Karen Slack to Honor Composer Florence Price in Final Lyric Unlimited Recital
The recital takes place on Saturday, June 14, 2025, at 2:00 p.m. at First United Methodist Church at the Chicago Temple.
Lyric Opera of Chicago’s Learning and Civic Engagement division, Lyric Unlimited, will present the final performance in soprano Karen Slack’s three-part recital series as Lyric Unlimited’s 2024/25 Artist-in-Residence. Inspired by her Grammy Award-winning album Beyond the Years, the recital takes place on Saturday, June 14, 2025, at 2:00 p.m. at First United Methodist Church at the Chicago Temple.
This culminating recital celebrates the music and legacy of Florence Price (1887–1953), a groundbreaking composer whose ties to Chicago run deep. After moving to Chicago in the 1920s, Florence Price became a vital part of the city’s South Side music scene, where she composed much of her most enduring work. In 1933, she became the first African American woman to have a symphony performed by a major U.S. orchestra — the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.
Many of Price’s art songs — intimate works filled with poignancy, lyricism, and spiritual depth — were unpublished or unknown for decades and only in recent years have been brought to light. Slack’s album Beyond the Years, released by Azica Records in collaboration with ONEcomposer, features 19 of these songs, including 16 world premiere recordings. The album made history at the 2025 Grammy Awards, winning Best Classical Solo Vocal Album — the first time the award has been given to a recording composed entirely by a Black woman.
Slack has long felt a personal connection to Price’s music and journey. She created Beyond the Years as both an artistic and emotional response to Price’s legacy — illuminating newly explored works and celebrating the voice of a Black woman composer whose brilliance is being embraced with renewed appreciation.
"Florence Price wrote music that speaks to the soul — deep, rich, and unapologetically Black," says Slack. "When I first encountered her art songs, I felt something awaken in me. Her story and her sound felt so familiar, and so necessary. It has been the greatest honor of my residency at Lyric to bring her songs to Chicago audiences, and to tell her story through mine. Beyond the Years isn’t just a title — it’s a legacy, and one I hope inspires generations to come."
Joining Slack for this live performance is Michael Banwarth, Ensemble pianist from Lyric’s Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan Opera Center. The pair will supplement the Florence Price repertoire with several Schubert lieder and a selection from Ravel. Following the recital, LaRob K. Rafael, program host at 98.7WFMT, will moderate a conversation with Slack exploring Price’s legacy and the emotional power of her music.
This performance marks the final public event of Karen Slack’s yearlong residency with Lyric Unlimited. Throughout the season, she has curated musical forums, led educational master classes, and fostered dynamic artistic conversations — helping to deepen Lyric’s ongoing commitment to equity, access, and cultural exploration through the arts.
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