Week of February 19, 2021

This Pick of the Week features the talented bassist, composer, and vocalist Esperanza Spalding and a book talk celebrating the 60th anniversary of Art Kane's iconic "Harlem 1958" photograph (also known as "A Great Day in Harlem"). In the spring of 2018, the Library of Congress hosted Spalding in a concert featuring the premiere of the new commission for piano and violin entitled "Accompania me me me ment." Later in 2019, the Library presented saxophonist Benny Golson and photographer Art Kane's son, Jonathan Kane, to talk about the iconic "Harlem 1958" photograph. We hope this edition of the Pick of the Week inspires you to learn more about Esperanza Spalding, the history behind the iconic "Harlem 1958" photograph, and the contributions of Black Americans to the music and culture of this great nation.

Pick of the Week - February 26, 2021

Esperanza Spalding (performance date: May 4, 2018)

A luminous artist with a magnetic stage presence and brilliant chops as an improviser, composer, bassist, and vocalist, Esperanza Spalding is grounded in jazz traditions but never bound by them. Her visionary, "funky yet cerebral" (Downbeat) musical voyages and performances with partners ranging from Herbie Hancock to Prince have won her four Grammy awards and a worldwide fan base. This exhilarating evening features Spalding's new violin and piano commission from the Library. She is joined by Olivia De Prato, violin; Leo Genovese, piano; and Francisco Mela, drums. Program: Esperanza Spalding: "Accompania me me me ment" (McKim Commission).

Art Kane: Harlem 1958 (event date: October 29, 2019)

A handsome new art book marks the 60th anniversary of Art Kane's iconic "Harlem 1958" (also known as "A Great Day in Harlem"). The photograph is a glimpse of jazz history documenting a now-legendary gathering of 57 jazz artists on the steps of a Harlem brownstone. Larry Appelbaum talks with the photographer's son Jonathan Kane and saxophonist Benny Golson, one of two living musicians captured in this eloquent image.

Not only is this photo important to the people in it, but it should be a reminder of where we need to be: together.—Quincy Jones

Digital Collections and Resources at the Library of Congress

African American History Month (Web Portal)
The Library of Congress, National Archives and Records Administration, National Endowment for the Humanities, National Gallery of Art, National Park Service, Smithsonian Institution and United States Holocaust Memorial Museum join in paying tribute to the generations of African Americans who struggled with adversity to achieve full citizenship in American society. READ MORE.
African American Song (Essay)
African Americans make up the single largest racial minority in the United States. From slave-era field hollers, spirituals, and gospel, to blues, soul, and hip-hop, American musical culture abounds with the influence of African American song. READ MORE.
African American Spirituals (Essay)
A spiritual is a type of religious folksong that is most closely associated with the enslavement of African people in the American South. The songs proliferated in the last few decades of the eighteenth century leading up to the abolishment of legalized slavery in the 1860s. The African American spiritual (also called the Negro Spiritual) constitutes one of the largest and most significant forms of American folksong. READ MORE
The Library of Congress Celebrates the Songs of America (Digital Collection)
The Songs of America presentation allows you to explore American history as documented in the work of some of our country's greatest composers, poets, scholars, and performers. From popular and traditional songs, to poetic art songs and sacred music, the relationship of song to historical events from the nation's founding to the present is highlighted through more than 80,000 online items. The user can listen to digitized recordings, watch performances of artists interpreting and commenting on American song, and view sheet music, manuscripts, and historic copyright submissions online. The site also includes biographies, essays and curated content, interactive maps, a timeline and teaching resources offering context and expert analysis to the source material.

Concerts from the Library of Congress: Pick of the Week

Week of February 19, 2021

Pick of the Week - February 26, 2021

Esperanza Spalding (performance date: May 4, 2018)

Art Kane: Harlem 1958 (event date: October 29, 2019)

Digital Collections and Resources at the Library of Congress