WHAT: Ken Medema Concert
WHEN: Sunday, April 27 @ 7:00 p.m.
WHERE: Richmond’s First Baptist Church, Sanctuary
WHY: to benefit the Braille Circulating Library
EVENT DESCRIPTION:
Richmond’s First Baptist Church will host singer/songwriter Ken Medema in concert on Sunday, April 27, at 7:00 p.m., The church is located in the Fan District of Richmond at the corner of Monument and The Boulevard. Tickets are $10 each, and all proceeds from the concert will benefit the Braille Circulating Library at 2700 Stuart Avenue in Richmond.
For four decades, Ken Medema has inspired people through storytelling and music. Though blind from birth, Ken sees and hears with heart and mind, custom designing every musical moment of his performance with brilliant improvisation that defies description. With an ever-growing circle of followers around the world, Ken’s artistry and imagination have reached audiences of 50 to 50,000 people in 49 United States and in more than 15 countries on four continents.
From the time he was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan, in 1943, Ken has been unable to see with his physical eyes. His sight is limited to distinguishing between light and darkness and seeing fuzzy outlines of major objects. “As a kid I was not widely accepted,” he says, “and I spent a lot of time by myself. Because I have lived with some degree of being different all my life, I have some sympathy for people who have been disenfranchised, whether they have been disabled or politically oppressed or whatever.”
Music early became a major component of Medema’s life. “I started banging on the piano when I was five years old,” he says, “making up crazy little fantasies on my mom’s piano. When I was eight years old my parents got me a wonderful teacher who taught me the classics with Braille music and taught me to play by ear.” His teacher also taught him to improvise. “Every time I learned a piece my teacher would tell me, ‘Now, you improvise in that style.’ So music became a second language.”
Medema studied music therapy at Michigan State University in Lansing, where he concentrated heavily on performance skills in piano and voice. He worked as a music therapist in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and then returned to Michigan State for a master’s degree.
Today, Medema performs in a widely variety of venues, from local congregations to charity fund-raisers, to high school and university campuses, to denominational youth gatherings, to universally televised religious programs, to corporate conventions, to annual assemblies of national organizations.
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