#ClassicsaDay #NorthAmClassics Week 5, 2024
Two countries celebrate their independence in July -- and they just happen to be neighbors. On July 1, 1867, three separate British colonies were officially united. United Canadas, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick became Canada.
On July 4, 1776, thirteen separate British colonies were officially united, becoming the United States of America.
The #ClassicsaDay challenge for July is to post music by Canadian and American composers. Both countries have created their own forms of classical music, independent of Europe's.
Here are my social media posts for the fifth and final week of #NorthAmClassics. As in past years, I alternate between Canadian and American composers.
7/29/24 Albertine Morin-Labrecque (1886 or 1890–1957): Arabesque
Morin-Labrecque was born in Montreal. After two decades touring as a concerto pianist, she joined the faculty of the Conservatoire national de musique.
7/30/24 Joan Tower (1938): Piano Concerto, Homage to Beethoven
Tower is one of the most performed living American composers. Her first piano concerto incorporated quotes from three Beethoven sonatas.
7/31/24 Hector Gratton (1900–1970): Legende, symphonic poem
Legende is Gratton's most successful work. It won the Jean Lallemand Prize and was premiered by the Montreal Symphony Orchestra in 1937.
