Medford, Oregon (September 1, 2021)—Jackson County Library Services (JCLS) will host flutist Galen Abdur-Razzaq on Wednesday, September 15 from 6:30–7:30 p.m. via the Zoom video conferencing app. Abdur-Razzaq, an accomplished musician and spoken-word artist will present the lecture and performance “Jazz and the Civil Rights Movement.” All are welcome to attend this free lecture; registration is required.
An educator, arranger, composer, and director, Abdur-Razzaq studied at the Berklee College of Music and earned a master’s degree in education from Rutgers University. For more than 30 years, he has performed and spoken to college and university students across the country.
Abdur-Razzaq’s program chronicles music from the turn of the century to present day and highlights various artists, their music, their influence on the evolution of jazz, and their struggles during a 60-minute audiovisual presentation. It also illustrates how jazz became an advocacy for the Civil Rights Movement, with proceeds from jazz concerts used to finance major events such as the Freedom Rides and the March on Washington in 1963. Abdur-Razzaq infuses musical demonstrations throughout the lecture. Close by testing your knowledge of the subject with a trivia quiz.
Program registration can be found at jcls.libcal.com/calendar/jcls_event/Abdur-Razzaq. A recording of the program will later be made available on the Jackson County Library Services YouTube channel; subscribe at youtube.com/c/JCLSBeyond.