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New Belgian opera evokes US racial discord
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Canadian conductor Kwame Ryan leads a rehearsal of 'The Time of Our Singing' opera, created by Belgian musician Kris Defoort and inspired by a novel of US author Richard Powers at the Theatre Royal de la Monnaie theatre in Brussels, on September 3, 2021. (AFP/François Walschaerts)
B
aroque, jazz, rap: centuries of musical heritage intertwine to tell the tale of a mixed-race family in a new opera being premiered in Brussels based on an epic novel of America's troubled 20th century.
Belgian composer Kris Defoort's "The Time of Our Singing" is based on the 2003 book of the same name by Richard Powers, a half-century-long historical saga on a family united by music, but haunted by segregation.
The novel tells of David Strom and Delia Daley, who meet after a concert by African-American contralto Marian Anderson in 1939 on the steps of the historic Lincoln Memorial in Washington.
The story continues with the birth of their sons, Jonah and Joseph Strom, as the mixed-race family grows up through music and through the dangerous era of the US civil rights struggle.
Now, the music-laden narrative has inspired a musical work of its own, premiered on Tuesday at the Theatre de la Monnaie in the Belgian capital.
Each character has a musical style reflecting their own quest for identity: Bach or Schubert for Jonah the tenor; blues for Delia; and hip-hop for Ruth, the rebel sister who joins the Black Panthers.
"I follow the book very closely," Defoort told AFP.
