Converse Chorale: America at 250: A Work in Progress

Like the Spartanburg Master Chorale’s spring concert on April 16, 2026 Converse Chorale will present repertory especially chosen to honor and celebrate our nation’s 250th anniversary on April 23, 2026 in Daniel Recital Hall. The first half of the program will contain familiar patriotic pieces like “The Star-Spangled Banner,” “Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor,” and “Battle Hymn of the Republic.” Less familiar pieces that will round out the first half include “Nancy Hanks” (Abraham Lincoln’s mother) and “Heaven Is My Home,” an original composition based on a tune from Southern Harmony and composed by Converse Chorale’s accompanist, Lance Bastian. Some of the pieces of the second half of the program recall those in America’s history who have been marginalized, specifically black Americans and women; notably, “Mother to Son,” based on the powerful poem by Langston Hughes, and “Rise Up,” by Jake Runestad. The concert will conclude with Z. Randall Stroope’s “Homeland,” based on a tune by Gustav Holst with lyrics by Sir Cecil Spring-Rice. This event is free to attend and is open to the public. View the livestream on Converse’s YouTube channel at the start of the event.