Decoda returns for the 13th year to Lee Correctional Institution (LeeCI) in Bishopville, South Carolina for an intensive, collaborative song-writing residency as a part of the Music for Transformation initiative.
This Residency marks the beginning of an exciting new chapter in this creative partnership, with Lincoln Mosaic, an original multi-genre musical work. The work brings together incarcerated composers at LeeCI and professional musicians, creating a semi-staged piece anchored in pivotal moments from Abraham Lincoln’s life, 250 years after America’s birth. Blending spoken word, hip-hop, folk, rock, R&B, and classical music, the work explores enduring questions of freedom, democracy, justice, and belonging through a distinctly contemporary musical language—part musical, part song cycle.
Supported by recent funding from the National Endowment for the Arts and the University of South Carolina, the work itself was conceived during Decoda songwriting residencies in 2017 and 2018. Nearly a decade later, many of the original collaborators are returning to the subject with fresh perspectives, joined by new artistic partners in an intensive period of historical research and creative development.
The October Residency is one of four during the 2026-2027 season, culminating with workshop performances in May and June 2027.
Decoda Artists:
Claire Bryant, cello & Director of Lincoln Mosaic
Clara Lyon, violin
Brad Balliett, bassoon
Sarah Elizabeth Charles, vocals
Guest Artist:
Benny Starr, MC, hip-hop artist & cultural strategist