AfriClassical

Howard University's Dept. of Music Centennial: Music Faculty in Masterworks of the 19th Century

2012-01-26T21:42:00.000-05:00

[From TOP: Raymond T. Jackson, Kehembe V. Eichelberger, Fred Irby, III]

Howard University's Department of Music
Reaches A Centennial Milestone

The Centennial Celebration marks a milestone for the Department and a new beginning. To achieve our goals of increased scholarships and professional training for our students, service to the community, and improved facilities requires the generous and continued support of our alumni and friends.

Join us as we begin a major 3-year Celebration and fund raising campaign Beginning With

A MUSIC FACULTY GALA CONCERT
PERFORMING MASTERWORKS OF THE 19TH CENTURY

By Mendelssohn, Chopin, Liszt, Brahms, Saint-Saëns, and
African American Composer, Frederick Eliot Lewis

ANDREW RANKIN MEMORIAL CHAPEL (Main Campus)

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 2012
3:00PM

SCTF.org: 'Dominique-Rene de Lerma donates Coleridge-Taylor bibliography to SCTF website'

2012-01-26T16:57:00.000-05:00

[Photo: Samuel Coleridge-Taylor Foundation]

We welcome this news of our friends at www.SCTF.org.uk, and we look forward to linking the Samuel Coleridge-Taylor page at AfriClassical.com to the new Bibliography:

Samuel Coleridge-Taylor Foundation

Hilary Burrage January 26, 2012

"In a hugely significant step towards realising our intention to bring Coleridge-Taylor’s life and works to public attention as he deserves, the Samuel Coleridge-Taylor Foundation is delighted to announce that the distinguished American researcher and scholar Dr. Dominique-Rene de Lerma has generously entrusted us with publication on our website of his extensive bibliography and general reference point for documents and other material relating to Samuel Coleridge-Taylor.

"You will find Dr. de Lerma’s entire list on this website, under the menu entitled Bibliography. A brief biography of Dominique-Rene de Lerma is attached below. Whilst of course Dr. de Lerma retains copyright of his list, he has also indicated that he will welcome additions (and / or corrections) to enhance it, as our knowledge and experience of Coleridge-Taylor develops.

"The SCT Foundation is enormously grateful to Dominique-Rene de Lerma for his generosity and we look forward to working with him and the whole ‘SCT community’ to take this work forward."

Biographical note (from the Columbia Center for Black Music Research, Chicago)
"Dominique-René de Lerma (1928– ) is a prominent, pioneering scholar in black music research. After a career as a performing oboist, de Lerma received a PhD in musicology from Indiana University in 1958. Subsequently he taught at Indiana University (1963–1976), at Morgan State University (1976–1990), and at Peabody Conservatory (1983–1990). He served as Director of the Center for Black Music Research at Columbia College Chicago from 1990 to 1993. Currently, he teaches at Lawrence University in Appleton, Wisconsin. De Lerma is the author of several books, including the four-volume Bibliography of Black Music (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1981)."

Boston Symphony Orchestra: Harlem String Quartet at Tanglewood 8 PM Sunday, August 26, 2012

2012-01-26T11:33:00.002-05:00

[Harlem String Quartet]

Boston Symphony Orchestra
Aug 26

2012

Sunday, 8:00 PM

Chick Corea and Gary Burton Hot House Tour

with the

 Harlem String Quartet

Tanglewood

Ozawa Hall Lenox MA

$19.00 - $63.00

[The Harlem Quartet is an ensemble of the Sphinx Organization, which was founded in 1996 by violinist Aaron P. Dworkin, http://www.AaronDworkin.com, who is profiled at AfriClassical.com]

Ohio Wesleyan: 'Nancy Gamso Publishes Results of Aural Learning Project in Peer-Reviewed Music Educators Journal'

2012-01-25T20:40:00.002-05:00

[Nancy Gamso (Photo Credit: Stephen Pariser)]

Ohio Wesleyan University tells AfriClassical of An Aural Learning Project, an article in Music Educators Journal:

Music Educators Journal
December 2011 vol. 98 no. 2 61-67
An Aural Learning Project
"Assimilating Jazz Education Methods for Traditional Applied Pedagogy

Nancy M. Gamso is a professor of music and coaches woodwind chamber ensembles at Ohio Wesleyan University, Delaware, Ohio. She is also a woodwind doubler and is researching how to incorporate the techniques of jazz study into traditional classical woodwind pedagogy. She can be contacted at nmgamso@owu.edu.

"Abstract

The Aural Learning Project (ALP) was developed to incorporate jazz method components into the author’s classical practice and her applied woodwind lesson curriculum. The primary objective was to place a more focused pedagogical emphasis on listening and hearing than is traditionally used in the classical applied curriculum. The components of the ALP for the applied studio are (1) listening to at least two professional recordings of the works currently being studied and analyzing the performances, (2) recording projects with a written evaluation of the performance, (3) SmartMusic practice, (4) memorization and transcription projects, (5) assigned readings and research on works studied, and (6) composed and improvised warm-up and technique exercises. This article is a report on the project and a description of its implementation and assessment."

Soprano Hélène Lindqvist and Pianist Philipp Vogler in 'Thou art risen my beloved' of Samuel Coleridge-Taylor

2012-01-25T12:09:00.001-05:00

[Samuel Coleridge-Taylor]

On July 3, 2011 AfriClassical quoted the Lindqvist & Vogler Duo as saying: “We plan to record some of the 'Songs of sun and shade' of Samuel Coleridge-Taylor.” No. 4 in the series is Thou art risen my beloved. (3:00) Today we post a 2011 performance of that song by soprano Hélène Lindqvist and pianist Philipp Vogler, known as the Lindqvist & Vogler Duo:

Uploaded by ArtSongChannel on Jul 29, 2011

http://TheArtsongProject.com

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mwMqM_VmEHU

[Samuel Coleridge-Taylor (1875-1912) is featured at AfriClassical.com. The Centennial of his death is in 2012. Major observances are being planned by organizations including the Samuel Coleridge-Taylor Foundation, http://www.sctf.org.uk]

Morgan State University Choir Performs at Martin Luther King, Jr. Program of Broadcast Board of Governors

2012-01-25T11:06:00.001-05:00

[Morgan State University Choir]

Dr. Eric Conway, Director of the Morgan State University Choir, sent us this message last night about a Martin Luther King, Jr. program at which he led the M.S.U. Choir earlier in the day:

January 24, 2012

“Hello everyone,

This morning, the Morgan State University Choir performed for a MLK Program for the Broadcast Board of Governors, a federal agency in Washington, DC. The keynote speaker was Dr. Charlie Nelms, Chancellor from North Carolina Central University. The program was very inspiring for those were in attendance. Please see copy of program attached.

Eric Conway, D.M.A.

