Classical Interludes: American Mavericks Project Vl. 1: Quest

American Mavericks Project Vl. 1: Quest is pianist Chelsea Randall’s interdisciplinary commissioning project celebrating trailblazing the potent and timely work of Black Arts Movement poets and the legacy of her great uncle, the poet and editor Dudley Randall, through the lens of new piano music. Chelsea will give the NY premiere of six new pieces for solo piano by esteemed composers Carolyn Yarnell, Adolphus Hailstork, Joyce Solomon Moorman, Anthony R. Green, Regina Harris Baiocchi and Jeremiah Evans, based on the poetry of Sonia Sanchez, Nikki Giovanni, Amiri Baraka, Naomi Long Madgett and Dudley Randall, who platformed these poets via his Detroit-based Broadside Press. Special guest poets Melba Joyce Boyd–Michigan’s Poet Laureate and Dudley Randall’s biographer, and Jon Randall–Dudley’s nephew, will join Chelsea onstage for live readings. Quest is dedicated to the memory of Nikki Giovanni.

The American Mavericks Project (AMP) is dedicated to seldom-heard, recently discovered and contemporary piano music by Black American composers 1900-present, with emphasis on 21st century composers, through performances, commissions, education and research. https://www.americanmavericksproject.com/

About Chelsea: NY-native pianist Chelsea Randall is a dedicated advocate of underrepresented and new music. She has performed at venues including NY’s Carnegie Hall and Alice Tully Hall, Old First Concerts in SF, University of Cambridge, UK and Théâtre Adyar in Paris, and her playing has been broadcast on NY’s WQXR, NPR and WWFM. She has received awards from New Music USA, Brooklyn Arts Council, Music Talks, Conservatoire de Paris and McGill University among others. She is the founder of the American Mavericks Project (AMP) dedicated to piano music by Black composers, and the founder of the Crossings Project, which explores links between African and Western music. She has premiered, commissioned and debuted music by composers Jeremiah Evans, Brittney Benton, Lilyanne Dorilas, Andrea Casarrubios, Natalie Dietterich, KiMani Bridges, Joyce Solomon Moorman, Grace Coberly, Chloe Clarke Smith and many others. Highlights of her ‘26-’27 season includes the world premiere and US tour of Quest–an interdisciplinary commissioning project celebrating Black Arts Movement poetry through music, a series of NYC concerts pairing J.S. Bach with diverse, contemporary composers, and nationwide AMP lecture-recitals. Chelsea is an alum of Juilliard, NYU and The Royal College of Music. https://www.chelsearandall.com/