Podcasts · Episode
Judith Lang Zaimont
Program: NoteWorthy
Aired: Monday, September 28, 2026
Hosted by Loki Karuna
Mixed emotion is hard to describe – it’s like the feeling you get when summer is coming to a close, huh? There’s lots of music that lends itself to that feeling, including one composition specifically geared toward that end of summer feeling. I’m Loki Karuna, and for this edition of Noteworthy, I’d like to dance around that feeling of mixed emotion to a piano work by Judith Lang Zaimont.
Born in my hometown of Memphis back in 1945, Judith Lang Zaimont was recognized as a piano prodigy almost immediately. By age 11, she was already performing on national television, but eventually discovered that what she really liked was creating her own music, leading her toward a successful career as a composer. Among her more popular works is a Jazz Waltz, that was included on an album titled Summer Melodies. If you listen closely, you might be able to hear how the American groove of this tune signals a bit of that mixed emotion.
Beyond writing her own music, Judith spent decades advocating for other composers, especially for women in the field, ensuring that those whose works might otherwise be marginalized gets seen, and heard, by the masses. Her creativity, her dedication to championing her peers, and her Summer Melodies earn her a spot among America’s most Noteworthy composers.
Noteworthy is a production of WDAV classical public radio.