Grammy-winning Sweet Honey and the Rock® return to Goshen Nov. 17;
Group member to lead ‘Singing in the African-American Tradition’ Nov. 18

Concert: Performing Arts Series – Sweet Honey in the Rock^®
Date and time: Nov. 17, Saturday at 7:30 p.m.
Location: Sauder Concert Hall, Goshen College Music Center
Cost: If any tickets are returned, those will go on sale at the Music Center box office at 6:30 p.m. the night of the concert; ticket costs would be $40, $35, $20, $15 depending on seat location.
For more information: Call the Goshen College Welcome Center at (574) 535-7566 or e-mail welcomecenter@goshen.edu.
Web site: www.sweethoney.com

GOSHEN, Ind. – The Grammy award-winning a cappella ensemble Sweet Honey in the Rock^®will perform their unique blend of gospel, blues and jazz rooted in the African-American tradition on Nov. 17 at 7:30 p.m. in the Goshen College Music Center’s Sauder Concert Hall as part of the 10^th anniversary Goshen College Performing Arts Series.

For those unable to attend the concert, there is an additional unique opportunity. Ysaye Maria Barnwell, a member of Sweet Honey in the Rock^® since 1979, will lead “Singing in the African-American Tradition” Sunday, Nov. 18 from 1 to 3 p.m. at College Mennonite Church. She will lead the group in singing African-American spirituals, taught in the oral tradition. Barnwell presents workshops throughout the world utilizing African and African-American history, values, culture and vocal traditions as she invites communities to sing the songs steeped in her heritage.

Participants are invited to attend a potluck lunch in the church’s Fellowship Hall, beginning between 11:45 a.m. and noon, and are asked to bring along table service and a dish to share. The potluck and singing are free and the public is warmly invited to attend. Questions may be directed to the Goshen College Music Center at (574) 535-7361. The event is co-sponsored by the Goshen College Music Center and College Mennonite Church, with support from Arts Midwest and the Indiana Arts Commission.

Begun in 1973 as a four-person group, Sweet Honey in the Rock^® continues today as a sextet, attracting communities of conscience from all over. As both artists and cultural activists, Sweet Honey’s songs are often commentaries on issues pertinent to the day.

Bernice Johnson Reagon founded the group in Washington, D.C., where they are still based. Two members of the current sextet were part of the original Sweet Honey and the Rock^®. Another member now accompanies the group with American Sign Language.

The Washington Post described the group as “soulful, spirited, sumptuous and stirring,” and said that their “voices sufficiently resonant to match the sound of a big-band reed section, moving from barely audible purrs to full-throated roars – and then, ever so nimbly, back again.”

Sweet Honey in the Rock^® appeared in both the 1999 and 2003 Performing Arts Series. As part of the anniversary celebration, concertgoers from previous years were able to vote for the performers who visited over the past 10 years that they most wanted to see again. All performers that make up this year’s lineup received votes.

Though the concert is sold out, tickets that are returned may still be available the night of the concert. Those will go on sale at the Music Center box office at 6:30 p.m. Ticket costs would be $40, $35, $20 and $15, depending on seat location. For more information call the Goshen College Welcome Center at (574) 535-7566 or e-mail welcomecenter@goshen.edu.

– by Kelli Yoder

Editors: For more information about this release, to arrange an interview or request a photo, contact Goshen College News Bureau Director Jodi H. Beyeler at (574) 535-7572 or jodihb@goshen.edu.

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Goshen College, established in 1894, is a residential Christian liberal arts college rooted in the Anabaptist-Mennonite tradition. The college’s Christ-centered core values – passionate learning, global citizenship, compassionate peacemaking and servant-leadership – prepare students as leaders for the church and world. Recognized for its unique Study-Service Term program, Goshen has earned citations of excellence in Barron’s Best Buys in Education, “Colleges of Distinction,” “Making a Difference College Guide” and U.S. News & World Report’s “America’s Best Colleges” edition, which named Goshen a “least debt college.” Visit www.goshen.edu.