Fine and Performing Arts Department, Chairperson

Morgan State University

www.msuchoir.org

Broadcast Board of Governors Program (Excerpt)

“The Morgan State University Choir has performed around the world to critical acclaim. Named 'Best College Choir' in 2004 by Reader's Digest magazine, the Choir has performed with several major symphony orchestras, including the Philadelphia Orchestra, Chicago Symphony, the New York Philharmonic and the National Symphony Orchestra, to name a few. Dr. Eric Conway is currently the Director of the Morgan State University Choir and Chairperson of the Fine Arts Department. During his tenure, Dr. Conway has led the choir to many acclaimed performances, including a special performance at the service honoring Rosa Parks, the unassuming matriarch of the civil rights movement, who became the first woman to lie in honor at our national Capitol Rotunda. In July 2006, the choir traveled to Prague, Czech Republic, for two concerts with maestro Paul Freeman and the Czech National Symphony Orchestra. In 2008, the Morgan State University Choir performed at Carnegie Hall on two separate occasions; under the baton of Bobby McFerrin with the St. Luke's Orchestra, and under the baton of Marin Alsop with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra. This past June, the choir traveled to Italy and sang during a Mass at St. Peters Basilica at the Vatican City. In September, the choir sang for the unveiling of the Maryland 911 Memorial in Baltimore. The Morgan State University Choir has shared its musical gifts on many grand stages all over the world - with numerous dignitaries and celebrated performers - making them cultural ambassadors for Morgan State University the city of Baltimore, the state of Maryland and the United States. For further information, see www.msuchoir.org.”

YouTube: 'Ray Dotoratos & Gary Hammond - William Grant Still - Suite No.1 African Dancer for Violin & Piano'

2012-01-24T21:13:00.000-05:00

[William Grant Still (Photo is the sole property of William Grant Still Music, and is used with permission]

Today a performance of Suite No. 1, African Dancer (4:58) of William Grant Still was uploaded to YouTube. Violinist Ray Dotoratos and pianist Gary Hammond performed the work in a live radio broadcast. The YouTube URL is:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a6DOIOD6E1Q

“Uploaded by classicalmusic2277 on Jan 24, 2012

Ray Dotoratos and Gary Hammond's extensive international solo orchestral and recital performances include the United States, Europe and Asia at well-known concert halls including Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, Town Hall as well as The White House. Both alumni of The Juilliard School, they have also performed at major universities and performing arts centers.”

“Visit: www.dotoratos-hammond.com

[William Grant Still (1895-1978) is profiled at AfriClassical.com, which
features a comprehensive Works List by Prof. Dominique-René de
Lerma,

http://www.CasaMusicaledeLerma.com]

Comment by email:
Hello Bill, Thank you for posting on your website violinist Ray Dotoratos and pianist Gary Hammond's radio performance listed on "youtube". It is much appreciated, Jean Acheson, PR Director, ND Artists Management

Brook Center: 'Distinguished professor León has just been named artistic director' of Composers Now Festival

2012-01-24T20:22:00.000-05:00

[Tania León]

The Barry S. Brook Center For Music And Documentation

The Foundation For Iberian Music

Dance Performance of
“Homenatge”
by Tania León

12 February, 2012: The Foundation for Iberian Music's Composer's Commission, “Homenatge”, a tribute to Xavier Montsalvatge for his centennial by Tania León will be performed at the 2012 Composers Now festival. This festival is held throughout New York City by numerous organizations.

Distinguished professor León has just been
named artistic director of this prestigious festival.
The Dance Theater of Harlem will perform “Homenatge” with pianist Adam Kent.

Music and dance featuring a performance of Homenatge by Tania León performed by Adam Kent with choreography by Pedro Ruiz

Feb. 12th, 3:00PM
Tickets: $18.00 ($12.00 for children and seniors)

Dance Theatre of Harlem

The Everett Center for the Performing Arts

466 W. 152nd St. NYC

For more information:

http://dancetheatreofharlem.org/

[The website of the Afro-Cuban composer and conductor Tania León (b. 1943) is http://www.tanialeon.com/; she is also profiled at AfriClassical.com]

Bienen School of Music Dean Toni-Marie Montgomery of Northwestern University Appreciates Approval of New Music Building

2012-01-24T19:21:00.000-05:00

[Dean Toni-Marie Montgomery, Bienen School of Music, Northwestern University]

Northwestern University’s Bienen School of Music to break ground for new building

Music Building construction to begin in May

Construction of a building on the lakefront of Northwestern University’s Evanston campus that will be the new home of the Bienen School of Music and provide additional space for the School of Communication will begin this spring, University officials announced January 20, 2012. Designed to be a signature building for the University, the new facility will enable the Bienen School to consolidate all of its programs in one campus location for the first time in more than 35 years.

The new building will be located just south of the school’s Pick-Staiger Concert Hall and connected to the Regenstein Hall of Music on the southern end of Northwestern’s lakefront campus. The five-story structure will be directly east of the Theatre and Interpretation Center with spectacular views of Lake Michigan and the Chicago skyline.

With approximately 150,000 gross square feet, the new building will include classrooms, teaching labs, academic faculty offices, teaching studios for choral, jazz, opera, piano and voice faculty, practice rooms, student lounges and administrative offices. There also will be a choral rehearsal/recital room, choral and orchestra libraries, an opera rehearsal/black box theater and a 400-seat recital hall.

Estimated cost for the new facility and an adjacent arts green is $117 million. Construction is expected to begin in May and take approximately three years to complete with move-in expected in fall 2015. Architect for the building is Goettsch Partners, Inc. of Chicago.

School of Music Dean Toni-Marie Montgomery said, “I express my appreciation to President Emeritus Henry Bienen for giving the initial approval for the building, President Morton Schapiro for embracing this project and providing the support to make this a reality, and Provost Daniel Linzer and the trustees and other donors who have contributed financially to the project.

“The building symbolizes many things -- the excellence of the Bienen School of Music and its students, faculty and alumni, and the university’s significant investment in the arts. I am thrilled that construction will begin this spring and I look forward to moving into the Bienen School’s new home.” Dr. Montgomery is the first African American dean and the first female dean of the prestigious Henry and Leigh Bienen School of Music at Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois.

In addition, the fifth floor of the new building will provide a new south campus home for the School of Communication administration, including the dean’s office and additional offices for faculty members. Space in the new building will enable the School to bring together on one floor the faculty in the Department of Theater and in the Department of Performance Studies, and to have them in the same building with colleagues in the School of Music, thereby creating more opportunities for collaboration in the performing arts.

“We’re looking forward to joining the Bienen School in this wonderful new building,” said Barbara O’Keefe, dean of the School of Communication. “This also will enable us to create additional classroom, laboratory and performance spaces in the school’s other buildings.”

The project also will include a new Music and Arts Green to the west of the building that will provide a 120-foot wide pedestrian-friendly green space. This dramatic new gateway to the new building and the fine arts area will provide a major open space amenity that can become a focal point for special events and passive recreation. The green space will improve pedestrian safety and circulation significantly while still allowing vehicular access to the current buildings. The outstanding views of the lake and Chicago from that area will be enhanced.

