Her pursuit for an answer led to a collaboration with international opera singer Marquita Lister.
Together, they created the New Generation Project under the UNC Process Series program. Their goal is to document African-American culture and explore spiritual music in a contemporary context.
“I saw audiences who don’t know anything about the experiences of slavery in United States hear something and connect to it,” Toppin said. “That’s why we want this project to help the new generation answer this question.”
The recital of the songs specifically written for the project will be held tonight and Saturday.
“We’re a couple of generations from slavery but we’re trying to keep and find a new context for spirituals,” Toppin said. “We’re trying to find a new way for the new generation to look at the history of African-Americans that doesn’t always come from popular music.”
Toppin and Lister are internationally known sopranos, and both are also members of the National Association for Negro Musicians.
The project began more than a year ago when Toppin and Lister commissioned composers to respond to poetry related to the African-American experience.
“This whole journey was a process for us as this is not how music is normally created for opera singers,” Toppin said. “Usually we tell the composers what we’re looking for, but this is one which they get to figure out what poetry they think would fit us.”
