Credit: Courtesy of the Savannah VOICE Festival
Credit: Courtesy of the Savannah VOICE Festival
“You know, I think many of us probably have memories of history maybe not being the most exciting subject when we were growing up,” says Chad Sonka, new executive director of Savannah VOICE Festival (SVF).
"However, some of our most engaging memories of learning history or any subject were more than likely accompanied by song. We learn our ABCs through music; we learn our fifty states to a jingle. It’s why School of Rock and Veggie Tales were so beloved. It’s why my friends and I memorized the Bill of Rights by putting it to the tune of '12 Days of Christmas' in eighth grade."
In collaboration with Historic Savannah Foundation (HSF), SVF seeks to bring that same joy of musical learning through “Songs and Stories in the Squares,” the finale of the “Week of Artistic Collaboration” running from Jan. 18-23. “Songs and Stories in the Squares” takes place on Sunday, Jan. 23 at 2 p.m. and will begin outside the Davenport House Museum on Columbia Square.
Credit: Courtesy of the Savannah VOICE Festival
Credit: Courtesy of the Savannah VOICE Festival
Docents and HSF supporters will give 10-minute lectures in Columbia, Greene, and Crawford Squares and SVF artists will perform selections, two songs in each square, that complement the theme of the lectures. Festival artists including Sonka, Peter Lake, and Sara Zoe Budnik will present repertoire accompanied by SVF Composer-in-Residence, Michael Ching.
Commissioned by SVF, Ching composed two operas relaying the stories and bearing the names of two important women in Savannah’s history, Alice Riley and Anna Hunter.
After 15-year-old Alice Riley escaped the Irish famine of 1733 to come work as an indentured servant in Savannah, she endured inhumane treatment as most trafficked enslaved women did. The subsequent murder of her master lead to her becoming the first woman to be hanged in Georgia. Centuries later, American preservationist Anna Hunter became one of the founders of the Historic Savannah Foundation in 1955 and played a key role in restoring and preserving the Davenport House, a house built in 1820 and the location of the start of the “Songs and Stories in the Squares” tour.
Credit: Courtesy Davenport House Musem
Credit: Courtesy Davenport House Musem
If you’re unable to make it out, SVF is also collaborating with the Savannah African Art Museum (SAAF) on Saturday, Jan. 22 at 6 p.m. for a virtual event. SAAF’s chief curator Billie Stultz will take audiences through some of the museum’s highlights, while SVF artists will perform international music written and arranged by BIPOC composers, including songs created by Savannah youth through SVF’s collaboration with the Deep Center’s Block by Block program last summer.
“Music doesn't exist in a vacuum,” says Sonka. “All of this fabulous music exists in history and we always love to partner with organizations that help exalt that.”
Through Sonka’s new position as executive director, seeing this event come to fruition through his own personal work has been incredibly rewarding. Beyond that, he says the opportunity to work with SVF’s new artistic director and Sonka’s long-time mentor, colleague, and professor at Manhattan School of Music, Jorge Parodi, has been an irreplaceable experience. “The second part has simply been to talk with Sue Adler at Historic Savannah Foundation to see what kind of stories we can tell, and [how] to get creative about that,” Sonka adds.
Credit: Courtesy of Savannah VOICE Festival
Credit: Courtesy of Savannah VOICE Festival
Often, learning history of any kind, in this case the history of an entire city, can feel daunting. It can feel overwhelming to figure out where to even start, especially without the structure of a formal education setting. These events can be helpful and engaging introductions to the history of Savannah and Sonka hopes that, more than anything, people will walk away with “enhanced curiosity.”
In the summer of 2013, when Sonka first started with Savannah VOICE Festival as their education and outreach coordinator, he remembers a day off that he and his new coworkers spent on a tour that took them through the local squares and brought history to life. However, it’s not only through museums and historical tours that he learned.
While splitting his time between serving on the voice faculty at Iowa State University and his work with SVF, Sonka still managed to visit Savannah no less than six times a year before COVID. “By just immersing myself in [Savannah’s] culture and people and food and history,” Sonka says. “That's how I've really learned.”
Credit: Courtesy of the Savannah VOICE Festival
Credit: Courtesy of the Savannah VOICE Festival
Of course, a formal education helps too. As was the case for Historic Savannah Foundation’s membership and development specialist Justin Bristol. After becoming “hooked on Savannah because [of] how well preserved the city is,” Bristol decided to pursue his Master of Arts in Public History at Armstrong State University. However, he emphasizes how “it's not about dates and names and events and battles and laws. It's about stories,” which is why he’s looking forward to how “Songs and Stories in the Squares” will help dispel the stuffy formality often associated with learning history.
It’s especially important to take advantage of events like this because of how tangible history is in Savannah. It goes beyond pages in a book to what Bristol describes as “narratives that are right beneath our feet when we walk around these squares.”
This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Savannah VOICE Festival, Historic Savannah Foundation collaborate for a day of musical learning
