Tomorrow, May 24: Phan & Palaver Strings release “A Change is Gonna Come”

(May 2024) — Three-time Grammy-nominated tenor Nicholas Phan, whom the Boston Globe
declared “one of the world’s most remarkable singers,” releases A Change Is Gonna Come on
the Azica label tomorrow, May 24. Recorded with Portland, Maine’s musician-led string
ensemble Palaver Strings and jazz vocalist Farayi Malek, the new album explores America’s rich
legacy of protest songs and includes the world premiere recording of a new commission by
Errollyn Wallen titled Protest Songs, sung by Phan. Eight of the thirteen tracks on the album are
heard in arrangements by Attacca Quartet’s Domenic Salerni. Spanning genres, eras, and
movements, A Change Is Gonna Come provokes conversation, confronts the past and present, and
celebrates the act of protest as one of humanity’s most precious rights. Phan elaborates:

“In an age where it seems like most tech algorithms’ primary goal is to provoke anger in order to
keep us scrolling on our phones, this program feels important. Music is unique as a form of
protest, because, as these songs demonstrate, it has the power to win hearts and minds. Hope for
lasting change lies in that special power of song, as does hope for healing and consensus building
in this increasingly fractured and fraught time.”

Phan and Palaver Strings will give a live performance of the album repertoire at Tanglewood this
summer (Aug 10). A single of Phan singing Joni Mitchell’s “Fiddle and the Drum” has already
been released, the album is available here for streaming or purchase, and is also available for
streaming at Apple Music and Spotify. A vinyl release through Onyx Record Press is planned for
July 1.

Meanwhile, Phan has high-profile performances upcoming in New York. This week, with the New
York Philharmonic led by Jaap van Zweden, he gives four performances as tenor soloist in
Mozart’s Requiem (May 23–28). Next week, he joins the Jasper String Quartet and pianist Myra
Huang at New York’s Kaufman Music Center – where he has served as artist-in-residence all
season – for the world premiere of Lamenting Earth, a new song cycle about climate change by
Vivian Fung (May 30).

About Nicholas Phan

American tenor Nicholas Phan is increasingly recognized as an artist of distinction. With an
incredibly diverse repertoire that spans nearly 500 years of music, he performs regularly with the
world’s leading orchestras and opera companies. Sought after as a curator and programmer, in
addition to his work as artistic director of Collaborative Arts Institute of Chicago, Phan has also
created programs for broadcast on WFMT and WQXR and served as guest curator for projects
with the Philadelphia Chamber Music Society, Merola Opera Program, and San Francisco
Performances, where he served as the vocal artist-in-residence from 2014-2018. A celebrated
recording artist, he has been nominated three times for the Grammy Award for Best Classical Solo
Vocal Album. He is the first singer of Asian descent to be nominated in the history of the category,
which has been awarded by the Recording Academy since 1959.

High-resolution photos can be downloaded here.

www.nicholas-phan.com
www.facebook.com/nicholasphantenor
www.instagram.com/grecchinois
www.twitter.com/grecchinois
www.youtube.com/c/NicholasPhantenor
nicholas-phan.com/blog

A Change Is Gonna Come track list

1 Blowin’ in the Wind (Bob Dylan arr. Salerni)
2 What Are You Fighting For? (Phil Ochs arr. Salerni)
3 Fiddle and the Drum (Joni Mitchell arr. Salerni)
4 “Der Mars” from Battalia à 10 (Heinrich Ignaz Franz von Biber)
5 Where Have all the Flowers Gone (Pete Seeger arr. Salerni)
6-7 Protest Songs (Errollyn Wallen; world premiere)
6 I. Boom Boom
7 II. Song for the People
8 Lovely, Dark & Lonely One (Harry T. Burleigh arr. Ian Gottlieb)
9 Strange Fruit (Lewis Allan arr. Jonathan Bingham)
10 Freedom is a Constant Struggle (Roberta Slavitt arr. Salerni)
11 Joe Hill (Alfred Hayes arr. Salerni)
12 It isn’t Nice (Malvina Reynolds arr. Salerni)
13 A Change Is Gonna Come (Sam Cooke arr. Salerni)

Violin: Teagan Faran, Bree Fotheringham, Maya French, Grant Houston, Kaitlyn Knudsvig, Abby Swidler
Viola: Brianna Howard, Lysander Jaffe, Elizabeth Moore
Cello: Matthew Smith, Nathaniel Taylor, Kamyron Williams
Bass: Nate Martin
Vocals: Nicholas Phan, Farayi Malek

Nicholas Phan upcoming performances

May 23, 24, 25 & 28
New York, NY
David Geffen Hall
New York Philharmonic / Jaap van Zweden
MOZART: Requiem

May 30
New York, NY
Kaufman Music Center
Recital with Jasper String Quartet & Myra Huang, piano
Vivian FUNG: Lamenting Earth (world premiere)

June 27
San Francisco, CA
Merola Opera Program
“The Song As Drama”
Curated by Carrie-Ann Matheson and Nicholas Phan

July 16
Seattle, WA
Seattle Chamber Music Society
Rebecca CLARKE: Selected songs
VAUGHAN WILLIAMS: Selected songs

Aug 10
Lenox, MA
Tanglewood Music Center
With Palaver Strings
“A Change is Gonna Come”

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Tomorrow, May 24: Phan & Palaver Strings release “A Change is Gonna Come”