Joseph Holt. Photo Courtesy of EGC Productions.
Art and artists are usually the first to be censored in despotic regimes, sometimes more quickly in the performing arts. The theatre, popular music, and even dance are more visible. Shakespeare was bowdlerized for centuries. Pop songs even during the 1960s had to change lyrics to be performed on television. Even dance was censored when Russian ballerinas could not wear tutus. Graphic arts are also controlled. Paintings are often taken from galleries due to political demands. Literature, too, has been censored, not just due to sexual situations, but due to politics as well. Today, we see that in our country as well. Certain subjects are being taken from schools and libraries, sometimes great literature. We also know that Hitler banned the music of Jewish composers or those who had Jewish heritage like Mendelssohn.
The Soviet Union under Stalin and his successors was no different. Even though the music had no lyrics it evoked passion. It was not what Stalin thought was traditional Russian music, like Tchaikovsky. Highly esteemed composers, Sergei Rachmaninoff, Sergei Prokofiev, Sofia Gubaidulina, and Dmitri Shostakovich all were repressed and censored by the Soviet government Despite being censored, Rachmaninoff and Prokofiev were exiled or just kept quiet but became internationally respected. Shostakovich is revered for his courage as well as his music and Gubaidulina, who we lost just last year, was the “most significant female dissident composer of record.” She was strangled, perhaps by a KGB official due to her criticism of the government, but survived. She is the also only 21st century voice of the program.
In May, Joseph Holt, renowned for his work in our metropolitan area as well as nationally and internationally, will be at the keyboard for “Censored Voices: Silent No More” at the National Presbyterian Church in Washington, DC. Maestro Holt will be joined by violinist Boram Kang, cellist Dariusz Skoraczewski, and soprano Catherine Wethington. The concert opens with Maestro Holt performing selections from Prokofiev’s “Visions Fugitives.“
Dr. Joseph Holt is a multi-talented concert pianist and musician who served more than twenty years as principal pianist with The United States Army Chorus in Washington, DC, performing for US Presidents, dignitaries from around the world and military officials. He held the position of Associate Music Director for The Choral Arts Society of Washington for fifteen years. His recording of choral works by Ariel Ramírez on the Naxos label with Choral Arts Society was awarded a WAMMY for best Classical Album in 2006. In 2009, he was selected to be the Artistic Director for the Choral Artists of Sarasota, a position he held until 2025. Under his leadership, the ensemble presented multiple regional and world premieres of new choral works as part of their mission, and they have been praised for their vocal finesse and powerful performances. Highlights of his tenure include the world premiere of “Listen to the Earth” by James Grant; presentation of a newly choreographed version of “Carmina Burana” in collaboration with the Sarasota Contemporary Dance Ensemble; and Sarasota’s premieres of “Too Hot to Handel,” “The Children’s March,” and “Considering Matthew Shepard.” Holt led the ensemble on two successful international tours: the 2012 Amalfi Coast Music and Arts Festival in Italy and the 80th anniversary of the D-Day Normandy Invasion in France in 2024.
He served as Director of Artist Programs for the Artist Series Concerts of Sarasota from 2014 to 2021, annually engaging emerging and established musicians to perform in Sarasota. He also served as Director of Music for Faith Lutheran Church from 2012-2022. The Arts and Cultural Alliance of Sarasota recognized his achievements with the Artistic Achievement Award in 2017.
Currently, in addition to his performance career, he is the producer and host for Sarasota Institute of Lifetime Learning’s Music Monday programs, musical conversations with artists from around the world that offer insight into the lives of leading musicians. He serves on the Board of Directors for Sarasota Music Archives and Sarasota Institute of Lifetime Learning. Unusual highlights of his musical career include coordinating and conducting the Filene Center Orchestra for a gala performance featuring premier comedian, Victor Borge, at Wolf Trap; compiling and directing the music for “Prodigy,” a children’s play about Mozart at the Kennedy Center; performing with soprano Jessye Norman at the base of the Hoover Dam; and assisting in the development of the National Music Conservatory in Amman, Jordan. In September, 2025, Dr. Holt was invited to prepare a 44 voice chorus of professional singers for EGC Productions acclaimed performance of “Journey of Faith: A Musical Tribute to Mother Teresa,” featuring the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra at Strathmore Music Center. In October 2025, Dr. Holt was the featured pianist in a chamber concert titled “Legacy,” honoring his long history of music-making in Sarasota where he performed works by Kabalevsky, Rachmaninoff, Shostakovich, and Prokofiev. Dr. Holt holds degrees from the Eastman School of Music, Shenandoah Conservatory, and the Catholic University of America.
Can you tell us a bit about yourself?
