Syndication Information

A New Series of Stories Created to Broaden Our View of Classical Music

Description

NoteWorthy is a series of audio stories created to broaden our view of classical music by shining a light on the lives and music of artists of color, women, and others from historically underrepresented groups. Each episode provides an introduction to an artist, performing ensemble, musicians, or composer from all eras and genres of classical music. In a couple of minutes, you can learn about the contributions these artists have made and are making to the art form while discovering some great music along the way.

Length

2 minutes

Distribution

Coming soon to PRX. New episodes will be uploaded weekly. (Day of the week to be determined)

Broadcast Rights

Episodes are free of charge. Stations may carry episodes multiple times. Episodes must be carried in their entirety. No excerpting is permitted. Stations must provide a link to noteworthyclassical.org/stories at station websites. Stations must use the most up-to-date program logo and artwork provided by the producer. Program logos and digital assets cannot be altered or co-branded (with your station logo, etc.) without producer’s approval. Stations must air any national underwriting for NoteWorthy. Prior to carrying NoteWorthy, please contact Rachel Stewart at rastewart@wdav.org.

Loki Karuna, Host

Credit: Nik Linde

Loki Karuna (formerly Garrett McQueen) is a bassoonist who has performed with orchestras across the country, including the Detroit Symphony, Knoxville Symphony, Louisville Orchestra, and Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra. He’s been heard as both a performer and guest host on APM’s “Performance Today”, and has continued his work as a producer and broadcaster with his nationally-syndicated programs including The Sound of 13, Gateways Radio, and The Sounds of Kwanzaa.

Featured Episodes

Shawn Okpebholo

When you hear the phrase, "American Folk Music", what comes to mind immediately? Maybe music that involves a banjo, hand clappin' and foot stompin', or something of that variety, right? Well you'd be correct in thinking of it in that way, but it's definitely not all that lives within the sub-genre of American folk music. Hello - I'm Loki Karuna, and on this edition of NoteWorthy I'd like to highlight a composer who's making great strides toward showcasing the rich and diverse history of folk music in the United States - a man named Shawn Okpebholo.

Chloe Flower

Pianists who create music inspired by their cultural surroundings have been around, well, since there were pianos! This was true for Brahms, for Franz Liszt, for Mozart - just about anyone you can think of, and the tradition has continued into the 21st century. Hey y'all - I'm Loki Karuna and on this edition of NoteWorthy I'd like to introduce to you one of my favorite contemporary pianists - the one and only Chloe Flower.

Nobuo Uematsu

Maybe you've heard an orchestral composition that really knows how to swing. Or, maybe you haven't. Either way, that music does exist, and composers from the US, Europe, and even East Asia have taken on the task of fusing symphonic sounds with American swing. On this edition of Noteworthy, Garrett McQueen introduces one composer who really knows how to swing - a man named Nobuo Uematsu.

Margaret Bonds

Sometimes, composers write music that's meant to sound like nature or busy, city streets. Others have written music that relays emotions or historical events. And then there's one woman, who wrote a work with protest at it's core. On this edition of NoteWorthy, Garrett McQueen shares Montgomery Variations by Margaret Bonds.

Raven Chacon

Since 1943, music has been among the Pulitzer Prizes awarded to some of America's most notable composers, including Aaron Copland, Jennifer Higdon, and even Duke Ellington. In 2022, the prize was awarded, for the very first time, to an indigenous composer. On this edition of Noteworthy, Garrett McQueen talks a little about that Indigenous composer - a man named Raven Chacon.

Black Violin

Classical training on instruments like the violin or the viola can easily pave the way for a musician to get to work with some of the finest orchestras in the world, but that's not the only place where classical training has led musicians. On this edition of Noteworthy, Garrett McQueen highlights a classically trained duo known as Black Violin.

Samuel Coleridge Taylor

Over the course of history there have been countless individuals whose lives intersected with activism and social justice. Most have engaged that work with a very local approach, while others have done it with a more global perspective, with one of them, being a Black composer from England. On this edition of NoteWorthy, Garrett McQueen shines a light on a social justice minded composer named Samuel Coleridge Taylor.

Jessie Montgomery

When you hear the word, composer, you might automatically think of someone who lived hundreds of years ago in a place across the Atlantic. But truth is, composer is a title that many people today carry with them. On this edition of NoteWorthy, host Garrett McQueen features one of the most celebrated composers of today: a woman named Jessie Montgomery.

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