Black History Month is a time to learn, reflect, and participate in festivities and events that honour the legacy of Black people and their communities.
In our spirit of celebrating beauty through music, Tafelmusik has compiled a list of virtual concerts and musical events celebrating Black artistry and legacy. This list reflects events coordinated by our local Toronto communities, and our larger classical communities globally, but is in no way exhaustive: if you are organizing or aware of an event, please tell us at info@tafelmusik.org, and we will add your contribution.
We would also like to share a list of some resources which explore Blackness in classical music. Historically, Black composers and performers have largely been written out of the classical music canon; and contemporarily, classical music has remained a largely white-dominated institution. The resources below offer ways to discover Black classical music history, celebrate Black classical artistry, and challenge notions of whiteness in the classical music world.
Black History Month concerts and events:
All events listed below are free to access, and are streamed online.
Joy Bullen
Toronto entrepreneur Joy Bullen’s annual online concert in celebration of Black History Month is back. This year’s concert features pianist, organist, and composer Rashaan Rori Allwood; and vocalist, multi-keyboardist, composer and sound designer Yanick Allwood: the two combine their talents to demonstrate how modern Black artists have always used music and story-telling to nurture culture and give a voice to their people.
Date:
- Tuesday, February 1, 7pm ET: this concert can be rewatched through February 28
Link: https://www.joybullen.ca/events/
Apollo Theatre
In this event presented by New York City’s renowned Apollo Theatre, Dr. Howard Watkins, renowned pianist and Assistant Conductor at the Metropolitan Opera, explores this lineage by curating a recital delving into the rich repertoire of Black American composers, featuring internationally acclaimed soprano Karen Slack.
Date:
- Thursday, February 3, 7pm ET
Link: https://www.apollotheater.org/event/deep-river-black-currents-in-classical-music/
Hayes School of Music
During Black History Month 2022, the Hayes School of Music presents the second annual series of programs celebrating the works of African-American composers. Members of the music faculty will perform works ranging from 1890s ragtime to the works of living composers. members of the English department will be performing readings from the Harlem Renaissance and the Black Arts Movement, to contemporary voices.
Dates:
- Sunday, February 6, 4pm ET
- Sunday, February 13, 4pm ET
- Sunday, February 20, 6pm ET
Link: https://music.appstate.edu/performances/black-history-month-concerts-2022
Leeds School of Arts
In this online event, professor Gayle Murchison discusses #BlackMusicMatters and the work of five twentieth-century black musical figures. Murchison will examine the selected works of five composers: Scott Joplin, W.C. Handy, William Grant Still, Mary Lou Williams and Samuel Taylor-Coleridge.
Date:
- Wednesday, February 9, 11am ET
Waveland
Waveland—a Canadian nonprofit committed to celebrating and empowering the Canadian music scene—presents Black History Month Virtual Music Festival. This virtual experience will feature artists as diverse as Juno award winner Sammy Jackson, RBC Bluesfest winner Michelle Hopkins, Canadian Idol runner up Gary Beals, powerhouse performer KHAY, and many more.
Date:
- Saturday, February 26, 6pm ET
Link: https://happin.app/post/black-history-month-virtual-music-festival-61f4004528fcfb000952e498
Chicago Children’s Choir
By uniting participants from their school program with captivating guest speakers, this dynamic educational program will animate and celebrate the vast and vivacious culture of the African Diaspora through a captivating blend of music, oration and history.
Date:
- Saturday, February 26, 6pm ET
Link: https://www.ccchoir.org/events/black-history-month-concert-series-2022
Resources on Blackness in classical music:
Music by Black Composers
https://www.musicbyblackcomposers.org
Music by Black Composers (MBC) was born from the realization that young musicians learning classical music seldom, if ever, have the opportunity to study and perform music written by Black composers. This omission silences a rich vein of musical creation from global cultural consciousness. With a multi-pronged approach, they are spreading awareness of and access to music by Black composers to children and adults alike in ever-expanding ways.
Melanated Moments in Classical Music
https://www.classicalmusicindy.org/podcasts/melanated-moments/
Melanated Moments in Classical Music, the award-winning new podcast from Classical Music Indy, shines a spotlight on musical works composed by, for, and about Black people. Melanated Moments is hosted by international opera soprano Angela Brown and music sociologist Joshua Thompson. For some listeners, Melanated Moments will uncover a hidden trove of classical music they never knew existed. For those with a deep musical knowledge, stories reflecting the cultural context of the African Diaspora will offer a fresh perspective on Black contributions in the world of classical music.
Castle of our Skins’ resource list
https://www.castleskins.org/resources.html
Interested in learning more about the music of Black composers from across the African diaspora and organizations that promote their work? Discover this incredible resource list, compiled by Castle of our Skins: a concert and educational series dedicated to celebrating Black artistry through music.
Festival International de Musique Saint-Georges
http://saintgeorgesfestival.com/
The Festival International de Musique Saint-Georges is a tribute to Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges (1745-1799), a great historical figure born in Guadeloupe. He was Europe’s greatest fencer and an exceptional military leader at the time of the French Revolution, but his true love was music. In 18th century France, he was recognized as a virtuoso violinist, conductor and composer. His operas, concertos, quartets, symphonies and sinfonia concertantes influenced the great composers of his day, including Franz Joseph Haydn and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. His life inspired iconic authors such as Alexandre Dumas. One of the most prestigious music festivals in the Caribbean, the Saint-Georges International Music Festival stands out as a unique emblem for diversity in the classical music world.
The Sounds of Black Composers
https://www.dcomposed.com/black-composer-playlists
Compiled by D-Composed, the Sounds of Black Composers playlist series explores Black composers across all genres and disciplines, in an effort to eliminate the hierarchy around what it means to be a composer.
Chineke!
https://www.chineke.org/
The Chineke! Foundation was created in 2015 to provide career opportunities to established and up-and-coming Black and ethnically diverse classical musicians in the UK and Europe. Chineke!’s motto is: ‘Championing change and celebrating diversity in classical music’. The organisation aims to be a catalyst for change, realising existing diversity targets within the industry by increasing the representation of Black and ethnically diverse musicians in British and European orchestras.
Sphinx Organization
https://www.sphinxmusic.org/our-work
Focused on increasing representation of Black and Latinx artists in classical music and recognizing excellence, Sphinx programs serve beginner students to seasoned classical music professionals, as well as cultural entrepreneurs and administrators. Based in Detroit, Michigan, Sphinx envisions a day where the classical music field looks like our communities: where every young person has the opportunity to express themselves and learn classical music; where audiences reflect the people we see on our streets; and where leadership—on stage and off—includes all deserving voices.
Protestra
https://www.protestra.org/
Protestra is a coalition of activist musicians ready and willing to use art to speak out against injustice and speak truth to power. In their own words, “We consider it our responsibility as artists to use music to expand social consciousness and raise awareness about the pressing societal issues that affect us all, but especially the most vulnerable and marginalized among us.”
Joseph Bologne: Recommended Reading and Resources
https://www.tafelmusik.org/breaking-baroque/joseph-bologne-recommended-r…
Enjoy this collection of further reading and resources, which provide valuable context surrounding Bologne’s storied life and his musical contributions to the classical canon.