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“Who Got Next?”: Black Composers of the 21st Century

February 9, 2024, 8:00 pm

From left to right: Daniel Kidane, Gretchen Yanover, Xavier Foley, and Jasmine Barnes

In the past decade, names like William Grant Still, Florence Price, and Samuel Coleridge-Taylor have taken the classical world by storm and finally gotten the recognition they’ve deserved. However, in this episode of Sounds Classical, LaRob and Kristina showcase the composers “who got next!” These are composers have been active in the last 20 years, evolving the genre as we know it, including Daniel Kidane, Xavier Foley, Jasmine Barnes, and Gretchen Yanover.

Playlist

Xavier Foley: “Shelter Island”
Randall Goosby, v; Xavier Foley, db
Decca
B0033878-02

Stewart Goodyear: “Callaloo”
III. Ballad
Stewart Goodyear, p; Chineke! Orch/Wayne Marshall
Orchid Classics
ORC-100100

Daniel Kidane: “Aria Antica”
Hyeyoon Park, v; Benjamin Grosvenor, p
NMC
DL-3036

Jasmine Barnes:”Taking Names”
Karen Slack, s; Yoko Greeney, p
Navona
NV-6456

Caitlin Edwards:”Intro”
Caitlin Edwards, v; Cremaine Booker, vc & p
Caitlin Edwards
Exhale

Gretchen Yanover:”The Story of an Embrace”
Gretchen Yanover, vc’s
Gretchen Yanover
2021

Lawren Brianna Ware: “Ascension”
Amernet String Quartet
MSR Classics
MS-1685

Hannah Kendall: “The Spark Catchers”
Chineke! Orch/Kevin John Edusei
NMC
NMCD-250

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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.

Through the Night with Peter van de Graaff

Through the Night with Peter van de Graaff

“Who Got Next?”: Black Composers of the 21st Century

Playlist