musicians
Black country, folk and blues musicians have always been vital to the genres’ very American, very long legacies. The all-powerful Beyoncé, with her latest album, “Cowboy Carter,” has shined a sharp . . .
x Yesterday we lost the inimitable Ahmad Jamal, Jazz Icon and fellow @NEAarts Jazz Master. Ahmad was my brother Charlie’s favorite pianist. His impact on the world of music will be missed but never forgotten. Thank you Ahmad for being a pioneer of Jazz techniques for over 70 years! pic.twitter.com/7d8m0NdYic — Eddie Palmieri (@EddiePalmieri) April […]
x Yesterday we lost the inimitable Ahmad Jamal, Jazz Icon and fellow @NEAarts Jazz Master. Ahmad was my brother Charlie’s favorite pianist. His impact on the world of music will be missed but never forgotten. Thank you Ahmad for being a pioneer of Jazz techniques for over 70 years! pic.twitter.com/7d8m0NdYic — Eddie Palmieri (@EddiePalmieri) April […]
As we transition into 2024, let’s look back and remember the long list of musicians who shared their gifts with us for a lifetime, and who passed on to join the ancestors in 2023. They represented every Black musical genre, with some excelling in multiple styles. According to my editor, we lost far too many musical […]
Monica Ellis vividly recalls her first impression of the Gateways Music Festival, a gathering of classical musicians of African descent, at the University of Rochester in upstate New York in 2019. Ellis, a bassoonist and founding member of the quintet Imani Winds, was no stranger to working in exclusively Black groups. But that hadn’t prepared […]
On a cool, spring morning in March 2022, Arséne DeLay propped open a window to let in the breeze and moved a guitar off of her couch. After inviting her guest to do the same, she took a seat in the living room of her home in Tremé, an historic community founded by free people […]
Since the nationwide protests over social injustice in 2020, orchestras have accelerated efforts to promote inclusivity. They have programmed more works by women and people of color, trying to broaden their appeal beyond a canon of music traditionally dominated by white, male composers. And they have hired more staff members from underrepresented groups (people of […]
Ambassador Linda Thomas-GreenfieldU.S. Representative to the United NationsNew York, New YorkFebruary 27, 2023 AS DELIVERED Good evening, everyone. This is an amazing turnout. We’ve transformed the UN General Assembly into a packed concert hall. I would say this is going to be the most watched concert we’ve ever held here, but that would be a slight to Beyoncé, […]
Ray Benson, longtime leader of the Western swing group Asleep at the Wheel, in concert at the Palace Theatre in Corsicana, Texas, on Dec. 9, 2022. He says he steers clear of politics on stage because “now it’s totally toxic.” Ben Torres for NPR hide caption toggle caption Ben Torres for NPR Ray Benson, longtime […]
Music has been a part of Daphne Brooks’ life since she can remember. Her childhood home was filled with the sounds of all kinds of records, including Duke Ellington and Aretha Franklin. She even played a little bit of piano herself. But she says she never got very good at it. So Brooks turned her […]