What Can Classical Music do for You?
Lamothe is more widely studied than many Black composers, and so there are entries at: Wikipedia Africlassical in French at adrienberthaud.com a magazine article at Kreole, a brief biography and an analysis (in French) of his “Danza No. 3,” an article Read More …
Burleigh has, of course, a Wikipedia page, a comprehensive page at Africlassical, and there is a collection of Burleigh’s works on IMSLP. Fortunately, he has a website devoted to him: The Burleigh Society. Related posts: Available on Amazon Everyone needs Read More …
Ballanta has a Wikipedia article. There’s a World Heritage Encyclopedia article with a reasonable reference section, a Facebook fan page which is mostly empty, and an interesting legal question about his legacy. His musical scores can be found in a Read More …
An English composer, Samuel Coleridge-Taylor has a Wikipedia entry. . We have a few (not nearly enough) recordings on Amazon: He was a prolific composer, again surmounting incredible odds, and was often referred to as “The African Mahler.” There is Read More …
In Music of the Heart. a film about violin teacher Roberta Guaspari, Naeem’s mother, Mrs. Adisa, pulls Naeem out of Guaspari’s violin class, and the following dialogue ensues: MRS. ADISA My son’s got more important things to do than learn Read More …
If we listened to music other than the greatest hits of the anointed few, might we be impressed by some ignored masterpiece? For example, consider Florence Price, the first black woman to have had her music performed by a major Read More …
We’ll start off the month with one of my favorites, Edmond Dédé. He’s got a Wikipedia article that has some detail. But to really understand his legacy and the odds against him, look at this article from New Orleans Public Read More …
Today, March 21, is the 192nd anniversary of the premiere of the Grosse Fuge. According to Benjamin P. Hardy writing on Medium, Ludwig van Beethoven wrote five of the fifty greatest pieces of music ever created. “But in order to Read More …
At least once a week, I like to skim the list of new additions to the Naxos Music Library, listening to a few tracks that pique my interest. (You can pay for the Naxos Music Library, but you might have Read More …
Times change. Two hundred years ago, at the time of Jane Austen, every young lady who had any aspirations of a middle-class or higher life was expected to have “accomplishments,” among which was included music, especially singing or playing an Read More …
