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Michal Dawson Connor

Michal Dawson Connor is an accomplished performer and composer of choral, chamber, and solo vocal works, with a particular emphasis on Slave songs created before the Civil War. He was born in Jamestown, New York and is a proud alumnus of Carnegie-Mellon University, and L'Ecole Hindemith in Vevey, Switzerland- where he studied voice with Blake Stern and Helen Boatwright. Championing American composers has always been a high priority for him, and Mr. Connor has concertized extensively throughout North America and Europe, specializing in the rich vocal repertoire of Charles Ives, Samuel Barber, Aaron Copland, and many others.

Mr. Connor's Broadway credits include featured performances in the Tony-Award winning productions of "RAGTIME" and "SHOWBOAT", as well as starring roles in productions of "THE MOST HAPPY FELLA", "BIG RIVER", and "PORGY AND BESS". In addition to soloing on multiple occasions for President Ronald Reagan, he's immensely proud of performing for Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Reverend Billy Graham, and Elizabeth Dole. Mr. Connor is a published author of "THE SLAVE LETTERS" currently available on Amazon.com. On network television, he was a guest star on "FRIENDS", as well as several appearances on the Emmy-Award winning show "EXTREME MAKEOVER: HOME EDITION" and "THE SURPRISE GARDENER".

Choral Music by Michal Dawson Connor

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for SATB a cappella choir, with soprano solo
MDC-004
SATB
4'15"
English
for mixed choir a cappella
MDC-019
SATB
English
This haunting melody, is one of the most beautiful songs that the slaves composed; bone-weary and sorrow-filled… with their eyes firmly fixed on a Great Deliverer somewhere up in heaven. The itinerant preachers that visited the plantations, selected specific passages from the Bible- guaranteeing them entrance to the Promised Land- if they worked hard for […]
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for SATB a cappella choir
MDC-011
SATB
English
This hauntingly, simple tune is one of the finest melodies ever written- to spring forth from such pain and sorrow. The immense power of faith and determination are imbued in every line of this gorgeous hymn, promising a better tomorrow.
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for baritone solo, and a cappella SATB choir
MDC-010
SATB
English
for SATB a cappella choir, with soprano solo
MDC-014
SATB
4'30"
English
This Spiritual has one of the most beautiful melodies in the entire canon, and is appropriate for inclusion in a worship service, or concert setting. The yearning and exalted words and simple melody, are as timely today as when this song was first composed.
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for SATB choir, bass solo and piano
MDC-003
SATB
English
This familiar Spiritual is intertwined with another less-known hymn-tune, from one of the earliest collections of Slave songs known- collected by William Francis Allen in 1867. This ardent abolitionist gathered many songs from the post- Slavery communities of Port Royal, South Carolina to create a remarkable published collection of African American music.
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for mixed choir a cappella
MDC-008
SATB
English
for SATB a cappella choir
MDC-022-pr
SATB
3'15"
English
This Spiritual strikes to the very heart of an enslaved people, fervently longing for freedom. The melody is quite simple, and is embellished with a layer of pathos, and yearning that is impossible to resist, or ignore. Absolutely appropriate for performance in a concert hall, as well as a liturgical setting.
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for SATB a cappella choir, with soprano solo
MDC-007
SATB
English
for soprano solo and men's choir a cappella
MDC-015
TTBB
English
An indomitable sense of hope, and unvarnished sorrow, permeate each line and melody of these unforgettable songs- forged in the anvil of abject misery and despair, aching for freedom’s light. Humiliated beyond all human reckoning, and given no respite from the daily drudgery of endless toil- these fiercely resilient souls somehow persevered, despite the harshest […]
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for SATB a cappella choir with soprano solo
MDC-002
SATB
3'45"
English
This early Nineteenth Century melody literally throbs with the pathos and dreams of an enslaved people, looking heavenward for deliverance. Scored for a cappella SATB choir, and soprano solo, this lush arrangement makes one stop in awe and wonderment, at such beauty born from the deepest despair.
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for SATB a cappella choir, with soprano solo
MDC-013
SATB
English
for baritone solo, and a cappella SATB choir
MDC-023
SATB
English
This joyous Spiritual proclaims a fervent belief in “Freedom’s Song”, and its infectious, jaunty, rhythm- coupled with a simple, yet unforgettable melody make this a perennial favorite in the canon of slave songs. Absolutely appropriate in the context of a religious service, or festival choir performance in a secular setting.
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for SATB a cappella choir, with treble solo
MDC-005
SATB
English
for baritone solo, treble choir and piano
MDC-009
for SATB a cappella choir, with Soprano and Baritone solos
MDC-024
SATB
3'35"
English
This Spiritual is one of the most well-known and beloved in the entire canon of Slave Songs , and has universal appeal — with it’s simple melody, and heartfelt lyrics — pleading for deliverance from earthly oppression in the same manner that Elijah was taken to his Heavenly Home. Perfectly appropriate for inclusion in a […]
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for SATB a cappella choir, with Soprano and Baritone solos
MDC-016
SATB
3'45"
English
‘Balm in Gilead’ is a fervent prayer to the heavens, to relieve the aches and weighty sorrows of an entire enslaved people. In his memorable autobiography, Frederick Douglass wrote these searing, and unforgettable words; “I have often been utterly astonished, since I came to the north, to find persons who could speak of the singing, […]
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for baritone solo and SATB choir, a cappella
MDC-017
SATB
English
This gorgeously heartfelt Spiritual gently asks the listener, exactly “where they were”, on the dark day when Jesus Christ was brutally crucified… and points an unflinching finger at themselves; a witness to the degrading torture and death that He endured, to expiate the world’s sins. In the entire canon of liturgical hymnody, very few pieces […]
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Music for Solo Voice by Michal Dawson Connor

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for baritone solo, treble choir and piano
Baritone
Choral
for solo voice and piano
for solo voice and piano
Baritone
Soprano
for solo voice and piano
for solo voice and piano
for solo voice and piano
4'
“Amazing Grace” has been called America’s most beloved hymn, and crosses all boundaries of denominations and faiths, with its simple nineteenth- century melody, and uplifting stanzas- penned by John Newton, 1779. This particular arrangement was inspired by listening to an old recording of Marian Anderson’s heartfelt rendition, and her magnificent voice piercing-through the ignorance and […]
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Music for other instruments by Michal Dawson Connor

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for Trumpet and Organ
Organ
Trumpet
Nine centuries ago, in the aftermath of the First Crusade (1095-9) Hugues de Payens and eight of his countrymen journeyed to Jerusalem and formed a community of warrior-monks, who came to be known as The Sovereign Military Order Of The Temple Of Jerusalem; or Knights Templar. Making monastic vows of obedience, chastity, and poverty, and charged […]
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