Ensemble celebrates ‘90s and 2000s Black music

COURTESY ORCHESTRA NOIR

Atlanta-based Orchestra Noir, an ensemble of Black musicians who perform music for Black audiences. The orchestra plays Knight Theater on Aug. 19.

An all-Black orchestra is coming to Charlotte in celebration of two unique and iconic eras.

Atlanta-based Orchestra Noir was founded in 2016 by Maestro Jason Ikeem Rodgers, whose goal was to create an ensemble of Black musicians to perform Black music for their audiences.

“I was a conductor looking to start something, looking for jobs and I sort of got the idea of, ‘Hey, why don’t I start a Black orchestra?’” he said. “And just going out and seeing the Atlanta culture it just was really inspiring to see a thriving Black middle class. I haven’t seen that just being originally from North Philadelphia. We didn't really have that, so that was really inspiring and it just sort of. Happen from there,” said Rodgers.

On Aug. 19, the orchestra will present its “Y2K Meets 90s Vibe” concert at the Knight Theater. The show will feature music arranged by Rodgers from the ‘90s and 2000s.
Tickets can be found at www.blumenthalarts.org/events/detail/y2k-meets-90s-vibe.

“We're basically orchestrating the biggest hits from ‘90s R&B and hip hop and 2000s R&B, and hip hop,” Rodgers said. “It’s about a 22-piece orchestra and DJ. Real high energy show. We're not the typical orchestra. The kind that just sits in the chair and plays. We’re like, we're up, we're moving. There might be some dancing. It’s really a cultural experience when you attend these concerts and it's like a celebration of Black music.”  

This is the third Charlotte visit for the orchestra, which Rodgers said holds a special place.

“Charlotte is actually what started it all, because Charlotte was the first city we performed an R&B hip hop concert,” he said. “That was like two years ago. That was before the pandemic, actually. And Charlotte’s reaction to the show is what made us continue on this path.”  

“That was the first time I really heard an audience screaming with excitement like Charlotte. Charlotte changed things. And we owe so much to Charlotte,” he continued.

Rodgers said the orchestra began with just 15 people in the orchestra. Today, there are over 30, made of musicians experienced in violin, viola, cello, double bass, flute, oboe, clarinet, saxophone, trumpet, trombone, tuba, keyboard, electric guitar, electric bass and percussion. According to the League of American Orchestras, African Americans make up 2.4% of orchestras nationwide.  

Rodgers, a Philadelphia native, challenged that statistic by creating the orchestra as a way to celebrate Black music and inspire minority musicians.

“The really unique thing that we can do is give this music to our people in an orchestral lens. And, you know, it just sort of took off and we're on this journey,” he said. “So, it's been exciting.”  
The Charlotte concert is the first stop in a three-city tour. The orchestra will also perform in Houston and close in Atlanta. Rodgers said more locations will be announced in the future.
With the show just a few days away, Rodgers said his goal is for his audiences to leave with a sense of empowerment.

“Music has this great force and music can just create so much,” said Rodgers. “It is. It has the power to create change in so many ways. It also has the power to like. Make people realize the beauty, their culture.

“These great hits from the 90s and these great artists, these great Black musicians, Black singers, and we’re playing their music and revitalizing it in a way. I just want the audience to see, to walk away with the feeling of, ‘Wow, I come from a great people.’”  

This article updates the percentage of African American musicians in U.S. orchestras.

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