Update from Friends of the Mill District

By Claudia Kittock

The Mill District’s Mill City Emanuel singers joined more than 1000 members of the community on Thursday, July 14th at Westminster Presbyterian Church. It was organized by Brian Newhouse, managing director of MPR Classical. Choirs from all over Minneapolis and St. Paul were invited to participate in an evening of song and reflection after recent violence in the Twin Cities, Dallas, Baton Rouge and other communities.

A similar group gathered in Dallas and with the help of a video and audio connection, the two communities were able to sing the first song together, "Bridge of Song". Via a streamed connection to Texas, assembled choirs in Dallas and the gathering in Minneapolis joined in a synchronized sing of Greg Gilpin's "Why We Sing" across the distance. The connection was seamless.

Tesfa Wondemagegnehu, Classical MPR manager of choral initiatives, and G. Phillip Shoultz III, associate conductor of VocalEssence, led local choirs in a program that featured spiritual and secular songs of peace and community. The choirs were joined by special guests Fred Steele and JD Steele, director and accompanist of the Mill City Emanuel Singers

Supplementing the music were reflections from various traditions. Imam Makram El-Amin, Rabbi Marcia Zimmerman and Pastor David Allen Keaton read passages from the Koran, the Jewish Prayer Book and from the New Testament, respectively. Dessa, in addition to her song performances, read poems by Gary Snyder and Pablo Neruda. Classical MPR's Brian Newhouse read passages from Swiss philosopher Henri-Fréderic Amiel.