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Piedmont Arts Podcast

WDAV Classical Public Radio

Interviews with artists, performers and community arts leaders.

music performing arts

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Professor Jennifer Stasack on Davidson’s Digital...

Piedmont Arts Podcast ·

2024/03/25

Traditionally, composers have written music with a group of musicians in mind, painstakingly transcribing or notating their ideas as sheet music. But these days, many work on a computer loaded with a digital library of instruments and sounds. That’s the case for the next generation of composers in training at Davidson College. We visit with music professor Jennifer Stasack and some of her students who talk about using digital tools to bring their ideas to life. We also hear some of their

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Dr. Scott MacLeod on Piedmont Opera

Piedmont Arts Podcast ·

2024/03/18

The Marriage of Figaro considered one of the greatest operas of all time, is billed as a comic opera but addresses serious themes such as tension between the social classes. Find out more about this masterpiece, and its important place in history by listening to a conversation with Dr. Scott MacLeod, associate professor of music and director of High Point University's vocal division, who is singing the role of Bartolo. Learn more about Piedmont Opera’s performance of The Marriage

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Micah Deer on One Voice Chorus

Piedmont Arts Podcast ·

2024/03/18

One Voice Chorus was founded in Charlotte in 1990 to bring together lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and LGBTQIA+ affirming people to celebrate their lives through song. Since that time the chorus has grown in membership from 25 to more than 90 singers. Executive Director Micah Deer fills us in on the organization's history, purpose, and program called "Mindful Music". Learn more about One Voice Chorus’ Mindful Music Pictured: Micah Deer, Executive

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Thorgy Thor on the Thorchestra

Piedmont Arts Podcast ·

2024/03/11

Thorgy Thor, a classically trained musician who first came to national prominence on the television series RuPaul’s Drag Race , is the guest on this episode of Piedmont Arts. After a recent appearance at Davidson College, she spoke to us about how she developed the concert program Thorgy and the Thorchestra which has been performed with orchestras in Canada and the U.S. including the Charlotte Symphony Orchestra last season. She has also performed as an instrumentalist at Carnegie Hall and

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Michelle Di Russo on the Salisbury Symphony

Piedmont Arts Podcast ·

2024/02/26

The Salisbury Symphony is auditioning candidates for music director. Michelle Di Russo, a candidate for the position, will conduct their "Enchanting Sounds" concert in Keppel Auditorium. She'll lead a program of music by Piazzola, Saint-Saens, and Rimsky-Korsakov. Di Russo is from Argentina, and currently the Associate Conductor in her second season with the North Carolina Symphony. She talks about the music on the program and shares her approach to working with an orchestra for the

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Jake Runestad and Kenney Potter on Charlotte Master...

Piedmont Arts Podcast ·

2024/02/19

Each year, Charlotte Master Chorale presents a "Unity Concert" with the goal of building bridges in the community through the shared experience of choral music. This year's concert is called "Unity: Earth" and is Saturday, March 9 at 4pm at First United Methodist Church in Charlotte. The ensemble will perform the North Carolina premiere of Jake Runestad's EMMY® Award winning Earth Symphony which presents a view of humanity from the point of view of Mother Earth

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Denyce Graves on Opera Carolina

Piedmont Arts Podcast ·

2024/02/12

One of the most extraordinary figures in American classical music is someone you may never have heard of. Mary Cardwell Dawson, born in 1894 in Madison, NC, was a musician, teacher, and founding director of the National Negro Opera Company, the longest-running, all-Black opera company which helped launch the careers of many singers. Now her story is being told in a 'play with music', The Passion of Mary Cardwell Dawson , which is being produced by Opera Carolina and stars internationally

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Eric Boruff on Cornelius Youth Orchestras

Piedmont Arts Podcast ·

2024/02/05

Research suggests there are significant neurological and academic benefits to children who learn to play a musical instrument. However, most school systems wait until 6th grade to offer band or orchestra programs, and many kids simply do not have access to instrumental instruction until it's offered at school. Cornelius Youth Orchestras wants to change that and has launched “Musical Pathways Initiative,” a groundbreaking program designed to provide access and opportunities for

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Jocelyn Hagen & Kenney Potter on the Charlotte Master...

Piedmont Arts Podcast ·

2024/01/29

The Charlotte Master Chorale's Chamber Singers will present concerts called "Art & Science" at Christ Episcopal Church in Charlotte and Davidson College Presbyterian Church in Davidson. The centerpiece of the concerts is a multi-media symphony, The Notebooks of Leonardo da Vinci , by composer Jocelyn Hagen. The work uses the latest video syncing technology to bring Leonardo's words and drawings to life and provides an immersive, multi-sensory experience very different from

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Burnt Reeds on Homegrown Melodies

Piedmont Arts Podcast ·

2024/01/29

Burnt Reeds is a reed quintet of local professional instrumentalists. Their concert called "Homegrown Melodies" features newly commissioned works by local composers. It's a project that brings together not only composers but also music producers, local independent mixed media artists, and of course musicians -- from a variety of backgrounds. Three members of Burnt Reeds—Dr. Dylan Lloyd, Dr. Jessica Lindsey, and Teil Taliesin—talk about their interest in creating

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Michael L. Kitchen and Dr. Amy Carleton on the Black...

