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Washington, DC – The congressionally established Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission will hold a news conference at the National Press Club on Friday, April 3, at 1:30 p.m. ET, to announce its upcoming Marian Anderson Tribute Concert at the Lincoln Memorial.
In 1939, African American contralto Marian Anderson set the stage for the modern civil rights movement when she performed for a racially integrated crowd at the Lincoln Memorial after she was turned away from DAR Constitution Hall because of her race.
Seventy years later, the ALBC will pay tribute to this civil rights pioneer on the same day – Easter Sunday – in the same place with a free concert featuring world-renowned mezzo-soprano Denyce Graves, the women’s a cappella group Sweet Honey in the Rock, the Chicago Children’s Choir, and the U.S. Marine Band.
Representatives of the vocalists and musicians will participate in the news conference. Historian and author Ray Arsenault, who has chronicled the story of Anderson’s 1939 concert, will provide the historical context. His book, The Sound of Freedom: Marian Anderson, the Lincoln Memorial, and the Concert That Awakened America, is set for release March 31.
For more information about the news conference, please contact David Early by phone at 202-707-7040, or by email at dear@loc.gov.
What: Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission News Conference to announce the details for its upcoming Marian Anderson Tribute Concert
Who: Eileen R. Mackevich, ALBC executive director
Josephine Lee, Chicago Children’s Choir artistic director
Dr. Ysaye Barnwell, Sweet Honey in the Rock member
Maj. Jason Fettig, U.S. Marine Band, senior assistant director
Dr. Raymond Arsenault, John Hope Franklin Professor of History at Southern Florida University
When: Friday, April 3, 2009 1:30 p.m. ET
Where: National Press Club, Edward R. Murrow Room 529 Fourteenth Street NW – 13th Floor, Washington, DC 202-662-7500 http://npc.press.org
About the Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission
Congress established the Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission to plan the nation’s celebration of the 16th president’s 200th birthday in 2009. The Commission works to engage the broadest range of individuals and groups in the commemoration. Through education programs, public forums, and the arts, the Commission provides an opportunity to re-examine Lincoln’s legacy in our 21st century democracy. Its members, who are appointed by the president and congressional leaders, include political leaders, jurists, historians, and collectors. For more information, please visit www.abrahamlincoln200.org. |
