(Photo credit: Jeremy Kramer)

The Washington National Opera will present Key’mon Murrah in the Marian Anderson Vocal Award Recital on Dec. 17, 204 at the Kennedy Center Terrace Theater.

The countertenor will be joined by pianist Brian Zeger in a program that features arias from such operas as Rossini’s “Zelmira” and Händel’s “Rinaldo” and “Ariodante.” There will be songs by Straus, Ricky Ian Gordan, Leslie Adams, and Melina Tsui, and traditional spirituals arranged by Jacqueline Hairston and Florence Price.

“In today’s world, many people are struggling with depression due to the political and economic climate of our country. I believe that music can help ease these difficult times for everyone. With this program, I simply want to share the joy that has been given to me, hoping that through song, I can brighten the audience’s day just a little,” Murrah said in an official press release.

Murrah has performed with such organizations as the Seattle Opera, the San Diego Opera, the America Baroque Opera Company, the Bayerische Staatsoper, the Detroit Opera, the Metropolitan Opera, and the Opera Theatre of St. Louis. Opera News has stated that his voice is “resplendent, voluptuous tone throughout his enormous range and phrasing with the feel of silk.”