Black Violin will take the stage at the Preston Arts Center Saturday, November 6, bringing their unique blend of classical and hip-hop music to Henderson as part of their “Impossible Tour” featuring their Grammy-nominated album Take the Stairs.
For 17 years, Black Violin has been merging string arrangements with modern beats and vocals and building bridges in communities along the way. Members Kev Marcus and Wil Baptiste first met in orchestra class at Dillard High School in Fort Lauderdale, becoming classically trained on the violin and viola through their high school and college careers. Post-college, they reconvened to produce beats for South Florida rappers, and began building an audience in local clubs. They later went on to win Showtime at the Apollo in 2005, and eventually sold out headline performances at venues across the country, including a sold out two-night headline run at The Kennedy Center in 2018. NPR took note and declared “their music will keep classical music alive for the next generation.” Black Violin’s latest release, Take the Stairs, earned a Grammy Award nomination for “Best Contemporary Instrumental Album”.
Pre-pandemic, Black Violin was playing over 200 shows a year, with the goal of challenging stereotypes and preconceived notions of what a “classical musician” looks and sounds like.
“The stereotypes are always there, embedded so deep in our culture,” says Wil. “Just by nature of our existence we challenge those ideas. It’s a unique thing that brings people together who aren’t usually in the same room, and in the current climate, it’s good to bring people together.”
Join Black Violin and the Henderson Area Arts Alliance for an evening full of uplifting and inspiring, genre-bending music. Masks are required in all areas of the Preston Arts Center at this time to keep audiences, the band, and their crew safe.
Tickets available here or by calling 270-826-5916. The show is sponsored by the Raymond B. Preston Family Foundation and Dick and Sheila Beaven Family Foundation.
For more information about Black Violin, visit blackviolin.net.
