Chorus Polaris, with the Laura Caviani Trio, tenor James Ahrens and baritone Elwyn Fraser, presents Dave Brubeck's The Gates of Justice at 7:00 p.m. on March 17, 2024 at Hennepin Avenue United Methodist Church (511 Groveland Ave., Minneapolis, MN 55403). A pre-concert discussion with Pastor Elijah McDaniel III of Fellowship Baptist Church and Rabbi Marcia Zimmerman of Temple Israel will take place at 6:00 p.m. Concert tickets provide admission to the discussion.

The Gates of Justice is the second large-scale sacred work by Dave Brubeck. Written in 1969, it was a joint commission by the Union of American Hebrew Congregations and the College Conservatory of Music at the University of Cincinnati.

This cantata was written to bring together (and back together) Jewish and Black Americans in the wake of the 1968 assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. The natural bond that had forged between them during the civil rights struggle in the early 1960s had weakened and was starting to break down by 1969.

In his original program notes, Brubeck wrote:

"The essential message of The Gates of Justice is the brotherhood of man. Concentrating on the historic and spiritual parallels of Jews and American blacks, I hoped through the juxtaposition and amalgamation of a variety of musical styles to construct a bridge upon which the universal theme of brotherhood could be communicated. ... "

All in all, it is a work of profound and timely significance. When he finished the first recording of The Gates of Justice, Brubeck mused to the other musicians:

"It's a good thing we're recording this now, because with the progress of the civil rights movement, it will soon be out of date."

Unfortunately, the work of seeking justice for all goes on, as it has for centuries. And this music could hardly be more timely.

The video below was published in August 2011.

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The Gates of Justice

The Gates of Justice are Open!