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Posted by: Pat Padua
Modern music lovers with a penchant for the Baroque may assume that the much-loved timbre of the harpsichord has been popular ever since its development in the 15th century. But according to Grove Music Online, the instrument fell almost entirely out of favor by the early 19th century, owing to the emergence of the piano. …
Posted in: Concerts and Events, Musical Instruments, Musicians, Special Collections, Women in Music
Posted by: Pat Padua
Pianist-composer Uri Caine has played with a veritable who’s-who of jazz, from hard bop legend Hank Mobley to soul-jazz leader Grover Washington to avant-garde icon John Zorn, from scat singer Annie Ross to the man who has been described as “James Brown trapped in Don Knotts’ body,” Arto Lindsay. He has performed Duke Ellington numbers …
Posted in: Composers, Concerts and Events, Jazz
Posted by: Pat Padua
“People talk about song-writing techniques. I have a technique. I sit around scratching myself and waiting for something to crop up. That’s why they call it a gift! Sit there and open up your mind and let yourself be a conduit.” That’s song-writer and raconteur Bill Withers, who so memorably closed a great evening of …
Posted in: Composers, Concerts and Events, Musicians
Posted by: Pat Padua
Starting this saturday, Concerts from the Library of Congress goes On LOCation at the new Atlas Performing Arts Center in the heart of the H Street Corridor, which runs from 12th to 15th Streets, NE. A once-vibrant section of the city before it was devastated by riots in 1968, it is now known as the …
Posted in: Concerts and Events, Jazz, Musicians
Posted by: Pat Padua
Thanks to Tomas Hernandez, Senior Music Producer in the Music Division, for assistance with this post. Next Friday, April 16th, the Coolidge Auditorium hosts the Alexander String Quartet and the Afiara String Quartet in a program that practically defines eclecticism. Free tickets for this must-see event are still available, with a nominal service charge, from Ticketmaster. …
Posted in: Composers, Concerts and Events, Musicians
Posted by: Pat Padua
The following post is by Mark Eden Horowitz, Senior Music Specialist. On March 22nd, the Music Division of the Library of Congress will present a concert of the 1934 musical revue, Life Begins at 8:40. Though the show and score may not sound familiar, five years later four of the original participants joined forces for …
Posted in: Composers, Concerts and Events, Special Collections
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
Posted by: Pat Padua
Reference Specialist Larry Appelbaum has helped welcome a diverse array of musical luminaries to the Music Division. Here are just a few. Herbie Hancock, upon receiving his Living Legends award. Dave Brubeck’s 2003 performance in the Library’s Coolidge Auditorium can be heard here. Larry recently interviewed Mr. Brubeck and his wife and lyricist Iola Brubeck. …
Posted in: Composers, Concerts and Events, Jazz, Musicians
Posted by: Pat Padua
If you happened on the holiday classic In the good old Summertime recently, you might have noticed a scene where the great Buster Keaton trips and shatters what he thinks is a precious Stradivarius. Fortunately, it’s only a movie. Even more fortunately, those lucky enough to nab tickets for tonight’s concert in the Coolidge Auditorium …
Posted in: Concerts and Events, Musicians