Piedmont Arts Podcast ·

2024/01/22

The inaugural Black Notes Project Music Festival makes it debut at Charlotte's Knight Theater. The two-day festival celebrates and amplifies Black music and artistry and will honor the classical orchestral tradition while situating it alongside contemporary musical innovation. Nationally known artists such as harpist Brandee Younger and opera singer Tunde are featured along with musicians from the Charlotte community including members of the Charlotte Strings collective and the Charlotte

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Frances Blaker on Splendid Music from the Time of...

Piedmont Arts Podcast ·

2024/01/22

North Carolina Baroque Orchestra will perform concerts called "Splendid Music from the Time of King George III and Queen Charlotte" in locations across the Charlotte region. The program includes works by Chevalier de Saint Georges, Handel, Mozart, Avison, and others. Frances Blaker, the ensemble's artistic director and conductor, explains how the concerts' theme ties into the history of Charlotte. And she talks about the research she and the other musicians did to present the

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Steven LaCosse on The Metropolitan Opera’s Eric and...

Piedmont Arts Podcast ·

2024/01/08

The Metropolitan Opera's Eric and Dominique Laffont Competition has auditions across the country. The competition is designed to discover promising young opera singers and assist the development of their careers. The North Carolina District holds auditions and approximately 25 singers will compete to move on to Regionals in Atlanta. The event is open to the public. Steven LaCosse, Auditions Director for the Met Competition in North Carolina, explains why the competition is such an important

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Charlotte Symphony Orchestra Announces Kwamé Ryan as...

Piedmont Arts Podcast ·

2023/12/12

After a search that has lasted more than two years, the Charlotte Symphony has announced their next Music Director: Kwamé Ryan. Originally from Trinidad, Ryan has an impressive resume and has worked around the globe. He was General Music Director of the Freiburg Opera from 1999 to 2003 and Musical and Artistic Director of the National Orchestra of Bordeaux Aquitaine between 2007 and 2013. His most recent appointment is Director of the Academy for the Performing Arts at the University of

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Jeremy Mims on Christmas with Caritas

Piedmont Arts Podcast ·

2023/12/12

Caritas a Cappella ensemble presents a concert of Christmas and holiday music in Charlotte. The set will include settings of familiar carols as well as beautiful motets written by modern and Renaissance composers. And this time, the ensemble will be led by their new artistic director, Dr. Jeremy Mims. By day, Jeremy is Associate Professor and Director of Choral Activities at Wintrhop University, but he recently stepped in to take the helm from Caritas founder, Cathy Youngblood. He talks with

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Dr. Geoffrey Whitehead and Jeff Andler on the...

Piedmont Arts Podcast ·

2023/11/20

The Charlotte Civic Orchestra presents its annual Christmas Extravaganza at the Halton Theater at CPCC’s Uptown Campus. The program features a sixty-piece orchestra, performances by the Charlotte Youth Ballet and Diamond Elite Dancers, the Holiday Singers, and soloists, plus the combined choirs of the Marvin Ridge and Porter Ridge High Schools. Dr. Geoffrey Whitehead, the music director of the Charlotte Civic Orchestra, and Jeff Andler, a member of the Holiday Singers, speak about the

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Dr. John Michael Cooper, Dr. Sequina Dubose, & Dr....

Piedmont Arts Podcast ·

2023/10/30

Composer, pianist, and social justice activist Margaret Bonds is one of the twentieth century's more remarkable American artists, and her reputation is growing in stature among twenty-first century music lovers. There's a terrific opportunity to learn more about this remarkable woman and her music when Queens University hosts the Margaret Bonds Symposium . Learn more about her by listening to guests Dr. John Michael Cooper, an expert on Bonds' life and music; Dr. Sequina Dubose,

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Tichina Vaughn on Piedmont Opera

Piedmont Arts Podcast ·

2023/10/09

Piedmont Opera in Winston-Salem is opening their new season with Verdi's Il Trovatore and they're welcoming home Grammy-winning mezzo-soprano Tichina Vaughn. Vaughn was raised in Winston-Salem, and she is a graduate of UNC School of the Arts. After getting her start with the Metropolitan Opera, she went on to international acclaim performing many years with Staatstheater Stuttgart as principal artist. She talks about how it feels to perform in her hometown, when she discovered she was

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A Conversation with Amerigo Trio and A Tribute to...

Piedmont Arts Podcast ·

2023/10/01

In the month of October, Davidson College will present several great concerts. Renowned vocal group Stile Antico performs a program celebrating William Byrd. And the Amerigo Trio, whose members are all internationally acclaimed musicians, is in concert. And later in the month, Davidson faculty members will present a benefit tribute to Burt Bacharach. On this episode of Piedmont Arts, we talk to artists who will be appearing in two of those concerts. Amerigo Trio members Glenn Dicterow, former

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Dr. Marques Garrett on the Charlotte Master Chorale

Piedmont Arts Podcast ·

2023/09/25

The Charlotte Master Chorale comes to the Cain Center in Cornelius and Queens University in Charlotte respectively this fall. The theme of the concerts is freedom and oppression across communities and features the North Carolina premiere of R. Nathaniel Dett's The Ordering of Mose s as well as Bernstein's Chichester Psalms. Dr. Marques L.A. Garrett, associate professor of choral studies at the University of North Texas and an expert in the music of Nathaniel Dett, a Black

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