Mozart's Birthday @ Urban Eats: Raycurt aka Fiddla, Classical Revolution of D.C. & Washington Musica Viva Jan. 29, 11 AM & 2 PM

2012-01-24T12:13:00.001-05:00

Raycurt Johnson

www.raycurt.com

Sunday, January 29
11:00 a.m. Mozart melodies and duets.
2:00 p.m. Chamber Music Concert and Jam Session

“This is a retaliation to the Art Organizations who continue to program cuts supporting local artists. As of this physical year, 2012, there are no grants offered to individual artists for their projects that serve the creative community at large. We thank the few remaining sponsors and businesses that do respect this challenge brought to us.

“Please tell friends and neighbors of this event as your presence would be greatly rewarded with memorable performances and friendships.

“To my musical colleagues if you wish to play in the Jam please inform me ahead of time. I would need a count for Symphony 40 part and chairs.”

Brenda Usher-Carpino Sings Aria 'Divinités du Styx' by W. Gluck in Oakland, CA 4 PM Jan. 29

2012-01-24T11:03:00.000-05:00

[Brenda Usher-Carpino, Ph.D.]

On Jan. 13, 2012 AfriClassical posted: “SFCV.org: 'Danzas and Arias,' Samuel Coleridge-Taylor, Afro-British Composer, and Arturo Marquez, Mexican composer.” Today the Oakland Public Conservatory points out:

“The program Danzas and Arias highlights local vocal soloist Brenda Usher-Carpino, who serves as OPC's Managing Director, in a performance of the aria Divinités du Styx from W. Gluck's opera, Alceste."

OPCMusic.org

“Brenda’s lifelong passions have consistently been in the arts. Her earliest childhood dreams were to be a classical pianist, a painter, a sculptor, a dancer, a novelist, and the first black diva to sing the principal role at the New York Metropolitan Opera—in that order. The reality is that life saw fit to take her down other paths first. It was many years later that she would study classical piano at the same time as her then four-year old daughter and even later when she would begin studying classical voice. Writing, however, was the one passion she could pursue early on anytime and anywhere because it only required a notebook, a pencil, and a place to sit and write.

“You Better Not Cry is the title of a novel Brenda has been working on for many years. She has written short stories, poems and plays, has acted in film and on the community stage, and has performed solo as soprano/mezzo soprano. She has produced two successful staged readings of her play Blood Types, has sung with the Berkeley Community Chorus and Orchestra, the Oakland symphony Chorus, and the OPC Symphony. She has also been a student at OPC where she took Vocal Performance with Branice McKenzie, and a Blues class with the Founder and Director, Angela Wellman, where she got to explore the musical genre on piano.”

“She embraces OPC with great passion and returns as Interim Managing Director, after a two-year hiatus in graduate school, because she believes in its potential and its capacity as the first Public Conservatory in the nation, to continue putting an accomplished face on our music community and playing a key role in its rising visibility.

“Dr. Usher-Carpino recently received her MFA in English and Creative Writing from Mills College. She holds a B.A. (UCB), M.A. (CSUH) and a Ph.D. (Stanford) in French. Brenda’s daughter Crystal is an honors graduate of Harvard and is currently studying law at Hastings School of Law.”

YouTube: 'Romance' for Saxophone of William Grant Still 'arranged for Trombone and Harp for the Mu Phi Alumni of Kansas City'

2012-01-23T13:34:00.001-05:00

[Africa: Piano Music of William Grant Still; Denver Oldham, piano; Koch 3 7084 2H1 (1991)]

The performers in this YouTube video are Rachel Brandwein, harp and David Peterson, trombone:

“Uploaded by pinetraveler on Jan 22, 2012 Romance for Alto Saxophone and Piano or Chamber Orchestra (1954) arranged for Trombone and Harp for the Mu Phi Alumni of Kansas City.”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pW3GHsdIqYg

William Grant Still (1895-1978) is profiled at AfriClassical.com, which
features a comprehensive Works List by Prof. Dominique-René de
Lerma,

http://www.CasaMusicaledeLerma.com Here is the entry for Romance

“Romance,
for
saxophone & piano (1954). New York: Bourne, 1966 (#B211193)
Dedication: Sigurd Rascher. Originally intended to be a movement of a
larger work. Duration: 3:00. Library: Library of Congress.”

Baritone Roscoe Orman in August Wilson's 'JITNEY,' Morgan State University Feb. 9-12, 2012

2012-01-23T12:20:00.001-05:00

[Roscoe Orman]

August Wilson’s JITNEY

Directed by Shirley Basfield Dunlap

Starring Roscoe Orman

Feb 9 -12

Morgan State University

Murphy Fine Arts Center Ticket Office:www.murphyfineartscenter.org

Artist Profile

“Roscoe Orman has been known to millions for his thirty-five years as 'Gordon' on PBSTV's highly acclaimed children's series Sesame Street, where he has become a symbol of fatherhood to an entire generation.

“In addition to his work on Sesame Street, Mr. Gordon's 45-year career in film, television, theatre and voiceover has included roles/performances in The Wire, Law and Order, All My Children, F/X, Sex and the City, Cosby, and many more. His distinguished baritone has been the voice reading numerous audio books such as 'Soldier: The Life of Colin Powell,' 'Wilt, 1962: The Night of 100 Points and the Dawn of a New Era,' 'Othello: Young Readers Shakespeak.'

“Mr. Orman is also a sought-after keynote speaker and writer. His keynote and other spoken word presentations are based in his more than 30 years of work associated with the Emmy award-winning television series, 'Sesame Street.'”

Three Comments on Interview with Althea Waites, who says: 'please know how much I appreciate your work'

2012-01-23T11:40:00.001-05:00

[Along The Western Shore; Althea Waites, pianist; Althea Waites and Mark Uranker, duo-pianists; Cambria CD-1141 (2003)]

Pianist Althea Waites has made a comment on the Guest Book at AfriClassical.com on our interview:

“Hi Bill, I just read the transcript of our interview from January 16. Thank you so much for taking the time to do this....I'm sure it's an incredible amount of work for you in addition to everything else that you're doing, but please know how much I appreciate your work and getting the information about my new recording on your website. I will stay in touch. Best wishes and regards, Althea” From: Long Beach, CA Web Site: altheawaites.com

Maestro John McLaughlin Williams

“That is a terrific interview, Bill, and your enthusiasm comes through clearly! Thanks very much!

J”

John Malveaux of www.MusicUNTOLD.com

“Please see link to your interview with Althea on musicuntold.com home page.

John Malveaux”

Comments by email:
I agree! When I elected to publish Black music in our culture there was a lot of material on tape and it had to be transcribed. I was happy to be able to hire a blind student to do this. Later when I had to do the same thing, I really found out how very difficult that task is! And, quite apart from that expression of sympathy, having this information from Althea is really important.

Dominique-René de Lerma, http://www.CasaMusicaledeLerma.com

Thanks, William! B [Bongani Ndodana-Breen]

L.A. Times Music Blog: 'Kathleen Battle sings spirituals at UCLA's Royce Hall'

2012-01-23T10:23:00.001-05:00

[Kathleen Battle (Credit: Douglas Foulke); Spirit, 2009 CD of Cyrus Chestnut; The Best of Jubilee Volume II, CD of Albert McNeil Jubilee Singers of Los Angeles]

POP & HISS

The L.A. Times Music Blog

“Frederick Douglass, the great 19th century orator, writer and former slave, once wrote of the music he regularly heard emerging from the fields and houses where he and other slaves toiled, “I have sometimes thought that the mere hearing of those songs would do more to impress some minds with the horrible character of slavery, than the reading of whole volumes of philosophy on the subject could do.”

