Monday Link Round Up: February 1, 2016

Some news to start your week! Philip Kennicott, art critic for The Washington Post, contributed to this month’s Opera News to discuss the ways in which topics of gender and race are handled – or not – in current opera productions.  This comes after...

Olivia Block on NPR

NPR’s Morning Edition shared the work of Chicago based composer Olivia Block as part of the series, “Musicians in their own Words.” In a story that ran on January 7th, Block walked listeners through the soundscape of downtown Chicago and shared how...

Happy Birthday, Alice Parker!

American composer, conductor, arranger, and educator Alice Parker celebrated her 90th birthday on Wednesday. We were delighted to see that NPR covered this notable occasion on All Things Considered.  Listen to the story below (the transcript is also available here):...
No Excuses Project

No Excuses Project

We are thrilled for the continued success – and social activism through music – of WPA Board Member, composer, conductor, and educator Kathleen McGuire.  We wrote last year about the premieres and acclaim that her collaborative project Street Requiem...

Peace for Paris

As the world mourns the tragedy in Paris – and denounces the violence that occurs every day throughout the world – let’s pause and reflect. It seems only appropriate to share Lili Boulanger’s Pie Jesu as conducted by her sister, Nadia...
Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween!

It’s the spookiest time of year – and even beyond the costumes and candy, Halloween has become a reason to indulge in horror movies.  There are plenty of examples of classical music being used as film scores to some of the scariest films ever made (WQXR...