| Black Violin Announces New Album Take the Stairs
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| Today, the classical-meets-hip-hop duo Black Violin announced a November 1st release date for their album Take The Stairs. The announcement comes with the album’s first single “Showoff” – referred to by Black Violin as a “classic instrumental,” the song displays the group’s technical virtuosity while incorporating fiery, energetic production. The track is accompanied by an official video featuring a variety of athletes and influencers showing off their own impressive feats and stunts.
Watch or embed the video via YouTube: For 16 years, Black Violin members Kev Marcus and Wil Baptiste have been merging string arrangements with modern beats and vocals. The two met in orchestra class at Dillard High School in Ft. 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. Their unique brand of merging the genre they were listening to (hip hop) with the world they were studying (classical) was celebrated with collaborations with Alicia Keys, Wu Tang Clan, 2 Chainz and others. NPR took note and declared “their music will keep classical music alive for the next generation.” UPROXX also featured Black Violin in a mini-documentary as part of their “Uncharted” series, watch the video HERE. The duo plays over 200 shows a year (many of these are 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.” Facebook – Twitter – Instagram – Official Website Tracklisting: 1. Rise 2. One Step 3. Showoff 4. Unbreakable 5. Lost In The Garden 6. Serenade 7. Dreamer 8. Spaz 9. New Life 10. Al Green 11. Impossible Is Possible 12. A Way Home 13. Elgar Nimrod
Tour Dates: 9.21.19 – St. Joseph, MN – College of Saint Benedict’s Escher Auditorium 9.22.19 – Iowa City, IA – Englert Theatre 9.24.19 – Kalamazoo, MI – State Theatre of Kalamazoo 9.25.19 – Lexington, KY – Lexington Opera House 9.26.19 – Pittsburgh, PA – Byham Theater 9.27.19 – Durham, NC – Art of Cool Festival 9.28.19 – Durham, NC – Art of Cool Festival 10.11.19 – Hartford, CT – Bushnell Center for Performing Arts 10.12.19 – Keene, NH – Colonial Theater 10.13.19 – Johnson, VT – Catamount Film & Arts 10.16.19 – East Lansing, MI – Wharton Center for Performing Arts 10.17.19 – Bloomington, IL – Bloomington Center for the Performing Arts 10.19.19 – Lawrence, KS – Lied Center of Kansas 10.23.19 – Fort Wayne, IN – Embassy Theater 10.24.19 – Wausau, WI – Grand Theater 10.25.19 – Madison, WI – Overture Hall 11.2.19 – York, PA – Strand Theatre 11.3.19 – Columbus, OH – Ohio Theatre 11.5.19 – Dayton, OH – Victoria Theatre Association 11.6.19 – Toledo, OH – Valentine Theatre 11.7.19 – Rochester, NY – Kodak Center Theater 11.8.19 – Philadelphia, PA – Kimmel Center Academy of Music 11.9.19 – Baltimore, MD – Meyerhoff Symphony Hall 11.14.19 – Oklahoma City, OK – Oklahoma City Community College PAC 11.15.19 – Little Rock, AR – University of Arkansas Pulaski Technical College 11.17.19 – St. Louis, MO – Touhill PAC 1.14.20 – Denver, CO – Paramount Theater Denver 1.17.20 – Logan, UT – Cache Valley Center for the Arts 1.18.20 – Durango, CO – Fort Lewis College Concert Hall 1.20.20 – Boise, ID – Egyptian Theater 1.21.20 – Salt Lake, UT – Kingsbury Hall, University of Utah 1.28.20 – Santa Barbara, CA – Granada Theatre – USB Arts & Lectures 1.31.20 – Chandler, AZ – Chandler Center for the Arts 2.1.20 – Wickenburg, AZ – Del E Webb Center for the Performing Arts 2.8.20 – Orlando, FL – Bob Carr Theatre – Dr. Philips Center 2.12.20 – Fort Myers, FL – Barbra B. Mann Performing Arts Hall 2.13.20 – Tallahassee, FL – Ruby Diamond Concert Hall 2.14.20 – Jacksonville, FL – Florida Theatre 2.20.20 – Tampa, FL – Straz Center for the Performing Arts 2.21.20 – Ft. Lauderdale, FL – Broward Center for the Performing Arts 2.27.20 – San Francisco, CA – Palace of Fine Arts Theatre 3.1.20 – Sacramento, CA – The Crest Theatre 3.5.20 – Los Angeles, CA – The Theatre at the Ace Hotel 3.6.20 – Escondido, CA – California Center for the Arts 3.27.20 – Purchase, NY – PAC at Purchase College 4.7.20 – Houston, TX – Jones Hall, Society for the Performing Arts 5.6.20 – Portland, OR – Portland’5 Keller Auditorium 5.7.20 – Eugene, OR – Hult Center for the Performing Arts |
