Gospel virtuoso Cory Henry to hold a two-day residency at Yale
The Yale Institute of Sacred Music will host a two-day residency with GRAMMY-winning gospel virtuoso Cory Henry from April 21–22, bringing together performance, scholarship, and worship in a series of public events at Yale.
Livestream links:
Playing in the Spirit Masterclass (Tuesday 4/21 7 p.m.)
Creative Liturgy service (Wednesday 4/22 9 a.m.)
Hard Gospel symposium morning session (Wednesday 4/22 10:15 a.m.)
Hard Gospel symposium afternoon session (Wednesday 4/22 1 p.m.)
The residency will begin on Tuesday, April 21 at 7 p.m. with the “Playing in the Spirit” masterclass at New Haven’s Immanuel Baptist Church. The evening will feature engagement with student compositions, a discussion of Henry’s life, artistry, and church roots, and collective music-making with members of a New Haven–based community choir. The event is free and open to the public, though advance registration is required, and seating is limited. View details about the masterclass and access registration link. The event will also be livestreamed.
The residency will continue on Wednesday, April 22 with “Hard Gospel: Blackness, Belief, Aesthetics,” a daylong symposium at Yale Divinity School. This begins at 9 a.m. with a Creative Liturgy in Marquand Chapel, a special worship service presented by members of the YDS community and featuring a performance by Henry.
The symposium will continue throughout the day with presentations by scholars including Maurice Wallace of Rutgers University, Lisa Allen of Methodist Theological School in Ohio, Jessica Swanston Baker of University of Chicago, Joshua Lawrence Lazard of Boston University, Jonathan Howard of Yale University, and Adrián Emmanuel Hernández Acosta of Yale University, whose presentations will examine the musical lineage of gospel instrumentalists such as Cory Henry while addressing contemporary debates about the aesthetics of Black gospel performance—particularly critiques of expressive vocal and instrumental styles often labeled “singing hard” or “doing runs.” The symposium will be livestreamed and is open to the public with registration. View details about the symposium and access registration links. The chapel service and symposium will also be livestreamed.
During his time at Yale, Henry will also participate in an interview for the Oral History of American Music archive, part of the program’s Major Figures in American Music collection, which now includes more than 1,700 recorded interviews with prominent composers and musicians dating back to 1970.
A Brooklyn native and one of the most influential musicians working across gospel, soul, and funk today, Henry recently won the 2025 GRAMMY Award for Best Roots Gospel Album for his album Church. A former member of Snarky Puppy, he has collaborated with artists including Stevie Wonder, Rosalía, Kanye West, Bruce Springsteen, and Jon Batiste. His residency at Yale offers a rare opportunity to encounter his work in dialogue with scholars, students, and the wider community.
Together, the performances, conversations, and liturgical events of the residency explore the creative, spiritual, and intellectual dimensions of Black gospel music while celebrating one of its most dynamic contemporary artists. Read more about Cory Henry.
The residency is sponsored by the Yale Institute of Sacred Music’s Interdisciplinary Program in Music and the Black Church, which is directed by Professor Braxton Shelley, the George Washington Williams Professor of Music, Sacred Music, and Divinity at Yale. Past guests have included Kirk Franklin, The Clark Sisters, Bebe Winans, Richard Smallwood, and Donald Lawrence. Learn more about the Music and the Black Church initiative.
