FORT WAYNE, Ind. (ADAMS) – A Fort Wayne favorite is returning to the Embassy this fall. It was announced this week the Black Violin will return to the Summit City with their Give Thanks tour.
Black Violin employs playful storytelling, whimsical string melodies and hard-hitting beats to highlight the unifying pillars of the holiday season: giving back to others and being wholeheartedly thankful.
They will play the Embassy Theatre on Wednesday, November 16, 2022 at 7:30 p.m. Member pre-sale will begin, Thursday, July 21 at 10 a.m.; tickets go on sale to the public on Friday, July 22 at 10 a.m.
Black Violin is led by classically trained string players Wil Baptiste (viola) and Kev Marcus (violin). Joining them onstage are DJ SPS and drummer Nat Stokes. Fans can expect to dance along to hits from the band’s Grammy Nominated Take the Stairs album as well as holiday favorites from their Give Thanks album.
For 17 years, Black Violin has been merging string arrangements with modern beats and vocals and building bridges in communities along the way. Kev and Wil first met in orchestra class at Dillard High School in Fort Lauderdale, becoming classically trained on the violin and viola through their high school and college careers. Post-college, they reconvened to produce beats for South Florida rappers and began building an audience in local clubs. They later went on to win Showtime at the Apollo in 2005 and eventually sold out headline performances at venues across the country including a sold out two-night headline run at The Kennedy Center in 2018. NPR took note and declared “their music will keep classical music alive for the next generation.” Black Violin’s release, Take the Stairs, earned a Grammy Award nomination for Best Contemporary Instrumental Album.
Pre-pandemic, Black Violin was playing over 200 shows a year (many of these were performances for young low-income students in urban communities; in the last year alone, the group played for over 100,000 students) with the goal of challenging stereotypes and preconceived notions of what a “classical musician” looks and sounds like. “The stereotypes are always there, embedded so deep in our culture,” says Wil. “Just by nature of our existence we challenge those ideas. It’s a unique thing that brings people together who aren’t usually in the same room, and in the current climate, it’s good to bring people together.”
Last year, the group launched the Black Violin Foundation Inc. (BVF), a non-profit organization dedicated to empowering youth by providing access to quality music programs in their community. BVF believes that music and access to music programs should not be determined by race, gender or socio-economic status. Black Violin Foundation’s inaugural program – the Musical Innovation Grant for Continuing Education – will provide scholarships to young music students to attend a program of their liking that fosters musical creativity and innovation.
Listen to Give Thanks here
For tickets and more info, click here
