UniteBoston

Nurturing Relational Connections Across Boston's Christian Community

Filled with Laughter Comedy Benefit

Bring your friends to this fun-filled evening of comedy and entertainment to help raise $25,000 for scholarships for women served by Hagar’s Sisters, who are striving to overcome their experience of domestic abuse.

The funds raised at this event will provide women with scholarships for full access to life-giving services including safety planning, legal consultation, referral to resources, prayer, and Biblically-based education and support.
Your ticket includes access to live comedy, silent & live auctions, musical entertainment, door prizes and a delicious dessert reception!

Tickets available here: https://hagarssisters.ticketbud.com/filledwithlaughter

Aardvark Jazz Orchestra to premiere the latest work by Mark Harvey, Faces of Souls

The Aardvark Jazz Orchestra continues its historic 45th season on Saturday, April 7, 2018 at 8:00 pm, with a show on MIT’s main stage, Kresge Auditorium, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02139. The orchestra will perform the premiere of director Mark Harvey’s latest work, Faces of Souls, together with other Mark Harvey originals.  Presented by MIT Music & Theater Arts.  Free and open to the public.  Information: 617-452-3205 or 617-776-8778.

Mark Harvey is a composer, educator, bandleader and retired Methodist minister.  Many of his compositions explore themes of peace and social justice in American history and contemporary culture.   The program on April 7 will center around these themes, His piece Faces of Souls is inspired by the Charles Ives composition Boston Common and the Augustus Saint-Gaudens statue commemorating Colonel Robert Gould Shaw and the 54th Massachusetts Regiment, heroes of the Civil War.  The April 7 show will feature other works by Mark Harvey, including The Journey (honoring Martin Luther King, Jr. and the struggle for civil rights), and Blue Butterfly, a blues evoking the late Brother Blue (aka Hugh Morgan Hill), a legendary storyteller famous in Boston and beyond, and a longtime friend of Aardvark.  The evening finale will be Harvey’s piece No Walls, Aardvark’s anthem of hope and inclusivity.

The Aardvark Jazz Orchestra has been praised as “stunningly beautiful and adventurous” (New York City Jazz Record),”captivating” (Jazz Improv), “spellbinding” (The Boston Globe), and “beyond category” (Downbeat).  JazzTimes wrote, “Aardvark suggests the best and the brashest of Charles Mingus, Gil Evans, George Russell, and even Frank Zappa.”

Founded in 1973, Aardvark has been a force in the international jazz scene for more than 45 years. The orchestra has premiered more than 175 works and appears on 14 CDs, including 8 on the Leo Records label.  Guest artists have included jazz luminaries Jaki Byard, Sheila Jordan, Jimmy Giuffre, Geri Allen, Lewis Porter, Dominique Eade, Walter Thompson, and Matt Savage.

Founder and music director Mark Harvey has performed at the Knitting Factory, the Village Gate, the National Gallery of Art (DC), Fenway Park, Boston’s Symphony Hall, the Berlin Jazz Festival (Germany), and the Baja State Theater (Mexico), to name a few.  He has recorded with George Russell and Baird Hersey, and performed with Gil Evans, Howard McGhee, Sam Rivers, and others.  Dr. Harvey teaches jazz studies at MIT.

Aardvark is: Allan Chase, Phil Scarff, Chris Rakowski, Dan Zupan/saxes and woodwinds; K.C. Dunbar, Jeanne Snodgrass/trumpets; Bob Pilkington, Jay Keyser/trombones; Jeff Marsanskis, Bill Lowe/bass trombones, tuba; Richard Nelson/guitar; John Funkhouser/string bass; Harry Wellott/drums; Jerry Edwards and Grace Hughes, vocalists; Mark Harvey/trumpet, music director.  Aardvark veterans Arni Cheatham and Peter H. Bloom will miss the April 7 show, but will be back on the bandstand soon.

The Aardvark Jazz Orchestra is managed by Americas Musicworks, Rebecca DeLamotte, director, telephone 617 776 8778, email:  delamotte-amw@comcast.net

Faithful EP Release Party

Serene Chua, originally from Malaysia and currently based in Boston, is a worship leader and serves with The Navigators at Boston University. She is releasing her debut EP, called Faithful.

Faithful isn’t just about the songs but the journey she’s been on that led to writing them. The faithfulness of God has been an anchor for her in seasons of uncertainty and waiting, heartache and loss.

Come celebrate the release of her debut EP with a time of worship. There will be light refreshments and CD’s for sale.

Her prayer is for all to know and experience the goodness and faithfulness of God, regardless of the season one finds themselves in.

Look out for Faithful on all major music platforms on March 23!

Kendall Ramseur: Bringing Unity Through Music

Kendall Ramseur is a budding new artist in the Greater Boston area, and was recently awarded the Gospel/Inspirational Arts of the Year at the Boston Music Awards. This week, UniteBoston interviewed him to hear more about his journey, and how God is using his music to bring together Christians in Greater Boston.

—-
Kendall Ramseur describes one goal of his music: to inspire. And this is just the beginning of what he does.

When I first saw Kendall Ramseur play, I was struck by its unique sound: Classical instruments coupled with a strong rhythmic vibe and fresh lyrics. Somehow the instruments were able to pull in the older generation, yet the younger generation was head-bopping to the beat. The music had Christian undertones and values, and yet it wasn’t so explicitly Christian to turn off those who might not share the faith. As an artist, this tension is difficult to manage, and thus regardless of who you are or where you come from, Kendall Ramseur has something for you.

This was made evident at Kendall’s performance at First Night Boston, where a kaleidoscope of people were in the audience – Asians, African Americans, and Caucasians. Temi, manager of Kendall Ramseur Music Enterprise, states that “Kendall’s music is universal. It crosses gender, race and nationality. Everyone can listen to it and relate to it. In this way, it’s boundless.”

But Kendall hopes for so much more than just bringing people together. When asked about his dream for the Christian community, Kendall said that he hopes “We can all be in one accord, that we can be united and able to move past the whole denomination thing.” So how does he think this could happen? “It would be great if everyone could sit down together at the same table, making it clear that we’re all children of God and need to work together.” It sounds like God is already making this happen through the kaleidoscope of people that connect with his music.

For Kendall, it’s not just about playing music; he also sees the band as his greatest ministry. “When I played at the Dana Farber Cancer Center, someone came up to me and said that it brought him so much comfort. People sense things in my performance, and tell me that they have perfect peace.” He has also seen people physically healed by the power of God, simply through listening to the music.

It’s been quite a journey for Kendall this past year, and the one thing he would like to tell Christians in Greater Boston is that “God is faithful. I started out with no job, no income, and no clue of what I wanted to do. Within 8 or 9 months, I was playing fifty shows, and nominated for the Boston Music Awards. These are two opposite extremes – from nothing to great favor & blessings within a few months. This just shows that God is capable, God is faithful, and He is real. Once you find out what God is calling you to, give your all to that and trust it all to Him.”

What an incredible piece of advice. As you can see, God is using Kendall Ramseur to bring hope, inspiration, and unity to a world that is so desperate for it.

-Kelly Steinhaus
Team Leader, UniteBoston

—
Learn more:
– If you’d like to see Kendall play, you can visit him at the Celebration of the Arts, downtown at the Fairmont on January 26th from 6 to 10pm.
– You can also help Kendall get a “real cello” by contributing to the Go Fund Me Account here
– Kendall Ramseur’s Documentary
– Click here to check out his TIME CD on iTunes


Give to Further Christian Unity

DONATE!