The Ladies Speak

The Ladies Speak explores the lives and legacies of American women classical composers of the 19th and early 20th centuries – a group of pioneers often overlooked by the mainstream classical world. The series will examine the work of Florence Price, Amy Beach, Margaret Ruthven Lang and others, making the case that they should be considered within the pantheon of great music produced by this country.

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Episodes

Helen Eugenia Hagan

Award-winning pianist and Black Chicago Renaissance scholar Dr. Samantha Ege introduces listeners to composer and pianist Helen Eugenia Hagan, who wrote a virtuosic piano concerto while still a student at Yale University. Dr. Ege also recounts her 2022 collaboration to bring the work back to the stage where it debuted more than a century earlier.

May 29, 2024•11 min

BONUS EPISODE - Ivory Duo interview on Helen Eugenia Hagan

London-based Ivory Piano Duo Ensemble's Natalie Tsaldarakis and Panayotis Archontides talk about their collaboration with composer Lola Perrin to transcribe Hagan's Piano Concerto in C Minor from a handwritten score provided by Yale University.

May 27, 2024•19 min

L. Viola Kinney

On this episode, composer, conductor and bassoonist Damali Willingham shines a brief light on L. Viola Kinney, of whom we know little, but who wrote "Mother's Sacrifice," a romantic piano work that still captivates to this day.

Feb 18, 2024•6 min

Gena Branscombe

Gena Branscombe rose from the depths of great personal tragedy to write what was hailed as one of the finest oratorios of its time. Listen now to her story, and the journey of mezzo-soprano Kathleen Shimeta to preserve Branscombe's legacy in this century.

Feb 14, 2023•50 min•Ep. 2

Margaret Lang

Margaret Ruthven Lang was the first woman composer to write a work performed by a major American orchestra, the Boston Symphony Orchestra in 1893. She went on to write many piano works and songs that were performed and lauded around the world. Yet she quit composing in 1917, at the age of 50. Find out why, and the importance of her work to American music history, in the first episode of The Ladies Speak. Hosted by Fuse Ensemble founder Gina Biver, and featuring interviews with Juliana Yap, James...

Apr 07, 2022•39 min•Season 1Ep. 1

The Ladies Speak Trailer

The docuseries The Ladies Speak explores the lives and achievements of the great, and largely unknown, American women classical composers of the 19th and early 20th centuries.

Apr 06, 2022•2 min

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