Black Sacred Music Symposium XVII – HAVEN

February 15-18, 2024
University of North Carolina School of the Arts

The Thomas S. Kenan Institute for the Arts and the University of North Carolina School of the Arts (UNCSA) hosted the first regional gathering for the celebrated Black Sacred Music Symposium, Feb 15-18 on the UNCSA campus.

Founded in 1991 by Dr. Ollie Watts Davis, the Black Sacred Music Symposium is a four-day conference dedicated to the study and performance of Black sacred music traditions, culminating in a large-scale community choral performance to celebrate the music, the methods and the message behind the impactful genre.

Black Sacred Music Symposium XVII marked the first time that the Symposium was held away from its home at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, where it was founded. Dr. Ollie Watts Davis, Associate Dean for Academic Programs in the College of Fine and Applied Arts, and Suzanne and William Allen Distinguished Professor of Music at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, has directed the Symposium biennially for 32 years.

Participants in the Black Sacred Music Symposium expanded their knowledge and performance of the music and gained a deeper understanding of its message from distinguished guest artists Dr. Ollie Watts Davis, Berris Bolton, Rev. Dr. K. Edward Copeland, Kimberly Fullerton-Smith, Dr. Alonza Lawrence, and L’Tanya Moore-Copeland. Seminar topics ranged from the history and development of African American sacred music traditions, including its relevance to society and its global impact, to building an engaged music ministry, choral conducting, and vocal and instrumental techniques. 

The concert program in the Freedman Theatre at UNCSA on February 18 featured works performed by the symposium choir and band including soloists and featured performances from the University of Illinois Black Chorus, the Winston-Salem State University Singing Rams, a UNCSA String Quartet, and student artists from the UNCSA School of Dance.

Additional presenting partners for the Black Sacred Music Symposium XVII included Wake Forest University School of Divinity, Winston-Salem State University Department of Music, Galilee Missionary Baptist Church, Union Baptist Church, Triad Cultural Arts, Inc., and the City of Winston-Salem Human Relations/Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Department.