Few events in American history are so widely remembered, retold, and discussed as the assassination of President John F. Kennedy in 1963. Yet one of the most human legacies from that fateful day would drift into obscurity—within weeks, Jacqueline Kennedy had received over 800,000 letters of condolence, and the volume nearly doubled within two years. A half-century later, some 250 of these letters to Jackie from “ordinary Americans”—sharing extraordinary soul-searching and grief from across generations, regions, race, political leanings, and religion, singularly honoring what John F. Kennedy meant to the country—were published and recorded for a television film.

For the 60th anniversary of this seminal moment in history, 2021 American Prize-winning tenor Ryan Townsend Strand developed the classical art song cycle Letters to Jackie, setting 14 of these missives representing the power of community in a time of great tragedy. A storyteller first and foremost, Strand uses his voice to bring people together over stories that both connect and inspire. He regularly tours and performs with Constellation Men’s Ensemble as executive director and a founding member, as well as with Bella Voce, Stare at the Sun, and the choruses of the Chicago Symphony, Grant Park Festival, Lyric Opera, and Music of the Baroque. Strand has also sung several operatic roles with Haymarket Opera Company and Chicago Opera Theater.

The composers commissioned for Letters to Jackie include Adore Alexander, B.E. Boykin, Skyler Butenshon, Tom Cipullo, Nicholas Cline, Aaron Helgeson, Libby Larsen, Will Liverman, Erik Pearson, Matthew Recio, Jen Shyu, Timothy Takach, Augusta Read Thomas, and LJ White. Selections from Letters to Jackie were recorded in 2023; the album, Dear Mrs. Kennedy, will be released this November on Sono Luminus Records and specially available at this performance.

Performers

Ryan Townsend Strand, tenor
Karina Kontorovitch, piano