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The Music of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

January 12, 2024, 8:00 pm

Then Vice President-elect Hubert H. Humphrey (left), alongside Coretta Scott King (center), and Civil Rights Leader and Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (right), at a rally at Harlem's 369th Regiment Armory on December 17, 1964. (United States Library of Congress)

In this episode of Sounds Classical, Kristina and LaRob honor Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. by exploring some of the incredible music he has inspired.

Celebrate MLK day by engaging with his philosophy and message through music: including works by Duke Ellington, Stevie Wonder, and Adolphus Hailstork!

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in Art: Music, Dance, Poetry, and more

Keegan Morris | January 17, 2022

An assortment of multimedia tributes — music, visual arts, poetry, and dance — to the monumental Civil Rights leader.

Playlist

Adolphus Hailstork: Epitaph for A Man Who Dreamed
Chicago Sinfonietta/Paul Freeman

Adolphus Hailstork: Songs of Love and Justice
1. Justice
2. Difficulties
3. Decisions
4. Love
Louise Toppin, s; Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra/Julius Williams

Shawn Okpebholo: Two Black Churches
1. Ballad of Birminham
Will Liverman, br; Paul Sanchez, p

U2: MLK (arr. Bob Chilcott)
Cantus

Duke Ellington: Three Black Kings
3rd/Final Movement
Buffalo Philharmonic/JoAnn Falletta

Margaret Bonds: Montgomery Variations (clip)
Minnesota Orchestra

Leonardo Balada: Sinfonia en Negro: Homage to Martin Luther King
Emanuel Abbuhl, ob; Joan Enric Lluna, cl; Malaga Philharmonic Orch/Edmon Colomer

Nicholas Flagello: Passion of Martin Luther King
10. I Have a Dream
4. In the Struggle for the Freedom
London Philharmonic Orch/Nicholas Flagello

“We Shall Overcome” (arr. Marty Paich) (clip)
Mahalia Jackson

Thomas A Dorsey: Take My Hand, Precious Lord (clip)
Mahalia Jackson

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Sounds Classical is made possible, in part by, Sylvia Furner and the members of the WFMT Fine Arts Circle.

Meet the Hosts

LaRob K. Rafael joined the WFMT announcing staff in 2020 as a fill-in host and became WFMT’s full-time weekend morning host and producer in Fall of 2021. A Bass-Baritone from the DMV area (Maryland), LaRob has been involved with music since childhood and is a graduate of DePaul University, where he studied Vocal Performance. He has since gone on to work with arts organizations including Lyric Opera of Chicago, La Caccina (a professional women’s ensemble), Black Opera Alliance, Black Administrators of Opera, and Sphinx Organization to name a few. He is the Founder and Artistic Director of Hearing in Color and combines his experience and research to change the predominantly white, European, male classical canon.

Kristina Lynn is a producer and host at WFMT, presenting both Sounds Classical with LaRob K. Rafael, and Evening Music on Friday nights. She has hosted live performances and artist interviews with the Rush Hour Concerts and has done voiceover work for the WFMT Radio Network. With an easygoing approach, Kristina aims to welcome all types of listeners to classical music and explore the art form from a 21st-century perspective. She holds a Bachelor of Music degree specializing in Trumpet Performance from DePaul University. Before announcing at WFMT, she has previously worked in radio production at both WFMT and at WQXR in New York.

Mornings with Lisa Flynn

Mornings with Lisa Flynn

The Music of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Related

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in Art: Music, Dance, Poetry, and more

Keegan Morris | January 17, 2022

Playlist