PLEASE HELP THE EAR. IF YOU LIKE A CERTAIN BLOG POST, SPREAD THE WORD. FORWARD A LINK TO IT OR, SHARE IT or TAG IT (not just “Like” it) ON FACEBOOK. Performers can use the extra exposure to draw potential audience members to an event. And you might even attract new readers and subscribers to the blog.
By Jacob Stockinger
Today is Independence Day – the Fourth of July holiday.
It is a good occasion to listen to classical music by American composers (below), which you can hear much of the day on Wisconsin Public Radio.
But here are two other extended playlists of American classical music:
Here, thanks to a California radio station, is a list with complete performances of some of the best American masterpieces, including the “New World” Symphony by Antonin Dvorak, the “Afro-American” Symphony by William Grant Still (below), “Rhapsody in Blue” by George Gershwin and “Symphonic Dances from West Side Story” by Leonard Bernstein:
Finally, in the YouTube at the bottom is the “American” String Quartet by Antonin Dvorak (below), who summered in Spillville, Iowa. He loved hearing and tried to capture sounds of nature, including bird songs, traditional Black spirituals and music by Native Americans.
The Ear especially likes it because it is proof that just as Americans have been influenced by European composers, European composers, European composers have been influenced by American composers.
Do you have a special or favorite piece of classical music to help celebrate the Fourth of July?
IF YOU LIKE A CERTAIN BLOG POST, PLEASE SPREAD THE WORD. FORWARD A LINK TO IT OR, SHARE or TAG IT (not just “Like” it) ON FACEBOOK. Performers can use the extra exposure to draw potential audience members to an event.
By Jacob Stockinger
The African-American and Pan-African harvest and heritage holiday of Kwanzaa started Wednesday and runs through Jan. 1.
Many people know the name of the events that mark the African Diaspora.
But do you know more about the holiday itself?
Do you know the seven principles of Kwanzaa?
Do you know the history and person behind the celebration, which started the United States in 1966?
Here is a link to a comprehensive view of Kwanzaa in Wikipedia:
If you are looking for a suitable gift to give during Kwanzaa, it would be hard to beat tickets to the concert by the Imani Winds (below) on Friday, Feb. 1, at 7:30 p.m. in Shannon Hall at the Wisconsin Union Theater.
The Imani Winds have been nominated for a Grammy Award, and have established a reputation for world music and commissioning new works.
The group’s name comes from a principle of Kwanzaa — namely, faith. And one member, Valerie Coleman, composed a signature piece based on the first principle of Kwanzaa – Umoji, or Unity. You can hear that work in the YouTube video at the bottom.
Then in June, from June 6 to June 9, Valerie Coleman (below) returns to Madison as the Composer-in-Residence for the second annual LunArt Festival — a cultural and all-women festival devoted to performers, composers, writers and artists.
The Well-Tempered Ear 
Classical music: Today is the Fourth of July. Here are two extended playlists of American masterpieces
1 Comment
PLEASE HELP THE EAR. IF YOU LIKE A CERTAIN BLOG POST, SPREAD THE WORD. FORWARD A LINK TO IT OR, SHARE IT or TAG IT (not just “Like” it) ON FACEBOOK. Performers can use the extra exposure to draw potential audience members to an event. And you might even attract new readers and subscribers to the blog.
By Jacob Stockinger
Today is Independence Day – the Fourth of July holiday.
It is a good occasion to listen to classical music by American composers (below), which you can hear much of the day on Wisconsin Public Radio.
But here are two other extended playlists of American classical music:
Here, thanks to a California radio station, is a list with complete performances of some of the best American masterpieces, including the “New World” Symphony by Antonin Dvorak, the “Afro-American” Symphony by William Grant Still (below), “Rhapsody in Blue” by George Gershwin and “Symphonic Dances from West Side Story” by Leonard Bernstein:
https://www.capradio.org/music/classical/2019/07/04/playlist-american-classical-music-for-your-fourth-of-july/
And thanks to Minnesota Public Radio, here are four hours of patriotic music for the holiday: https://www.classicalmpr.org/story/2018/06/29/celebrate-the-fourth-of-july-with-our-4hour-patriotic-classical-playlist
Finally, in the YouTube at the bottom is the “American” String Quartet by Antonin Dvorak (below), who summered in Spillville, Iowa. He loved hearing and tried to capture sounds of nature, including bird songs, traditional Black spirituals and music by Native Americans.
The Ear especially likes it because it is proof that just as Americans have been influenced by European composers, European composers, European composers have been influenced by American composers.
Do you have a special or favorite piece of classical music to help celebrate the Fourth of July?
What do you like about it?
Leave a comment with a YouTube link if possible?
The Ear wants to hear.
Share this:
Like this:
Tags: #AaronCopland, #African-AmericanComposer, #African-AmericanMusic, #AfricanHeritage, #AmericanComposer, #AmericanPatriotism, #AmericanStringQuartet, #AmyBeach, #AntoninDvorak, #BirdSongs, #BlogPost, #BlogPosting, #ChamberMusic, #EuropeanComposer, #FacebookPost, #FacebookPosting, #FlorencePrice, #FourthofJuly, #IndependenceDay, #JacobStockinger, #JohnPhilipSousa, #JohnWilliams, #July4, #JulyFourth, #LeonardBernstein, #NativeAmerican, #NegroSpiritual, #NewWorldSymphony, #PianoConcero, #RhapsodyinBlue, #SamuelBarber, #StreamingService, #StringQuartet, #TheEar, #TheU.S., #UnitedStates, #VocalMusic, #WestSideStory, #WilliamGrantStill, #WisconsinPublicRadio, #YouTubevideo, Aaron Copland, African American, American, American String Quartet, Amy Beach, Antonín Dvořák, Arts, Barber, beach, bird songs, blog, blue, California, celebrate, Cello, Chamber music, choral music, Classical music, classicalmusic, comment, complete, composer, concerto, conductor, Copland, dances, day, Dvorak, Europe, European, Facebook, favorite, Florence Price, forward, Fourth of July, George Gershwin, georgegershwin, Gershwin, good, hear, Holiday, Independence Day, Independence Day (United States), influence, Iowa, Jacob Stockinger, John Philip Sousa, John Williams, July 4, Leonard Bernstein, like, link, list, Love, Madison, march, Minnesota, Music, Native American, Native American music, nature, new, New World Symphony, occasion, online, opera, Orchestra, patriotic, patriotism, performance, Piano, piece, playlist, post, posting, proof, Radio, rhapsody, Rhapsody in Blue, S., Samuel Barber, share, Sound, Sousa, special, spiritual, Spotify, Still, stream, String quartet, summer, symphony, tag, The Ear, today, U, United States, Violin, vocal music, West Side Story, Willian Grant Still, Wisconsin, wisconsin public radio, world, WPR, YouTube