Category Archives: Spotlight
Trail-Blazing Trans Women of Color in Classical Music
In this article, we highlight three trans women of color who are turning the classical music world on its ear. May we learn from their stories and lift up their voices. Photo courtesy of the GLAAD website.
Champions of Music
This piece is dedicated to the unsung champions of classical music: the friends and encouragers who have come together to help the arts thrive. In this list, we’ll meet arts patrons, composers’ roommates, community leaders, aunts, teachers, choir directors, and letter writers. Each, in their own way, gave the support that was needed for music to …
Composers at Home
Many people are at home right now – working from home, studying at home, isolating at home. Have you wondered what self-isolation would have looked like for classical composers? Let’s explore some historical images and meet some Composers at Home.
Women Composers from the Middle Ages to the Baroque
Throughout Western music history, women have produced innovative, moving compositions, and the realm of early music is no exception. In this list, we’ll profile nine of the many pathfinding women who composed from the Middle Ages to the High Baroque.
Is a Cassation a Crustacean?
A Play On Words by All Classical Portland’s Music Researcher & Archivist Emma Mildred Riggle When I was a kid my little brother and I liked to play Name That Tune when we turned on the radio in the middle of a classical piece, because we were geeks with a bad case of sibling rivalry. …
National Hispanic Heritage Month
In the United States, National Hispanic Heritage Month is recognized from September 15th to October 15th. It is a time allotted to recognize the influence of Hispanic and Latino Americans in the history of the country. Although Hispanic and Latino are often used interchangeably, they mean two different things. The term Hispanic refers to people …
Music and the Brain: Music and Memory
The past which is not recoverable in any other way is embedded, as if in amber, in the music, and people can regain a sense of identity. . . — Oliver Sacks In our last two posts investigating the fascinating realm of Music and the Brain, we explored what drives our musical preferences and some …
