The relentlessly creative pianist Lara Downes has launched Rising Sun Music, a digital-format record label presenting works by Black composers spanning two centuries. The ongoing series will present monthly EPs celebrating specific themes: Remember Me to Harlem (February), Phenomenal Women (March), and Spring Fever (April). All performances can be found on Spotify
Downes, a Billboard Chart-topping pianist and NPR Music personality, is inspired by the exploration of her own mixed-race heritage as a trailblazing interpreter of diverse American traditions and building on the legacies of history, family, and collective memory.
Hear her performance, with violist Jordan Bak, of L'extase d'amour (Ecstasy of Love) for viola and piano, by H. Leslie Adams. This month's program also features music of Betty Jackson King: Spring Intermezzo; Nkeiru Okoye: When Young Spring Comes; and Alvin Singleton's Changing Faces. Hear this latest release (total 14 min) on Spotify
