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<\/p>\nGateways Music Festival\u2019s 2026 Gateways Spring Festival\u00a0honors the Festival\u2019s visionary founder, pianist and educator\u00a0Armenta Hummings Dumisani, in celebration of her 90th birthday on June 27. Dumisani,\u00a0a hidden figure in both Black and Women\u2019s history\u00a0whose leadership built one of the most vital communities for Black classical musicians in America, founded the festival in\u00a0Winston-Salem, North Carolina, where the festival will return this April. The\u00a02026 Gateways Spring Festival\u00a0is presented in association with the\u00a0University of Rochester\u2019s Eastman School of Music.<\/p>\n
MAKING MAGIC WITH DANCE THEATRE OF HARLEM ON\u00a0FIREBIRD<\/p>\n
The spring season launches with a historic first: the\u00a0Gateways Festival Orchestra, the Festival\u2019s flagship ensemble comprised of 58 Black professional classical musicians drawn from leading symphony orchestras, elite conservatory faculties and the international freelance community, will perform\u00a0Igor Stravinsky\u2019s iconic score for\u00a0FIREBIRD\u00a0live for\u00a0Dance Theatre of Harlem\u2019s\u00a0acclaimed production, April 16\u201319 at New York City Center. The collaboration marks a rare and significant artistic convergence between two legacy institutions \u2014 the musicians\u2019 collective artistry elevating Stravinsky\u2019s masterpiece with cultural resonance and depth, amplifying the power and brilliance of DTH\u2019s dancers. Renowned award-winning conductor\u00a0Jeri Lynne Johnson\u00a0will conduct the Orchestra on April 16, 18 and 19.\u00a0Tania Le\u00f3n, Pulitzer Prize-winning conductor, composer and first music director of Dance Theatre of Harlem, will conduct the Orchestra on April 17.<\/p>\n
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THE 2026 GATEWAYS SPRING FESTIVAL: A TRIUMPHANT HOMECOMING<\/p>\n
In Winston-Salem, the\u00a02026 Gateways Spring Festival\u00a0will thread legacy and community into five days of artistic programming and events anchored by Gateways in Celebration, a concert honoring Dumisani\u2019s singular contributions and featuring the Gateways Chamber Orchestra and Brass Collective, with performances by\u00a0Amadi Azikiwe,\u00a0Marcus Thompson,\u00a0Damien Sneed\u00a0and\u00a0Jas Ogiste. Included will be works by Black composers\u00a0Samuel Coleridge-Taylor,\u00a0Margaret Bonds\u00a0and\u00a0George Walker\u00a0as well as\u00a0Johann Sebastian Bach\u00a0and\u00a0Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. This program embodies the Festival\u2019s ethos: bridging generations, illuminating lineage and celebrating artistry shaped by heritage and lived experience.<\/p>\n
Throughout the week, the Festival will present free public programming\u00a0designed to inspire audiences of all ages. This includes\u00a0Young Musicians Institute:\u00a0Brass Day, a high-impact community workshop led by the\u00a0Gateways Brass Collective;\u00a0Masterclasses\u00a0for strings, brass and piano at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts; and a\u00a0piano recital\u00a0with\u00a0Damien Sneed, whose multifaceted career as an Emmy-winning conductor, composer, pianist and professor of music at Howard University has earned recognition across classical, operatic and interdisciplinary circles.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Additional festival offerings include the\u00a0Dr. Paul J. Burgett Lecture and Community Conversation, led this year by National Association of Negro Musicians\u2019 2025 Competition winner\u00a0Mira Walker,\u00a0Gateways Brass Collective\u00a0in concert, and\u00a0The Family Dinner: A Gateways Reunion, an intimate gathering celebrating the community of artists and supporters first envisioned by Dumisani. The Festival also launches with a\u00a0pre-festival livestream, Prelude to Spring, featuring archival performances by Sneed,\u00a0Rochelle Sennet,\u00a0David Berry\u00a0and Dumisani herself.<\/p>\n
MORE THAN AN ORCHESTRA<\/p>\n
Groundbreaking from its inception, Gateways Music Festival has stood as a powerful testament to the living tradition of Black artistry in classical music and to the enduring fellowship that sustains it. Founded in 1993 by Dumisani, a concert pianist, as a space where Black classical musicians could gather in affirmation, artistry and shared culture, Gateways has grown into one of the nation\u2019s leading organizations dedicated to celebrating and amplifying Black classical artistry. For more than thirty years, it has brought together generations of artists \u2014 not only to perform at the highest level, but to enlighten, collaborate, connect and inspire while honoring the composers and traditions that shape their artistic lives. By convening this community year after year \u2014 and welcoming audiences of all backgrounds into that shared expression \u2014 Gateways affirms the essential and ongoing contributions of Black artists across the classical music landscape.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt Gateways, Black culture and classical music are not in conversation from a distance \u2014 they\u2019re inseparable \u2014 and you don\u2019t just hear it, you feel it. It moves through the room, connecting people across time, tradition and lived experience,\u201d said\u00a0Gateways Music Festival President and Artistic Director Alex Laing. \u201cThat spirit began with Miss Armenta \u2014 her vision, her insistence on excellence and her belief that Black classical artists deserve a home in this music. We are honored to pay tribute to her because every time Gateways convenes, we\u2019re carrying her legacy forward, building community and showing what Black artistry makes possible across generations.\u201d<\/p>\n
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ADDITIONAL SEASON HIGHLIGHTS<\/p>\n
Taking Center Stage at 2026 ASTA\/SAA National Conference\u00a0<\/p>\n
In late February, another highlight was serving as collaborative artist at the collocated\u00a0American String Teachers Association (ASTA) and Suzuki Association of the Americas (SAA) Conferences, the premier annual event for string educators and performers; Gateways Music Festival Artistic Director\u00a0Alex Laing\u00a0delivered a keynote address and the\u00a0Gateways Chamber Players\u00a0was featured in two showcase concerts performing works by\u00a0Coleridge-Taylor\u00a0and featuring GRAMMY-nominated violist\u00a0Jordan Bak,\u00a0Harlem Quartet founding member violinist\u00a0Melissa White\u00a0and more.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Gateways Brass Collective: National Highlights<\/p>\n
A resident ensemble of Gateways Music Festival and the nation\u2019s only all-Black professional brass quintet, the\u00a0Gateways Brass Collective\u00a0continues its trajectory of powerful artistry and national impact. This season, the Collective will appear at the\u00a0HBCU National Band and Orchestra Directors\u2019 Consortium Convention, the\u00a0International Trumpet Guild Conference\u00a0and\u00a0Carnegie Hall\u00a0Citywide, in addition to its featured Spring Festival concert in Winston-Salem.<\/p>\n
Drawn from leading orchestras and ensembles across the country, GBC\u2019s members \u2014\u00a0Herbert Smith,\u00a0Courtney Jones,\u00a0Larry Williams,\u00a0Isrea Butler\u00a0and\u00a0Jerome Stover\u00a0\u2014 are celebrated for their dazzling technique, stylistic versatility and dynamic presence on stages nationwide.<\/p>\n
For more information about Gateways, visit:\u00a0www.gatewaysmusicfestival.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n