April is National Poetry Month!
In poetry, we find the music of language. Rhythm, nuance, sound, and self-expression come together, bringing meaning to life through words, much how music does through notes.
This April, All Classical Portland and the International Children’s Arts Network (ICAN) are celebrating the art of poetry, both written and spoken word, in honor of National Poetry Month.
Read on to discover some of the ways we are highlighting poetry, and its intrinsic connection to the music we love, on the airwaves and beyond. Listen at 89.9 FM in Portland or from anywhere via our free mobile app or via our live player on our website.
Programming Highlights & More
- SUNDAY BRUNCH – Throughout the month of April, host Suzanne Nance will infuse poetry into the musical and culinary flavors of Sunday Brunch. Join us every Sunday at 10:00 AM PT for All Classical Portland’s Poetry Project 2023: The Improv Sessions, featuring music and poetry by Oregon Poet Laureate Kim Stafford and pianist Hunter Noack (All Classical Portland’s 2019 Artist in Residence).
- Plus, enjoy beautiful music by Leoš Janáček, Robert Schumann, Frédéric Chopin, and more.
- THE CONCERT HALL – On Saturday, April 1, 2023, at 7:00 PM PT, host John Pitman celebrated National Poetry Month with works inspired by poets and authors of other forms of literature, including stage plays. He shared Richard Strauss’s “Frühling” (Springtime) from Four Last Songs; George Butterworth’s Six Songs from A Shropshire Lad – with poems by A.E. Housman, sung by Bryn Terfel; Edward Elgar’s Falstaff (symphonic study, after Shakespeare), and more.
- CLUB MOD – Throughout April, host Andrea Murray will share contemporary settings of poetry on her weekly program. Listen Saturdays at 9:00 PM PT!
- ICAN – Throughout the month, the International Children’s Arts Network (ICAN) will feature poetry from our friends at the Children’s Poetry Archive. Listen at ICANradio.org!
ON DEMAND
- CLUB MOD – On April 1, 2023, host Andrea Murray kicked off the month with an interview with composer Rachel Grimes and composer/singer Shara Nova about Oregon Symphony’s upcoming performance of a song cycle called The Blue Hour. The work features excerpts from a long-form piece by living American composer Carolyn Forché and is a collaboration between the two artists, plus composers Caroline Shaw, Angélica Negrón, and Sara Kirkland Snyder. Stream this program on demand in our Audio Archive until April 15, 2023.
- NOTEWORTHY – On April 2, 2023, host Lynnsay Maynard featured an all poetry program that will included music by Franz Schubert, poetry by Langston Hughes and Emily Dickinson, and a special homage to Beethoven by former Poet Laureate, Tracy K. Smith. Stream this episode on demand in the Audio Archive until April 16, 2023.
Harmonizing with Joy
by Dr. S. Renee Mitchell
In 2020, All Classical Portland commissioned a poem by Dr. S. Renee Mitchell titled Harmonizing with Joy.
Listen below, download the poem text, and feel the joy!
RECOMMENDED READING
- Amy Beach: Poetry and the Piano: a blog post by Emma Riggle exploring how the composer incorporated elements of poetry into her works.
- An Emily Dickinson Playlist: a collection of works illustrating how often the poet’s words have been cast in the singable meters of American hymnody.
- Seven Instrumental Pieces Inspired by Poetry: a blog post by Emma Riggle investigating classical works that took inspiration from written prose.
