A new recording by the esteemed string quartet celebrates the gospel singer's friendships with Martin Luther King, Jr. and Studs Terkel, whose interviews with her are included in a piece by Chicago composer Stacy Garrop.
Playlist Music
Music
Bruce Goff Wasn't Just an Architect – He Also Composed, Music Third Coast Percussion Concert Performs at the Art Institute
Daniel HautzingerGoff not only designed idiosyncratic homes but also painted and composed some music for player piano, which Chicago's Third Coast Percussion has transcribed to accompany an Art Institute exhibit.
A New Book Explores the Fascinating Stories and Businesses Inside Chicago's Eccentric Fine Arts Building
Keegan MorrisFrom its manually operated elevators to the master instrument builders inside, the Fine Arts Building holds numerous distinctions, which are explored in a new book.
Rapper Blvck Svm Turns the Tasting Menu into a Hip Hop Album
Maggie Hennessy“I realized I'd just eaten an album,” says Ben Glover of his introduction to a tasting menu at Atelier in Chicago, “and I needed to write a full album that is basically a tasting menu for people to listen to.”
The References to State History in Sufjan Stevens’ 'Illinois' Album, Explained
Daniel HautzingerThanks to the recent stage adaptation at Chicago Shakespeare Theater, we're revisiting Sufjan Stevens' Illinois album and its many, many references to state history.
A Q&A with the Producers of a New Documentary on Comiskey Park's Infamous Disco Demolition Night
Daniel HautzingerA new American Experience documentary examines the rise of disco and Comiskey Park's infamous Disco Demolition Night, which turned into a riot. We spoke to the filmmakers about disco and the seventies.
Revisiting a Superstar-Packed Predecessor to Chicago's Jazz Festival
Daniel HautzingerThe Chicago Jazz Festival has been bringing outstanding musicians to the lakefront for over forty years, but before it, in 1965, DownBeat magazine hosted a festival at Soldier Field with the likes of John Coltrane, Dizzy Gillespie, Thelonious Monk, and Muddy Waters.
A Look Back at an Important House Music DJ as the Chicago House Music Festival Hits
Daniel HautzingerChicago native Steve "Silk" Hurley helped bring the Chicago-born genre of dance music known as house to the UK. House music's history is increasingly being recognized, with a landmark and the Chicago House Music Festival.
Watch a Tireless 83 Year-Old Mavis Staples Perform in a Concert Recorded in Chicago
Daniel HautzingerMavis Staples began performing with her family band, The Staple Singers, when she was eleven. She's still singing at 83, as in a concert recorded earlier this year at Chicago's Symphony Center that WTTW is broadcasting.
'American Masters' Features an Opera Singer with Ties to Chicago
Daniel HautzingerJ'Nai Bridges, the subject of a new American Masters documentary, was a member of the Lyric Opera of Chicago's Ryan Opera Center for three years, and is currently singing Carmen at the Lyric. She has also worked with the Chicago area composer Shawn E. Okpebholo.
Hip-Hop at 50: A Q&A with a History Professor in a New Four-Part Documentary on the Art Form
Daniel HautzingerHip-hop turns fifty this year. A history professor and advisor to the new documentary series Fight the Power: How Hip-Hop Changed the World discusses the music's context and impact. "Hip-hop is still here because it has had this transformative impact on the way youth engage with the world around them," he says.
A Q&A with the Producer of 'Chicago Stories: The Birth of Gospel'
Daniel Hautzinger"The story of gospel music is actually a more universal story of American music and our country’s history," says the producer of a new Chicago Stories documentary about the genre's origins in Chicago.
Exploring the Diversity of American Music Through Its Influences—and Food
Daniel HautzingerIn the third season of Now Hear This, Scott Yoo explores the idea of American classical music through several composers and their influences, which range from samba to spirituals to Hindustani music—with explanatory pit-stops for food along the way.
A Q&A with the Director of a New Marian Anderson Documentary
Daniel HautzingerMarian Anderson, who was the first Black soloist at the Metropolitan Opera and gave an unforgettable concert at the Lincoln Memorial after being denied the use of a concert hall, is the subject of a new American Masters profile. We spoke to the director.
How the "Chickasaw Classical Composer" Jerod Impichchaachaaha' Tate Draws on North American Indian Culture
Daniel HautzingerJerod Impichchaachaaha' Tate, who scored two recent WTTW documentaries, uses Chickasaw and other North American Indian music and stories as source material for his classical compositions. "I have a mission in my music," he says.
