Music

Jazz and April

Sonja D. Williams African Americans, Awards, Biography, Black Music, Black Radio, Chicago culture, Documentary, Education, History, Jazz Singing, Music, NPR, public radio, Radio, Smithsonian Institution

Despite the anxiety-provoking month that April has been thus far – politically, economically and environmentally – April also is a time to celebrate.

It’s Jazz Appreciation Month, as established by the Smithsonian Institution’s National Musuem of American History (NMAH) in 2001. For 25 years, the museum and other entities around the country have celebrated the treasures that the music known as jazz offers to all who would listen.

So why not check out the remaining events the Smithsonian has scheduled honoring jazz creators and performers? To see what the NMAH has cooked up, click here.

And if you’d like to hear a few of the shows from NPR’s Peabody Award-winning Jazz Profiles series, please click here. Nancy Wilson, the late, gifted singer and artist, lovingly hosted the series that focused on the musical lives and innovations of jazz giants.

Please also note that Thursday, April 30, 2026 is the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization’s (UNESCO’s) International Jazz Day.  This year’s host city is Chicago, Illinois, and guidng the day’s activities are UNESCO Director-General Khaled El-Enany and legendary composer/pianist Herbie Hancock.

Oh, and FYI, my profile of singer, composer and bandleader Betty Carter is included in the Jazz Profiles link above.

Enjoy!

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Happy New Year and an Upcoming Concert Invitation!

Sonja D. Williams African Americans, Black Music, Choral Music, Chorus, Music, Theater

Greetings!

Between politics and the weather, I hope that you’re finding space to be as positive as possible in this crazy world we live in.

And if you have the interest – and live in my hometown of NYC – please consider putting the National Concerts Chorus’ March 22nd, 8pm  concert on your calendar.

As a member of The Prince Georges County Choral Society (PGCCS), and with other choral singers from throughout the U.S., we’ll perform works by a broad range of contemporary composers – including a composition by our own choral director, Dr. Edryn Coleman.

This concert will be held at Manhattan’s Carnegie Hall, and I can’t wait to return to this famed concert venue. Carnegie Hall was the place where  my High School of Music & Art (now known as the LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts) held our graduation ceremony – back in the day.

So for more details about this exciting upcoming event, please click on the links above and I hope to see you then!

 

 

Singing for Love and Hope – Saturday, November 15, 2025

Sonja D. Williams African Americans, Black Music, Choral Music, Chorus, Music, Theater

Happy Fall!

If you live in the DMV and love choral music, you might want to check out the upcoming concert of the Prince Georges County Choral Society (PGCCS).

The PGCCS will offer Songs of Hope for a Better World  on Saturday, November 15th at 6:30pm in the Dionne Warwick Theater of Bowie State University’s Fine and Performing Arts Center, 14000 Jericho Park Road, Bowie, Maryland.

And to hear just a taste of the PGCCS’s musical magic, please click here

We hope to see you on Saturday!

The PGCCS performing in Greenbelt, MD on November 1, 2025

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

An Interview About Black Radio History and A Personal Journey

Sonja D. Williams African Americans, Biography, Black Music, Documentary, Education, History, Journalism, Music, Podcast, Podcasting, public radio, Radio, Smithsonian Institution

Last month, Mitra Kaboli one of the producers of Selects – a monthly show that unearths audio gems from the past –  interviewied me about my work as an audio documentary writer and producer.

Specifically, Mitra asked about my radio background and the role I played in the production of the Smithsonian Institution’s Peabody Award-winning documentary series, Black Radio: Telling It Like It Was. Grammy Award winning singer and artist Lou Rawls served as the series’ host.

To hear the interview, click here.

And enjoy!

 

 

 

June Is Busting Out all Over – As is Black Music Month!

Sonja D. Williams African Americans, Black Music, Black Radio, Education, Jazz Singing, Music, Nonfiction, Podcasting

As this days of this month roll along, there’s still time to celebrate Black Music Month and African American music in all its forms.

With that in mind, feel free to check out this rendition of the spiritual Deep River, as performed by my choir – the Prince George’s County Choral Society, based at Bowie State University in Bowie, Maryland.

Enjoy it and more Black musical creativity as the summer heats up!

 

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