“Those words were recited Saturday at UCLA during soprano Kathleen Battle’s 'Underground Railroad' program of African American spirituals, in which she offered convincing proof of Douglass’ theory, with inspired assistance from pianist Cyrus Chestnut and L.A.’s Albert McNeil Jubilee Singers.

“It was the kind of intelligently conceived evening that all too often is restricted to February for Black History Month, one whose message and music are relevant any day of the year. The 63-year-old soprano guided the near-capacity crowd in elegant Royce Hall through nearly two dozen traditionals, beginning with 'Lord, How Come Me Here?' through the show-closing reading of 'He’s Got the Whole World In His Hands.'”

Althea Waites Interview Covers Feb. 4 Recital in Long Beach and Forthcoming Cambria CD, 'Celebrations'

2012-01-22T21:46:00.000-05:00

[Black Diamonds: Althea Waites Plays Music By African-American Composers; Cambria CD-1097 (1993).]

When John Malveaux announced that Althea Waites would give a piano recital in Long Beach, California on Feb. 4, 2012 we asked if an interview could be arranged with the pianist, whose work we have known for many years. The above CD is pictured on the pages of Florence B. Price and Margaret A. Bonds at AfriClassical.com. The website features complete Works lists by Prof. Dominique-René de Lerma, http://www.CasaMusicaledeLerma.com John communicated our request to Althea Waites, and she promptly agreed. The interview was done by phone on January 16, 2012. Here is a transcript:

Hello, this is Bill Zick, calling for Althea Waites.

Speaking!

Oh, it's very nice to be in touch with you. And I realize that it's a lot earlier where you are than lunchtime here!

Well that's okay, I'm an early riser! I'm kind of used to getting up at the crack, 6:30, to get my day going.

It looks like it's a pretty full schedule that you're keeping up, with teaching and performances and so on! Just by way of background, Althea, what part of the country are you from?

Well I grew up in New Orleans; I was born in '39. You can figure out my current age!

Right!

I lived through all of the great Civil Rights Movements of the Sixties. I was educated at Xavier University in New Orleans. It was at that time, and I think still is, a predominantly Black Catholic university. Then I have a Master of Music in Piano Performance from Yale, and did further study at the Paris Conservatory. I was very successful early on in that I had excellent training at both schools, and was able to have a really great career as a teacher and was able to do concerts. I think I was very fortunate in that regard. I was teaching at various schools not only in the South but of course I moved to the East Coast in 1975 and continued to do that, and I juggled, as you indicated, careers around. I think if you simply perform, you still have to find a way to either receive support or support yourself in order to earn a living. I don't think that that has really changed.

So you have to have a balanced career?

Yes, you do. I think anybody who is in teaching, whether it is today or 50 years ago, you are still faced with the same challenges of how you educate the next generation.

You seem to have a focus on both new composers and composers of African descent and other minorities; am I correct?

Yes, I do focus on new music and I have to say too that I don't only focus on the music of African American composers. Throughout most of my career, I have been doing a considerable amount of that. When I was at Xavier, for example, William Grant Still came to our campus to conduct one of his operas...

Is that right!

Yes, this was back in the Fifties. I think you probably know from your own research that he did come to the Deep South, and that he conducted symphony orchestras there. That was kind of a milestone for him, but at the same time, we also had other well-known conductors like Julius Rudel of the New York City Opera come in conducting master classes and things like that. I was exposed at that age to a wide variety of training and ideas. I have been focusing on that, but I also do a lot of music of composers for example of every ethnic group whose music has simply not been heard on a broad scale, and I feel very strongly about that. I am kind of into mainstreaming all music, not just music of African American composers, because I feel that it's important.

Your second recording, Along the Western Shore, is excellent evidence of the broad approach, with some world premieres by lesser-known composers who don't happen to be minorities; the program, however, seems to fit together well with William Grant Still's Seven Traceries.

Yes, that's an excellent set! I'm glad you mentioned that. I love that music! Verna Arvey, Dr. Still's widow, introduced me to that. She gave me a copy of the score. You know they lived in Los Angeles in the West Adams district for a number of years. When I met Mrs. Still I was working at one of the L.A. Cultural Community Centers, where students and people can come in and have workshops and things like that, and I had a wonderful time visiting with her although she was in poor health at that moment. We talked a lot about why it was important for this music to be heard. I took my cue from her and was really inspired by the things that she had to say about her husband. So we got everything going, and I learned the music and I thought well, the pieces themselves are really quite beautiful and I really enjoyed working with them for that reason.

They are quite diverse, it seems to me?

Yes! You know I should mention something to you; you probably know of this. Eileen Southern had a wonderful collection of essays and various articles called Readings in Black American Music and one of the things that really struck me as being significant was Hale Smith's essay called Here I Stand. I met him at a symposium many years ago along with Dr. Southern. He talks about the mainstreaming of Black American Music, and I think that was one of the things that sort of fired me up, about not putting women, or African American composers, or Latin American composers into a sort of ghetto. He really felt very strongly that if we're going to all be recognized, then this music should be mainstreamed, not just performed in February or African American History Month.

That does sound familiar. After Hale Smith's passing, I did an extensive interview with Regina Harris Baiocchi, whom he mentored for many years. What she said about his philosophy of including Black Music with the standard repertoire is definitely compatible with what you're saying.

Yes! Let's say you listen to a classical radio station, KUSC, I know they play a lot of music, and I know this weekend, because it's Martin Luther King's birthday celebration and we honor him for all of the great work that he did. But I don't want to hear just certain pieces that happen to have been written by African American composers on this day, and then for the other 364 days in the year, I have to search to find something that happens to have been written by a Black composer! It shouldn't have to be, “Oh well, they happen to be Black, so we're doing it today.” Put it on with Mozart! Put it on with Beethoven or Sibelius or Messiaen, or anyone that you want to name, it's okay! I feel strongly about what Hale Smith had to say!

You know that actually is the approach that I understand is effective in France. I have a series of French recordings that pair works of Mozart and Le Chevalier de Saint-Georges, and I don't see that done here.

Yes, wonderful!

So both in performances and recordings, there is a tendency to put Saint-Georges in the context, not just as somebody who was very unusual.

Yes, absolutely, I completely agree with you! I think it's important that people realize that there were other composers out there who lived during that era when Mozart was alive! It shouldn't just be that “Oh well, he was just somebody who was unusual.”

There's not the progress in some ways that one might have hoped for.

Yes, I am disappointed to some extent by that. I see little pockets of progress here and there, but not enough. I keep asking myself after all these years, what is the problem? At the same time I look at Gustavo Dudamel, who is an amazing artist who is now Music Director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic...

Right.

The Philharmonic has been programming music of Latin American composers. Okay, fine. Well, what about Curt Cacioppo, who's not Black, he's Sicilian by background; he is being performed widely in other areas. He's written wonderful pieces. What about doing his music or Adolphus Hailstork and William Grant Still? Why not?

