In 1993, two churches, one European American and one African American, felt a desire to bring together many people from different cultures, religions, ages, and backgrounds. African American spiritual music was chosen to act as a vehicle for such a vision, as its rich tradition has emerged from ordinary lives and speaks to the celebration of a joyful spirit that overcomes all obstacles.
We welcome anyone who loves to sing inspirational music with a community choir that embraces multiple cultural backgrounds. Our choir has sung from the stages of the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC, at the Pentagon, and to large and small audiences in a multitude of settings. We have also served homeless communities, interacted with children at a residential treatment facility, and with patients at a mental health clinic. The breadth and depth of these experiences are equally poignant and meaningful to the choir, for our underlying message is always to honor unity through the rich diversity of the human condition.
In March 2003, Mosaic Harmony extended its message internationally with a Goodwill Concert Tour to Germany and Slovenia. Our Tenth Anniversary Season culminated with a gala concert at the Rachel M. Schlesinger Concert Hall and Arts Center, on the Northern Virginia Community College Alexandria Campus. In 2016 we held the first of our annual Mosaic Harmony and Friends: One Humankind in Music concerts in celebration of the United Nations World Interfaith Harmony Week. In 2017 Mosaic Harmony participated in the Festival of Peace and Brotherhood in Rome, Italy.
During the Clinton Administration, Mosaic Harmony was selected by the President’s Initiative on Race as a model program that encourages participation of people from different racial backgrounds. Mosaic Harmony was included on the White House website as a “Promising Practice” that highlights efforts to improve race relations and build one America. In 1997, Mosaic Harmony was chosen by the Fairfax County Human Rights Commission to receive its prestigious Human Rights Award.
Because the core of our vision heightens the awareness of oneness, we are frequently invited to participate in programs that result in expanded community building and social change. The impact of our commitment has reached national and international proportions. From supporting efforts to construct houses for the Lakota Nation to efforts to build churches in the Dominican Republic; and from celebrating the 135th anniversary of a Maryland church built by freed slaves to creating a personal bond with people of Germany and Slovenia during a time of war, we continue to demonstrate and evoke our message of harmony.