Come Share This Moment: Joyful Abundance, June 6, Philadelphia-Five poets, five composers, and the extraordinary voices of the Mendelssohn Chorus by Octavia McBride-Ahebee

 For the better part of a year, I’ve been quietly working on a project that has meant a great deal to me, and I’m pleased to finally share it with you.

I was honored to be one of five poets commissioned by the Mendelssohn Chorus as part of its Joyful Abundance initiative, a major artistic work commemorating the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. Each of us was paired with a composer and a poet mentor to create an original piece that will be performed by the Mendelssohn Chorus, which consists of 150 voices and this year celebrates its 152nd anniversary.

My poem invites us to acknowledge that while the nation’s founding carried both promise and contradiction, many descendants of those excluded from its earliest vision have helped bring its ideals closer to reality.

As we reflect on the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, “America’s Civilized “by Harmonia Rosales reminds us that the nation’s story has always been shaped by Indigenous and African peoples, even when history sought to place them at its margins.

The collaborative process has been deeply affirming. To write in conversation with composers and poet mentors, thinking together about this country’s ideals, contradictions, exclusions, and possibilities, has felt like a rare gift.

And yet, there is also a particular vulnerability in this process. One turns over not only words, but intentions and emotional truths to another artistic body to bring to life in its own way. In my case, I will not hear how the chorus has interpreted and rendered my piece until just two days before the public performance.

Rosales’ “Perseverance on Turbulent Waters” is an homage to survival: to those who endured displacement, violence, and rupture and still carried memory, and hope forward.

There is trust in that and anticipation too and perhaps even a little trembling.

I look forward to sharing more with you soon.

In addition to sharing information about the project and how you can attend the public performance, I’m also sharing artwork by Harmonia Rosales, an artist who should absolutely be on everyone’s radar. Her work powerfully evokes the histories, beauty, resilience, and presence of Indigenous and African peoples whose labor, lives, and cultures were foundational to the making of this country, even as they were so often erased from its official narratives.

Please join me and many others for the public performance of this extraordinary project, Joyful Abundance, on Saturday, June 6, 2026, at 4:00 p.m., here in Philadelphia. I would love to share this moment with you. Below is a link where you can learn more about the project and find information about attending the performance. Mendelssohn Chorus

If you’re interested in attending and would like a 50% discount code for tickets, feel free leave a comment below, and I’ll gladly send one along.

Here is a link to learn more about her work: Harmonia Rosales

*Take a moment too to explore my content on Substack:

https://octaviamcbride.substack.com/p/the-last-king-of-rwanda-a-story-of