Sunday’s Juneteenth Concert Features World Renowned Mezzo-Soprano Denyce Graves

Juneteenth is a celebration of liberation and freedom. Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation, made on Sept. 22, 1862, didn’t take effect until the start of the following year. Even after the the date had passed, many people living in slavery hadn’t learned of their freedom. More than two years later, Union General Gordon Granger, with 2,000 federal troops, arrived in Galveston to enforce the emancipation. This became the Juneteenth celebration, and has been celebrated across the country, and around the world, ever since.

John Malveaux, who serves as volunteer President of the Long Beach Central Area Association, brings decades of experience with music promotion to the event. I asked him about the selection of Graves as this year’s featured artist.

“We want to show the full range of human potential,” Malveaux said. “Ms. Graves has performed in every major opera house on four continents, and I respect her beyond her talent as a singer.

“Locally, Ms. Graves has previously performed at Segerstrom Center for the Arts in Costa Mesa, Royce Hall at UCLA, with the LA Opera at the Dorothy Chandler Pavillion, and at Disney Concert Hall with the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra,” said Malveaux.

Graves also played the title role in Margaret Garner, an opera written by Nobel laureate Toni Morrison and composer Richard Danielpour. “I was impressed with her acceptance of the title role,” Malveaux continued, “a slave woman who killed her child rather than returning to slavery.”

Entertainment for the city’s Juneteenth celebration was, for many years, focused on Gospal. In 2006, his first year being involved, Malveaux “booked the multiple Grammy winner Andrae Crouch and Family.” The following year, it was decided that the celebration should embrace a wider range of music. “We respect and appreciate all music,” Malveaux said, “but we are conscious of stereotyping.”

In recent years they’ve hosted Low Rider, which features many of the original members of the popular band, WAR. “They started in Long Beach,” said Malveaux. “They started and rehearsed on Lemon Avenue, off of Hill Street. Charles Miller, who sang lead on Low Rider, and the drummer Harold Brown, went to Poly.”

Last year, the Long Beach Central Area Association organized a different kind of Juneteenth event. The title of ‘Juneteenth WorldWide Concert’ was adopted because, according to Malveaux, “the vision is to book international talent, create awareness of Juneteenth worldwide, become a destination event and the premier Juneteenth event in the nation.”

To that end, they presented a performance by Salif Keita. His album La Difference won Keita the Best World Music award at the Victories de la musique, the French equivalent of the Grammys. “His was the first African Music performance in the history of the Long Beach Performing Arts Center,” Malveaux observed.

In addition to Graves’ performance, Polytechnic High School’s ROTC cadets will present a tribute to the 150th anniversary of the Civil War. “Since Father’s Day is also June 19, we will present a FATHER’S Day tribute,” said Malveaux. The Mayme A. Clayton Library and Museum will also be present to showcase selections from its permanent collection.

“Juneteenth is an American celebration,” Malveaux said. “We have come a long way out of the darkness into the light.”

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Ticket and event information is available at MusicUNTOLD.com.