In this episode of One Symphony with conductor Devin Patrick Hughes, Devin has an inspiring conversation with bass virtuoso and composer Kebra Seyoun Charles. From their early exposure to African drumming and gospel music to becoming a celebrated classical musician, Charles shares their unique journey and vision for the future of classical music through their "Counter Classical" style. Charles's work embodies a fresh perspective on classical music's future, one that honors tradition while embracing innovation and inclusivity. Their approach shows that classical music's evolution doesn't require abandoning its foundations, but rather expanding its boundaries to embrace diverse influences and experiences. As they put it, "Classical music is so beautiful and so ephemeral and it can't be contained."

Charles explores growing up in a musical household and how that led to their disvoery of the film composer, Erich Woflgang Korngold. They also discuss the autobiographical ballet project, Enby, that’s based on their experience as a nonbinary person developing in the world.

Kebra-Seyoun Charles is able to give prominence to the dance qualities in all forms of music. Kebra-Seyoun has performed alongside esteemed improvisers and composers such as Jon Batiste, at Carnegie Hall, and Tyshawn Sorey, at the New England Conservatory. Kebra-Seyoun was also featured in “Slugs’ Saloon” at the Institute of Contemporary Art in Boston, an interactive installation created by famed jazz musician and composer Jason Moran.

Kebra-Seyoun Charles is also a passionate chamber musician. Playing with groups like East Coast Chamber Orchestra, A Far Cry, Palaver Strings, and the Sphinx Virtuosi afford Kebra the opportunity to showcase virtuosity while still playing within an ensemble. A prime example of this is their tenure on the 2019 Emmy award-winning Broadway production “Hadestown”.

Thank you for joining us on One Symphony. Thanks to Kebra-Seyoun Charles for sharing their amazing spirit and music-making. You can find more info at https://www.kscharles.com. Recordings from the episode include:

• Koussevitsky: Concerto for Double Bass, First Movement. Featuring Kebra-Seyoun Charles on Double Bass. Performed with the Boston Philharmonic Youth Orchestra, Benjamin Zander conducting.
• Dating in NY. Composed by Kebra-Seyoun Charles. Featuring Charles on bass and musicians from the Juilliard School.
• The third movement from Andres Martin’s Bass Concerto. Performed by Charles with the New World Symphony under the direction of Chad Goodman.
• First movement from Erich Korngold’s Piano Quintet, op. 15. Performed by the ARC Ensemble from the Royal Conservatory, Toronto.
• Erich Korngold’s Cello Concerto in One Movement. Featuring Victor Julien-Laferrière on cello performing with the Frankfurt Radio Symphony. Conducted by Marie Jacquot.
• “Another Breakup Song.” Composed by Kebra-seyoun Charles. Featuring Charles on bass. Kayla Williams on viola, Joseph Brent on mandolin, Sommer Alteir on violin, and Kabir Adiya-Kumar on percussion.
• “Galaxy,” composed by Xavier Foley. Featuring Kebra-seyoun Charles and Xavier Foley on bass accompanied by the Sphinx Virtuosi.
• Holdberg Suite. Composed by Edvard Grieg. Performed by the Palaver Strings featuring Kebra-Seyoun Charles on bass.

You can always find more info at OneSymphony.org or DevinPatrickHughes.com including a virtual tip jar if you’d like to support the show. Please feel free to rate, review, or share the show! Until next time, thank you for being part of the music.

In this episode of One Symphony, host Devin Patrick Hughes interviews Dr. Samantha Ege, pianist and musicologist, about the life and works of Florence Price. Dr. Ege discusses Price's musical style, her significance in American classical music, and the recent rediscovery of her compositions. The conversation covers Price's role in the Chicago music scene, her blending of classical and African American musical traditions, and the challenges she faced as a Black female composer in the early 20th century. Dr. Ege also shares insights from her own recordings of Price's piano works and her upcoming scholarly publications on the composer.

Dr. Samantha Ege is a leading scholar and interpreter of the African American composer Florence Price. Her work illuminates Price in the context of the Black Chicago Renaissance and Black women's dynamic networks of advocacy, empowerment, and uplift. Her first book, South Side Impresarios: How Race Women Transformed Chicago's Classical Music Scene, and first edited collection, The Cambridge Companion to Florence B. Price, are important culminations of the research she has shared around the world.

Dr Ege is a also concert pianist who specializes in the music of 20th and 21st century composers. Her performances bring her research to life, sounding new narratives that are so often unheard in the modern-day concert hall. Dr Ege seeks to communicate the diversity of classical music's past, present, and future through her performances, and foster a sense of belonging for everyone.

In her London debut at the 2021 London Festival of American Music she gave the world premiere of Florence Price's complete Fantasie Nègre set. In 2018, she made her international lecture-recitalist debut at the Chicago Symphony Center with her event A Celebration of Women in Music: Composing the Black Chicago Renaissance. She has performed across the UK, Europe, North America, and Southeast Asia. She has also played with the Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra, Oakland Symphony Orchestra, Arkansas Symphony Orchestra, and Yale Philharmonia.