Adolphus Hailstork seems to be performed as much as anyone other than William Grant Still. I see his name every day in my list of Google Alerts for concerts and recordings.

Yes!

He is just very well received. Often it's in areas where there are not many minorities either.

That's true. In fact I just performed the other day with a singer from Michigan Hailstork's cycle, Songs of Love and Justice. This was a commemorative concert in honor of Martin Luther King, and it was a program at a church in Los Angeles. This was one of the featured pieces on the concert.

Yes! A slightly different angle on the success of the people of African descent in classical music, I have been happy to see in the last few years people like Kelly Hall-Tompkins in New York City who was the Concertmaster for the new Respighi Violin Concerto.

Yes!

It was a world premiere!

Yes, she's doing very, very well!

Eliesha Nelson and John McLaughlin Williams did the terrific project on the music of Quincy Porter for viola!

Yes.

More recently, she did Russian Viola Sonatas, with Glen Inanga, who is from Nigeria.

Yes.

I think those three artists set some example of what is possible to make the artists part of the mainstream performances.

Yes, absolutely! I met Eliesha several years back, I think it was 2001. She played at a festival in the Eastman School. She was just one of the stars of that festival! I so enjoyed meeting her and working with her! I think again, that's one of the ways that we can get the music out. I just think that we need to bring those artists here! I don't think we can accept as an excuse, “Oh, well they're hard to find.” No, they're out there!

Kelly is an unusual example, but an excellent one, in that she is the Founder of the tremendously successful Music Kitchen program of music at homeless shelters and soup kitchens in New York City!

Yes.

She has brought musicians from all levels to contribute to this, and people are drawn into it.

Yes, I heard about that when she first started doing it. I think this is such a great way...

Kelly and her Music Kitchen program have been on all the major TV networks. It shows another way that a minority person who is entrepreneurial and wants to play a role in society, can do that! She's not putting on Black music; she plays Brahms.

Exactly! It doesn't have to be just one particular ethnic group's work. You play whatever you want to play. I just take my hat off to her because I remember when that project started. I think it is so wonderful that she's doing this in homeless shelters! People will listen! I've done quite a bit of work myself in retirement homes and prisons. You don't need a Ph.D. to understand music, because after all it is about emotion.

Exactly! I have to remark that you did quite a job in programming your two recordings! That must be one reason they are both still widely available!

Yes! Lance Bowling, who is the Cambria Records producer, has been very supportive in terms of getting the word out there, and the recordings, even though they came very early, that first one, Black Diamonds, was released in '93 and then the second one in 2004, and I'm working on a third one now. It's almost ready.

Are there any hints that you'd like to give us about the third recording?

Yes, I would be happy to! I can even give you the title! The new CD is called Celebrations. It is an album of music by American composers. This CD includes two pieces which have been written for me, dedicated to me.

Wonderful!

One is by Curt Cacioppo, who I mentioned before. I've been performing his music a lot.

Yes!

A longtime friend... It is called Fantasy Choruses on This Little Light of Mine. That is going to be on the album, and the other piece was written by a Dallas-based composer, a young man named Jeremiah Evans. It's called Metropolitan Express; a short piece using the urban jazz styles and idioms. They are all pieces which have never been recorded, with the exception of a little encore piece by Duke Ellington called Single Petal of a Rose.

So you are about expanding the repertoire once again?

Yes, I'm very excited about it! Right now everything has been done but I am now in what they call the “post-production” phase. I have been editing the material.

Do you have any target date?

Yes, I am expecting that I should have all of this ready by early March. This will be after a long, long hiatus.

Absolutely.

You have to have unlimited free time; you need time to focus. You can't just go in after a full day of teaching and doing lessons and then you say “Oh, now I am going to sit down and practice, and then I am going to record tomorrow morning.” That's not the way it works! We're well on the way now with editing. We'll come up with a master copy. I am co-producing with a wonderful friend and colleague, Mark Uranker.

He has a piece on your more recent CD?

On the second one, yes. It's called Etcetera Variations. Mark and I have a duo called the “Orpheus Duo.” We perform a lot over here at Cal State Long Beach. We have been doing a lot of new music of course, and things from the standard repertoire as well. I tell everybody “If I was able to get a huge grant I would pick and choose what I want to do! That would be wonderful, but right now it's a way for me to support myself so that I can do these other projects. You can't just do everything. So I do say “No” quite a bit to things that I know I can't handle.

That is the only way you can do it!

Absolutely!

If I could turn to the works that you will perform on February 4, you told me that you will do Scuppernong by John W. Work?

Yes.

And William Grant Still's Three Visions?

Right.

And Troubled Water by Margaret Bonds?

Right! That's on my first album, Black Diamonds. I love that piece! It's a really wonderful setting of the spiritual! And then I am going to play Curt Cacioppo's work, which was done in 2008, called Philadelphia Diary. It is a suite that he wrote for the Chamber Music Society in Philadelphia. It incorporates his connection with Native American themes as well as other themes in modern Philadelphia life. Then I am going to play an early Beethoven Sonata, Op. 7 in E Flat. So it's a nice eclectic mix!

Beethoven is a major part of my listening also.

Oh yes, he's my hero! Anyone who can play any of those sonatas, they are all difficult, all demanding! And of course, we still teach Beethoven.

I have several recordings by Awadagin Pratt with Beethoven, and one that's a combination of composers that he calls A Long Way From Normal, because he grew up in Normal, Illinois.

I like that A Long Way From Normal, that's great!

There is a universal appeal to Beethoven!

Yes, that's music that has stood the test of time! I always say to everybody, you don't have to have any kind of education... I remember going into drug rehab centers and prisons and playing Beethoven, and the audiences understood it! If you tell the listeners what the work is, and they can sit there and listen, and you ask them what they think, they will tell you! It's not like you have to have a Musicology degree or anything like that! They can relate to it, because it does speak to whatever it is that they are feeling.

In Europe on vacation I have experienced a concert in the park that drew all kinds of people!

I remember one afternoon I was in Milan, where they have concerts in the afternoon with small ensembles. People would just sit and have their tea or their lunch and listen to music. It was just one of the most enjoyable experiences that I have had! I really went through a big sea change many years ago about programming. I was often accused of “selling out!” “How come you don't do so-and-so?” I would say “Well, I don't feel I have to make a case for it! I'm doing what I feel is right and that's it!”

That reminds me of what the conductor John McLaughlin Williams said, he has made 11 CDs and some are Le Chevalier de Saint-Georges and some are Quincy Porter!

Yes.

He doesn't feel that he has to be in any particular pocket!

Yes, I think that is really the only way that we can go now. If you look at the world community, the planet is small when you think about the way that art is created and produced. Now we've got all this sophisticated technology. We've got the iPod, we've got the iPad, we've got satellites. We can communicate instantly from one side of the globe back to the other. That means we can all experience music in many different ways. I don't want to be ghettoized! People used to say to me, “Because you are Black you should only play jazz.” You've heard that one before!

