Music by the Mountain

What does a champion fencer, an autistic savant, a nun and a sailor have in common? They are all classical music composers and musicians who contributed greatly in this field during the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries. They also happen to be of African descent. Currently there are over 300! This class will highlight 8 of them. Due to the time periods, information such as racism, slavery and segregation will be discussed as it relates to the musicians life. By the end of the class, you will be inspired by the strength, courage, giftedness and outstanding contributions and achievements of these amazing human beings. It is a four-hour interactive course via Zoom taught by Chenoa Alamu.

Tom Wiggins became a touring musical phenomenon, reportedly earning up to $100,000 a year, well over $1 million today and enough to make him among the best compensated performing artists of his time. Under the stage name Blind Tom Wiggins, he played his own compositions and improvised on the piano, demonstrating uncanny skills at replicating, note for note, pieces he heard both classical works and popular songs.

This is a great classical music podcast for kids and their parents! Highly recommend.

"She kind of carved her own path even with the music that she wrote. All of the pieces she wrote are a reflection of her as both a Black woman and also classica...lly trained pianist." - Michelle Cann, award-winning pianist and the Eleanor Sokoloff chair in piano studies at the Curtis Institute of Music. Michelle just made her Philadelphia Orchestra debut performing 'Piano Concerto in One Movement' by trailblazing composer Florence Price (1887-1953), the first black woman to ever have a symphonic piece performed by a major orchestra (1933). If you don't know the brilliant Florence Price, you should. We featured her in our Women In Music column (August 2019) "In 1932 she won the Wanamaker Award for her First Symphony (in E minor), which brought with it not only a handsome and much needed $500 check, but a performance by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Frederick Stock at the 1933 Chicago World’s Fair. Price was thereby the first black woman to ever have a symphonic piece performed by a major orchestra." In case you missed it, this is Price's inspiring story https://womenyoushouldknow.net/florence-price-americas-fir/

"In the mid 1890s, Sissieretta Jones, a soprano of universal appeal and powerful voice, almost single-handedly diverted the stream of Black entertainment away f...rom its minstrel show past towards a true tradition of Black theater, as created by Black writers and composers, and performed by all-Black casts." This is her extraordinary story from our Women In Music column... See more