The African American Art Song Alliance 30th Anniversary Celebration Conference: Stand the Storm

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The African American Art Song Alliance will celebrate its 30th anniversary with Stand the Storm, a four-day conference at the University of California, Irvine, February 18–21, 2027. Founded in 1997 by UCI Professor Darryl Taylor, the Alliance is the nation’s leading organization devoted to preserving, performing, and advancing art songs by African American composers.

This landmark gathering will bring together distinguished performers, composers, scholars, educators, students, and arts leaders from across the country. Through concerts, recitals, lectures, panel discussions, master classes, and professional development sessions, participants will explore the historical foundations of African American art song while considering its continued evolution and relevance. The conference will also create opportunities for emerging artists and scholars to engage directly with established figures in the field.

Among the featured guests are mezzo-soprano Denyce Graves, who will deliver the keynote address and lead a master class, and acclaimed performers Janai Brugger, Angela Brown, Kenneth Overton, Donnie Ray Albert, Priscilla Baskerville, Indra Thomas, G. Thomas Allen, Gwendolyn Brown, and many more from around the world. The opening concert will feature music by Florence Price, Adolphus Hailstork, and the West Coast premiere of James Lee III’s Phenomenal Queen: Coretta Scott King. The closing concert will celebrate the African American spiritual, bringing together soloists, the Adrian Dunn Singers, and the Afro-American Chamber Orchestra Players.

The conference will honor the life and legacy of bass, educator, and arts administrator Willis C. Patterson, a University of Michigan alumnus, longtime faculty member, and former associate dean whose scholarship and advocacy profoundly expanded the visibility of Black concert music. His influential Anthology of Art Songs by Black American Composers will anchor a major performance presentation during the conference.

Stand the Storm reflects both the resilience of this repertoire and the determination of the artists who have carried it forward despite longstanding barriers to publication, performance, and recognition. More than an anniversary observance, the conference is a meeting place for artistic discovery, historical recovery, mentorship, and exchange. By bringing generations of musicians and scholars into conversation, the Alliance affirms African American art song as an essential part of the American classical music tradition and helps secure its place in future study and performance.

Admission to the conference is free and open to the public.

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