That is one of the most fundamental stereotypes of all!

Yes! Or, “How come you are playing Mozart?” Why shouldn't I! We have to become a lot more universal, I think, in our approach to bringing in composers and artists of every race! That's how I feel right now! That's what of course Martin Luther King addressed when he talked about the “beloved community.” Besides his work for Civil Rights and ending wars, he discussed that a lot!

I did a post yesterday from Rocky Mount, North Carolina, where they are going to perform Samuel Coleridge-Taylor, Florence Price and Fela Sowande. When I tweeted that, it was retweeted by a South African composer, Bongani Ndodana-Breen, who composed the music for Winnie The Opera.

Oh, yes!

They are keeping an eye on what we are keeping an eye on!

Yes, that's great! I am so excited to hear about that! That's wonderful! We have to start looking beyond our little backyards here. I think that that will greatly enhance the cause we are all involved in! I used to do concerts with just music of women composers, which is not a bad thing in and of itself! Now I do program music by women, but I put it on with everything else!

I've really enjoyed our conversation. I wonder if there is anything else that we need to touch on before we conclude it?

CalState Long Beach has a very fine Department of Music. Our Department has really grown, and hopefully the word will get out that this is the place to be! I think Los Angeles is becoming the cultural center of the nation!

I am very fortunate to have contact with John Malveaux! He's the one who tells me about what's going on in Long Beach and other parts of the Los Angeles region.

He's been working very hard through his organization, MusicUNTOLD, to bring these things out! John has really been out there, fighting the good fight! I do think a lot of people are coming this way because they want to be involved in everything that's going on in L.A. I would just say to everybody, "Come out to the West, check it out!"

And hear some of the concerts of Althea Waites!

Thank you so much, Mr. Zick, for interviewing me! I really appreciate it!

Well, I've enjoyed it! Thank you very much!

Okay!

Bye now!

Composer Eric Lacy on 'A Dream of Conscience: A Tribute to MLK' & 'Three Question Marks'

2012-01-22T16:05:00.001-05:00

[Eric Lacy]

AfriClassical's first post on composer Eric Lacy was on Jan. 17, 2012: “Eric Lacy 'holds a Master's degree in film music composition from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts.'” We subsequently read a news article about the concert "A Musical Tribute to Martin Luther King" performed by the Reston Community Orchestra:

The Reston Patch
Jan. 16, 2012
“In keeping with RCO’s tradition of bringing new music to their audience and championing young composers, they debuted Eric Lacy’s A Dream of Conscience: A Tribute to MLK. Lacy, a Maryland native, took his inspiration from the speeches of King to craft this piece, specifically written for the RCO and the tribute concert.”

Maestro Dingwall Fleary of the Reston Community Orchestra put AfriClassical in touch with the composer. We then invited Eric Lacy to tell us a bit more about A Dream of Conscience: A Tribute to MLK. He has kindly done so:

“Hi Bill,

Thanks so much for your interest in my music! I'd love to see The Dream of Conscience performed again, it's a special piece to me and always will be. I'll share with you what I had written to the Reston players during the Christmas holidays as a bit of background on the music.”

(Composer Eric Lacy's Message to Reston Community Orchestra)

“When Maestro Fleary asked me if I’d be interested in composing a piece for the Martin Luther King, Jr. concert, I didn’t have to think about it at all. I was delighted and thrilled to have the chance to do it. I figured this would be a great opportunity for me to write something that could serve as a small tribute to an incredible person who was taken from the world way too early.

“My process in composing this piece was to come up with an appropriate title. Usually, I do just the opposite and save the title for last, but this time I thought that the title would be very important for how the audience would receive the music. The title for this piece was derived from a compilation of speeches that Dr. King made in 1967. The book contains five speeches about social change and the non-violent method to obtaining peace. It is titled The Trumpet of Conscience.

“I didn’t want to take the title of the book directly because I wanted the music to have its own identity so I took something Dr. King said in the book about being the victim of 'dreams deferred' while still retaining hope, and I combined those two concepts. The result was the title The Dream of Conscience.

“When I began to compose the piece, I originally conceived of something up-tempo and celebratory. Once ideas start coming to me, I have a tendency to write pretty fast and it took me about a week and a half to finish it. It was highly syncopated and had a jazz feel without the jazz chord progressions. Once I had finished it, however, I realized that the music seemed inappropriate for the title. To me, The Dream of Conscience conjures up images of a tribute to a fallen hero and so I went back to the drawing board and spent two days revising my original concepts. Once I finished my revisions, I was extremely happy with the result. I felt that the music had some honor and dignity this time. It was majestic and it contained elements reflecting the tragic loss of a great and influential man of peace.” (END)

“That's the basic story behind the music for that particular piece. The Reston Community Orchestra did a wonderful job performing it and I'm grateful to Mr. Fleary and the players for working so hard on it. I don't know if they will perform it again, but I certainly hope they will. As a young composer, I'm always looking to have my works performed, but right now the only definite thing I have coming up is my master's degree recital at UNCG. I'm also hoping to get a solo cello work called Three Question Marks performed in the near future. It was premiered last fall and was really well received. After that, my goal is to get commissioned to compose for the upcoming 2012-2013 season.

“Again, thanks so much for your interest!

Best regards,

Eric”

John Malveaux on Kathleen Battle in 'Underground Railroad: An evening of Spirituals'

2012-01-22T12:36:00.004-05:00

[Kathleen Battle]

John Malveaux of www.MusicUNTOLD sends this review of a performance by Kathleen Battle at UCLA yesterday:

KATHLEEN BATTLE

Underground Railroad: An evening of Spirituals

featuring Cyrus Chestnut and the Albert McNeil Jubilee Singers

Saturday Jan 21, 2012

Royce Hall-UCLA

Miss Battle offered an angelic voice with delicate phrasing and a sense of purpose throughout a well planned and executed program that deserves a PBS special and/or international tour. Brief Frederick Douglas excerpts were appropriately interspersed throughout the program by individual men in Albert McNeil Jubilee Singers. Pianist Cyrus Chestnut commanded considerable attention and received a strong standing ovation after a solo performance of 'Glory, Glory Hallelujah.' The Albert McNeil Singers achieved a dynamic balance with Miss Battle who did not speak to the audience except to recognize arranger Jacqueline Hairston in the audience. She selected 'Every Time I Feel The Spirit' for a single encore selection. Miss Battle confirmed an extensive list of career awards with continuing greatness and style.”

John Malveaux

www.MusicUNTOLD.com

Mike Kelly of Omaha World-Herald on Thomas Wilkins: 'He's a great talent, a true gentleman and a cool guy.'

2012-01-21T16:52:00.000-05:00

[Maestro Thomas Wilkins]

Earlier today AfriClassical posted: “Omaha.com: Thomas Wilkins seeks to'raise a new generation of concertgoers' who 'love music.'” We forwarded our post to Mike Kelly, Columnist for The Omaha World-Herald, whose column we had excerpted. He has made this gracious response to AfriClassical:

“Thanks for letting me know, Bill. He's a great talent, a true gentleman and a cool guy.

