In honor of Women’s History month, Classical Music Indy takes a look at four important figures from Classical Music history. Hildegard von Bingen, Barbara Strozzi, Fanny Hensel, and Amy Beach were all women who impacted future generations with their musicianship. Each of these four women had their own struggles during their time, but still made their voices heard. Read below to learn about each musician’s life and musical works!

Indianapolis has a robust local classical music scene, worthy of being treasured as one of our city’s defining assets. And with NOTE, Classical Music Indy aims to tell stories that will delight and surprise avid classical fans, as well as welcome those new to the world of classical music. For this first issue, we chose to feature Women in Music, to celebrate local influencers past and present that have made stunning accomplishments not only with their talent, but also with their leadership in the genre.

Classical Music Indy employs a diverse range of musicians for our events around Indianapolis. In 2016 we hired 95 musicians. Classical Music Indy has dedicated our blog articles to outstanding women musicians this month. We’ve shared about great women music educators in America and about under-recognized women musicians throughout history. This week, we take a look at a few of Classical Music Indy’s top performers – women who are doing great work here and now in the city of Indianapolis. Read below about these incredibly talented musicians, and hopefully you’ll hear them at one of our events in the near future!

November is National Native American Heritage Month, and Classical Music Indy is always looking to highlight unique projects that impact our music world. This year, we were thrilled to discover the Native American Composers Apprenticeship Project, a part of the Grand Canyon Music Festival. We spoke with Clare Hoffman, Co-Founder and Artistic Director of the festival, about how their program trains Native American students from rural Arizona to compose music.

It’s hard to make time to practice music when you are working full-time as a teacher and freelance musician. Elizabeth Efroymson-Brooks, Director of Cello and Director of Suzuki Steps Early Childhood Program at the Indianapolis Suzuki Academy, shares her wisdom on practicing with her fellow teachers. Read below to see how Liz makes time to practice and what she does to improve her playing.

Performance anxiety is an issue for numerous musicians, from beginner to veteran. With symptoms ranging from the shakes to a full blown disappearance of skill, once that ball is rolling how do you stop it? Classical Music Indy asked Dr. Miranda George, a trumpet player, vocalist, and teacher who has lectured and written about performance anxiety, to write a three part series on the topic. In this second article of her three part series, Dr. George explains key strategies that sufferers from stage fright can implement to keep them on track.

In honor of National Hispanic Heritage Month, we had Samantha Stutsman, author for Indianapolis Monthly, speak with composer Jorge Martín, and pianist Eugenio Urrutia Borlando about how their heritage has influenced them both professionally and personally.

We attended and performed for Celebrate Day of the Dead (Día de los Muertos) at the Eiteljorg Museum with partner Nopal Cultural this past Saturday, October 29. There’s still time to visit Nopal Cultural’s Día de los Muertos Linocut Prints and Altar Exhibition that will be on display and FREE to view through Nov. 2 in the Lilly Auditorium at the Eiteljorg Museum. Read below to learn more about Día de los Muertos and the events that happened this past Saturday. 2017 Update: The event is being held Oct 28 from 11am-5pm, learn more here.

It’s National Mentoring Month! What better time to take a look at one of the most influential music mentors in recent history? Nadia Boulanger was an incredible educator and taught the likes of Stravinsky, Copland, and Quincy Jones out of her apartment in Paris. Read about her life and lasting impact on some of the most recognized composers of the 20th century.

Rhythm! Discovery Center is the creative vision of the Percussive Arts Society. Described as “the world’s first fully-interactive drum and percussion museum,” Rhythm! Discovery Center takes an innovative approach to experiencing the universality of rhythm and percussion. We spoke with Joshua Simonds, Executive Director of the Percussive Arts Society and Rhythm! Discovery Center, to learn more about this unique institution in Indianapolis.

Ever wondered how to improvise like a Jazz pro? For this week’s blog, Shawn Goodman shares with us her step-by-step method for teaching Jazz improvisation. Shawn Goodman is an Indianapolis Jazz musician and educator. Her method focuses on learning how to hear chord changes. Musicians and music educators, take note of this great method!

Eighth Blackbird is an innovator in modern contemporary classical music, through championing new music and supporting risk-takers in contemporary classical, they are a leader for the future of the genre. Jen Richards is the former Managing Director of …

For this week’s blog feature, we talked to Justin Wade, Executive Artistic Director of Young Actors Theatre, about their mission and approach to Self-Empowerment Theatre, and the role music plays in their productions. Young Actors Theatre will open two shows this weekend: Sleeping Beauty, and Twelve Dancing Princesses, at The Toby at the Indianapolis Museum of Art at Newfields.

In recognition of Jewish American Heritage Month in May, we hope you enjoy this light-hearted look at Leonard Bernstein by one of NOTE’s newest contributors – Philadelphia-based writer, Michael Silverstein.