Black History Month – The Second Street Dreams Audio Network

Rachel Barton Pine and the Suzuki Strings

February 17, 2026/in Classical Music In Color/by Judlyne Lilly

In these last few weeks of Black History Month, there are still many more events celebrating Black excellence. One such event is with violinist Rachel Barton Pine, who founded the series “Music by Black Composers” as part of her foundation, the Rachel Barton Pine Foundation. She did it to advance opportunities to study and perform works by Black composers. Pine performs with the Madison Symphony in Wisconsin this coming week with a group of young people, the Suzuki Strings, performing the music of some Black classical composers.

Here are the links mentioned in the podcast:

The email to Kennedy Center Staff

Internships and Fellowships at the National Museum of African American Music

The 2026 Grammy Music Educator Award

Sarah Kirkland Snider Goes Forward Into Light

February 10, 2026/in Classical Music In Color/by Judlyne Lilly

As any musician, classical or otherwise, knows, it’s a difficult climb to success. It took Sarah Kirkland Snider almost 20 years to find it with her composing career. She’s out with a new album of ethereal, spiritual music called Forward Into Light.

Black History Month soars with hundreds of events this month. Here are just a few.

A Behind the Scenes Look at Treemonisha

Karen Slack sings from her Grammy winning album

Sphinx Virtuosi Performs with cellist Sterling Elliott

Neptune, New Jersey celebrates Black History Month

Apply now for the Sphinx Performance Academy

Althea Waites. Pianist, Scholar, Advocate

February 15, 2024/in Classical Music In Color/by Judlyne Lilly

Althea Waites is a pianist extraordinaire. In her 85 years, she has performed all over the world and will occasionally accept invitations to teach master classes at music schools across the country. She has produced several albums, including her 2023 grammy nominated album, Reflections in Time. Her main goal is to perform new music and the music of composers of color. She has recorded the works of Margaret Bonds, Jeremy Siskind and Curt Cacioppo along with three of the “Three-Fours” of Samuel Coleridge-Taylor. Waites is scheduled to perform this month at Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas.