What is Your Hand in This? Davóne Tines & Ruckus

As the nation approaches the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, intrepid early music band Ruckus and trailblazing vocalist Davóne Tines join forces to deliver a biting exploration of America’s revolutionary music.

Time-traveling through four centuries of reimagined songs, hymns, ballads, and a newly commissioned work by composer Doug Balliett, we reflect on the fragile American experiment and ask, “how can we passionately call out the wrongs we see, while living together as a people?”

With their signature “rough-edged intensity” (The New Yorker), the early music band Ruckus— who serve as the house band for R.B. Schlather’s acclaimed Handel series at Hudson Hall — fuses Baroque tradition with the raw energy of American roots, earning them the title of “the world’s only period instrument rock band” (San Francisco Classical Voice). Joining them is Davóne Tines, a “singer of immense power and fervor” (Los Angeles Times), who is “redefining the rules and rituals of classical music” (San Francisco Classical Voice). At the intersection of many histories and cultures, his work traverses genres to tell a powerful story of perseverance and human connection.