Anthony Tommasini’s Book Notes music playlist for his book Voice of a Century

In the Book Notes series, authors create and discuss a music playlist that relates in some way to their recently published book. Previous contributors include Jesmyn Ward, Lauren Groff, Bret Easton Ellis, Celeste Ng, T.C. Boyle, Dana Spiotta, Hanif Abdurraqib, Andrew Sean Greer, Roxane Gay, and many others. Anthony Tommasini’s Voice of a Century is an eye-opening biography of both the life and music of Marian Anderson. Kirkus wrote of the book: “Tommasini perceptively sketches Anderson’s complex character, and this longtime New York Times classical music critic really excels in passages about her singing. He apparently listened to every recording Anderson ever made, and his analyses of how her three principal accompanists affected her performances are as acute as his descriptions of her voice are evocative . . . Tommasini’s journalistic skills are evident in his cogent narrative of Anderson’s career, but it’s his deep musical knowledge and sensitive appreciation of her unique gifts…