Hosted by Garrett McQueen, The Sound of 13 is a 13-week series of programs recognizing the significant influence and contributions of Afro-Americans to classical music through the lens of the 13th Amendment.
The first Black woman poet laureate and Pulitzer prize-winning poet
and author, Rita Dove will be reading passages from her book, “Sonata
Mulattica” in collaboration with the Orchestra of St. Luke’s to
celebrate the life of the 19th-century Black violinist George
Bridgetower, who performed with Beethoven before becoming completely
erased from history after the two had an unfortunate falling out.
The Orchestra of St. Luke’s will perform classical pieces from Bridgetower’s era while Dove, whose book is a fictional biography of the Black musician and historical figure, will meld her passion for Bridgetower’s story with film and music as a part of a concert series entitled OSLive Wednesday Night Series ‘Sights and Sounds’ which will take place virtually on May 5.
Dove took time out of her busy schedule to speak to the Amsterdam News about this intriguing and unique collaboration. This is part 2 of her conversation about her work and interest in the life of George Bridgetower.
AmNews: How did your collaboration with the St. Luke’s Orchestra and the ‘Sights and Sounds’ series become a reality?
Rita Dove: Last fall, I got an email from the artistic director explaining what they had been doing during the pandemic. They had been planning a few concerts that were wedded to spoken word, something a little different. As a former musician, I was sympathetic to the plight of musicians [during the pandemic], and how to make the experience of a concert feel immediate while over the internet.
I liked their idea of doing a biographical concert for George Bridgetower in relation to Beethoven’s “Kreutzer Sonata” and dispersing the poems with other music of that era.
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For more information about this upcoming concert visit:
The creative and accomplished quality of singing, staging, lighting, costumes, hair design! –the twinning of operatic and theatrical values came together as these six art songs and chamber operas based on Black experience (and written in the last 30 years) unfolded across 75 minutes with no intermission. Cutting-edge and contemporary in style, and convincingly done on camera, Journeys reached into the deep folds of pain and occasional jubilance that define Black American culture in a historically white supremacist landscape.
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Most of the works are ones with which many—I would guess most—opera-goers are unfamiliar. That’s a reasonable assumption; several have been composed in the past three years and have been staged only once before.
More familiar are “Your Daddy’s Child” from Broadway’s late-‘90s Ragtime and the final song of Adolphus Hailstork’s 1992 Songs of Love and Justice, based on a Martin Luther King Jr. sermon (“when evil men plot, good men must plan”). Both were sung soulfully and tenderly by soprano Lynnesha Crump, a PO Resident Artist. Crump owned the stage in the final Hailstork piece, balancing with poise an elaborate headpiece that reached to the stars. Crump and her four fellow Resident Artists are not newbies to opera. All have advanced music degrees, and their performing maturity is clear.
Recording Album for Clarinet and Strings by Black Composers. Funding will enable Max to record an album of works by Black composers for clarinet and strings during the 2021-22 academic year, centered around Samuel Coleridge-Taylor's Clarinet Quintet in F-sharp minor. Other works are in development, but possibilities include Strum or Starburst by Jessie Montgomery and Adoration by Florence Price. The ensemble will record in collaboration with Colburn School's AV team in one of the Colburn halls at a future date.
CLARKSVILLE, Tenn., April 29, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The Gateway Chamber Orchestra (GCO) presents its third America's Haydn Festival, a virtual concert series celebrating the music of the "Father of the Symphony" and the "Father of the String Quartet" composer Franz Joseph Haydn, on May 13th and 16th and May 20th and 23rd. America's Haydn Festival, sponsored by Google, features concerts by GCO, recognized for nuanced performances of Haydn; GRAMMY-nominated St. Lawrence String Quartet, considered North America's most expressive interpreters of Haydn; exuberant pianist Henry Kramer; celebrated children's author and musicologist Anna Harwell Celenza and emerging cellist Michael Samis. Hosted by Peabody Award-winning classical radio host, Bill McGlaughlin, the festival intends to raise the awareness and relevance of Papa Haydn's music for audiences today.
GCO Music Director and Conductor Gregory Wolynec says, "We wanted to create a series of programs based on Haydn, but not exclusively, that would also feature works by underrepresented composers and performed by distinctive artists. Haydn's music reveals something new every time, from a sense of wit and lightheartedness, to deep intensity. We want audiences to understand how exciting and invigorating Haydn's music can be as well as its relevance today."
