Heal and fill the heart

As time marches forward, so do we. And as we develop technology to improve and evolve ahead of us, the pace ever qui ckens. As we race forward to an imperceivable goal, do we risk losing ourselves to the tools of advancement. Are we building Utopia? Or obsolescence? Have we shrunk the world and connected ourselves to everything, only to lose connection to each other?

I truly believe Art offers the best response to each of these worries. Art, particularly music, is not just a perfect refl ection of who we are, but also stands equally as the blueprint of what we can and perhaps should be. AI and Algorithm, the twin would-be usurpers of the human soul, can never be given fi nal say over our progress and potential. Therefore as the world gets smaller and we simultaneously grow further apart, music must express its power to keep us connected to each other.

In my last Alpha Classics project, Because, I and my partner Baptiste Trotignon showcased African American spirituals and other musics of the Black American tradition through the fi lter of it’s evolution, jazz, to highlight the beauty, power, and resilience of this early expression of the Black soul. Not only to honor my ancestors and our past, but to also suggest that, in this music, there exists a balm to universally heal and fi ll the heart. I consider this album, Solitude, to be a continuation of what we began. So with Solitude, I wanted to not only celebrate music’s power to keep us tethered, but its innate power to draw us closer together. I’m reminded of Aesop’s fable, The North Wind and the Sun. Despite the Wind’s impressive force and power, it is the power of persuasion with the Sun simply shining that concludes the contest with him as the victor. A subtle power it is, but in no way is it ineffectual. I don’t just mean persuasion, but the actual power of stories themselves.

To focus on such power through the lens of English song, a combination as simple as a voice, a lute, and a viola da gamba can pause the world and create an intimate space. A space unplugged from the busy world around us where emotion, feeling, meaning, and imagery created by stories reign unopposed.

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