To celebrate Africa Day, the renowned MSU Choir returns to SA for a series of concerts in Joburg, Pretoria, Soweto and Cape Town this May.

Under the baton of musical director and conductor Dr Eric Conway and brought to South Africa by Classical Movements, highlights of this nationwide tour include:
– An Africa Day concert with the University of Pretoria Choir
– Performances with the University of Johannesburg Choir
– Quava Vocal Group in Soweto
– The Tygerberg City Choir in Cape Town and a
– Final concert with Amici Di Lumine and the UCT Choir

Through these powerful partnerships, the Morgan State University Choir continues its legacy of excellence while building meaningful connections through music across continents.

Concert Details:

20 May 2026, 19:30
Concert 1, “Africa Day” celebration concert
University of Pretoria Choir
Normaal Saal, UP Groenkloof Campus, Pretoria
Tickets available on https://tixsa.co.za/

23 May 2026, 17:00      
Concert 2
University of Johannesburg Choir
Dormus Dei Church, Randburg
R100.00 p/p
https://www.quicket.co.za/events/369164-morgan-state-university-choir-usa/?ref=events-list#/

24 May 2026, 15:00      
Concert 3
Quava Vocal Group
Holy Cross Anglican Church, Orlando West FREE with reservation on Quicket
https://www.quicket.co.za/events/367565-morgan-state-university-with-quava-vocal-group-holy-cross-anglican-church#/

27 May 2026, 19:30
Concert 4
Tygerberg City Choir
St. George’s Cathedral, Cape Town
R 200.00 p/p, available on Quicket
https://www.quicket.co.za/events/373319-morgan-state-university-choir-at-st-georges-cathedral/

28 May 2026, 19:30
Concert 5
Amici Di Lumine & UCT Choir
St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church, Cape Town FREE with reservation on Quicket
https://www.quicket.co.za/events/373321-morgan-state-university-choir-at-st-andrews-presbyterian/

Tour Repertoire:

Lift Every Voice and Sing
arr. Roland Carter     

Come Unto Me
James Lee, III  

Five Spirituals 
Sung by Wings over Jordan      

In Bright Mansions        
Roland Carter

I Have a Dream               
Charles Dickerson       

Four Spirituals
Adolphus Hailstork     

                Great Day

                In Dat Great Gittin’ Up Mornin’

                Cert’ny Lord

                He’s Got the Whole World in His Hands

Excerpts from “The Ordering of Moses”
R. Nathaniel Dett         

Water Night      
Eric Whitacre 

There Will be Rest         
Frank Tichelli 

Somewhere Over the Rainbow               

Bawo Thiko Somandla
Traditional South African Folk Song         

I’m Go’nna Wait on the Lord
Damon Dandridge             

Get on Boa’d    
Damon Dandridge       

I Know I’ve Been Changed
Damon Dandridge 

I’ll Stand            
Raymond Wise              

“Glory” from SELMA    
John Legend and Common

Stand Up from Harriet
Cynthia Erivo and Joshua Campbell

The Best is Yet to Come             
Donald Lawrence

Calvary
Richard Smallwood

Trust Me             
Richard Smallwood

I Will Sing Praises          
Richard Smallwood

Total Praise      
Richard Smallwood

With My Whole Heart  
Nolan Williams

Oh Happy Day 
Edwin Hawkins

About Morgan State University Choir

The Morgan State University (MSU) Choir is one of the nation’s most prestigious university choral ensembles. While classical, gospel, and contemporary popular music comprise the choir’s critically acclaimed repertoire, they are renowned for their emphasis on preserving spiritual heritage in their performances.

The choir has performed with major symphony orchestras, including The Philadelphia Orchestra, Chicago Symphony, New York Philharmonic, and the National Symphony Orchestra. Dr. Eric Conway is the current Director of the Morgan State University Choir. Since 2004, he has led the choir through many notable performances, including a special performance at the service honouring Rosa Parks, the first woman to lie in honour at our nation’s Capital Rotunda. In 2015, at the request of First Lady Michelle Obama, the choir sang at the White House for a nationally televised concert in the East Room alongside Aretha Franklin, Shirley Caesar, and Tamela Mann. During the summer of 2018, the choir travelled to Slovakia, Germany, and Austria, where they sang in Vienna’s famed St. Mark’s Cathedral. In the fall of the same year, the choir performed Leonard Bernstein’s Mass with the Peabody Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Maestra Marin Alsop.

The MSU choir was recently featured on BET Network Television for a live performance at the HBCU Honors Awards and televised internationally for singing the National Anthem at NFL sporting events. In November 2025, the Choir performed to much acclaim in a collaboration with Peabody Opera Theater to produce Kurt Weill’s opera Street Scene, based on a Pulitzer prize-winning book with libretto by Harlem Renaissance poet Langston Hughes.

The choir has performed all over the world and 2026 marks MSU’s return to South Africa. Having shared their musical gifts on grand stages across the globe–with numerous dignitaries and celebrated performers– the Morgan State University Choir acts as a cultural ambassador for the City of Baltimore, the state of Maryland and the United States. For further information, see www.msuchoir.org

About Dr. Eric Conway, Director /Conductor

For nearly 20 years, Dr. Eric Conway has served as the Director of the Morgan State University Choir as well as chair of the university’s Fine and Performing Arts Department. Prior to serving as Choir Director, Dr. Conway was their principal accompanist for over 20 years. He received his Doctor of Musical Arts from Johns Hopkins University’s Peabody Conservatory where he majored in Piano Performance and minored in Conducting. While at Peabody, Conway was a recipient of the prestigious Liberace Scholarship, as well as a winner in the Yale Gordon Concerto Competition.

Some of his significant accomplishments as pianist include a tour of Eastern Africa, sponsored by the United States Information Agency. One of the highlights of the tour was a solo performance for Madagascan television and radio. Dr. Conway is sought after as a collaborative artist and has worked closely with some of the greatest conductors of the 20th century. In September 2015, he was asked personally, by Aretha Franklin, to conduct a choir to accompany her in her performance for Pope Francis during his visit to the United States.

About Classical Movements

Classical Movements is the premier concert tour company for the world’s great orchestras and choirs, creating meaningful cultural experiences through orchestra and choir tours in 147 countries. An industry leader since 1992, we understand both the travel and the performance needs of professional symphony orchestras and choruses, as well as conservatory, university and youth ensembles, and we produce the Prague Summer Nights: Young Artists Music Festival. Through our Eric Daniel Helms New Music Program, we’ve commissioned over 104 works from Grammy, Oscar, Pulitzer and MacArthur-winning composers. Since our founding in 1992, as a truly global enterprise, Classical Movements remains committed to facilitating cultural diplomacy across the world.

Joanne Hayes
tigerjo@tumbleweedpr.com
083 627 7249
Tumbleweed Communications
https://www.classicalmovements.com/