Among the glories of the Collins Classics product line, unceremoniously sucked into non-existence with the death of that company a few years ago, were a couple of outstanding discs devoted to music of
William Grant Still. One of these items, conducted by
Philip Brunelle and originally titled Witness Vol. II, makes a surprise reappearance on the Clarion label as Skyward My People Rose: Music of William Grant Still. The Plymouth Music Series Orchestra and Chorus have been re-dubbed as the VocalEssence Ensemble Singers and Chorus with Orchestra; apart from that and a new cover image, the rest of the package is essentially the same as before, down to the curious identification of the chamber orchestra used in Miss Sally's Party as a "string orchestra."
The landmark work here is And They Lynched Him on a Tree (1940), a rare piece in which
Still openly expresses his feelings about racism, a subject he preferred to avoid in his musical compositions. Blessed with a text by poet Katherine Garrison Chapin, And They Lynched Him on a Tree is not as shocking as its title; the cantata is more of a tragic Deep South ritual of sadness and shame, scored powerfully by
Still and played and sung beautifully here.
William Warfield gives one of his last recorded performances in a compelling dramatic turn, taking the important part of the narrator. The ballet Miss Sally's Party is a charming suite of American rural dances that are fresh, unhackneyed, and well orchestrated. Wailing Woman, on a text by
Still's wife Verna Arvey, is similar in mood to And They Lynched Him on a Tree, but more restrained in content. The balance is made up with two organ pieces, played by
Brunelle, and
Still's wordless arrangement of Swanee River for chorus.
The recording itself, as on the Collins release, is a bit thin and weak on the bottom end. The performances all around, however, are fabulous. This music should be known to every American, as
William Grant Still's music goes to the very heart of the American experience.