Adirondack Folk Opera Still Waiting in the Wings
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The creators of an Adirondack folk opera say their hopes remain high that the piece will eventually inspire audiences around the world, but some setbacks have delayed the staging of the work.
The opera draws from a remarkable chapter of Adirondack history.
Promised Land: An Adirondack Folk Opera is set in an 1840s North Country farming colony called Timbuctoo, an African American settlement near Lake Placid, New York. Abolitionist John Brown named the colony after a once thriving community in West Africa. The Adirondack colony was conceived to help black settlers gain the right to vote, despite laws designed to prevent that from happening.
The idea for this opera began with freelance composer Glenn McClure from Geneseo, New York. Under the direction of music educator Helen Demong, the Northern Lights Choir of Saranac Lake has performed music from the opera since 2013. More than a decade later, the piece has not yet been fully staged with costumes and sets.
Music composer Glenn McClure, and Helen Demong, the artistic director of the opera, discuss the work with Spotlight producer Paul Larson.
Mountain Lake PBS
"Promised Land (Choral Overture)" from Promised Land: A Voting Rights Opera. Composer Glenn McClure
This overture for choir, soloists, and orchestra introduces some of the opera's core musical themes. Promised Land explores the courageous story of Black farmers and abolitionists who fought voter suppression in pre-Civil War New York. This performance features the Northern Lights Choir under the direction of Helen Demong, soloists Jorell Williams and Kearstin Piper Brown, and Glenn McClure on percussion.
If you'd like to learn more about Promised Land: An Adirondack Folk Opera, there are a couple of places you may visit. The official site of the opera is adkfolkopera.org, and you may also leave your feedback there. If you'd like to see Spotlight stories about the creation of the opera, head to mountainlake.org/folkopera.
Spotlight is made possible, in part, by the Glenn and Carol Pearsall Adirondack Foundation, dedicated to improving the quality of life for year-round residents of the Adirondack Park. Spotlight is also supported by Hill and Hollow Music.