James Dargan, baritone, and Maria Thompson Corley, pianist, will present a recital at St. Thomas Episcopal Church, 301 St. Thomas Road, Lancaster, on Saturday, July 30, at 4 p.m.

The program will include "Four Serious Songs" by Johannes Brahms, "Genius Child" and "If We Must Die" by Robert Owens, four songs by Dargan, and a world-premiere performance of "The Pilgrim" by Maria Thompson Corley, set to poetry by Gary Davis, a Third Order Franciscan and longtime member of St. Thomas. A freewill offering will be received.

Dargan is a creative artist from the Southeastern U.S. He is based in New York City, where he sings, composes, plays the violin, writes, teaches, and translates poetry and prose from several languages. He has been a singer since he was a child and now performs his social justice-themed programs "Oh, Glory!" and "Ladies Only" in a variety of venues. Dargan also teaches on spirituals and other Black music. He is a founding member of the consortium Ring Shout.

Corley holds a bachelor's degree from the University of Alberta and master's and doctorate degrees from The Juilliard School. She has appeared as a solo and collaborative pianist in Canada, the U.S., Central America, the Caribbean, Bermuda and Europe. Her engagements as a soloist with orchestras have included the Tallahassee Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Gunther Schuller. Corley has recorded CDs for several labels, and excerpts from her discs have been featured on radio and digital platforms both nationally and internationally.

Corley is also a composer whose debut opera, "The Sky Where You Are," was part of the award-winning Decameron Opera Coalition's "Tales From a Safe Distance" and whose second opera, "The Place," was included in the Coalition's subsequent production, "Heroes." In 2021, she was a co-recipient, with librettist Diana Solomon-Glover, of Opera America's IDEA grant for "The Boy From Troy," about civil rights icon John Lewis. Her solo piano piece "Lucid Dreaming" was a semifinalist in the 2021 international Fidelio competition, and "Helicity," a piece for trumpet and piano, won the instrumental portion of the 2021 international ANSONIA competition. Her songs and arrangements have been published in several anthologies. Her works have been added to several university curricula as well as being performed, commissioned and recorded by renowned musicians nationally and internationally.