THE JOURNEY OF SOJOURNER TRUTH
Juniors Project (8-11yr olds) Autumn - Winter 2007

The Journey of Sojourner Truth: (National Portrait Gallery).

In light of the year of 2007 being the 200th Anniversary Commemoration of the British parliamentary abolition of the Slave Trade , the young people at KORI have reflected on this historic event throughout the year using the art forms of dance, drumming, poetry and drama. They have presented and performed widely at a variety of events this year. Their final project looked at the powerful life journey of Sojourner Truth: African American Freedom fighter and eloquent speaker through song writing and music.

Ayanna Witter a composer, vocalist and cellist currently studying at Trinity College of Music has led the workshops as part of her final year requirement. She taught the young people how to explore the theme and build a creative composition from the given topic. This learning was new to them and allowed them to build real skills and to perform to a high standard for the Hornsey Lantern Festival in Haringey and the National Portrait Gallery Music Series.

The project was also built on the skill-full input of -The KORI African drumming group led by Adesose Wallace; The KORI Dance group led by Jean Collymore and the Ka-Zimba martial arts group led by Sola Adebiyi.

The following song is just one example of the compositions produced by the children during the project:

Lyric

Mighty Woman

CHORUS:
Mighty Woman, strong and true
Mighty Woman, strong and true
Mighty Woman, was Sojourner Truth

Verse 1:
Sojourner Truth was taken away at 9 years old
Confused, alone, trapped and scared
Her only comfort in life was God
Day and night she worked hard and never complained.

CHORUS

Verse 2:
Six foot tall, stronger than ever, creating songs at 13
Cooking, chopping, picking, ploughing
Working on the plantation.
She was tired and sick inside, sold from master to master.

CHORUS

Verse 3:
Looking for a way out from this cruel slavery
The Quakers gave her shelter
Wanting her children to be free
Looking for a way out.

CHORUS

Verse 4:
She fought for her family
For her freedom
She fought by herself for her people
She was full of passion and shone for the world.

CHORUS