Cultural Crossroads:
Dvořák in America
Kenneth Kellogg, bass
R. Carlos Nakai, Native flute
Will Clipman, world percussion
The Ciompi Quartet
Pamela Freund-Striplen: curator/narrator/violist
“This was one of the absolute best performances I have ever seen.”
- Andrea A. Lunsford, Kronos Quartet Board Immediate Past Chair and
Former Director of Writing and Rhetoric at Stanford University
Cultural Crossroads: Dvořák in America is a live concert experience that explores the Black and Indigenous influences on Dvořák during his time in America. The program weaves original Native American melodies and moving African American Spirituals along with Dvořák’s most beloved chamber music. Short videos and imagery add to this powerful multimedia experience. Cultural Crossroads: Dvořák in America with its stellar and diverse cast of musicians is a catalyst for audience engagement as it entertains, educates, and inspires, drawn from the curiosity of a Czech composer a century ago.
“I only wish there were more concerts that have this kind of powerful archetypal story to share.
We are living at a time where this is needed. The response from my community was
overwhelming. Almost to the person, people came up to me after the performance to share their
gratitude for bringing this ‘timely’, ‘historical’, and incredibly powerful musical production to them.
An experience that few of us will ever forget.”
-Susan Martin, presenter Gualala Arts Center
Immerse yourself in the sounds that inspired Dvořák’s most beloved chamber music. From moving African American Spirituals and songs by Florence Price to original Native American rhythms and melodies, you’ll hear why Dvořák famously asserted “in the Negro and Indian melodies of America I discover all that is needed for a great and noble school of music.” Cultural Crossroads interweaves Dvořák’s “American” Quartet and Quintet with these inspirational elements creating a vivid tapestry of cultural exchange. Bringing this story to life are world’s premier Kenneth Kellogg, bass, R. Carlos Nakai, Native flute, Will Clipman, world percussion, The Ciompi Quartet, and Pamela Freund-Striplen, curator/narrator/violist.