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Some Of These Days
“A musical ray of hope”
A musical reflection on social justice, progress and equality from Lara Downes and friends. In this time of global unrest and upheaval, Downes turns to freedom songs and spirituals that invoke our human capacity for optimism, activism, and unification in the face of crisis. In Lara’s words: “We are strong. We are resourceful. We have come through darkness into light, over and over again. Let’s lean on our ancestors and the lessons they have taught us about hope, courage, and above all unity.”
“This lyrical, evocative set un-starches the musical artifacts of African-American uplift. The pianist approaches spirituals, hymns and legacy pieces with a passion grounded in the knowledge that history is personal: each interpretation deeply reckons with what made her. ”
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This could be one of the year's most important recordings...Some of this music Lara Downes is playing has been with us for centuries. Her interpretations are so precious, that they should continue to extend for centuries to come. It’s a masterful recording.
-Glide Magazine
If there were ever an album that captured in music the interconnected nature of the fight for justice across generations, it is pianist and activist Lara Downes’ Some of These Days. Blurring genres, varying instrumentation, and collaborating with other musicians, Downes brings us an album that, track after track, delivers deeply moving and heartfelt performances of spirituals and freedom songs.
-Black Grooves Magazine
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About Lara Downes
Lara Downes is an iconoclast and trailblazer whose musical roadmap seeks inspiration from the legacies of history, family, and collective memory. Called “an explorer whose imagination is fired by bringing notice to the underrepresented and forgotten” by The Log Journal, Lara’s life and music are shaped by broad vision and courageous creativity.
Her forays into the broad landscape of American music have created a series of acclaimed recordings, including America Again, selected by NPR as one of "10 Albums that Saved 2016", and hailed as "a balm for a country riven by disunion" by the Boston Globe. Holes in the Sky, a genre-fluid celebration of women in music, debuted in Spring 2019 in the Billboard Top 10. Her upcoming album Some Of These Days is a collection of Spirituals and freedom songs reflecting on history, progress and social justice.
Lara’s concert work features creative collaborations with leading artists including folk icon Judy Collins, vocalists Rhiannon Giddens, Leyla McCalla and Toshi Reagon, baritone Thomas Hampson, pianist Simone Dinnerstein, writer Adam Gopnik and former U.S. Poet Laureate Rita Dove.
Lara’s’ fierce commitment to arts advocacy, mentorship and education sees her working in support of organizations including PLAN International, the Sphinx Organization, the Lower Eastside Girls Club, Watts Learning Center, and NPR’s From The Top, where she appears as a rotating guest host.
In 2020 Lara celebrates the Year of The Woman with world premieres of works by Florence Price, Margaret Bonds, Paola Prestini and Clarice Assad, in collaboration with the Chicago Symphony and the Louisville Orchestra.
Illustration by Emily Juarez, 7th Grade - Watts Learning Center, Los Angeles
