[Justin Holland; Photo Courtesy Douglas Back] "Justin Holland was born to free black parents in Norfolk County, Virginia on July 26, 1819," Barbara Clemenson writes in her article Justin Holland: Black Guitarist in the Western Reserve. Guitarist Douglas Back has made a recording which includes five works of the composer, American Pioneers of the Classic Guitar, Mento Music Press SMM 3023 (1994). It can be ordered at his website, http://www.DouglasBack.com The CD liner notes by Douglas Back... Read Full Story

[Black, Brown and Beige: A Duke Ellington Tone Parallel to the American Negro, as played by the Composer and his Famous Orchestra at his Carnegie Hall concerts; RCA Victor DC 39 (1944)] On Feb. 7, 2008, AfriClassical posted “Suites of Duke Ellington, James Price Johnson, Scott Joplin & William Grant Still”. It quoted the blog of WFIU, “Night Lights”: “It took Ellington 12 years to achieve his goal–the 45-minute-long Black, Brown and Beige Suite: a Tone Parallel to the History of the Negro... Read Full Story

[Scott Joplin's Treemonisha; Original Cast Recording; Polygram 435709 (1992)] The Scott Joplin page at AfriClassical.com tells of the 1975 production of Joplin's opera, Treemonisha, by the Houston Grand Opera, as orchestrated by Gunther Schuller. A visitor to the website has informed us that the work was first staged in 1972 by Morehouse College and the Atlanta Symphony. The following two paragraphs have been added to the Scott Joplin page: Treemonisha In 1911 Joplin published the opera... Read Full Story

[Performances Page of Website of The Lydian Singers] On July 3, 2008 AfriClassical posted “The Lydian Singers of Trinidad and Tobago Perform 'Hiawatha' Songs of Samuel Coleridge-Taylor”. The Lydians tell AfriClassical a Press Briefing for the upcoming opera season is being held Friday, July 25, 2008 at the Bishop Anstey High School Hall (located on Keate Street in Port of Spain), at 7:30 pm. In a press release by Christine Lewis, The Lydians announce: “From 2nd to 4th October 2008, the... Read Full Story

[Songs of America: Oral Moses, bass baritone; Rosalyn Floyd, piano; Timothy Holley, cello; Albany ALB 1011 (2008)] Albany Records ALB 1011 (2008): "A kaleidoscope of American culture presented by the magnificent bass-baritone Oral Moses.This recording is, in many respects, a unique and creatively conceived kaleidoscope of American culture presented through the expressions and influences of African Americans. Moses and Floyd offer exceptionally convincing interpretations of each song, with... Read Full Story

[Nokuthula Ngwenyama, African American Violist and Violinist. Photo by Darla Furlani] Daily Staff Report, Sunday July 20, 2008 “VAIL — On Tuesday at 5 p.m., Eugenia Zukerman, the artistic director of Bravo! Vail Valley Music Festival and the arts correspondent for 'CBS Sunday Morning,' will interview Rachel Barton Pine and Nokuthula Ngwenyama in the lobby of the Vilar Performing Arts Center. A provocative interviewer and an accomplished musician, Zukerman’s repartee will provide informative... Read Full Story

AfriClassical has received word from Kevin Scott, an African American conductor: The Symphonic Band, led by Kevin Scott, Conductor, is comprised of SUNY Orange students and members of the community and will play some of your favorite movie, TV and radio themes: Star Wars, The Simpsons, The Flintstones, Pirates of the Carribean, and more. Friday, August 1 at 7 p.m., Pine Bush Area Arts Council Concert, Village Centre Gazebo, Pine Bush. Saturday, August 2 at 7:30 p.m., Thomas P. Morahan... Read Full Story

Maryland Daily Record Place to Be July 25 Concert Mahler's revolutionary song-symphony, “Das Lied von der Erde,” will captivate audiences for the final River Concert at St. Mary's College of Maryland. The Chesapeake Orchestra, under the musical direction of Jeffrey Silberschlag, will also perform Samuel Coleridge-Taylor's "Overture to Hiawatha" and the Maryland premiere of Jeffrey Mumford's "Verdant and Shimmering Air." Details about the concert are on the River Concert Series Web site at... Read Full Story

[Sing to the Sun: Chamber Music by Alvin Singleton, Troy 902 (2007)] 20 july/august 2008 21 AmericanComposer Alvin Singleton by Kyle Gann “The orchestral success of Alvin Singleton baffles me, for the same reason that I’m surprised by the continuing popularity of Sibelius. I consider myself a connoisseur of exotic and peculiar tastes suggestive of insight superior to that of the average classical music lover. I love Sibelius for his quirks, his austere independence, his counterintuitive... Read Full Story

A blogger tells of a presentation at Southbank Centre, a London cultural complex: Highlights of The Week (Monday to Friday) by lemn sissay on Fri 18 Jul 2008 09:07 PM BST “On Wednesday I attended a talk at The Southbank centre. It was inspirational. It was about the power to make change. Goosepimples arrived as Aaron Dworkin of Sphinx began his talk 'I was brought up with white adoptive parents'. He was explaining about how to get minorities into classical music.” [Aaron P. Dworkin is an... Read Full Story