Slave Song

“Powerful” would be an understatement in describing both Frederick Douglass’s words and Adolphus Hailstork’s setting for Baritone with Piano accompaniment, also available for Cello ensemble with Timpani. Hailstork has created an 8-minute monodrama from a passage in Douglass’s landmark autobiography, where the great orator asks why boats can roam the sea while he must remain in chains.