3 of 4 Momenta Festival Concerts Postponed

But please join us next Friday, June 17, 7:30pm:
JUNETEENTH CELEBRATION AND CD RELEASE
BENEFIT FOR MUSIC FOR FOOD

Momenta Quartet and composer Alvin Singleton (photo by John Gurrin)

C is for COVID – and Cancellation – but also for CREATIVITY!
 
Once again, a Momenta Quartet member has tested positive for COVID. (Not to worry – the person has only mild symptoms and is already doing much better.) We put our heads together and came up with a creative solution:
 
We have made the difficult decision to postpone Momenta Festival VII to September 15–18, 2022 (SAVE THE DATES!). Programming updates coming soon. All concerts will be at 7:30pm at Broadway Presbyterian Church; free admission.
 
However, we are moving forward with our special Juneteenth Celebration and CD Release concert on Friday, June 17 at 7:30 pm – and it will still be a benefit for Music for Food!

Friday, June 17, 7:30pm
A Juneteenth Celebration and CD Release Event:
Alvin Singleton: Four String Quartets on New World Records
 
Broadway Presbyterian Church
601 W 114th St. New York, NY

Admission: a suggested donation of any amount to Music for Food 
 
We will accept cash or check donations to Music for Food at the door – or you can donate online 
 
On June 17, the Momenta Quartet performs A Juneteenth Celebration with music by three visionary African American composers: Alvin Singleton, multi-instrumentalist and composer Yusef Lateef, and jazz bass player and composer Hilliard Greene. The concert coincides with the release of the Momenta Quartet's new album "Alvin Singleton: Four String Quartets" (New World Records, rel. May 20, 2022), which features world premiere recordings of Singleton's quartets.
 
Juneteenth (officially Juneteenth National Independence Day and also known as Jubilee Day, Emancipation Day, Freedom Day, and Black Independence Day) commemorates the emancipation of enslaved African Americans and is a celebration of African American culture. Originating in Galveston, Texas, it has been celebrated annually on June 19 in various parts of the United States since 1865. Momenta’s concert celebrates the one-year anniversary of President Joe Biden signing the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act into law on June 17, 2021 – thus making Juneteenth an official federal holiday.
 
In celebration of its recent release on New World Records, Momenta will perform Alvin Singleton’s String Quartet No. 1, and violist Stephanie Griffin and cellist Michael Haas will be joined by jazz bassist Hilliard Greene for an interpretation of Alvin’s graphic score “Be Natural for any combination of three bowed instruments,” which he composed at Darmstadt in 1974. Come and meet Alvin, who will be in attendance. You can also purchase the new record – hot off the presses – and we can even sign them for you!
 
Another program highlight is Hilliard Greene's own world premiere arrangement of the spiritual "Deep River," popularized by the classic films Show Boat and The Proud Valley, sung by Paul Robeson. The late Yusef Lateef's String Quartet No. 3, posthumously premiered by the Momenta Quartet in 2015, completes the program.

We hope to see you on June 17 and at our whole 4-day Momenta Festival in September. (Now you are all getting a bonus concert!)
 
Even if you cannot make it on June 17, please consider helping Momenta and Music for Food in the fight against food insecurity with a donation to our concert on the Music for Food website.