Yale Glee Club - “A Vision Unfolding” (Anthems of a Crowd, Part 1) by Derrick Spiva Jr.
Recorded fall semester, 2020
Soloists: John Cooper, Alex Whittington, Neha Bhatt
Original visual art: Mikayla Johnson
Video design: Camilla Tassi and John Horzen
A Vision Unfolding is inspired by the South African (Zulu) a cappella genre isicathamiya, which uses a higher-pitched lead voice over multi-part bass harmonies and call and response phrases. The beginning and near end of a vision unfolding includes a drone and outlining of the modal content of the piece. These sections are inspired by the improvised alap musical form that often introduces classical Hindustani (North Indian) music. a vision unfolding also uses repeating compound meters often heard in traditional Eastern European music, rhythmic patterns from traditional Ewe music from the Volta region of Ghana, and the tight relationship between linguistics and rhythm found in spoken word poetry. A Vision Unfolding was commissioned and premiered by Exigence.
The Isley Brothers’ Caravan of Love -
arr. Brandon Waddles - Yale, Harvard, and Princeton Glee Clubs
For more than a century, the Glee Clubs of Harvard, Princeton, and Yale Universities have celebrated the deep friendship between these storied choral unions with a season of collaborative concerts during the fall semester.
In honoring this tradition at a time of extraordinary change and challenge, on October 17, 2020, the three Glee Clubs presented a virtual online benefit concert, Hand in Hand. Proceeds benefited three non-profit organizations engaged in vitally important work for equity and justice in arts education - Boston’s Castle of our Skins, New Haven’s Music Haven, and Trenton Head Start.
Each ensemble shared new and past performances by its singers, and the concert ended with a joint virtual performance of a new arrangement by Brandon Waddles of the Isley Brothers classic Caravan of Love commissioned for the concert. The song was introduced by Dr. Cornel West, currently Professor of Public Philosophy at Harvard Divinity School, and a former faculty member at both Princeton and Yale.
Soloists: Gabriela Veciana, Patricia Liu, Xavier Washington
A Home in Hendrie Hall
Documentary film by Miriam Lewin ‘80
This 18-minute documentary illuminates how generations of Yalies – of different genders, races, sexual identities, and nationalities – have found a welcome in the Glee Club. Interviews with singers from classes 1970 to 2022 are interwoven with audio recordings, video footage, and photos of Glee Clubs past and present.