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Posted by: Pat Padua
Katherine Dunham was an American dancer-choreographer who was best known for incorporating African American, Caribbean, African, and South American movement styles and themes into her ballets. The Katherine Dunham Collection at the Library of Congress consists of moving image materials that document the extraordinary journey of a woman who changed the face of American modern …
Posted in: Dance, Special Collections, Women in Dance
Posted by: Pat Padua
In Stanley Kubrick’s film adaptation of the Anthony Burgess novel A Clockwork Orange, Malcolm Macdowell is memorably conditioned to veer from his life of ultra-violence with generous doses of Ludwig Van. But does music really sooth the savage breast? Does blasting Barry Manilow at high volume drive away delinquent teenagers? The answer may surprise you. …
Posted in: Podcasts, Sheet Music
Posted by: Pat Padua
On this date in 1931, President Herbert Hoover signed the Act establishing “The Star Spangled Banner” as the National Anthem of the United States of America. The Library of Congress has in its collections a treasure trove of sheet music (including a Spanish-language edition), song sheets (including two in German), and recordings of “The Star …
Posted in: Sheet Music, Special Collections
Posted by: Pat Padua
Today, March 3rd, at 2:00 pm in the Whittall Pavillion, adjacent to the Coolidge Auditorium in the Jefferson Building, the Music Division plays host to a forum on Artists and Technology. A presentation by composers Steve Antosca and Roger Reynolds will be moderated by Professor Thomas DeLio from the University of Maryland, College Park. This …
Posted in: Composers, Digital Collections, Special Collections
Posted by: Pat Padua
The following post is by Robin Rausch, Senior Music Specialist. If you have ever been a serious student of the piano, you have likely had the pleasure of playing Frédéric Chopin’s music. He wrote almost exclusively for the instrument; his ballades, etudes, mazurkas, nocturnes, polonaises, preludes, scherzos, and waltzes count among the staples of the pianist’s …
Posted in: Birthdays
Posted by: Pat Padua
The brooding artist type: you know one, you’ve been one, you’ve seen one in the coffeshop thinking deep thoughts and crying as they type furiously into their laptop. But does depression help or hinder creative thought? Last year the Coolidge Auditorium hosted a symposium on “Depression and Creativity” as part of the “Music and the …
Posted in: Composers, Sheet Music
Posted by: Pat Padua
“He was our benefactor and inspiration. Even more, he was the Martin Luther King of Music.” Pianist Eubie Blake said this of composer/bandleader James Reese Europe, who was born in Mobile, Alabama on February 22, 1881. Europe’s accomplishments run from the grand “Concert of Negro Music” that he conducted for a 125-man orchestra at Carnegie Hall in …
Posted in: African American History, Birthdays, Composers, Special Collections
Posted by: Pat Padua
The holiday weekend may have been last week, but George Washington’s actual birthday is celebrated on February 22 [1]. The Music Division has in its storied coffers a number of ways to celebrate this historic date in song. You may know that George M. Cohan composed Over There and countless other melodies for the Broadway …
Posted in: Birthdays, Sheet Music
Posted by: Pat Padua
Next Thursday, February 25, 8:00, the Coolidge Auditorium will ring with the sounds of seventeenth-century Italy as the Music Division hosts Concerto Soave. This intimate ensemble from southern France was founded by Jean-Marc Ayme and Grammy-winning soprano Maria Cristina Kiehr. Their tapestry of instrumental timbres is woven from harp, cello, harpsichord, and portative organ for …
Posted in: Concerts and Events, Musicians