My name is Simon Estes, and I was born in Centerville, Iowa. I could write a whole book about classical music and the reasons why I feel it’s so important. I just want to encourage you to get involved in classical music. Listen • 14:58 Estes decided early that he would work hard to overcome the dual reality and double set of standards that he and other Blacks faced in the United States. He knew that he didn’t want hate or resentment to mar the principles that he had established for himself. While working full-time, he attended The University of Iowa in the late 1950s, received a full scholarship at Juilliard in 1964, and one year later made his European opera debut as Ramfis in Verdi’s