Classical Classroom

Each day during February, we posted a “Classical Music Moment in Black History” on our Facebook page to show the contributions of black artists to classical music throughout history. We’ve collected our twenty-eight February entries in this article. By the way, these entries were originally part of an episode of the Classical Classroom podcast (audio included below).  Composer Chevalier de Saint-Georges.  In the mid-to-late 1700’s, Chevalier de Saint-Georgeswas an Afro-French composer who was also France’s best fencer. After Napoleon re-instituted slavery in France, de Saint-Georges’ works were rarely played, though lots of his work has been recorded since the 1970’s. In 1803, virtuoso violinist George Bridgetower, who had studied under the leader of the Royal Opera, played with Beethoven. Beethoven then dedicated his Violin Sonata No. 9 in A Major to Bridgetower, and they premiered the piece together. Later, the two had a falling out – something to do with a lady – and Beethoven changed the piece’s name. It