Playlist: 11 Black Performers Instrumental to Classical Music

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

Playlist: 10 Underrated Songs to Remember Stephen Sondheim

Labels really don’t work with Sondheim, who had one foot in the Golden Age and the other in what came next.

Playlist: 2021’s Top 9 Classical Christmas Albums

2021 was a tumultuous year for us all, but one thing we could count on was some great music.

Playlist: 7 Native American Musicians You Should Know

Meet seven Indigenous American musicians spanning genres (hip hop, punk, rock) and states (Illinois, California, Arizona).

Playlist: A Classical Fishing Trip

10 pieces of music inspired by angling and sea creatures

Playlist: Soprano Ailyn Pérez Shares the Music and Singers Close to Her Heart

Chicago native soprano Ailyn Pérez speaks to us about some of her favorite Latin American and Spanish music and shares a playlist of influential singers and music.

Playlist: Classical Music for the Earth and Environment

Composers like Terence Blanchard, Ludovico Einaudi, Rachel Portman, and Lei Liang have brought light to the ongoing climate catastrophe through their music.

Playlist: The Sounds of Ernest Hemingway

Ernest Hemingway was, by his own account, “absolutely without talent” when it came to music, but his influential writing and extraordinary life have inspired many film and TV composers.

Playlist: One Century of Astor Piazzolla

Astor Piazzolla was born on March 11, 1921. To celebrate the influential Argentinian composer’s centenary, Elbio Barilari explains Piazzolla’s unique legacy and shares a playlist of his most influential music.

Playlist: Women in Brass

Women play at the top of their fields in jazz, classical, blues, and reggae. Here are just a few of the dynamic women brass players who are showing off their chops and sharing their talents with us.

Playlist: 12 Black Film & TV Composers You Should Know

From Duke Ellington to Tamar-kali, these 12 composers have shaped what movies and TV sound like.

Playlist: This Music Has Kept Joffrey Dancers Active and Inspired in the Pandemic

With this month’s Boléro, a digital-only world premiere set to the piece of the same name by Ravel, Joffrey dancers are finally back to performing together.

Playlist: Celebrating the Blackness and Black Artistry of Gospel Music

Black people have used music and singing to tell the story of hope amid pain, promise amid peril, and immovable faith amid adversity. This playlist celebrates the uniqueness of Black thought and spirituality through the years.

Playlist: Classical Drinking Songs to Ring in the New Year

Who says enjoying classical music has to be a sober affair? Here is some music to help you say goodbye to 2020 and hello to 2021.

Playlist: Telling the Painful and Hopeful Story of the Black Community (Staff Spotlight)

In the first of our WFMT Staff Spotlight series, we share a playlist from Tim Russell, the Vice President of Community Engagement at WFMT and WTTW.

Playlist: 19 Latin American Composers You Should Know

From Cuba to Argentina, Uruguay to Mexico, Latin America has had no shortage of phenomenal composers. And while we are huge fans of Piazzolla and Villa-Lobos, we also love these lesser-known composers — and we think you will, too!

Playlist: Black and Latino Voices On Stage

To coincide with exciting new additions to the WTTW slate, WFMT has compiled a playlist celebrating the pinnacles of Black and Latino artistry in vocal music.

Playlist: 88 Piano Pieces for Piano Month

September is National Piano Month, so WFMT is sharing a supersized playlist – with one selection corresponding to each key on the keyboard.

Playlist: Celebrating Uncommon Instruments

From Ocarinas to Wagner Tubas, these instruments may not be the first to mind when you think of classical music, but maybe, they should be!

Playlist: Celebrating the New American Canon

We all love Sousa, Gershwin, and Copland. But what about the vanguard voices redefining what American classical music sounds like?

Playlist: Electrifying Classical Music Fireworks

With many of the major annual fireworks displays on hold this year because of COVID-19, WFMT is bringing you the fire with a curated playlist of pyrotechnic music.

Playlist: Keepin’ it unreal with pioneering composer and artist Moondog

Of the thousands of people who passed Moondog as he stood, dressed as a Viking, on his customary Manhattan street corner, few realized that they were walking by one of the great minds of 20th-century music.

Playlist: Classical Music Inspired by Flowers and Nature

Many composers have also answered the call of springtime’s riotous colors during this, the blooming season.

Playlist: Classical Music For Mother’s Day

In operatic, vocal, and instrumental selections , we pay tribute to the influential maternal figures in all of our lives.

Playlist: Classical Music for Easter Sunday

Looking for the perfect accompaniment for your Easter Sunday? We’ve got you covered with this playlist with everything from Bach to Irving Berlin.