Bumbry was among the winners of the 1958 Met National Council Auditions. She had a recital debut in Paris that same year and made her Paris Opéra debut in 1960.

Here are just a few Black performers who changed the course of classical music… and continue to inspire us today!

Marian Anderson broke barriers throughout her career, from her 1939 Easter Sunday performance on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial to her 1955 performance at the Metropolitan Opera.

More than 60 years after Marian Anderson broke the color barrier at the Met, Black singers still face unique obstacles within the opera industry. “We’ve made some strides, but not a whole lot,” said Professor Naomi Andre.

Winter can be grueling, but music can warm and soothe. Here’s the music that helps WFMT get through the season.

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Blanche Burton-Lyles, a concert pianist who was mentored by pioneering opera singer Marian Anderson, has died. She was 85. Burton-Lyles died of heart failure Monday at a rehabilitation center, according to Slater Funeral Home in Philadelphia. Burton-Lyles was born and raised in Philadelphia. She learned how to play classical piano at the age of 3. Burton-Lyles was …

Between 1952 and 1997, Studs Terkel invited some of the world’s best musicians to join him for his hour-long radio program on WFMT.

When Karpman encountered Langston Hughes’ poem, she was instantly fascinated.