WCLV Dedicates 11 PM Slot to A. Grace Lee Mims with Black Composers
The Cleveland radio station will air works by Still, Joplin, and others during a special program hosted by Rob Grier.
By Ayanda Kaminski ·
WCLV will broadcast a special hour-long tribute to A. Grace Lee Mims at 10 PM on Tuesday, October 28. The program, titled "In Tribute to A. Grace Lee Mims," will focus on classical music composed and performed by African American artists. Rob Grier will host the show, which marks a specific deviation from the station's standard classical music schedule for that evening.
The station's 2026-10-28 program guide lists the tribute as the final major segment before the 11 PM "Quiet Hour." The broadcast will follow a full day of classical programming. Earlier in the day, the station aired segments hosted by Peter van de Graaff, Jacqueline Gerber, Mark Satola, John Mills, and Bill O’Connell. These blocks featured works by European composers such as Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, and Strauss, as well as American composers like Copland and Gershwin.
The tribute hour will include specific musical selections. The program guide lists William Grant Still’s "Africa" from 1930 and Scott Joplin’s "Treemonisha: Overture" from 1911. It will also feature Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s "Flute Quartet No. 2 in G" from 1777 and Hector Berlioz’s "Béatrice et Bénédict: Je vais le voir" from 1862. The guide does not list specific performers for these pieces in the tribute segment, only the composers and titles.
The tribute follows the 9 PM slot, "Symphony at Seven," which aired Howard Hanson’s "Symphony No. 1 in e 'Nordic'" and Jean Sibelius’s "Violin Concerto in d." The 10 PM slot, "Ovations: Awakening," featured the BlueWater Chamber Orchestra under conductor Daniel Meyer. That segment included works by Reena Esmail, Lukas Foss, Ian Clarke, and Richard Strauss. Flutist Anthony Trionfo also performed in the 10 PM block.
A. Grace Lee Mims was a composer and educator who lived from 1916 to 1987. The source material does not provide biographical details or a statement from the station explaining the choice to dedicate the 10 PM slot to her. The program guide simply lists the title, the host, and the musical selections. The 10 PM broadcast serves as a capstone to a day that included over 20 hours of classical music, interspersed with BBC News updates at 6 AM, 12 PM, and 6 PM.
The 11 PM "Quiet Hour" will begin immediately after the tribute. That segment will feature Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s "Andante from Piano Concerto No. 17" and Heitor Villa-Lobos’s "Bachianas." The guide does not indicate if the tribute will be rebroadcast or if it is a one-time special. The station’s website lists the program as part of its regular daily schedule for the date.
The full day of programming includes a mix of solo piano works, orchestral symphonies, and chamber music. Notable earlier broadcasts include a 12 PM "Lunchtime with the Cleveland Orchestra" segment featuring Tchaikovsky’s "Symphony No. 6 in b 'Pathétique'" and Prokofiev’s "Finale from Symphony No. 7." A 1 PM "Classical Music with John Mills" block included Richard Strauss’s "An Alpine Symphony" and Howard Shore’s themes from "The Fellowship of the Ring."
Source: WVIZ
