Beautiful Music

May 4th is known (in some circles) as “Star Wars Day” … so today’s Beautiful Music embraces the occasion with some medieval-style renditions of themes from Star Wars. MAY THE FOURTH BE WITH YOU!   Star Wars Day – May 4      

Conductor André Raphel is a North Carolina who started music as an 11 year old. He earned his Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Miami, and Master’s Degree at Yale University. He also earned a Diploma in conducting at The Curtis Institute of Music, and did further conducting studies at the Juilliard School.

Angelica Hairston is a Harpist, Educator, and Activist with a passion for social change, and she seeks to create social impact through the power of the arts. Today’s Beautiful Music is a presentation from Angelica Hairston’s organization, CHALLENGE THE STATS. This event features music Connor Chee, with dancer Michael Morris, Jr. and a live discussion

Happy May First — May Day! Today’s Beautiful Music features lively Morris Dancers celebrating May Day in England. You can also read more about the ancient holiday celebrations.   https://www.almanac.com/content/what-may-day  

The terrific harpsichordist Mahan Esfahani provides Beautiful Music today. The Iranian-American musician is passionate about Johann Sebastian Bach’s music as well as contemporary music for the harpsichord, and advocacy for the instrument is a foundation of his career. This is a concert performance at the Library of Congress from April 2021, featuring baroque music by

Violinist Lathika Vithanage, viol player Noelia Reverte Reche and harpist Flora Papadopoulos are three terrific instrumentalist who, together, plays as Il Caleidoscopio ensemble. Their concert performance of a Sinfonia by Alessandro Stradella provides today’s Beautiful Music. You can also read more about Lathika Vithanage’s journey from being an unhappy IT professional to finding fulfillment as

Oswald Russell (1933-2012) was a Jamaican pianist and composer. He attended the Royal Academy of Music in London, then went to Paris to study for a couple of years, and eventually enrolled at The Juilliard School in New York City on full scholarship. Oswald Russell also won the prestigious Harriet Cohen International Music Award. Today’s

I recently had the opportunity to interview countertenor Anthony Roth Costanzo about his life in music. One of the things we talked about were his many multi-disciplinary projects, including GLASS-HANDEL. Music by Philip Glass and George Frideric Handel is the foundation of the collaborations, and today’s Beautiful Music is a peek into the project  

British soprano Nadine Benjamin has a captivating, luminous voice, and I’m eager for you to hear her sing VISSI D’ARTE. This Beautiful Music was recorded in March 2014 at Abbey Road Studios with St Paul’s Sinfonia, conducted by Peter Crockford. You can also watch Nadine Benjamin give a delightful interview about why she loves being

Today’s Beautiful Music celebrates the artistry of violinist Elena Urioste and composer Amy Marcy Cheney Beach. Ms. Urioste performs Beach’s ROMANCE with pianist Michael Brown in a 2009 studio performance. American compsoer and pianist Amy Beach lived from 1867-1944, and was one of the first American women composers to achieve widespread success and recognition.  You