32nd African American Gospel Music Festival Set for Nov. 5

10/17/2017 

32nd African American Gospel Music Festival Set for Nov. 5

Four guest choirs will perform at the 32nd African American Gospel Music Festival on Sunday, Nov. 5, at SUNY Cortland.

The festival begins at 4 p.m. in Corey Union Function Room. The event is open to the public. Tickets are free for students and general admission but donations to support the Gospel Choir Scholarship Fund are encouraged.

The Promise Land Church in Syracuse, N.Y., directed by Deyquan Bowens, will participate in the festival for only the second time. Syracuse University Black Celestial Choral Ensemble (BCCE) returns for the 32nd consecutive year. Rounding out the festival will be Binghamton University Gospel Choir, Jamel Jett, and festival host SUNY Cortland Gospel Choir, directed by Deyquan Bowens, Africana Studies Department.

Student Government Association Vice President Gloria Hulede will extend the welcome on behalf of the College. Pastor Rita Wright from God’s Light House of Praise will present the invocation.

A mass choir comprised of all groups will come together and sing part of the grand finale. Musicians for the festival will be Deyquan Bowens playing keyboard, Benjamin Terry on drums and Thomas Carter on bass. A reception will follow in Corey Union Exhibition Lounge. The event is open to the public.

The SUNY Cortland Gospel Choir is a part of the College’s Africana Studies Department. The choir is supported by the Center for Gender and Intercultural Studies, Alumni Engagement, the Cortland College Foundation, the Division of Student Affairs, the President’s Office, the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Office, and the student activity fee.

For more information, contact Gospel Choir advisor Lima Stafford at 607-753-4895, or Seth Asumah or Deyquan Bowens in the Africana Studies Department.