The 90-minute concert is free and open to the public, and will kick off at 5 p.m., featuring music from the choir’s “MIRRORS” and “Nu-Soul City” recordings.The University of Alabama at Birmingham Gospel Choir will present its annual spring concert at the historic 16th Street Baptist Church on Palm Sunday, April 9.
The 90-minute concert is free and open to the public, and will kick off at 5 p.m., featuring music from the choir’s “MIRRORS” and “Nu-Soul City” recordings; classics by Joe Pace, Thomas Whitfield, Hezekiah Walker; Deitrick Haddon, Ricky Dillard and Kierra Sheard; plus “You Don’t Know What I Could Have Been,” performed in memory of the four little girls, Addie Mae Collins, Cynthia Wesley, Denise McNair and Carole Robertson, who perished when the church was bombed during the height of the civil rights movement in 1963. This song was written by UAB Gospel Choir director Kevin P. Turner.
“We are hoping that, by making this concert free, families on a tight budget can come out and enjoy an incredible concert at no charge during the Easter holiday season,” Turner said. “The 16th Street Baptist Church will also be celebrating its 144th anniversary on this date, and our sincerest thanks are extended to senior pastor Rev. Arthur Price Jr. and the 16th Street Baptist Church family for opening their doors to the UAB Gospel Choir.”
The choir will be accompanied by a four-piece band and horn section. New lead singers Nikia Rooks, Benjamin Brooks and Sally Zachery will make their debuts, Turner says. This concert is dedicated to Donnell Perry, exclusive videographer for the UAB Gospel Choir for 10 years, who passed away last month.
The 16th Street Baptist Church is located at 1530 Sixth Ave. North, Birmingham, 35203. For additional information, driving directions or requests for special assistance, please call 205-251-9402 or visit its website at 16thStreetBaptist.org.
The UAB Gospel Choir, part of the College of Arts and Sciences’ Department of Music, is a music performance class open to all students at UAB, regardless of major. One credit hour is earned for participating in the ensemble, repeatable. UAB Gospel Choir recordings are available online at iTunes, cdbaby.com, Amazon.com and GooglePlay Music.