The prelude and postlude for Sunday, June 20, are offered in celebration of the Juneteenth holiday. The prelude, which you can hear a creative arrangement of here, is by Florence Price (1887-1953), the first African-American woman to be recognized as a symphonic composer. She was a pianist, organist and teacher as well. Trained in the European tradition, her compositional style nevertheless reflects her Southern roots.

Sunday’s postlude, meanwhile, is a popular arrangement of the traditional African-American spirituals Go down, Moses and Wade in the water (previously recorded by Hannah here) with a jazzy “Take Five” twist. Come hear a live rendition of it this Sunday at the 9:00 am service! You’ll also get to sing the final hymn Stand by me by Charles A. Tindley (1851-1933), considered to be one of the founding fathers of American gospel music and “The Prince of Preachers.”