A Musical, Literary, & Visual Journey
“REQUIEM FOR COLOUR: A Journey through Lament and Joy,” composed and conducted by Belmont University’s Dr. Jeffery L. Ames, was performed live at The Fisher Center for the Performing Arts on Tuesday, Feb. 25, 2025, in front of a sold-out audience. The event was also filmed and made its television debut on Nashville’s PBS station, WNPT. The entire concert aired on Monday, June 23, at 8pm CT with a re-airing on Friday, June 27, at 10pm CT. Be sure to watch at WNPT.org.
“What you will witness is a musical, literary, and visual journey that begins in West Africa and ends in present-day America,” Dr. Ames explained, leading up to the February concert event. “This requiem provides an ecstatic experience celebrating West African culture before traveling the perilous journey across the Atlantic, recounting slavery in the South, the Great Migration, revisiting civil rights of the 60s, and reckoning with our current societal vices of racism and injustice.”
Dr. Ames conducted a powerhouse orchestra comprising Belmont students joined by professional players, a chorus of nearly 200 singers from Belmont and Tennessee State University, two dynamic orators, and a soprano and tenor soloist. Dr. Ames also conducted the composition in London on June 2, 2025, with Vox Anima.
Dr. Jeffery L. Ames is the Director of Choral Activities in the College of Music & Performing Arts. He is also a Full Professor within the School of Music.