In addition to landmark works by Haydn, the festival also features works by Osvaldo Golijov, William Grant Still, Maurice Ravel and recent Pulitzer Prize winner Caroline Shaw. America's Haydn Festival will be streamed on the GCO website. Tickets are $20 for a weekend pass or $30 for a festival pass with full access to the performances. Purchase tickets directly at https://www.gatewaychamberorchestra.com/haydnfest.
The Santa Barbara Symphony performs its season finale, "Triumph," celebrating its most innovative, inspirational and creative season ever in its six-decade history. Audiences are invited to tune in on Saturday, May 15 at 7:00 pm, and Sunday, May 16 at 3:00 pm, and a pre-show starting thirty minutes prior to each broadcast.
As one of the only performing arts organizations in the country to create an innovative and safe path forward without cancelling performances or music education programs, this is the Symphony's final performance of this unforgettable pandemic season.
"Without missing a beat the Santa Barbara Symphony continued to bring hope and connection to the community through symphonic music in incredible new ways we never could have imagined before," shared Symphony Music & Artistic Director, Nir Kabaretti. "This season has required so much more of everyone in our Symphony family - from our musicians, to our incredible staff, and the technical team that all have had to think outside the box to help us realize our vision. We're proud to bring our audiences a big, triumphant, finale - with both memories of what we all shared together this season virtually and excitement about coming together in person next season."
Kabaretti returns to the podium in a program that will feel familiar in its format with the full orchestra assembled together on stage at the Granada, made possible with the recent announcement of Santa Barbara County entering the orange tier, and a large stage extension to ensure social distancing. This will likely be the Symphony's last performance with no in-person audience. Joining the Symphony is critically-acclaimed guest pianist Awadagin Pratt. Pratt launched onto the global classical music stage in 1992 when he became the first African-American pianist to win the prestigious Naumburg International Piano Competition. Since then, Pratt has played at the White House and Carnegie Hall, on "Sesame Street" and with nearly every major orchestra in the U.S. Pratt has toured the world as a soloist and collaborated with Joshua Bell, the St. Lawrence String Quartet, and Terence Blanchard (among many others) on recordings and performances. Pratt will perform Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 12 in A Major.
This concert also features Beethoven's Symphony No. 7 in A Major, Op. 92, and Benjamin Britten's Fanfare for St. Edmundsbury. In addition, the Symphony is proud to welcome thirteen-year old Joseph Malvinni, one of the four winners of the expanded 2021 Santa Barbara Youth Symphony Concerto Competition, to perform a movement of Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco's Concerto for Guitar in D major.
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Virtual tickets for Triumph are available for both the live broadcast and on-demand viewing after the weekend premiere, purchase online here. The entire Santa Barbara Symphony 2020/21 Digital Season is still available for on-demand viewing. Click here for details about ticket packages and viewing options.
John Rutter was born in London and studied music at Clare College, Cambridge. He first came to notice as a composer during his student years; much of his early work consisted of church music and other choral pieces including Christmas carols. From 1975–79 he was Director of Music at his alma mater, Clare College, and directed the college chapel choir in various recordings and broadcasts. Since 1979 he has divided his time between composition and conducting. Today his compositions, including such concert-length works as Requiem, Magnificat, Mass of the Children, The Gift of Life, and Visions are performed around the world. His music has featured in a number of British royal occasions, including the two most recent royal weddings. He edits the Oxford Choral Classics series, and, with Sir David Willcocks, co-edited four volumes of Carols for Choirs. In 1983 he formed his own choir the Cambridge Singers, with whom he has made numerous recordings, and he appears regularly in several countries as guest conductor and choral ambassador. He holds a Lambeth Doctorate in Music, and in 2007 was awarded a CBE for services to music.
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Beginning in 2010 initially as a podcast hosted by Washington based arts journalist and music critic Patrick D. McCoy, "Across the Arts" has evolved to add the virtual component, much in part to the COVID-19 pandemic.
About TE DEUM ARTS MANAGEMENT ARTS SOLUTIONS: Te Deum Arts Management Solutions is a boutique public relations firm, specializing in providing tailored PR services to enhance the brand of performing arts organizations as well as individual projects and companies.
Please join Maestro Wes Kenney and the Fort Collins Symphony for this virtual on-demand concert of American composers and themes.
