PRESS

“The singers’ multipart harmonies, call-and-respond techniques and beautiful descants

transformed the folk repertoire with classical polish.” - The Grand Rapids Press

“...a wonderful experience...”- National Public Radio

“...The Princely Players didn’t just give the audience a history lesson- they also

provided exciting, gut-wrenching theater.”- The Nashville Scene

“...the Players conduct an evocative and educational tour of the black experience from

its African roots to today.” –The Tennessean

“...moving...modern with due reference to tradition.” – The Richmond Times-Dispatch

“The Princely Players give spirituals the royal treatment.”- Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

“The Princely Players epitomize the power that can come through in performing arts.”

- Appollo’s Struggle A Performing Arts Odessey in the Athens of the South Nashville,

TN by Martha Rivers Ingram with D.B. Kellogg

"In the tradition of the Jubilee Singers and the Fairfield Four, The Princely Players offer evocative and stunning programs on the enslavement and liberation of African-Americans. The eight-member ensemble has performed their unique program of spirituals, work songs, hymns, and songs of freedom."

- The Crossville Chronicle

BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY

The centuries old struggle for freedom by Africans in America, culminating in the civil rights movement and continuing even today, stands as a shining example of the power and dignity of the human spirit. This story is told by the performance of The Princely Players. The Princely Players have been featured on National Public Radio and the BBC and has been heard on the Smithsonian's “Wade in the Water” series and the “Time-Life Civil War” recordings. The essence of this spirit is embodied in the music that was a part of the experience. Songs of hope and the quest for freedom are found in the struggle to survive the difficult and de-humanizing trauma of slavery. And these songs were the galvanizing force in the struggle against what must have seemed impossible odds. Amazing Grace, Steal Away, Swing Low Sweet Chariot, Go Down Moses, and Wade in the Water are all testaments that still speak powerfully to us today. In the tradition of the early singers of the music of African American life, The Princely Players offer evocative and stunning programs on the enslavement and liberation of African-Americans. The eight-member ensemble has performed their unique program of spirituals, work songs, hymns, and songs of freedom at the Tennessee Performing Arts Center, Yale University, Ryman Auditorium, Little Rock's Festival of Religious Arts, and the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC- among many others. With song and poetry from the earliest sources of African American music in this country to the civil war and the civil rights movement, The Princely Players deliver performances with superb voices and exceptional stage presence. The Princely Players have collaborated with Ladysmith Black Mambazo the Nashville Symphony, the Nashville Chamber Orchestra and the Nashville Ballet. Members of the ensemble are sought after for workshops in the areas of American History, African-American Studies, and Choral Studies.

The Princely Players were founded in 1967 while students at Cameron High School in Nashville, Tennessee from the cast of a high school play. Following graduation, members pursued their professional careers and reunited for their class reunion in 1968. The Princely Players is a 501(c) (3) non-profit organization. The purposes of the group are to foster and develop a popular appreciation of the Negro Spiritual and African-American history and culture. Additionally, to encourage young people to develop their creative expression and to awaken the sleeping talents which they possess, in order to bring forth a more perfect love of themselves.