Mike”

Omaha World-Herald

www.omaha.com

Mike Kelly

Columnist

Joe Nocera, NYTimes.com: “'Porgy and Bess' — arguably the most important piece of American music written in the 20th century”

2012-01-21T16:27:00.000-05:00

[“Porgy and Bess”: Excerpts from the New York City Opera’s version of “Porgy and Bess,” produced by Sherwin M. Goldman. Includes “Summertime,” “Bess, You Is My Woman,” “It Ain’t Necessarily So” and others.]

Variations on an Explosive Theme
NYTimes.com

By Joe Nocera

January 21, 2012

“WHEN George Gershwin's 'Porgy and Bess' — arguably the most important piece of American music written in the 20th century — first opened on Broadway in 1935, the opera's libretto was littered with a word now shunned as an antiblack slur. The African-American residents of Catfish Row, the only slightly imaginary block in Charleston, S.C., where the opera is set, used it liberally, and so of course did the white characters during their occasional menacing visits.

“None of the opera’s early critics seemed to notice; whether black reviewer or white, they primarily critiqued 'Porgy and Bess' as a theatrical experience, focusing in particular on the highly original way Gershwin fused blues tonalities, spirituals and other elements of African-American music into a full-length opera."

“'Porgy and Bess' has always struck me as something of a miracle. A powerful, empathetic portrayal of poor black city dwellers in the South, it was written by three white men, two of whom had spent little time in the South. The one Southerner, Heyward, was a Charleston insurance salesman turned poet who had written a novel, 'Porgy,' the inspiration for which had come from a news story about a crippled beggar he used to see around town. Heyward spent years pushing Gershwin to collaborate on an opera; once Gershwin agreed, Heyward mailed him lyrics — the only ones he ever wrote in his life — that are some of the most sublime ever written. Stephen Sondheim described them as 'the most beautiful and powerful in our musical theater history.'

“'Porgy and Bess' was also Gershwin’s first opera — and his last; he was dead within two years, killed by a brain tumor at the age of 38.”

Omaha.com: Thomas Wilkins seeks to 'raise a new generation of concertgoers' who 'love music'

2012-01-21T11:44:00.000-05:00

[Maestro Thomas Wilkins (Omaha.com)]

Omaha.com

Thursday January 19, 2012

Kelly: Music lifted Wilkins

By Michael Kelly

WORLD-HERALD COLUMNIST

“The conductor of the Omaha Symphony jokes that his talent for flapping his arms came from his father — who waved his arms to help pilots park commercial airliners. Maestro Thomas Wilkins spends a lot of time at airports, but not on the tarmac. Though Omaha is home, he flies around the country often, much in demand to conduct other symphonies. This week he led the Philadelphia Orchestra in a Martin Luther King Day tribute. He is the principal guest conductor of the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra. And he recently became the first African-American conductor in the 131-year history of the Boston Symphony, where he leads youth and family concerts.

“I snagged him for a half-hour Wednesday as he prepared to rehearse with the Omaha Symphony for Sunday's family concert, 'The Thrill of the Orchestra.' He recalled his first orchestral thrill, a class field trip to hear the Norfolk, Va., symphony when he was 8. 'I think back to it all the time,' Wilkins said."

“Wilkins conducts the symphony's classical 'masterworks,' but also enjoys family concerts. Sunday's 2 p.m. event at the Holland is affordable — $9.75 for adults and $7 for children 12 and under if purchased in advance; $3 more at the door.” “Wilkins said he never talks down to children, and tells them the best thing they can bring to the concert hall is their imagination. His goal is to 'raise a new generation of concertgoers — not because they are ticket-buyers, but because they love music.'"

NewMusicBox.org: Florence Price's 'Concerto in One Movement' is 'an extremely exciting and approachable work.'

2012-01-20T19:45:00.000-05:00

[Florence B. Price: Concerto in One Movement, Symphony in E Minor; New Black Music Repertory Ensemble; Leslie B. Dunner, Conductor; Karen Walwyn, Piano; Albany Records 1295 (2011)]

Florence B. Price (1887-1953)

is
profiled at AfriClassical.com, which features a comprehensive Works
List by Prof. Dominique-René de Lerma,

http://www.CasaMusicaledeLerma.com A review at New Music Box of the recent Albany Records CD of works of Florence B. Price also mentions numerous other composers of African descent, many of whom are also featured at AfriClassical.com:

New Music Box

Sounds Heard: Florence B. Price—Concerto in One Movement; Symphony in E Minor

By Frank J. Oteri on January 17, 2012

“Since yesterday was Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, I thought it was an appropriate day to listen almost exclusively to music by African-American classical music composers—a group of composers who all too often get excluded from the pantheon of our nation’s most significant creative artists even at a time when we make extremely valiant attempts to celebrate diversity. While a handful of African-American composers alive now have the opportunity to hear their music performed by orchestras and other large-scale enterprises around the country and the past giants of jazz, blues, and other genres are rightfully revered (some even on postage stamps), pioneers like William Grant Still (1895-1978), R. Nathaniel Dett (1882-1943), William Levi Dawson (1899-1990), Ulysses Kay (1917-1995), and many others have yet to enter the standard repertoire of concert halls.”

“The most recent attempt to right the wrong of the current neglect of Florence Price’s music is the latest installment in an ongoing series of CDs entitled 'Recorded Music of the African Diaspora' featuring the New Black Music Repertory Ensemble and released by Albany Records under the auspices of the Center for Black Music Research at Columbia College in Chicago. Like its aforementioned Women’s Philharmonic forebear, the latest addition to the Florence Price discography is also the result of some intrepid musical archaeology. The disc opens with Price’s Concerto in One Movement, a work which premiered in Chicago in 1934 with the composer as soloist and which was subsequently performed by another early 20th century African-American female composer-pianist Margaret Bonds, who later became a close friend of and frequent collaborator with Langston Hughes. Yet the original orchestral score for this composition is lost; all that has survived are three manuscripts (all in the composer’s hand): a solo piano version, a three-piano arrangement, and a two-piano arrangement containing some marginal notes about instrumentation (although it is not known if these were written by her before or after the completion of the original orchestration). The Center for Black Music Research commissioned composer Trevor Weston to reconstruct an authoritative orchestration from the surviving materials, and this work received its premiere on February 17, 2011, with pianist Karen Walwyn and the New Black Repertory Ensemble conducted by Leslie B. Dunner; the same forces appear on the present recording. The Concerto, in its current guise, is an extremely exciting and approachable work.

“The rest of the disc is devoted to that historic first Symphony in E Minor, a massive nearly 40-minute work.”

Pianist Lara Downes Performs 'Fantasie Nègre' of Florence B. Price Tonight at 7:30 PM in Lompoc, California

2012-01-20T12:09:00.000-05:00

[Lara Downes]

Florence B. Price (1887-1953)

is profiled at
AfriClassical.com, which features a comprehensive Works List by Prof.
Dominique-René de Lerma,

http://www.CasaMusicaledeLerma.com Lara Downes, www.LaraDownes.com, will perform her Fantasie Nègre tonight at 7:30 PM:

LompocRecord.com

January 20, 2012

Renowned pianist to perform ‘The Americans’

The Lompoc Concert Association will present Steinway Concert Artist Lara Downes at 7:30 p.m. today at the First United Methodist Church, 925 North F St. in Lompoc.

