BELMONT CRAGIN — About halfway through Prosser Career Academy's "Rooted" concert, senior Michael Ingram walked out in front of the stage to the familiar bass line and swelling piano arpeggios of Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah."
But once he closed his eyes and started crooning, it was clear something was different: "Well it goes like this, the guns, the kids / the innocents that had been hit / and all their mothers crying hallelujah."
What followed Wednesday night was a scathing commentary on violence, corruption and poverty in Chicago.
Ingram's new version of the 1984 folk ballad was one of more than a dozen songs that put a creative and powerful spin on traditional melodies in a concert aimed at merging the past and present of Chicago's culture.
The concert at the school at 2148 N. Long Ave. was the culmination of Prosser's year-long choir curriculum, which had been funded by a $16,000 grant from Ingenuity Incorporated. The money helped the school bring professional musicians to perform for, and workshop with, the 70-member choir. Many of the students, including Ingram, had no formal music experience before singing with the group.
"I feel like this really gave us a better understanding of how music can change us, what it can do for us," Ingram said. "And looking at it all from a cultural perspective, like with jazz and how it got to Chicago, really brought us together and showed us where it all came from."
Kicking off with classic jazz tunes like "It Don't Mean a Thing" and "What a Wonderful World," the songs gave way to more contemporary themes, all culminating in a student-written rap about the perils of growing up in a dangerous neighborhood.
"The purpose of 'Rooted' is to look back through our history to find out who we are, so we can start to figure out what we'll become," said Prosser arts department chair Trevor Nicholas, who wrote the choir program's curriculum. "A lot of these students deal with so much stress and conflict, but by looking back at our history it really gives them a chance to see how they can have an influence, and get excited about it."
Student Crystal Berke sings at the "Rooted" concert at Prosser High School. [DNAinfo/Alex Nitkin]
The students' enthusiasm for the program surprised jazz pianist Martez Rucker, especially since fewer than half of them had volunteered to be part of it.
"After working with them, you really wouldn't know so many were assigned to be a part of this," said Rucker, who conducted six "master classes" before the concert and arranged several of their songs. "Almost immediately you could really see the light bulbs go on — they really started to dig into the music and the emotion and the message behind it."
Rucker and other accompanists helped arrange songs like "Brother" and "The Sun will Rise," which dwell on messages of hope and forgiveness in the face of tragedy. Between songs, some students told stories of their own encounters with gun violence, describing how the songs connect to their own experiences.
Nicholas said bringing in musicians like Rucker, made possible by the ingenuity grant, made it easier for students to access their own creativity. For senior Francisco Leon, who helped Nicholas apply for the grant, the boost helped students find confidence in their own voices.
"This really isn't a typical concert. ... We were really able to get creative with it, and it catered to people into all different kinds of music," Leon said. "I definitely came out of this with more of a respect and passion for music, and how it can inspire. ... It really made us all feel like artists."
The concert was a reminder, Rucker said, of the power of the arts to help teenagers cope with difficult circumstances.
"I grew up in the South Side, so I saw that everything the kids talked about tonight — violence, gangs, negativity — it's embedded within our youth before they even have a chance to develop," he said. "So someone has to reach them and tell them that it's their job to break the silence."
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