The Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM) opened up their 31st Annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. celebration with a weekend of performances from Brooklyn duo Soul Science Lab at the BAM Café.
The Friday night lights being dimmed to a low point didn’t stop Soul Science Lab from shining brightly in the cafe that operates out of the upper level of the BAM building. With help from the starry night decorum and column of red metal arches flowing toward the cafe stage the group both electrified and soothed the event with music from their debut album Plan for Paradise. The innovate sound – which featured remnants of funk while tapping into a futuristic feel similar to a dystopian science fiction score – moved the audience which comprised of a mixture of different ages and races. This rhythmic harmony and multicultural bliss, which may be surprising to some is the norm for the Brooklyn Academy of Music and essentially, the borough that it calls home.
BAM President Katy Clark spoke of the academy programming in a recent interview where she touched on just how important the sense of community is to their direction, stating, “That sense of being welcomed at BAM is something that we really treasure.” This concert, which functions as part of the ‘BAMCafé Live’ season that runs annually from September to May on select Friday and Saturday nights is the first of the New Year. The weekend will culminate with a free event to honor the late civil rights leader featuring keynote speaker Opal Tometi, a racial justice and immigrant rights activist and one of the founders of Black Lives Matter.
You can find more of the Brooklyn Academy of Music’s diverse, innovative and artistic programming here.
