VAN GILMER - A LIFELONG VOICE FOR EQUALITY AND SOCIAL JUSTICE

Van Gilmer has had a distinguished musical career as a conductor, composer, and vocalist--particularly in the field of gospel music.  In 1992 he was appointed director of the Bahá’í World Congress Gospel Choir which performed for a gathering of 35,000 in New York City.  For sixteen years he directed the Bahá’í Gospel Singers, making several recordings with them and touring the United States, Canada, and Europe.  Currently he is Music Director at the Bahá’í House of Worship in Wilmette, Illinois, where he created the annual “May Choral Festival” attracting hundreds of international singers.

Van’s rich and soulful tenor voice has been heard in concerts around the world.  He has recorded with the Voices of Bahá in Carnegie Hall, the Maly Moscow Symphony, Slovak Radio Symphony, Warsaw Philharmonic, Czech National Symphony, and the Budapest Symphony.  In 2001 he was awarded the Gold Prize at the Johannes Brahms International Choral Festival in Germany.

Gilmer’s compositions include We Have Come to Sing Praises, I’m So Glad, O Thou Compassionate Lord, Cause Me to Taste the Divine Sweetness, He has Come Back, and Soon Will All That Dwell on Earth.  His song My God, My Adored One was awarded Best Gospel Song by the Independent Music Awards in 2006. Van is widely in demand as a music educator, often called upon at schools and conferences to lecture on the history and practice of gospel music, and to train singers of all races and backgrounds in this universally beloved style of music.

During these challenging times, he has further distinguished himself by producing several compelling virtual choral and vocal music videos.  Van has a unique ability to bring people together to engage in a dialogue that moves communities forward.  He has been involved in Civil Rights and Racial Justice movements since 1963 where he sat-in at the Woolworth’s Lunch Counter in Greensboro, NC, until his current involvement as a member of Race Awareness in the North Shore (RAIN), Healing Everyday Racism in our Schools (HEROS) and as a board member of Together Is Better (TiBA).  In 2020 Van created the monthly video conference “Intimate Dialog on RACE Preceded by Prayer,” challenging our assumptions about each other and inviting open communication between us all.

Van Gilmer and American Music Festivals

With American Music Festivals, Van has led four concerts featuring the Lincolnwood Chamber Orchestra and Baha’i House of Worship Choir. They featured spiritual music of many backgrounds, and new works adapted for chorus and orchestra. Two of these programs were performed for African American History Month, tracing the development of the Gospel tradition and integrating important choral works with orchestra, bringing this music to new audiences. In addition to Mr. Gilmer’s music, the orchestra performed compositions by Joseph Bologne, Samuel Coleridge-Taylor, Duke Ellington, Adolphius Hailstork, Scott Joplin, Florence Beatrice Price, Richard Smallwood, William Grant Still, and Clarence Cameron White.

African American Music and American Music Festivals

Committed to sustaining American orchestral heritage, American Music Festivals continues to explore the music and traditions of African American composers. We strive to find cross cultural connections, expanding our awareness of American and world history.  American Music Festivals looks to partner with like-minded organizations that promote inclusiveness and diversity. Working with Van Gilmer, we hope to bring new understanding to a broad audience--in Chicago, throughout the United States, and in choral/orchestral collaborations around the world.