Downes will perform her critically acclaimed concert program “The Americans,” a fascinating recital that highlights distinctly American voices of the 20th century. The vibrant program will feature perennial favorites such as Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue” as well as lesser known works including Florence Price’s virtuoso solo piano masterpiece “Fantasie Negre.”

Downes redefines the solo recital format with visionary, cutting-edge performances at prestigious concert venues worldwide. She presents the piano repertoire — from traditional favorites to newly commissioned works — in creative ways that bridge musical tastes, genres and audiences.

Chattanooga Choral Society and University of Tennessee at Chattanooga Present Scott Joplin's 'Treemonisha' Jan. 27, 28 & 29

2012-01-20T11:43:00.000-05:00

The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga

The Chattanooga Choral Society

Soprano Kimberly Haynes, William Bolcom & Sandra Seaton in 'From the Diary of Sally Hemings' Jan. 27, U. of Mich. Museum of Art

2012-01-20T11:16:00.000-05:00


[Kimberley Haynes]

Two Upcoming Events for the
School of Music Theater and Dance at
the University of Michigan
Museum of Art Concert Series

Friday, January 27, 8pm

William Bolcom: Portraits

University Of Michigan Museum Of Art Auditorium 8pm

UMMA presents celebrated song cycles by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer and UM Professor Emeritus William Bolcom, in which he captures the unique character of his subjects in exquisite depth and detail. From the Diary of Sally Hemings, with text by Sandra Seaton, imagines the recollections of Thomas Jefferson’s long-time partner. Kimberly Haynes soprano and UM Professor Timothy Cheek, piano.

Briefly It Enters, traces Jane Kenyon, through her poetry, in the last months of her life. Soprano Jennifer Goltz and William Bolcom, piano.

Joan Morris and William Bolcom perform his new set of cabaret miniatures, Minicabs.

Friday, January 27, 5pm

University Of Michigan Museum Of Art Auditorium

Please join us for a talk on From the Diary of Sally Hemings with composer William Bolcom, librettist Sandra Seaton, and UM Women's Studies professor Naomi Andre at 5pm in the Helmut Stern Auditorium. Topics are likely to range from artistic collaboration and the relationship of music and text to Women's and African-American Studies' perspectives on Sally Hemings as a historical figure.

Made possible by the Women of Color in the Academy Project at the Center for the Education of Women.

All School of Music Theater and Dance at the University of Michigan Museum of Art Concert Series events are free and open to the public.

Museum of Art (UMMA)

525 S. State
Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1354 734 764-0395

Kimberley Haynes
A graduate of Duke University, Kimberly received her Master’s and Doctor of Musical Arts degrees from the University of Michigan, under the instruction of Professors Leslie Guinn and Shirley Verrett. Former winner of the Montreal International Czech and Slovak Music Competition, she has presented recitals in Prague, Brno, Bratislava, and Trnava, and has performed with the Slovak State Philharmonic in Kosice, Slovakia. Kimberly’s other performance credits include appearances with: the Toledo Symphony of Ohio; the Memphis Symphony Orchestra; the Birmingham-Bloomfield Symphony of Michigan; the Livonia Symphony of Michigan; Bayview Music Festival, where she sang the role of Mimi in Puccini’s La Boheme; and Opera Grand Rapids, where she realized the role of Serena in Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess. A former adjunct and full-time professor at Spring Arbor University and Bethune-Cookman University, Kimberly now serves as Assistant Professor of Music and Assistant Vice President for Academic Support Services at Benedict College in Columbia, SC.

AfriClassical

Howard University's Dept. of Music Centennial: Music Faculty in Masterworks of the 19th Century

SCTF.org: 'Dominique-Rene de Lerma donates Coleridge-Taylor bibliography to SCTF website'

Boston Symphony Orchestra: Harlem String Quartet at Tanglewood 8 PM Sunday, August 26, 2012

Tanglewood

Ozawa Hall Lenox MA

$19.00 - $63.00

Ohio Wesleyan: 'Nancy Gamso Publishes Results of Aural Learning Project in Peer-Reviewed Music Educators Journal'

Soprano Hélène Lindqvist and Pianist Philipp Vogler in 'Thou art risen my beloved' of Samuel Coleridge-Taylor

Morgan State University Choir Performs at Martin Luther King, Jr. Program of Broadcast Board of Governors

YouTube: 'Ray Dotoratos & Gary Hammond - William Grant Still - Suite No.1 African Dancer for Violin & Piano'

Brook Center: 'Distinguished professor León has just been named artistic director' of Composers Now Festival

Dance Performance of “Homenatge” by Tania León

[The website of the Afro-Cuban composer and conductor Tania León (b. 1943) is http://www.tanialeon.com/; she is also profiled at AfriClassical.com]

Bienen School of Music Dean Toni-Marie Montgomery of Northwestern University Appreciates Approval of New Music Building

Mozart's Birthday @ Urban Eats: Raycurt aka Fiddla, Classical Revolution of D.C. & Washington Musica Viva Jan. 29, 11 AM & 2 PM

Brenda Usher-Carpino Sings Aria 'Divinités du Styx' by W. Gluck in Oakland, CA 4 PM Jan. 29

YouTube: 'Romance' for Saxophone of William Grant Still 'arranged for Trombone and Harp for the Mu Phi Alumni of Kansas City'

Baritone Roscoe Orman in August Wilson's 'JITNEY,' Morgan State University Feb. 9-12, 2012

Three Comments on Interview with Althea Waites, who says: 'please know how much I appreciate your work'

L.A. Times Music Blog: 'Kathleen Battle sings spirituals at UCLA's Royce Hall'

Althea Waites Interview Covers Feb. 4 Recital in Long Beach and Forthcoming Cambria CD, 'Celebrations'

Composer Eric Lacy on 'A Dream of Conscience: A Tribute to MLK' & 'Three Question Marks'

John Malveaux on Kathleen Battle in 'Underground Railroad: An evening of Spirituals'

Mike Kelly of Omaha World-Herald on Thomas Wilkins: 'He's a great talent, a true gentleman and a cool guy.'

Joe Nocera, NYTimes.com: “'Porgy and Bess' — arguably the most important piece of American music written in the 20th century”

Omaha.com: Thomas Wilkins seeks to 'raise a new generation of concertgoers' who 'love music'

NewMusicBox.org: Florence Price's 'Concerto in One Movement' is 'an extremely exciting and approachable work.'

Pianist Lara Downes Performs 'Fantasie Nègre' of Florence B. Price Tonight at 7:30 PM in Lompoc, California

Chattanooga Choral Society and University of Tennessee at Chattanooga Present Scott Joplin's 'Treemonisha' Jan. 27, 28 & 29

Soprano Kimberly Haynes, William Bolcom & Sandra Seaton in 'From the Diary of Sally Hemings' Jan. 27, U. of Mich. Museum of Art

Dance Performance of
“Homenatge”
by Tania León