Masterworks 3: American Portraits by Higdon, Copland, Dawson, William L., De la (2023/2023), Dirijor Darko Butorac, First Baptist Church, Asheville, United States

Few have made a greater impact on the history of our nation than its sixteenth President, Abraham Lincoln, and its first, George Washington. Copland chose Lincoln as his subject to express “the magnificent spirit of our country,” using selections from his speeches in the narration — which will be voiced by Bryan Terrell Clark, best known for starring as George Washington in Broadway’s Hamilton. This all-American program begins with a newly commissioned Jennifer Higdon suite and concludes with Dawson’s 1934 masterpiece, a work that is uniquely representative of its Black roots.