Category Archives: History
Women We Love to Play On Air: 2024 Edition
Every day on All Classical Radio, you’ll hear music composed and performed by women. In celebration of Women’s History Month, we are diving into the fascinating lives of ten women composers whose music we love to play on air all year round. We are shining a spotlight on historically overlooked figures in classical music and… More
The Stories of Twelve Carols: 2023 Edition
Celebrating the magic of the season is one of All Classical Radio’s most beloved traditions. Each December, our Program Director, John Pitman, selects twelve carols from our extensive Festival of Carols library for a deep dive into their origins. In 2019, we explored holiday classics like Hark! The Herald Angels Sing and O Tannenbaum, while 2020’s post delved into international… More
Women We Love to Play On Air
At All Classical Portland, featuring women composers, conductors, and musicians as part of our regular programming is standard practice. We love to shine a spotlight on these historically overlooked figures in classical music and inspire our listeners with their skills and talents. This March, in celebration of Women’s History Month, we’d like to highlight a… More
María García’s Five “Must Hear” Women Composers
All Classical Portland is proud to announce that the station has extended pianist María García‘s residency! In honor of Women’s History Month, she is shining a spotlight on five incredible composers. What is history? Who has been in charge of telling these stories, and how have those choices shaped us? Stories are not created in… More
Celebrate Black History Month with All Classical Portland
All Classical Portland is proud to share a diverse offering of music we love all year round. During Black History Month in February, we are shining a special spotlight on the extraordinary contributions to classical music by Black composers and performing artists. In this post, you’ll get to know some of the composers who will… More
The Stories of Twelve Carols: 2022 Edition
Each year, All Classical Portland’s Program Director John Pitman, selects twelve carols from our extensive Festival of Carols library for a deep dive look into their origins. In 2019, we explored holiday classics like “Hark, the Herald Angels Sing” and “O Tannenbaum,” while 2020’s post delved into international favorites such as Riu, riu, chiu and Noël nouvelet. In 2021’s list of… More
John Pitman Review: Summerland – Premieres by William Grant Still
All Classical Portland Program Director John Pitman shares his latest review of a new collection of works by William Grant Still. Regarded by many as the most important black classical composer of the 20th century, and indeed called “Dean of Afro-American Composers” in his lifetime, William Grant Still (1895-1978) remains an important figure in the… More
Classical Hobbies
In the world of classical music, it’s easy to get lost in the mystique and lore surrounding its musical figures. At All Classical Portland, we strive to connect to the real, living humans behind the music. What better way to get acquainted with these renowned composers than through their hobbies? Perhaps in doing so, we… More
Musical Friendships
In A Week on the Concord and Merrimack Rivers, Henry David Thoreau described friendship: “They cherish each other’s hopes. They are kind to each other’s dreams.” So much beautiful music has come to the world through the mutual encouragement of friends. In this post, we will explore some historic friendships in classical music, when great… More
Amy Beach: Poetry and the Piano
Poetry was a major theme in the music of American composer Amy Marcy Cheney Beach (1867-1944). Her 117 art songs explore a huge range of poets, from Robert Browning to Robert Burns. Amy Beach’s love of poetry also appears in a large catalogue of choral compositions, with settings of poets like Oliver Wendell Holmes, in… More