Spring is in the air, the light of awareness is dawning, change is within reach, growth is on the horizon, and pride lends a bounce to one’s step.
This streamed virtual concert features two of Aaron Copland’s compositions–the enduring American anthem, Appalachian Spring, and a coming-of-age story, The Tender Land Suite– and the gospel/jazz/blues-inspired Church Street Serenade by composer Adolphus Hailstork.
Pre-recorded at the Fort Collins Lincoln Center, this concert is available to stream at your leisure over the weekend of April 30-May 2.
April 26, 2021
By Saab Sahi
The Jacobs School of Music at IU offers an e-concert series focused on spotlighting music of the African diaspora in the field of classical music with different guests every Wednesday. The performances are available at the series site.
This week’s guest will be Fernando Garcia on piano, and they will play African American composer Margaret Bonds’ “Spiritual Suite.” Margaret Bonds was well-known for her collaboration with the Harlem Renaissance poet Langston Hughes, as well as her piece “Troubled Water” that features as the final movement of the “Spiritual Suite.”
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The
Harlem Walking Tour video series highlights historic artistic figures
who either lived in or spent time in Harlem and how each person
contributed to the vibrancy and rich cultural landscape that make Harlem
what it is today. This project was conceived by husband and wife team, Terrance McKnight of WQXR and harpist-scholar Dr. Ashley Jackson.
The fifth
episode of the Harlem Walking Tour Video Series features the Negro
String Quartet, a group that performed in the early 20th century, mainly
in churches, community organizations and college venues in New York City.
Members of The
Harlem Chamber Players — violinists Ashley Horne and Claire Chan,
violist Tia Allen, and cellist Wayne Smith — pay tribute to the Negro
String Quartet in a performance of the slow movement from Dvořák’s String Quartet No. 12 in F major, Op. 96 “American.”
You can watch the premiere on our Youtube channel or on our Facebook page.
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14 Apr 2021
Please join the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Glenn Korff School of Music’s Symphonic Band live via webcast from Kimball Recital Hall on Wednesday, April 28 at 7:30 pm for their spring concert, “Get on Board”. This is in-person only, but the webcast will be available at music.unl.edu.
The performance features works by composers of African descent including Kenneth Amis, Julian Work, William Grant Still, Omar Thomas, and James Reese Europe. The Band has programmed a 30-minute set from a much larger body of repertoire prepared and studied during the semester. The students were also presented educational units and supplemental materials on several of the composers, and others who’ve made significant contributions to Music.
That's right: One month, two special Virtual Experiences! Make sure you don't miss this conversation between Overture Council president John Dunson and the artistic and executive director of Castle of our Skins Ashleigh Gordon.
Born out of the desire to foster cultural curiosity, Castle of our Skins is a concert and educational series dedicated to celebrating Black artistry through music. From classrooms to concert halls, Castle of our Skins invites exploration into Black heritage and culture, spotlighting both unsung and celebrated figures of past and present. Attendance is free, but registration is required.
Hello Morgan Fine and Performing Arts Community!
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A recording of this webinar is available online. https://music.northwestern.edu/davee-gallery/video/black-art-songs-webinar
This event is part of the Bienen School’s ongoing Diversity, Equity and Inclusion activities. A forthcoming, three-part video series from the school will feature art songs and chamber music by Black composers, including Margaret Bonds (Northwestern alumna, ’33, ’34 MMus), Cecil Cohen, Samuel Coleridge-Taylor, Jonathan Bailey Holland, Robert Lee Owens, Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson, Florence Price, Howard Swanson, and William Grant Still. Voice students will perform the art songs and musicologists and guest presenters will provide scholarly background information on the works and composers. Additionally, Bienen School faculty have been working independently as well as collaboratively in developing DEI initiatives for their studios and classrooms. All voice students are learning two songs by Black composers. Many instrumental studios are studying repertoire by BIPOC composers and compiling databases of works by these composers.
Artina McCain manages a multi-fold career as a piano soloist and university educator.And she is a scholar and concert curator of music by Black and other underrepresented composers.
McCain curates Black composers concerts for multiple arts organizations, including the Austin Chamber Music Center, the 2018 iteration of which, “The Black Female Composer,” garnered McCain an Austin Critics Table Award.
As she told Sightlines writer Dana Wen in 2018, “There are so many composers of African descent all over the world, and their music isn’t programmed that often.”
