In 2017, Dr. Andre DeQuadros approached me with an assignment that felt both challenging and necessary. He asked me to write a piece to anchor the 2018 program for the choir Voices21C, titled Somehow This Madness Must Cease. I am a founding member of the ensemble, and our work has always centered on social justice, reflection, and community dialogue. Even so, this assignment felt like a deeper invitation.
I turned to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s 1967 speech Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break Silence and sat with it for weeks. What captured my attention was King’s use of the word “silence.” He was not talking about a quiet world. The world was full of conflict, fear, and injustice. The silence he meant was personal. It was the silence of those who had not found the courage to speak, and the silence surrounding voices that had been ignored or dismissed.
As I spent time with that idea, I began to understand that the piece was not really about my voice at all. It became a space for others. A platform where voices that needed to be heard could rise, be witnessed, and be held. My role was simply to create the structure.
Musically, I built the score from the rhythm of King’s language. His speech is full of natural cadence and internal pulse. Lines like “rendering our priorities so that the pursuit of peace will take precedence over the pursuit of war” felt like a heartbeat. I wanted the music to carry that same energy, even without quoting the text directly.
The work premiered with Voices21C and soon began traveling far beyond what I imagined. Choirs across the United States and abroad embraced it. The All New England Choir selected it for their festival, where more than 250 high school students sang it after discussing what it meant within their own lives. Every new performance revealed a different layer of the piece. It changed shape as new communities brought their voices to it, which made sense, because “listening” itself is a living practice.
In 2021, during the pandemic, I produced a large virtual version that brought together singers from Voices21C, Ember, Concinnity, the ConVal High School Select Choir, and my In The Key Of Success musician network. The virtual project took on a life of its own. Under the direction of Dr. Christopher L. Clark, and with the involvement of so many voices and stories, it became something far bigger than a recording. It became a gathering. A conversation. A digital community choir built from care, courage, and curiosity.
That virtual release reached far and wide. It was featured in outlets such as People and Harper’s Bazaar, which helped amplify not only the music but also the stories behind it. One of those stories belonged to Donzaleigh Abernathy, who sang the alto solo. Donzaleigh is the daughter of Ralph David and Juanita Abernathy and the goddaughter of Dr. King. Her presence connected the piece directly to the history that inspired it. She shared stories about her childhood, her family, and the ongoing work of the movement and it was incredible to be on the phone with her and just chat like old friends.
Wes Felton contributed spoken word and vocals that brought the message into the present moment, creating a bridge between past and future.
The cover art for the project features the work of Halim Flowers, a writer, artist, and social justice entrepreneur. Halim was wrongfully incarcerated as a teenager and spent 22 years of a 40-year sentence behind bars, during which he wrote eleven books, studied entrepreneurship, and began defining his artistic voice. Since his release, he has become a powerful force in the art and fashion world, using creativity as a means of healing and justice. His painting added another layer of truth and resilience to the project.
Looking back, I see that The Listening started as an assignment, but it grew into an offering. It became a platform for stories, memories, questions, and hopes that extend far beyond my own. King’s call to “break the silence” still guides me. Writing this piece taught me how to listen more deeply, how to speak when needed, and how to trust the power of collective voice.
Premiere Performance at ACDA East 2020 Conference
Scrolling Score
Cheryl B. Engelhardt is a 2x GRAMMY®-nominated composer and artist passionate about creating music for choirs, brands, theater, and meditation experiences. A Cornell graduate and Juilliard-trained musician, her music has topped charts and earned millions of streams. Engelhardt is a certified trauma-informed coach, facilitating transformational retreats and the popular mastermind for musicians, Amplify. She also serves as Chair of Contemporary/Commercial Repertoire for the ACDA Eastern Division and advocates for musicians as a governor for The Recording Academy’s New York Chapter. Her choral works are published through E.C. Schirmer and can be found at www.cbemusic.com/choral.