The Nazis adopted Beethoven’s Ode to Joy. Happy Birthday hides a tale of corporate greed. And Putin uses Shostakovich’s Leningrad symphony as a call to arms. That’s why I put them in my soundtrack to ...

He's known as "the Jackie Robinson of Classical Music." During segregation, he played bass in what became the Colorado Symphony. Charlie Burrell paved the way for other African-American musicians in ...