“A Concert of African Diaspora Composers, from the 18th Century to contemporary Puerto Rico”
This year music publisher Hal Leonard will publish McCain’s transcriptions of African American folk sSongs, and her 2016 album “I, Too” (Naxos), is a collaboration with soprano Icy Simpson Monroe, a collection of African American spirituals and art songs.
I, too
Icy Simpson, soprano
Artina McCain, piano
Longhorn Music LHM2012001
Long active in Austin after receiving her doctorate at the University of Texas Butler School of Music, McCain is now based in Memphis where she is on the faculty at the Rudi E. Scheidt School of Music at the University of Memphis. Her husband, trombonist Martin McCain, is on the faculty of Texas State University, and the two perform as the McCain Duo.
The strange quiet of the pandemic gave Artina a chance to release her album “Heritage: An American Musial Legacy,” which has already netted a Gold Global Music Award.
And on March 17 — a year after the world went into lockdown — McCain performed live with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, playing Florence Price’s Piano Concerto in One Movement (1932-34), a virtuosic piece.
Sightlines: What were you working on and looking forward to when the lockdown began in mid-March 2020? What was the first of your work you saw cancelled?
Artina McCain: Last year when the lockdown began I had a big trip planned to go to Colombia for a guest artist residency. It would have been my first time in South America and I was thrilled to go. Also in the same week I was scheduled to perform the epic Beethoven Archduke trio in Florida. Everything happened so quickly and I went from non-stop practicing to figuring out new things to do.
ST. PETERSBURG — The Florida Orchestra will perform the U.S. premiere of a wickedly fun version of “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs,” with a storyline by famed author Roald Dahl, music by acclaimed composer Eleanor Alberga, and lead narration by actor Becca McCoy.
It will be performed live at TFO’s Family Concert, scheduled for Sunday, May 16, 2 p.m., at the Duke Energy Center for the Arts — Mahaffey Theater, 400 First St. S., St. Petersburg. The performance will be presented following CDC guidelines for safety. Separately, the concert also will feature powerful images of a new work by internationally renowned installation artist Ya La’ford, set to Mozart’s iconic Overture to The Marriage of Figaro.
“Roald Dahl’s Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” is not the traditional fairytale. Beloved author of “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,” “Matilda” and other children’s classics, Dahl fills his PG-rated rendition with humorous, spooky twists and a surprise ending that will captivate families. The performance is recommended for ages 8 and older. Jamaican-born composer Alberga creates an enchanting musical backdrop of wild forests and dance parties. The work premiered at the Royal Festival Hall in London in 1994.
"We're excited to be the first orchestra to bring this fresh, magical work to a live American audience. Eleanor Alberga's music vividly tells the story with beauty, humor and sometimes even a spooky edge," said Daniel Black, TFO resident conductor, who will lead 30 TFO musicians. "TFO is committed to bringing attention to a wide range of composers, and Alberga is a fascinating talent with a unique musical voice deserving of greater recognition."
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Tickets are $8 per person in advance and $10 at the door. Children age 3 and younger are admitted for free. Tickets are available now online at FloridaOrchestra.org or by phone at 727-892-3337 or 800-662-7286. The ticket center is not open for in-person transactions.
For this performance, Becca McCoy will be joined by Mark Cantrell, TFO president and chief executive, and Michelle Kim-Painter, TFO community engagement coordinator, to tell the Snow White story through narration, without a set or images.
We are delighted to invite you once again to a concert at Dumbarton Oaks! Clarinetist Anthony McGill and pianist Anna Polonsky join forces in an exciting program that embraces both new and familiar works for clarinet and piano by Robert Schumann, James Lee III, Johannes Brahms, and former Dumbarton Oaks Early-Career Musician in Residence Jessie Montgomery. Be sure to get your virtual front-row seat for this free event, recorded live and streamed from our historic Music Room. A link to the streaming performance will be provided to all ticket holders on Saturday, April 24 at 2 p.m. ET and will be accessible until Friday, April 30 at 2 p.m. ET. The concert is free but registration is required.
Clarinetist Anthony McGill is one of classical music’s most recognizable and brilliantly multifaceted figures. He serves as the principal clarinet of the New York Philharmonic—that orchestra’s first African-American principal player—and maintains a dynamic international solo and chamber music career. Hailed for his “trademark brilliance, penetrating sound and rich character” (New York Times) and “exquisite combination of technical refinement and expressive radiance” (Baltimore Sun), McGill also serves as an ardent advocate for helping music education reach underserved communities and for addressing issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion in classical music.
