MIDDLETOWN, Calif. — The Middletown Art Center presents the third in the “Sounds of Liberation” series with world music musician Victor Hall at 7 p.m. Friday, Feb. 18.

The event will take place online at and the center, located at 21456 Highway 175.

Doors open at 6:45 p.m.

Hall, a longtime Lake County resident and popular musician with many local bands including Midnight Sun Massive, will be hosted by Clovice Lewis, composer, musician, educator and social justice advocate from Upper Lake.

The evening's event includes a conversation about race and music, with an intimate performance by Hall and Lewis and opportunity for audience questions.

Friday’s event will center on stories of Hall’s experiences and artistic journey as a man of color in the music world and in the military, during challenging times of social change and racial injustice.

He’ll share about his work across musical genres from reggae to blues, and the personal connections he draws between music and social justice.

Sounds of Liberation is a collaboration between Clovice Lewis and the MAC, forged through the Community Call to Action, or CCA, A loving response to systemic racism in America.

CCA is a self-organized local action group formed in response to the widely publicized and horrific deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor in 2020.

“This series of interviews and performances are based on my research on the role of African music as the music of liberation,” explained Lewis. “My central thesis is that most African American music is, in some manner, a reflection of the harm of systemic racism and oppression. Victor and I share many connections yet are very different from one another. I anticipate an interesting and surprising evening of conversation and music.”

The series honors the Black experience as told through musical genres that have contributed to and influenced contemporary North American music and culture.

The primary goal of the project is to create environments that support public exploration of challenging questions about systemic racism in America through music and the personal experiences of Black musicians living in Lake County.

The project launched on Juneteenth 2021 at MAC, with an engaging conversation between Clovice Lewis and arts professional and social justice advocate Sabrina Klein Clement.

The MAC invites community members of all ages to join via Zoom broadcast or by limited seating in-person at the MAC gallery with COVID protocols in place. Tickets are available on a sliding scale at www.middletownartcenter.org/sounds-of-liberation.

Sounds of Liberation is made possible with community support and with support from California Humanities, a non-profit partner of the National Endowment for the Humanities. Learn more at www.calhum.org.