As we enter our first full week of Black History Month, Ether Game presents a show on the influence of black culture in classical music. Browse our nine selections below. 

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) Violin Sonata No. 9 in A, Op. 47 'Kreutzer' The son of a European mother and a West Indian father, George Augustus Polgreen Bridgetower studied with Haydn in the 1780s.  He later moved to England, where he was promoted as a child prodigy, called “the son of the African prince”.  After performances at Windsor, he gained the patronage of the Prince of Wales and for many years played first violin in the Prince’s private orchestra.  Bridgetower met Beethoven in the spring of 1803, and the composer quickly finished his sonata for violin and piano so that the two musicians could play it in concert together.  There was not enough time to have the violin part of the second movement copied before the performance, and Bridgetower was obliged to read it from Beethoven's manuscript; nevertheless the work was a brilliant success, the audience unanimously calling for an encore of the second movement.  Beethoven intended to dedicate the sonata to George Bridgetower, but after the two men had a falling-out (allegedly over a girl), he instead dedicated it to the eminent French violinist Rodolphe Kreutzer. 

William Grant Still (1895-1978) Afro-American Symphony William Grant Still was a twentieth-century American composer who achieved a number of “firsts”: his Afro-American Symphony was the first symphony by an African-American to be played by a leading orchestra – the Rochester Philharmonic – he was the first African-American to conduct a major orchestra, and the first to have an opera performed by an important company.  Inspired by his training from a diverse group of composers, including George Chadwick, Edgar Varese and W.C. Handy, Still started out his career on the east coast and for a time supported himself by playing the oboe in the pit band for the musical Shuffle Along. This might explain why the single melody in Still’s Symphony No. 1 is hinted at by the English horn before being dispersed throughout the symphony.  Supported by a Guggenheim Fellowship, Still moved to Los Angeles in the 1930s to devote himself primarily to serious music composition, like his operas Blue Steel and Troubled Island. 

Scott Joplin (1868-1917) Treemonisha: Act I. No. 4 We're Going Around Famed ragtime composer Scott Joplin’s opera Treemonisha was composed in 1911, but was not officially staged until 1972. Joplin was awarded the Pulitzer Prize posthumously following the success of this work. Often mislabeled as a “ragtime opera” Treemonisha was actually influenced by Wagner and was originally intended by Joplin’s to get white listeners to appreciate music composed by African Americans as serious classical music. The opera takes place on an abandoned plantation in rural Arkansas where former slaves Ned and Monisha raise their daughter, Treemonisha. So named because she was found by Monisha under a sacred tree, Treemonisha has been brought up to be educated, unlike the other cornhuskers on the plantation. Joplin stresses the importance of education throughout the work and how it will be the answer to the plight of African Americans. Joplin’s original orchestration notes have been lost, but numerous arrangements have been made from the surviving piano score.

Louis Moreau Gottschalk (1829-1869) Manchega, Op. 38 (Etude de Concert) Louis Moreau Gottschalk is known to us today as a 19th-century American composer, but he was also well-known as a brilliant touring pianist. He frequently performed his own compositions which became popular for their infusion of folk elements, especially the syncopated rhythms of his Caribbean and Creole ancestors, Gottschalk was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, and though he was composing and touring about half a century before his home city would become the jazz capital of the world, his use of Caribbean rhythms, popular songs and folk music in his compositions would set the foundation for the same kind of musical borrowing that was used by the first jazz musicians of the early 20th century. 

Valerie Coleman (b. 1970) Umoja A celebrated flutist, composer and chamber musician, Valerie Coleman first made waves in the classical music world when she founded the wind quintet Imani Winds while still a student at Mannes College of Music. The chamber ensemble specializes in performing works by under-represented contemporary composers, and also serves as role models for young black musicians pursuing careers in classical music. Imani Winds have recorded five albums, their second album Music from the Classical Underground was nominated for a Grammy in 2005. Just a year earlier, Coleman had made her debut as a composer. Her best-known work to date is titled Umoja, the Swahili word for unity. Originally a simple song for women's chorus, Umoja was re-arranged for Imani Winds to celebrate the diverse heritage of the ensemble. In 2019, the piece was reworked for full orchestra and was premiered by the Philadelphia Orchestra with a new title, Umoja, Anthem for Unity. 

  _____________________________________________________

Art Taten (1909-1956) Smoke Gets in Your Eyes Despite being born nearly blind, jazz pianist Art Tatum was one of the most dazzling performers at the keys. He was mostly self-taught, and became an expert in the stride piano playing style at a very young age, and soon became famous around his hometown of Toledo. His first break on the national stage came in 1933, when he competed in a “cutting contest” (basically a virtuoso competition) with jazz pianist Willie "The Lion" Smith. His treatment of the American Songbook classic “Smoke Gets in Your Eyes” showcases the hallmarks of his style: virtuosic technique, profound sense of rhythm and swing, and an unconventional grasp of harmony. 

Jessie Montgomery (b. 1981) Banner The Sphinx Organization commissioned contemporary composer and violinist Jessie Montgomery to write Banner for the 200th anniversary of The Star Spangled Banner. Known for her socially-conscious compositions which merge classical music with vernacular music styles and improvisation, Montgomery’s tribute to the national anthem is a rhapsody on the melodic theme. Using the traditional forms from marching band music, as well as the rhythmic support inspired by drumlines, Montgomery combines various world anthems and patriotic songs to reflect the multi-cultural environment of America in the 21st century. In her own words, Jessie Montgomery explains “Immigrants from Europe, Central America and the Pacific have sought out a safe haven here and though met with the trials of building a multi-cultured democracy, continue to find roots in our nation and make significant contributions to our cultural landscape. A tribute to the U.S. national anthem means acknowledging the contradictions, leaps and bounds and milestones that allow us to celebrate and maintain the tradition of our ideals.”  

Adolphus Hailstork (b.1941) An American Port of Call Adolphus Hailstork was a student of that famous guru of seemingly all 20th century composers, Nadia Boulanger. Hailstork studied with Boulanger at the American Institute in Fontainebleau in 1963 before returning to America, where he eventually earned professorships with several universities in Norfolk, Virginia. He became particularly known for his choral and wind ensemble music, but has also written several operas and symphonic music, including An American Port of Call. The busy port at Norfolk was the direct inspiration for his concert overture, written in 1985 for the Virginia Symphony Orchestra. 

Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter (b. 1981) Break My Soul Beyonce Knowles made music history this Sunday at the 65th annual Grammy Awards. With 32 Grammys and 88 nominations to her name, she has broken the record for most Grammys won since the awards ceremony first began in 1959. Knowles passed the threshold when her most recent album Renaissance won Best Dance/Electronic Album for 2022, and dethroned conductor George Solti, who had broken the record previously in 1998. In her acceptance speech, Beyonce acknowledged the black LGBTQ musicians and dancers who were important pioneers for Black dance genres like disco and house, and who were a direct inspiration for her seventh studio album.