Earl Louis Stewart's Symphony No. 4 Juneteenth Celebration, at UCLA Royce Hall, June 5

Earl Louis Stewart's Symphony No. 4 Juneteenth Celebration, at UCLA Royce Hall, June 5

Juneteenth Day Celebration: Honoring Our Past, Celebrating Our Future
Hosted by the UCLA African American Studies Department

This event promises a bounty of musics, dance, spoken word, and more.  Join together for reflection, celebration, and community as we commemorate Juneteenth, the nationally celebrated commemoration of slavery’s official end in the United States. This year, the UCLA African American Studies Department is proud to host a series of performances and talks that highlight the significance of this day in history and its relevance to our present and future.

Honoring the resilience and achievements of the African American community and the ongoing fight for freedom, equality, and justice for all. Together, we can all appreciate where we come from, the journey it took to get us where we are today, and envision a future of progress and community.

Register for free tickets here:

Prelude to Juneteenth Day Celebration

Event Date: Wednesday, June 5, 2024 at 7:00 pm

Royce Hall at UCLA

Brief note on the Symphony No. 4 Juneteenth (Identity 34:1), by Earl Louis Stewart:

This work for chorus and orchestra was written to commemorate the early 19th-century Juneteenth celebrations and is musically designed to reflect the format of those celebrations. To this extent, the work may be deemed programmatic.

Though the Emancipation Proclamation was issued by President Abraham Lincoln on September 22, 1862, and became effective January 1, 1863, it was not until June 19, 1865—two and a half years later— that the people of Texas, including 250,000 enslaved people, were informed that slavery had been abolished. This day became known as Juneteenth and is celebrated not only in Texas, but also in some form from Washington State to New York, and from Illinois to Texas.

Composer Earl Louis Stewart, on traveling from Louisiana to Texas during his college years, became aware of the (now) federal holiday, which was first recognized in Texas in 1980.  Stewart also participated in activities surrounding Juneteenth celebrations as a Fulbright fellow in Ghana, and through these experiences over the years, the idea for his Symphony No. 4: Juneteenth (Identity 34:1) was born.

The composition utilizes two prominent forms of African American music in the last half of the 19th century: ragtime and spirituals.

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