Samantha Ege is both a leading scholar and interpreter of Florence Price. In this interview, she talks about her recent book “South Side Impresarios: How Race Women Transformed Chicago’s Classical Music Scene”. I was fascinated to learn about this compelling history of Chicago’s Black Renaissance with women such as Nora Holt,  Margaret Bonds, and Katherine Dunham.  Dr. Ege shared how the scholarship side of her work informs both her identity as a pianist and also how this research and storytelling cause her to reflect on some of her own challenges. We also talked about some of her other recent recording projects, including the upcoming Avril Coleridge-Taylor piano concerto and chamber music with Castle of our Skins, and she reflected candidly on her personal creative life as a writer, performer and composer.

Like all my episodes, you can watch this on my YouTube channel or listen to the podcast on all the podcast platforms, and I’ve also linked the transcript to my website

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Troubled Water by Margaret Bonds

from concert in Chicago for Crossing Borders Music

Fantasie Negre no. 1 in E minor by Florence Price:

from concert in Chicago for Crossing Borders Music

https://www.samanthaege.com/

Timestamps: 

(00:00) Intro

(02:11) book Southside Impresarios, Race women, Florence Price

(05:07) racism, Florence Price, John Powell

(10:50) Margaret Bonds “Troubled Water” from live performance (link to video in show notes)

(15:46) Southside Impresarios, Black Chicago Renaissance, Florence Price

(18:08) Wannamaker competition, Florence Price, Margaret Bonds

(21:47) Nora Holt, Florence Price

(30:43) Samantha’s practice diaries, Avril Coleridge-Taylor piano concerto

(38:03) other episodes you’ll like and ways to support this series

(38:56) composing, identity and confidence

(41:17)the importance of storytelling, upcoming Chicago concerts, community of Black researchers

(44:59) Katherine Dunham, ballet

(47:05) Boston Six, Amy Beach, exclusion of Black composers

(48:55) excerpt from Fantasie Nègre by Florence Price from live performance (link to video in show notes)

(51:52) Chamber music album with Castle of Our Skins, Undine Smith Moore, Bongani Ndodana-Breen

(55:08) Cambridge Companion to Florence Price, Rae Linda Brown, Alexandra Kori Hill

(57:16) Southside