“I Dream a World: The Harlem Renaissance and Beyond” is a two-part festival and celebration of music and poetry from, and inspired by, the explosion of artistic expression emanating outwards from 1920s New York. With a program curated by Dr. Tammy Kernodle of Miami University of Ohio and New World Symphony Artistic Director Laureate Michael Tilson Thomas, “I Dream A World” features a kaleidoscopic view of African-American sound. 

Guest Kevin Young, The New Yorker poetry editor and Director of the Smithsonian National Museum of African-American History and Culture, pairs poetry by figures such as Langston Hughes and Pauli Murray with choral arrangements and small combo performances by The Ambassador Chorale of Florida Memorial University and New World Symphony Fellows. 

And conductor Thomas Wilkins leads the fellows in “Victory Stride: The Orchestral Legacy of the Harlem Renaissance,” featuring colorful orchestral expressions by composers including Duke Ellington, Florence Price, and William Grant Still.

The broadcast production includes two episodes:

1. A one-hour program highlighting chamber music, solo piano, and choral performances, as well as poetry (two segments with a total duration of 58 minutes).

2. A two-hour program that consists of the New World Symphony’s “Victory Stride” concert, as well as additional poetry, chamber music, piano, and choral selections from the festival (two segments with a total duration of 1:58:00).

Hosted by James Bennett II, each of these programs include additional voices from the festival in interview excerpts that add to the incredible depth and texture of the artistic expressions of the Harlem Renaissance.

Host: James Bennett II

Producer: Alan McLellan

Executive Producer: Brian McCreath