“At this pivotal time in history, Americas art song literature provides a means of communicating, in the simple beauty of word and music, the truths of a nation born of an ideology whose language celebrates the individual. This language of heart and mind says everything about the culture that created it. And when we sing our own songs, those who hear us will have experienced the best of what freedom of thought and purpose can achieve in the creation of great art.” -Thomas Hampson

Thomas Hampson’s new educational initiative and tour, Song of America: Beyond Liberty, launches this August. This innovative multimedia performance premieres on August 19 in collaboration with the Glimmerglass Festival at the Alice Busch Opera Theater. Hampson, a lifelong champion of song who has dreamt of this project for the last 20 years, will guide audiences through centuries of stories using personal anecdotes, historical monologues, and readings of his favorite poetry, to share in celebrating America’s history of song.

Developed with stage director Francesca Zambello and writer Royce Vavrek, this tour will launch a meaningful and ongoing dialogue with communities, using music as a catalyst for change. Traveling to all 50 states, as well as Washington D.C. and Puerto Rico, Song of America: Beyond Liberty will share with audiences, students, and educators, the rich history of the influential people and events that helped shape and define “the land of the free.”

For more information about the Hampsong Foundation click here.