Nathaniel Dett Chorale of Toronto, led by Brainerd Blyden-Taylor, front, sings in a range of styles. They will perform at two Washington, D.C., events associated with U.S. president-elect Barack Obama's inauguration. (Nathaniel Dett Chorale)

The Nathaniel Dett Chorale, a Toronto-based chorus that performs Afrocentric music, will be in Washington in 10 days to join the celebrations around president-elect Barack Obama's inauguration.

The 21-member classically trained chorale has been invited to perform at two public events.

The group will sing at the Smithsonian on Martin Luther King Day, Jan. 19, as part of a three-day festival celebrating the many cultures that came together to create the United States.

Then, on Jan. 20, the day of Obama's inauguration, the chorale performs at a public event at a "tailgate party" at the Canadian Embassy.

The embassy is on the route for the inaugural parade and the event has been organized by the Canadian Tourism Commission.

The official swearing-in, to be held later that day in front of the U.S. Capitol building, includes performances by Aretha Franklin, Itzhak Perlman and Yo-Yo Ma.

U.S. network HBO has won exclusive rights to televise the inauguration.

Many of the events surrounding the inauguration have picked up on the themes of hope and belief in the future inspired by Obama's presidential campaign.

The Out of Many festival at the Smithsonian Museum of the American Indian is based on the words of Obama's election night speech — "out of many we are one."

The Nathaniel Dett Chorale will give a 40-minute concert as part of the three-day festival of music, performance and storytelling drawn from dozens of traditions, including First Nations cultures.

Founder and artistic director Brainerd Blyden-Taylor said he does not have a firm program for that performance, but it will likely include Lift Every Voice and Sing by James Weldon Johnson, known as the black national anthem, and Come Let Us Build a New World Together, a song that is associated with the civil rights movement.

"We sense the tone of the audience and make decisions about what to do depending on our reception," he told CBC News.

Performances considered 'a tribute from Canada': founder

The chorale will perform the last concert of the day in a very full schedule at the Smithsonian, he said.

"The Nathaniel Dett Chorale has always sought to dissolve barriers of stereotype, to empower and inspire through the unity of music and celebration," Blyden-Taylor said in a statement issued Thursday.

"We are touched that our performances in Washington are considered to be a tribute from Canada to the American people at this remarkable time in their history."

The chorale has a repertoire of classical, spiritual, folk, jazz, blues and popular music, most of it written by people of African descent. It was named after internationally known black Canadian composer R. Nathaniel Dett, who died in 1943.

The group has previously performed for world leaders such as Nelson Mandela and Desmond Tutu and personalities such as Muhammad Ali and Oscar Peterson.

The chorale is celebrating its 10 anniversary this year and will begin a 15-day tour of Western Canada on Feb. 5, followed by two concerts in Toronto. It also has engagements throughout the U.S.