Richmond Symphony’s Big Tent arrives at Abner Clay Park in new partnership with Black History Museum

The Richmond Symphony and Black History Museum & Cultural Center of Virginia announce Richmond Symphony Big Tent: Abner Clay Park, Jackson Ward. This free outdoor concert culminates in a partnership between the Children’s Book & Music Festival hosted at the Black History Museum & Cultural Center of Virginia (BHMVA) presented by Dominion Energy and YOUR Richmond Symphony, with the generous support of the City of Richmond.

The family and pet-friendly concert will be held in Abner Clay Park, Jackson Ward, on May 27 at 7 pm. The rain date is May 28, also at 7 pm. Click here for details.

This free outdoor concert, conducted by Chia-Hsuan Lin, features the beautiful and sometimes forgotten music of Florence Price, Joseph Bologne (recently the subject of the Hollywood movie Chevalier), and Virginia native Adolphus Hailstork. BHMVA will also have special museum hours with family activities leading to concert time.

During the concert, Richmond, Virginia-born artist, art educator, and art therapist Sone-Seeré Burrell, together with current Richmond resident, visual storyteller, artist, and community advocate David Marion, will conduct a live painting demonstration – the pieces created will be auctioned, and those funds donated to the Black History Museum and Cultural Center of Virginia to support educational programs. BHMVA will present the Art of Freedom II exhibition beginning May 24, 2023, where patrons visiting BHMVA will experience art that defines freedom through the lens of the participating Virginia-born, Virginia-based artists.

With literacy as the overarching connection, The Children’s Book & Music Festival engages children in informative and educational programs that capture their senses. Through tours, hands-on activities, and special presentations and events, children learn about the stories of Virginia’s African American people that inspire them. The Richmond Symphony will be contributing music presentations to the book and music festival at the Black History Museum during the month of May before culminating in the concert in Abner Clay Park. The Richmond Symphony has also chosen the book Who Is Florence Price? – written and illustrated by the students of The Special Music School at Kaufman Music Center, NYC, which will be given for free to the participating children. This year’s book and music festival potentially impacts 1,000 1st and 2nd graders from Richmond region school divisions.