Music Moves Hearts: Gospel event brings cultures together

"In a time where truth is rarely found in its simplest form, we wanted to share songs that speak to the heart and the plight of Black America," says Reginald James, one of the leaders of Music Moves. "These songs speak truth to power and yet lovingly encourage each listener to see themselves in a better place and propel us to move forward together."

James is talking about The Gospel Truth: An Evening with the Arkansas Philharmonic Orchestra. The performance of live gospel music happens at 6:30 p.m. today, Sept. 20, at the Walton Arts Center in celebration of National Gospel Music Heritage Month.

There's a lot to celebrate, James says, when it comes to the contributions African-Americans have made to music and the arts in the United States. That's the mission of Music Moves -- sharing that legacy. Although Music Moves has been doing that for awhile, the organization just last year became a 501(c)3 nonprofit with this as its raison d'être: "Music Moves develops curriculum, programs and performances to share the stories of these individuals and their influence on American culture. Our mission is to make African-American Black music accessible to students and to our communities through performance and education."

"We've been talking about doing community collaboratives," James explains, "and we were thinking about a show featuring Florence Price's music. There are a lot of great African-American composers that people just don't know about -- great composers that were very popular in their day.

"But this time, we wanted to look at music from the last 75 or 80 years, gospel and inspirational, music that was invented in this country and went out to the world," he adds.

So Music Moves is collaborating with the Arkansas Philharmonic Orchestra, under the baton of Steven Byess, and bringing in singers from across the state. James says he's been "blown away" that there's so much talent in Arkansas, from Camden to Little Rock to Jonesboro to Fayetteville.

"This has been a fun collaboration," says Jason Miller, executive director of the Bentonville-based orchestra. "Music takes all forms, and it is always a blast to get out of our comfort zones and add to the experience. Gospel music is so deeply rooted in American culture. The APO is proud to work with Anthony Ball and Reggie James of Music Moves, along with their many talented artists that are joining us on stage for this incredible night of music."

The orchestra will be small but will include a string section. The audience will also be much smaller than Baum-Walker Hall can hold, limited to 200 people. But it is a live performance, and Miller says "we are thrilled to be performing live again in the beautiful Walton Arts Center."

"The APO, just like everyone else, has shifted to offering online content," he says of the past five months. "We miss our patrons and miss performing live but enjoy having interaction with our community through social media. The APO is featuring a new musician each week in the 'APO Happy Hour' on Facebook Live and our YouTube channel every Thursday from 5 to 5:30 p.m. We are also looking forward to reintroducing Florence Price's 'Violin Concerto No. 1' that we world premiered in February 2018. Maestro Byess and APO concertmaster and soloist Er-Gene Kahng will be hosting the event on Facebook Live at 7 p.m. Sept. 26, [and] it will also be on our YouTube channel."

As for Music Moves, James says the next project is creating content for teachers -- who are continually asking for it, he says -- until representatives of the organization can get into classrooms physically, which he hopes will be as soon as November.

"The communicative aspect of music is a worldwide phenomenon," James says, "and it is just as true in sharing the Black experience in America."

Reggie James, one of the founders of Music Moves, has helped bring together singers from across Arkansas for The Gospel Truth: An Evening With the Arkansas Philharmonic Orchestra today at the Walton Arts Center. (Courtesy Photo/Patti Steel Photography)