What Can Classical Music do for You?
A few weeks ago, I asked: what music is there in the remote key of A-flat minor? One piece I discovered was the Fugue in A-flat minor, WoO 8, by Johannes Brahms, on YouTube. The 7-flat key signature is hardly Read More …
Last week, I logged in to the Naxos Music Library, as I try to do every weekday, and looked through the new releases. I noticed a new recording of The Veil of Pierrette by Ernst von Dohnányi. The author of Read More …
Dett is another of the composers fortunate enough to receive more recognition, so he has a lot of entries: Wikipedia AfriClassical A website devoted to Dett Entries in the Library of Congress AfroVoices BlackPast and, of course, his scores available Read More …
Lafitte is another of those well-studied composers, as least as far as his biography is concerned. Here’s a roundup of resources: Wikipedia AfriClassical BlackPast Diesis&Bemolle (in Italian) Radio Habana Cuba (in Spanish) Foreign Musicians in Paris IMSLP Nothing on Read More …
Sancho has a Wikipedia Entry, an article published in Black History Month 2018, an article at the British Library, and numerous other articles written because he was the first person of color to vote in a British election, and because Read More …
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 …
