American Icons is a collaborative series centering music and oral histories by Americans who live in the shadows cast by our national myths and monuments. Whose stories are told, whose erased?
We create new, local musical monuments based on oral histories of NYC residents.
May 13, 2022 performance filmed at the University Heights Presbyterian Church in the Bronx, NY. Recorded by Matthew Griswold.
American Icons addresses the mythology behind the National Anthem and other outdated commemorative art. Our collaborative, socially engaged art series resists the "conservatory" model of classical music, and reaches towards an inclusive approach for defining nationality and nationhood. We assert community members’ right not just to experience art that reflects their reality, but to also participate in the creation of such works and generate their source materials. In using an inclusive approach for (re)defining nationality and nationhood, we paint a more representative picture of the community we envision and celebrate in the city and across the country.
Our Team
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Cynthia Tobar
Oral historian/Artist
Cynthia Tobar has conceptualized several captivating oral history, socially-engaged art projects, and community-based archives that document social movements and student activism. Her multimedia art & storytelling work, which centers participatory oral histories as modes for resistance and place-keeping, has been shown in solo and group exhibits throughout the city. For American Icons, Cynthia spearheads the participatory oral history collection for the project, forging local partnerships aimed at producing creative interventions within institutional structures that center community engagement with NYC residents.
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Nathaniel LaNasa
Musical collaborator/performer
Pianist Nathaniel LaNasa discovers fresh possibilities of sonority and gesture in music being written NOW. He has played at Lincoln Center Theater, Musée d’Orsay, and Carnegie Hall. Nathaniel has also performed with diverse artists such as Lucy Dhegrae, Will Liverman and Max Richter. NYC credits include Alice Tully Hall, MoMA, and (le) Poisson Rouge. A graduate of the Manhattan School of Music and Juilliard, Nate was awarded fellowships at Tanglewood and Music Academy of the West, amongst others.
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Gregory Feldmann
Musical collaborator/performer
Baritone Gregory Feldmann gives voice to perspectives of the past and present to reflect on modern life. He enjoys a “luminous” collaboration with pianist Nathaniel LaNasa (Oberon’s Grove). After winning the 2019 Joy in Singing Song Competition, the duo made their Carnegie Hall debut in February 2020. Their 2021-22 residency in Paris with the Musée d’Orsay and Royaumont Foundation included concerts in front of paintings by Monet and Cézanne. In 2022, Feldmann sang the role of Cedric in the premiere of Ken Ludwig’s new Rossini pastiche, Tenor Overboard at the Glimmerglass Festival. He joined the International Opera Studio with Opernhaus Zürich in September 2022.
Brooklyn narrators & composers
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Naomi Pierre
Songwriter/Musician from Brooklyn
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Na'im Smith
Junior Content Creator, Brooklyn Music School
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Tom Coote
Pianist/Educator, Brooklyn Music School
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Jeff Newell
Musician/Head of the Jazz Faculty and Woodwind Departments, Brooklyn Music School
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Molly Joyce
Performer/Composer
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Matthew Ricketts
Composer
For our Brooklyn segment, students and teachers from our community partner Brooklyn Music School share their experiences of teaching and learning music, thoughts on our national musical heritage, and their reflections on music education’s role in creating a more expansive portrait of Americanness, one that feels true to the multicultural roots of Brooklyn students. We are grateful to The Church of the Holy Apostle for hosting our March 2023 performance. This performance is made possible thanks to the Greater New York Arts Development Fund of the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, administered by Brooklyn Arts Council.
Sunday, March 12 at 4pm
Church of the Holy Apostle, Brooklyn, NY
We’re excited to present our upcoming installation of American Icons featuring narrators from Brooklyn Music School!
Bronx narrators & composers
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Jazmin Ramirez
Bronx Community College student
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Renea Bush
Elder member, University Heights Presbyterian Church, Bronx
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Shawn Chang
Composer
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Jorell Williams
Lyric-baritone/composer
For our Bronx segment, student and community residents from Bronx Community College (BCC), the home of the “Hall of Fame of Great Americans,” shared their stories of learning and living among monuments that fail to reflect America’s diversity. This project culminated in an evening of music that questions and deconstructs nationalistic artifacts from the past, while creating space that honors stories of America’s present. We are grateful to our community partners at the University Height Presbyterian Church for hosting our May 2022 performance. This performance was made possible by a 2021 Social Practice CUNY Faculty Fellowship award.