To honor today’s holiday we wanted to feature our release Portraits of Freedom, and give you a sample from Aaron Copland’s Lincoln Portrait.
Portraits of Freedom
James Earl Jones, speaker
Gerard Schwarz, conductor
Seattle Symphony and Chorale
The magnificent voice of James Earl Jones — recognized by millions worldwide — needs no introduction. But his impassioned delivery of Lincoln’s timeless message brings us new awareness of its significance for our lives — now and in the years ahead.
“We must think anew and act anew…We must disenthrall ourselves, and then we shall save our country.” Abraham Lincoln
“In the summer of 1991, at New Jersey’s Waterloo Festival, James Earl Jones and Gerard Schwarz collaborated in a live performance of Lincoln Portrait — an evening which set this recording in motion. Copland’s blend of words and music had never affected me so profoundly as in this partnership, now captured on disc.
During the months we have worked on this production, Lincoln’s words as illuminated by James Earl Jones have amassed for us a richness of implication. As we meet daily the homeless in the doorways near our office building… as we see the world’s news filled with messages which seem to separate rather than bring us together… as we feel America at a crossroads in our country’s history… as we listen to a new President who cherishes the words and wisdom of the sixteenth President of the United States… as we at Delos reaffirm our own mission as a small company dedicated to classical music and engaged in a two-decade struggle as an independent classical label… as those of us who are women or minorities feel the need to draw the attention of new generations to the possibilities in these changing times… we are overwhelmed with the timeliness of Lincoln’s words and of their significance for our lives — now and in the years ahead.” – Amelia Haygood
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