Iholba’: The Vision

At Cantabile’s final concert of the 2022-23 season — a season where we are examining how art is an essential part of our humanity — we invite you to a celebration of cultures both familiar and foreign.

Specifically, we will be honoring the culture of the Chickasaw Nation through Chickasaw native Jerod Tate’s work, Iholba’ (The Vision). The musical material for Iholba’ is based on a Chickasaw Garfish Dance song and is sung in the Chickasaw language. Composed for chorus and orchestra, the gives the choir the great opportunity to collaborate with 16 local string, woodwind, and percussion instrumentalists.

Accompanying this central work will be three additional pieces:

• Stomp on the Fire by Andrea Ramsey, which uses the voice and the percussive sounds of the body to create an expression of our collective human journey
• Chante Waste Hoksila (My Kind-hearted Boy), a traditional Lakota lullaby arranged by Linthicum-Blackhorse in 2022 in honor of the children of Uvalde
• Wichita Baptist Hymn transcribed by Tracey Gregg-Boothby and arranged by Andrew Marshall, which examines and preserves two melodies of the Southern Plains Wichita tribe, or Kitikiti’sh, of which she is a member.

Join us as we explore how art is a defining feature of cultures and how it helps reconnects us to our common humanity while acknowledging our important differences. Indeed, all cultures share art. It is therefore the perfect vessel through which we can learn about cultures different than our own and to build bridges of understanding and compassion.