Melanated Moments in Classical Music
Melanated Moments in Classical Music is a podcast produced by Classical Music Indy that shines a spotlight on musical works composed by, for, and about people of color. Melanated Moments is hosted by international opera soprano Angela Brown and music sociologist Joshua Thompson. For some listeners, Melanated Moments will uncover a hidden trove of classical music they never knew existed. For those with a deep knowledge of the genre, stories reflecting the cultural context of the African Diaspora will give a fresh voice to black contributions in the world of classical music.
Episodes
59 episodes
Recap Pt. 2: Melanated Moments in Classical Music
Featuring some of the world's most talented and innovative Black composers and musicians from seasons 4 through 7, Melanated Moments in Classical Music wraps up its comprehensive recap. Joshua and Angela discuss the themes and trends that...
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Season 7
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Episode 9
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57:31
Recap Pt. 1: Melanated Moments in Classical Music
Join us for a recap of the first three seasons of the Melanated Moments in Classical Music podcast, featuring some of the world's most influential Black composers and musicians. From Willi...
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Season 7
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Episode 8
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39:45
The Ordering of Moses: An African-American Masterwork
Joshua and Angela examine the remarkable oratorio The Ordering of Moses by African-American composer Robert Nathaniel Dett. This powerful and moving work tells the biblical story o...
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Season 7
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Episode 7
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36:04
Joshua Thompson: A Force for Change in Classical Music
Pianist, music sociologist, and occasional trumpeter, Joshua Thompson, is an active change agent in the classical music world. Learn more about our host’s passionate adv...
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Season 7
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Episode 6
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40:56
Oswald Russell: Jamaica's Artistic Ambassador
The international impact of pianist/composer, Oswald Russell, wows Joshua and Angela as they discuss his beginnings in Jamaica and a globe-trotting classical music career that...
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Season 7
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Episode 5
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23:01
Karen Slack: The Melanated Maven of Opera
Angela and Joshua welcome opera superstar, arts administrator, and 2022 Sphinx Medal of Excellence winner, Karen Slack, to the Melanated Moments in Classical Music family. Bringing her dyna...
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Season 7
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Episode 4
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42:42
Dawson’s Negro Folk Symphony: A Symphony of Our Ancestors' Spirit
Joshua and Angela discuss the foresight and impact of composer, musicologist, arranger, and premier torchbearer of Negro spirituals, William Levi Dawson. A protege o...
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Season 7
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Episode 3
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28:18
Cracking Classical Music’s Cultural Code with Nkeiru Okoye
In this episode, Angela and Joshua introduce our listening audience to 2021 Guggenheim Fellow, composer, and lyricist, Nkeiru Okoye. As one of the most sought after composers and creative minds of the ...
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Season 7
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Episode 2
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40:49
Mary Lou Williams: The First Lady of Jazz Makes Her Mark
Angela and Joshua open Season Seven with an exposé on pianist, musicologist, and The First Lady of Jazz; Mary Lou Williams. This stunning artist’s impact crosses multiple genres from jazz to...
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Season 7
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Episode 1
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33:38
Singing as Service with Kenneth Overton
Season Six wraps with a high-energy conversation with Grammy Award-winning baritone Kenneth Overton. Known for his rich and booming voice, Overton is booked and busy across the U.S. and around the w...
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Season 6
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Episode 8
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41:35
Paul Robeson: A Rebel with a Cause
Joshua and Angela delve into the many facets of Paul Robeson, the man behind the voice that made him a household name on stage and screen. An academic scholar, bass-baritone concert artist, and stage and film actor, Robeson was as well-known fo...
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Season 6
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Episode 7
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25:16
Defining the Soundtrack of American Music with Dr. Portia Maultsby
Dr. Portia Maultsby, ethnomusicologist and curator of the inaugural exhibition of the National Museum of African Americ...