Thank you for joining us on One Symphony. Thanks to Dr. Samantha Ege for sharing her incredible research, insights, and music-making. You can find her book, South Side Impresarios and more at https://www.samanthaege.com.

Music Selections

“Weeping Willow, A Rag Time Two Step.” Composed by Scott Joplin. Performed by Benjamin Loeb on the album Scott Jopin: Piano Rags 2 from Naxos.

Violin Concerto No. 2. Composed by Florence Price. Featuring Kelly Hall-Tompkins on violin with the Urban Playground Chamber Orchestra. Conducted by Thomas Cunningham.

Sonata in E minor “Andante.” Composed by Florence Price. Performed by Samantha Ege.

“Sketches in Sepia.” Composed by Florence Price. Performed by Samantha Ege.

Symphony No. 1 in E minor: I. Allegro ma non troppo. Composed by Florence Price. Performed by The Philadelphia Orchestra. Yannick Nézet-Séguin, conductor. Available from Deutsche Grammophon.

Symphony No. 3 in C minor: I. Andante – Allegro. Composed by Florence Price. Performed by The Philadelphia Orchestra. Yannick Nézet-Séguin, conductor. Available from Deutsche Grammophon.

Sonata in E minor “Scherzo.” Composed by Florence Price. Performed by Samantha Ege.

Fantasie Nègre No.4 in B minor. Composed by Florence Price. Performed by Samantha Ege. Available from Lontano Records.

“Snapshots Moon Behind a Cloud.” Composed by Florence Price. Performed by Samantha Ege. Available from Lontano Records.

Fantasie Nègre No.1 in E minor. Composed by Florence Price. Performed by Samantha Ege. Available from Lontano Records.

Juba Dance from Symphony No. 3. Composed by Florence Price. Performed by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Ricardo Muti, conductor.

Fantasie Nègre No.2 in G minor. Composed by Florence Price. Performed by Samantha Ege. Available from Lontano Records.

You can always find more info at OneSymphony.org or DevinPatrickHughes.com including a virtual tip jar if you’d like to support the show. Please feel free to rate, review, or share the show! Until next time, thank you for being part of the music.

Tobias Picker, deemed “our finest composer for the lyric stage” by The Wall Street Journal, joins Devin Patrick Hughes on One Symphony. Tobias is a prolific composer in all genres. He has composed six operas, commissioned by Dallas Opera, LA Opera, Metropolitan Opera, San Francisco Opera, Santa Fe Opera, and Opera Theatre St. Louis.

Tobias Picker has composed numerous symphonic works including three symphonies, concertos for violin, viola, cello, and oboe, as well as four piano concertos and a ballet. Picker’s recent honors include the 2020 Grammy Award for Best Opera Recording of Fantastic Mr. Fox, and a lifetime membership at the American Academy of Arts and Letters.

Thank you for joining us on One Symphony. Thanks to Tobias Picker for sharing his music and insights. Thank you to Visconti Arts for making this episode possible. You can find more info at https://tobiaspicker.com.

Music Selections—all music by Tobias Picker, except for the first selection.

Gian Carlo Menotti, Suite from Amahl and the Night Visitors. Performed by the Cleveland Pops Orchestra conducted by Louis Lane.

First movement from Symphony No. 1; performed by the San Francisco Symphony. Edo de Waart, conductor.

Awakenings, adapted from the non-fiction book by Oliver Sacks. Libretto by Aryeh Lev Stollman, produced by Odyssey Opera in 2023 of Boston in partnership with the Boston Modern Orchestra Project. Gil, Rose, Conductor. Directed by James Robinson. Commissioned by Opera Theatre of St. Louis.

The Encantadas for narrator and orchestra. Based on the writings of Herman Melville. Sir John Geilgud, narrator; Christoph Eschenbach, conductor; Houston Symphony Orchestra.

"Letter Aria" from Emmeline. Text by J.D. McClatchy Virginia Douglas, soprano Amir Farid, piano. Conducted by Modestas Pitrenas. Supported by Modestas Pitrenas.

“I See A Woman” from Lili Elbe. Text by Aryeh Lev Stollman. Featuring Lucia Lucas as Lili. Performed by the St. Gallen Symphonic Orchestra.

Old and Lost Rivers, for orchestra. Performed by the London Symphony Orchestra conducted by John Williams.

Nova featuring Benjamin Hudson- Violin John Graham - Viola Fred Sherry - Cello Don Palma - Bass Tobias Picker – Piano.

You can always find more info at OneSymphony.org including a virtual tip jar if you’d like to support the show. Please feel free to rate, review, or share the show! Until next time, thank you for being part of the music.

https://tobiaspicker.com

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