 4th October for Suitable Airs XI, beginning at 7 o’clock in the evening.  Besides the range of musical elements to be enjoyed, our audience for this year’s annual benefit concert will have the added treat of seeing itself fully reflected in a talented cast of musicians pulled together from across the community  to showcase the Negro spiritual at its very best. Thanks to our presenting sponsor The Orlando Magic, the evening will be yours and ours – ALL of ours — and we welcome you to come experience what we hold in common!

In earnest,

Rudi Cleare

 Eight weeks from now the Foundation will present its eleventh annual ‘Suitable Airs’ benefit concert, sung from the sanctuary of Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church in the historic township of Eatonville Florida.  This year’s production will have several unique elements that are noteworthy.  It will be the first major “NS”SF program for which Tai Oney will serve as Music Director.  Mr. Oney’s role in preparing for a successful concert entails everything from music selection to artist management, to conducting the GRADY-RAYAM Master Singers - a troupe of twelve hand-picked voices that will deliver choral arrangements of spirituals as both a featured element and backing ensemble.  The roster of musical performers is impressive, as it represents a cross-section of talent that is among the best to be found in our local community.  Our principal vocal artist is the incredible  Paul An, a young bass who made his mark in Central Florida as a Studio Artist with Orlando Opera during its final season and starts this new season in affiliation with New York’s Metropolitan Opera.  Mr. An demonstrates  amazing aptitude and skill as an interpreter of the Negro spiritual song, and is frankly among the most masterful of those singing storytellers the Foundation has had the good fortune to engage over the course of our history.  Joining Paul An at centerstage will be another remarkable musician who is as much loved by Orlando audiences as he is renowned.  The pianist Robin Stamper honors us greatly by agreeing to serve as principal accompanist to Mr. An and other soloists.  The program would not be complete (neither would it likely be presented) without the voices of  four young Floridians who are the 2009 GRADY-RAYAM PRIZE winning vocalists.  Students Denée Benton, Azschrielle Jackson, Ryan Mack,  and Latonio Nichols are accomplished singers, each one capable of inspiring listeners when in performance.  We take the greatest pride in being able to showcase their considerable talent on a pre-professional level. In a unique twist, this year’s outing will draw artistry from the ranks of our Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra in the person of Principal Horn Mark Fischer, who will join Mr. An in the debut of a new work by renowned composer-arranger Jacqueline Butler Hairston; the spiritual There’s A Man Goin’  Round, set for solo voice and French horn.  You must hear the striking effect of this tonal pairing to appreciate its haunting beauty as perfectly revealed by the Hairston score.   As if all that is not enough, I can also reveal that there will be a  surprise musical presentation on the program that involves voices connected with the Foundation but from a highly unexpected source!  I will drop a hint or two as we get closer to the event.  You, meanwhile,  need to make plans to attend ‘Suitable Airs’ XI and enjoy the fresh faces and new sounds on display.

It hardly seems fair, but a large number of high schools, colleges and universities are staring the end of summer in the face and laying plans already for a return to campus life.  For many such learning places the pursuit of knowledge is to some degree cloaked in the visual or performing arts and expressed by administrators, faculty persons, or students who love music as a creative discipline.  Schools where the humanities thrive are special to me, particularly those that boast an emphasis in music.   I believe music makes us more — more human, more content, more enlightened.   I further believe  these communities of learners, educators and performers are important to the social fabric precisely because they are exploring music on behalf of the rest of us; trying to live and breathe the art form as a complete experience in order to tease out beauty from human culture’s every nook and cranny.   

Each time I visit such a community I am in touch once more with two of the things that interest me most: the well-being of young people on the verge of adult life and the state of music education in today’s society.  A good part of my average workday is spent thinking about  and appealing to various philosophies, theories and applications of curriculum that feed music education.  I spend many hours alone and with others trying to understand the experience of the artist and exploring ways to help young artists and those responsible for their formation.  I go to meetings, I talk to groups, I raise funds, I plan programs, I organize projects.  This sets me apart from people engaged in the actual learning and teaching of musical arts.  As music makers they are the ones who plumb the poetry, who parse the phrase, who tell the tales and paint word pictures that express life’s most important themes.  They sing our songs to us and for us. And just for doing this, just for the fact of being dedicated to the twin tasks of enlightening and elevating, they deserve to be admired.  

Several winners of this year’s GRADY-RAYAM PRIZE awards will enter college for the first time in the weeks ahead.  (Daniel Farmer will attend the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, Ryan Mack will attend Tallahassee’s FAMU and Azschrielle Jackson will attend UNF in Jacksonville.)  Besides the tuition asistance grants they have earned, we are sending along with them the gift of song.  On your behalf, I offer them encouragement and love as well.  I urge them to cling fast to their dreams, and to remain attentive to the music of their souls. Fare ye well!

While in the course of interviewing to fill the post of Music & Education Director it behooved me to create a ’want’  list of things I desire to see happen for the Foundation in future years and decades.  Our Board of Directors unanimously approved the hiring of Tai Oney, and subsequently created a new standing comittee of the Board that will collaborate with him to stimulate growth in this crucial area of our work.   Only now does it seem appropriate to publish my somewhat silly list.  The act of doing so is my way of spreading stardust around to see if at least a few of my hopes and dreams can come true. 

 Ø      I want the “NS”SF to someday be known as America’s foremost authority on the arranged solo voice Negro spiritual song.

 Ø      I want the “N”SF to someday be known as Florida’s leading advocate for classical vocal education at the secondary level.

 Ø      I want “NS”SF to someday publish a book that tells why classical vocal education is important and how secondary level vocal music can best be taught to minority youth.

Ø      I want the “NS”SF to someday have a nationally-recognized choral unit dedicated to the performance of Negro spirituals and other sacred songs.

 Ø      I want the “NS”SF to be regarded by American artists as having one of the most desirable performance opportunity programs in the entire nation.

 Ø      I want the “NS”SF to someday have a touring program capable of touching lives in communities everywhere.

 Ø      I want the GRADY-RAYAM PRIZE to someday be universally acknowledged as the most prestigious and valuable award of its kind given to high school singers in America.

 Ø      I want to the GRADY –RAYAM PRIZE Competition opportunity to someday be available to any African-American child in the continental United States who would like to enter.

 Ø      I want the GRADY-RAYAM PRIZE Competition to have an international component.

 Ø      I want America’s higher education institutions to someday be begging GRADY-RAYAM PRIZE winners to consider coming to their school for college and beyond.

 Ø      I want the “NS”SF to someday have healthy and secured endowments in place to fund all of its scholarship grants and much of its music and education program needs.

So, there you have it! I am betting on the talent and integrity of our Board, the dedication of my staff, and the generosity of our funding friends to build castles that will house such hopes and dreams!  Stay tuned…..

In earnest,

Rudi Cleare