Pianist Anna Polonsky has performed extensively throughout the United States, Europe, and Asia, garnering accolades as a recitalist, chamber musician, and orchestral soloist. The New York Times praised her as “a chamber musician of exceptional refinement [with] an appealing touch and compelling interpretive skills,” while the Washington Post described her playing as “consistently captivating.” She made her solo piano debut at the age of seven in Moscow, emigrating to the United States in 1990. She holds degrees from the Curtis Institute and the Juilliard School and serves on the piano faculty of Vassar College.
[Ad Anah? James Lee III (b. 1975)]
[Peace Jessie Montgomery (b. 1981)]
John Malveaux of MusicUNTOLD.com writes:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c_zO4YcFKoQ&t=22s
Prominent international lawyer and accomplished advocate for social justice and sustainability in New York and globally assumes new role after joining Board in 2018
(New York, NY — April 23, 2021) – The Board of Trustees of New York Public Radio (NYPR), home of WNYC, WQXR, WNYC Studios, Gothamist, The Jerome L. Greene Performance Space, and New Jersey Public Radio, announced today that Timothy A. Wilkins has been elected Board Chair at its April meeting. Wilkins joined NYPR’s Board of Trustees in 2018, and was elected Vice Chair in 2020. He succeeds Mayo S. Stuntz, Jr., who served as Chair for four years beginning April 2017.
An internationally acclaimed attorney, Wilkins has over two decades of experience guiding social justice, cultural, and sustainability initiatives across New York City and around the world. He is the Global Partner for Client Sustainability at the international law firm Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP. Wilkins leads the firm’s sustainability practice, advising clients on regulatory, litigation and transactional issues related to environmental, social and governance matters. Wilkins co-led the founding of the New York Circular City Initiative, a collaboration of city agencies, businesses and foundations, to promote employment and a greener environment for the city. He also served as Chair of the Governance Committee and on the Executive Committee of the Board of the NYC Economic Development Corporation.
Wilkins has served on the boards of several additional leading non-profit organizations, including the Public Theater, the Cyrus Vance Center for International Justice, the Opportunity Agenda as Chair, and the NYC Global Partners as President, among others. In 2016, 2017 and 2020, he was recognized by EMPower, Yahoo! Finance and the Financial Times as one of the Top 100 Ethnic Minority Executives. He was also named Minority Lawyer of the Year at the U.S. Chambers Diversity Awards in 2016.
“I am thrilled to have Tim assume the role of Board Chair at such a critical time for our organization, our city, and the world,” said NYPR President and CEO Goli Sheikholeslami. “Through his professional work and participation on numerous non-profit boards, Tim has demonstrated an unwavering commitment to ensuring a brighter future for our community. He has worked tirelessly to build and strengthen the institutions that are the cultural and economic bedrock of New York, always with a focus on ensuring these organizations serve all New Yorkers equitably and sustainably. His deep understanding of the distinct role New York Public Radio plays in our city and his advocacy around diversity, equity and inclusion will help us meet our mission even more powerfully, and I am excited to partner with him on what’s ahead.”
"I am honored to serve as Chair of the Board of this incredible organization," said Wilkins. "The pace of era-defining news and events shows no sign of slowing, making the public service of New York Public Radio and the dedication of the people behind it more necessary than ever. I look forward to collaborating even more closely with each of these individuals and my fellow Board members as we build on the innovations of my predecessors to further the reach and impact of NYPR’s groundbreaking work.”
In his time at Freshfields, Wilkins developed several novel programs to bolster the success of students and lawyers of color, including founding the firm’s participation in Legal Outreach, an organization that has for over 30 years provided college prep and professional experiences for high school students throughout New York City. Prior to his current role, he was a partner in Freshfields’ cross-border mergers and acquisition practice, and was the Vice Chair of the Legal Services Committee of the American Chamber of Commerce in Japan, where he worked as an investment banker and lawyer for 11 years. Wilkins is also an adjunct professor of international law at Hunter College and lectures frequently at universities and business forums on sustainability and diversity.
Wilkins graduated magna cum laude from Harvard College, and is a graduate of Harvard Business School and Harvard Law School, where he was awarded the Ford Foundation Fellowship in Public International Law.
