Brewing Classical

I’m joined by fellow music educator and classmate Michael Trycieckyj. We talk about our shared interest in community music like church choirs and compare it a little to the ensembles in formal school settings. Michael recently defended his master’s thesis: a case study investigating singer’s perspectives as we all entered and have now emerged from virtual ensembles during the height of the Pandemic. Specifically, Michael discusses how these singers felt and what unexpected benefits have come from more than one year singing in isolation.

We leave the real world behind for a short time and dive into mysticism and infatuation with all things exotic with one of the great Russian composers. The 1800s world felt smaller than it does today and so, at least to a Russian musician, tales from the middle east and Arab world created all kinds of distraction and wonder. Nicknamed “Antar”, Rimsky-Korsakov’s second symphony is a relatively little-known work that focus on one exotic story from the Middle East, filled with neat melodies that tie Europe and the Arab world together.

Porgy and Bess faces controversy each time it is performed. Black subject matter, created by the white composer George Gershwin, provides lush music rife with stereotypes. This is the first in a two-part series to help prove, or disprove, that Gershwin's music transcends racial stereotypes.

Florence Price’s works have been recently rediscovered and reconstructed for modern performances throwing her efforts into the national conversation. Her efforts were groundbreaking after fighting initial adversity through the double-disadvantage of being a woman and a black person in the 1900s United States. In this episode we drop in on three works: the Symphony in E Minor, Concerto in One Movement, and the Mississippi River Suite.

Julia, Nikki, and Sammy completely inspire as they passionately talk about their chamber music. These students met and rehearsed online during the summer of 2020 to play Florence Price's Five Folk Songs in Counterpoint. Their enthusiasm is infectious and they are clearly aware of music's powerful intricacies.

US Orchestras owe their success to Women's Clubs working behind the scenes. Amy Beach, the first American woman to publish a symphony took full advantage of established orchestras to create her Symphony No. 3, "Gaelic."