12/10/16 SATURDAY MORNING CONCERT: Christmas Concert at Notre Dame with Jessye Norman

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Jessye Noman performed in a 1992 concert recorded live with Lawrence Foster and the Lyon Opera Orchestra amid the tantalizing acoustics at Paris’s Notre Dame Cathedral. Continue reading

(repost) 5/1/23 O&A NYC HOLLYWOOD MONDAY: Carmen Jones- Gypsy Song – Beat Out Dat Rhythm on a Drum

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In the groundbreaking black version of Carmen Jones there is a wonderful club scene Gypsy Song -Beat Out Dat Rhythm on a Drum featuring three sepia divas, Dorothy Dandridge, Pearl Bailey and Diahann Carroll. But there are at least three more present and future stars in the scene. As Carmen enters the club, the stunning woman with the pony-tail is famous beauty/dancer Carmen De Lavallade. Next two are fabled drummer Max Roach, and albeit just for a couple of seconds, Alvin Ailey! Continue reading

9/16/16 O&A NYC SONG OF THE DAY: Summertime- Kathleen Battle

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Summertime, Kathleen Battle and the Montréal Symphony Orchestra with conductor Charles Dutoit- 1994       Continue reading

1/13/22 O&A NYC THROWBACK THURSDAY: Michael Jackson – Earth Song

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Earth Song is the third single from Michael Jackson’s album HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I. The ballad incorporates elements of blues, gospel and opera. Jackson had a long-standing history of releasing socially conscious material such as We Are the World, Man in the Mirror and Heal the World. However, Earth Song was the first that overtly dealt with the environment and animal welfare.   Continue reading

3/5/15 O&A Throwback Tuesday: Marian Anderson

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Marian Anderson Singing at the Lincoln Memorial.

Marian Anderson was an African-American contralto and one of the most celebrated singers of the twentieth century. Anderson became an important figure in the struggle for black artists to overcome racial prejudice in the United States during the mid-twentieth century. The recipient of numerous awards and honors, Anderson was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1963, the Kennedy Center Honors in 1978, the National Medal of Arts in 1986, and a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1991. Continue reading