I was born in Columbus, Georgia and moved to the DC area with my family when I was seven. My dad was a Presbyterian minister and served in several churches in Northern Virginia. He was at Fairlington Presbyterian Church when the music director urged my parents that I should take piano lessons from his wife. I had a choice between Cub Scouts, Little League and piano lessons. I chose piano (mainly because my grandmother played piano and convinced me that I would enjoy it).
I do consider the DC area to be more of my home than Georgia. After attending the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, NY, I moved back to the area and spent the majority of my career in DC, primarily as a pianist with The US Army Band and Chorus and as the associate music director of the Choral Arts Society of Washington. There are some unusual events in my career, like performing with soprano Jessye Norman at the BASE of Hoover Dam (we all had to wear hard hats!); aiding in the development of the National Music Conservatory in Amman, Jordan; and working with comedian Victor Borge at Wolf Trap. As a military person, I am an expert in throwing grenades (not that I ever used that skill while in the Army Band!) I currently reside in Sarasota, Florida, about an hour and a half south of Tampa.
What made you decide to feature these four composers? Were there others who were censored or are these the most recognizable or most creative?
I had chosen three of the four composers for this program. The presenters, EGC Productions, suggested the song cycle by Sofia Gubaidulina, a composer that was unknown to me. We all felt that it would be beneficial to showcase a later 20th Century composer as well as a female composer and her works fit the bill perfectly. In the case of Rachmaninoff, Prokofiev and Shostakovich, their stories and associations within and outside of the Soviet Union are well documented and including them was a must. The oppressive system of the Soviets, particularly during the Stalin era, resulted in many composers, artists and writers who were censored or condemned as their work was considered to be not in support of the proletariat. It was a tenuous time for artists in Russia as you never knew whether your work would be approved or not. Other composers of the time that were affected include Igor Stravinsky, Dmitri Kabalevsky, and Aram Khachaturian among many others. I chose this program in response to a shift in cultural thought that has taken hold in the United States. The question that is asked is whether artists are feeling constricted, whether they can feel free to express themselves with a voice that is true to themselves. The Soviet system came to mind as I was pondering these current issues and I wanted to showcase how various composers dealt with authoritarianism. There may have been censorship, but these composers were able to thread the needle with differing levels of effectiveness.
Do you have a particular favorite of the four listed?
Rachmaninoff has always been a favorite composer of mine. I have played his works throughout my career and always marvel at how he reaches right into the deep crevices of our souls with a directness that belies description. He was the last of the Russian Romantic composers and he was the only one of the four composers who left Russia for good following the 1917 Revolution. His music on this program is a reflection of the world that was before the upheaval of World War I and the Bolshevik Revolution. It offers us a bit of respite from the sarcastic world of Prokofiev and the sardonic world of Shostakovich.
Have you worked with any of the other artists who will be performing before this? Can you tell us a bit about them?
The soprano for this concert, Catherine Wethington, is an artist who I have enjoyed working with over the past decade. I’ve known her since she was a youngster, and it’s marvelous to see her develop into the artist she is today. I featured her in several performances of “Carmina Burana” in Sarasota, Florida with the Choral Artists of Sarasota as well as an appearance on a series that I host in Sarasota, Music Mondays. I relish the opportunity to be making music with her again, particularly because she will be singing some of my favorite Rachmaninoff songs and we will be presenting the likely US premiere of “Phacelia” by Sofia Gubaidulina. I have not worked with the violinist Boram Kang or cellist Darius Skoraczewski before in a chamber setting like this concert. They did perform with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra last fall in a tribute concert to Mother Teresa at Strathmore Music Center. I had prepared the chorus for that concert and heard their performances at that time. Now I get the chance to work with them as individual musicians. I’m looking forward to delving into these evocative chamber works that are on the program.
I ask this of all professional musicians to let the youngsters who are thinking of becoming pros what is involved. How often did you practice when you were learning the piano and how often and how long do you practice at the present?
As a young student, I would spend dedicated time at the piano, mainly because it was a new thing for me, and I was fascinated by the instrument. My parents tell the story that I had an attention span of no more than five minutes. They were thrilled that I took to the instrument and would spend hours practicing. At first, I was probably spending a couple of hours a day. That changed as I grew older, spending at least five or six hours practicing. I do like to play a bit every day, if possible. At this stage of my life, I have been playing the instrument for almost 60 years! If I have some upcoming performances, I’ll spend at least three to four hours preparing each day. It’s wonderful therapy!
“Censored Voices: Silent No More” will be presented on Sunday, May 3, 2026 at 7:00 pm by EGC Productions, in partnership with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, at the National Presbyterian Church, 4101 Nebraska Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20016. For more information and to purchase tickets, please go online.
