by Jovahn Roumell
Sweet Honey in the Rock is an award-winning African American a cappella ensemble founded in 1973 by Dr. Bernice Johnson Reagon. The group was formed from vocal workshops led by Dr. Reagan. The name “Sweet Honey in the Rock” was adopted from the religious parable of a land so rich that when you cracked the rocks, honey would flow from them. One of the members included a SUNY Geneseo graduate Dr. Ysaye Barnwell. This group utilizes spirituals, hymns, gospel, jazz, and blues in their performances. Sweet Honey in the Rock has performed across the globe, and some members were cultural delegates at the U.N. World Conference on Women in China, where they performed two concerts and conducted several workshops. In 1995, Sweet Honey in the Rock performed in Brazil and Haiti. This was the first international cultural presentation in those countries since the return of President Jean Bertrand Aristide.
Female a cappella groups are rare, and there has not been a group that pushed the level of unaccompanied music as Sweet Honey In The Rock has. When Jessica Seminara reviewed Sweet Honey in the Rock’s October 3, 1996 performance at SUNY Geneseo in The Lamron, she asserted boldly that it was “doubtful that anyone could have left Sweet Honey in the Rock’s concert, held at 8 p.m. in Wadsworth auditorium on Saturday night, unimpressed.” Their performance was 3 hours long, and the stage presence was phenomenal. With vibrant colored attire and passionately powerful voices, there is no doubt as to why this was an award-winning group. The performance was introduced by Barnwell, with the first three songs being about memories. The first song set the tone for the night: astonishment and wonder.
Dr. Ysaye Barnwell attended SUNY Geneseo from 1963 to 1968, receiving a B.S. and M.S. in education. During her undergraduate studies, the nation was experiencing civil unrest due to the racism that was greatly impacting society. The decision for Brown vs. Board of Education prevented racial segregation, overruling the Plessy vs. Ferguson of separate but “equal.” In 1963 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. gave his famous “I have a dream” speech during the march on Washington, which stirred the hearts of millions of Americans, even to this day, sparking a change to combat institutionalized racism within America. Despite the difficulty occurring nationwide, Barnwell would not only receive her degrees at SUNY Geneseo but went on to complete her PhD. Barnwell gave the keynote address at the 132nd commencement ceremony for SUNY Geneseo on May 23, 1998. As a highlight of the commencement ceremony, one of Barnwell’s original compositions, “Wings To Fly,” was performed by graduating members of the Geneseo Chamber Singers.