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Season 6
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Episode 6
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47:41
The Artistic Kaleidoscope of Amanda Ira Aldridge
British-born composer, opera singer, and teacher Amanda Ira Aldridge is the topic of conversation for Joshua and Angela on this episode. A promising operatic contralto, Aldridge studied and performed the vocal works of compatriot Samuel Colerid...
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Season 6
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Episode 5
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20:04
Call Him by His Name: Joseph Bologne, The Man Who Influenced Mozart
Angela and Joshua welcome Maestro Marlon Daniel, a dynamic up-and-coming conductor and one of the leading scholars on the life of Joseph Bologne. Daniel discusses the life of the mixed-race aristocra...
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Season 6
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Episode 4
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25:47
Swinging the Classics with Hazel Scott
This week’s episode features Hazel Scott, a child prodigy, piano virtuoso, and one of the most outspoken civil rights activists of the mid-20th century in the entertainment industry. Whether playing the classics on the nose or employing her fie...
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Season 6
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Episode 3
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23:07
Creating a "New Canon" of Classical Music with Portia Dunkley
In this episode, Angela and Joshua welcome Portia Dunkley, founder of the New Canon Chamber Collective. Sharing her all too familiar experience of young Black classical musicians being few and far betwee...
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Season 6
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Episode 2
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48:09
Scott Joplin: The King of Ragtime Writes an Opera
Season Six debuts with a feature of Scott Joplin, the King of Ragtime. Bridging the gap between the Reconstruction era and the early 20th century, Scott Joplin and his ragtime music became a genre-defining cultural phenomenon. In this episode, ...
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Season 6
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Episode 1
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25:49
CAAPA's Melanated Mission: Bringing Color to the Classics
Angela and Joshua cap Season Five with Terri Allen, Executive Director of the Coalition for African-Americans in the Performing Arts (CAAPA). From humble origins to a nationally respected model, Terri details t...
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Season 5
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Episode 8
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46:27
George Bridgetower: A Classical Commodity
Joshua and Angela discuss the life and times of Europe's most renowned virtuoso violinist of the 18th and 19th centuries, George Bridgetower. In the age of the global slave trade, competing empires, and revolution, Bridgetower exemplified the r...
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Season 5
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Episode 7
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24:29
Afton Battle: A Change Agent Without Compromise
Angela and Joshua welcome dramatic soprano and Artistic Director of the Fort Worth Opera, Afton Battle. Known for her tenacity, vision, and unapologetic commitment to programming operatic works that are a true reflection of the communities they...
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Season 5
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Episode 6
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53:04
Harlem Hangout with Liz Player and The Harlem Chamber Players
Joshua and Angela welcome clarinetist and co-founder of The Harlem Chamber Players, Liz Player. Detailing her return to music from a career in computer science, Liz Player traces the...
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Season 5
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Episode 5
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39:52
Interpreting Identity with Jessie Montgomery
Joshua and Angela sit down with Musical America's Composer of the Year, Jessie Montgomery. Violinist, educator, and one of the 21st-century's premier composers, Montgomery sheds light on her music...
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Season 5
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Episode 4
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45:43
From Stage to Screen with Robert McFerrin Sr.
Angela and Joshua introduce listeners to extraordinary baritone Robert McFerrin Sr. Tracing McFerrin's performance journey from Broadway to The Metropolitan Opera to Hollywood, Joshua and Angela discuss M...
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Season 5
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Episode 3
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19:45
Composing as a Citizen of the World with Tania León
Joshua and Angela share the rich musical and cultural legacy of composer, pianist, Pulitzer Prize winner, and Kennedy Center Honors Inductee Tania León. A self-professed ‘citizen of the world,' Leon defi...
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Season 5
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Episode 2
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18:40
Recording Inclusivity with Adam Eccleston and All Classical Portland
Angela and Joshua interview Adam Eccleston, internationally renowned flutist and Chair of All Classical Portland’s "Recording Inclusivity Initiative (RII)." Drawing upon his Caribbean heritage and des...
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Season 5
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Episode 1
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40:03