Grant GilmanSep 18, 20203 minWilliam Schuman - Rawboned Music: Part 2“as long as writers write long and complicated novels, composers are going to write in the symphonic forms, because they give an opportu
Grant GilmanAug 31, 20205 minWilliam Schuman - Rawboned Music: Part 1“The bustle of city streets in daytime and the mystery of empty streets in nighttime emerge from Schuman’s scores.” — Nicholas Tawa Due...
Grant GilmanAug 21, 20204 minHoratio Parker - Far From DocileYoungest of the “Boston 6”, Horatio Parker was born 1863 in Auburndale, MA, a rural area at the time, now subsumed by the Boston city limits
Grant GilmanJul 30, 20203 minAlan Hovhaness - Always Original, Never UnnaturalLet’s begin with a ridiculous understatement: Alan Hovhaness was a prolific composer. Yeah, no kidding.
Grant GilmanJul 23, 20204 minGeorge Antheil — Tears in the Basic Fabric and SoundWhen someone titles their autobiography “Bad Boy of Music” that’s got to be a character worth investigating, right!?
Grant GilmanJul 10, 20204 minFlorence Price — ImpenetrableThe night is not all dark, Nor is the day all it seems, But each may bring me this relief— My dreams and dreams. — Paul Laurence...
Grant GilmanJun 29, 20204 minA Universal Composer — William Grant Still“The contradictions with which Still struggled shaped his remarkable creative output in ways we need to understand, as much today as...
Grant GilmanJun 20, 20203 minThe Hand of a Very Fine Craftsman - George Whitefield ChadwickAnother of the Boston 6, George Whitefield Chadwick spent most of his life in Boston, and kept a strong European tradition with him.
Grant GilmanJun 13, 20202 minThe Youthfulness of American Music - Arthur FootePossibly in an effort to puff up his legacy, Arthur Foote is described as the first American composer with a purely American education. I...
Grant GilmanMay 26, 20203 minYouthful Optimistic Vitality - Edward MacDowellHaving already covered two of the Boston Six—John Knowles Paine and Amy Beach—this week I will continue with three more: Edward...
Grant GilmanMay 16, 20202 minException To The Rule - Ruth Crawford Seeger"At thirteen, she wanted it all." Some people grow up fast. They have an awareness of themselves that is more keen than normal at an...
Grant GilmanMay 14, 20203 minMelodic Curve - Walter Piston“Writing long-haired music is not a way to make a living...” - Walter Piston If you have ever had life kick you in the teeth, you...
Grant GilmanMay 12, 20202 minMusic of Energy and Imagination - John Knowles Paine“If you don’t like the road you’re walking, start paving another one.” - Dolly Parton It is difficult to be first in something. We tend...
Grant GilmanMay 9, 20202 minGone Too Soon - Charles Tomlinson GriffesMuch like Franz Schubert and Lili Boulanger, another composer gone too soon, Charles Tomlinson Griffes, died at the age of...
Grant GilmanMay 8, 20202 minLong Days and Short Years - Roy HarrisParaphrasing a famous quote of Schumann praising the talents of an up and coming Chopin, one Arthur Farwell said of Roy Harris...
Grant GilmanMay 5, 20202 minNot Just "One of the Boys" - Amy BeachDvorak (in 1892): “I am afraid the ladies cannot help us much. They have not the creative power.” Amy Beach: Hold my cocktail. Though her...
Grant GilmanMay 1, 20201 minFree Only In His Mind - Henry CowellHenry Cowell is a unique study on the effect of incarceration on artistic production.
Grant GilmanApr 29, 20201 minA Man of Firsts - William Henry FryWilliam Henry Fry (1813-1864) has a lot of “firsts” associated with his music, especially his Santa Claus Symphony, composed in 1853.