"Writing is an adventure."
---Winston Churchill
Carol J. Binkowski writes about music, history, and a variety of other topics. Her most recent work, Opening Carnegie Hall, traces the story of the creation of this famous musical landmark and focuses on the thrilling five-day festival that celebrated the building's inauguration in 1891 -- a spectacular event that featured Tchaikovsky as special guest conductor. Archival records, selected memoirs and journals, and historical newspapers and publications served as the basis for this narrative. She was a guest on Episode #2 ("Carnegie Hall's 1891 Opening Night Ticket") of the Carnegie Hall/WQXR 2024 podcast series, "If This Hall Could Talk."
Her biography of Joseph F. Lamb is the first full-length chronicle of this classic ragtime composer's life. Considered to be one of the "big three" -- along with Scott Joplin and James Scott -- Lamb wrote such enduring works as "American Beauty" and "Ragtime Nightingale." This account focuses on his music and his world with material drawn from both family and research sources.
New Jersey's Remarkable Women -- co-authored by Carol and Lynn Wenzel -- tells the stories of fourteen extraordinary and inspiring women, born before 1900, who made significant contributions within the arts, medicine, religion, activism, and other diverse areas.
Carol's essays and articles have appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Christian Science Monitor, AAA Traveler, Literary Traveler.com, Clavier, The Optimist, The New York Daily News, Writers' Journal, Grit, Mr. Beller's Neighborhood, and The Instrumentalist, among other publications. A book reviewer for Library Journal, she was awarded a Special Reviewer's Citation by this publication.
A freelance pianist and organist in the New York/New Jersey metropolitan area, Carol has created and presented programs on music and history for cultural/educational groups. She also writes mystery novels under the pen name of Caryl Janis (https://www.caryljanis.com)
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BOOKS
Opening Carnegie Hall: The Creation and First Performances of America's Premier Concert Stage
Joseph F. Lamb: A Passion for Ragtime
New Jersey's Remarkable Women: Daughters, Wives, Sisters and Mothers Who Shaped History (with Lynn Wenzel)
Musical New York: An Informal Guide to Its History and Legends AND a Walking Tour of Its Sites and Landmarks
I Hear America Singing: A Nostalgic Tour of Popular Sheet Music (with Lynn Wenzel)
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"An impressive and meticulously researched work."
-- Edward A. Berlin, American Music Review
“Keeps the reader enthralled from beginning to end.”
-- Jack Rummel, Ragtime Reviews
“Essential to anyone interested in ragtime.”
-- Bryan Wright, VJM’s Jazz & Blues Mart