The American composer, 42, is becoming increasingly acclaimed for his thought-provoking works. While at home in a variety of musical forms, he has leaned progressively towards composing for the voice, and his latest cycle, Songs in Flight, is performed on 11 March at Wheaton College in Chicago, where Okpebholo is based today.
MEET THE COMPOSER
I am here today because people took time and said, ‘You know what? This kid has something…’ My mom was a single mom and couldn’t afford music lessons – we lived in government housing in one of the poorest areas of Lexington, Kentucky. The Salvation Army church bus would come through and so we went to a Wednesday night programme, like a boy scout/girl scout thing. When I was eight they gave me a baritone horn, my twin sister an alto horn (or tenor horn) and my younger sister a cornet, plus we sang in the choir. People saw promise in me and they invested their time – they didn’t have to do this and I am so grateful. There are so many people in our country that don’t have the opportunity. I’m no smarter, no more talented, no more driven; I was just afforded the opportunity and I took it.
When I was a teenager I wrote a little setting of a hymn for euphonium and piano. James Curnow, who was a very prominent local composer and euphonium player, offered to give me euphonium lessons. Those lasted maybe a month or two before I said, ‘Mr Curnow, I really do appreciate this, but I’d rather you teach me composition,’ and he said he’d much rather do that anyway!
I am a deeply spiritual, religious person.
And so my faith is important in terms of inspiration. It’s funny because there are people with different faiths than me, or no faith at all, who write brilliant music; but for me I can go to that space or place and I’m convinced that when I’m at a loss, when I need something, my faith will help me create something out of nothing. I don’t think I can do that on my own.
Songs in Flight is a very special work. It’s based on a project spearheaded by Cornell University called ‘Freedom on the Move’, which is a huge collection of newspaper ads for runaway enslaved Africans. They’re very powerful and dehumanised these people so much. I’d just finished a series of justice pieces about Black pain and I didn’t know if I could do it; I thought maybe I needed to take a break and do something more joyful. But I thought it was important and I was so thankful that I did because it has been an
