From her home in Germany, the provocative American soprano delivers songs of introspection and freedom from Franz Schubert's mountaintop epiphany to Billy Taylor's wish for equality and justice.
The thoughtful soprano believes that art is good at questioning, challenging and provoking. But the real question, she says, is: "What happens after the provocation?"
Pulitzer-winning composer Anthony Davis based You Have The Right To Remain Silent, released this week as a virtual performance, on his own experience with police.
The restless creator of music and theatre says the pandemic has opened up new ways to be a storyteller.
A trio of musicians gather at Aaron Copland's longtime home. Watch them play the iconic American composer's music at his own piano and beside his own writing desk.
The award-winning pianist performs three solo songs from his home in Armenia.
Viewers worldwide are responding to a moving video of Marta C. González, a former dancer afflicted with dementia. But critics are questioning whether González is who the clip makers claim she is.
The New York Philharmonic principal clarinetist blows apart the labels he once applied to himself to discover a stream of activism.
George Frideric Handel: impresario, performer, composer. The Great Bear, as he was referred to in his time, remains an Ursa Major of the musical firmament to this day. Raymond Bisha illustrates Handel’s creative genius with Vol. 2 in pianist Philip Edward Fisher’s recordings of his Keyboard Suites, released in April 2015. View album details Catalogue Read More ...
Once in a while you hear such incredibly beautiful music for the first time that you just can’t understand why it has remained under wraps for so long. The Violin Concertos Nos. 1 and 2 by the Italian-born composer Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco are a case in point. Originally championed in the 1920s and 30s by no less Read More ...
This month, JoAnn Falletta and the Buffalo Philharmonic celebrate their 21-year association with Naxos as they release their 26th recording on the label — a second album of music by the French composer Florent Schmitt (1870-1958). Peter Hall talks with the orchestra’s music director about that sustained collaboration, reviewing the musical development she has achieved Read More ...
Raymond Bisha introduces a new release of Baroque violin sonatas by 18th-century Italian violinists trained in the tradition of Arcangelo Corelli, spreading his elegant, expressive and virtuosic style on their travels throughout Europe. Giovanni Mossi’s sonatas retain Corelli’s dramatic contrasts and structure, while Giovanni Stefano Carbonelli also incorporates features found in music by Vivaldi. Both Read More ...
Raymond Bisha introduces recordings of J. S. Bach’s cello suites, transcribed for guitar and performed by Jeffrey McFadden. Bach himself made arrangements of other composers’ works, as well his own, recycling them for new uses, a practice that continues with these two new volumes. Pablo Casals (1876–1973), Read More ...
Latvian composer Ēriks Ešenvalds (b. 1977) has demonstrated his versatility by writing in a variety of genres, from orchestral and film scores to electronic and multi-media works. Choral music, however, features in much of what he does. The richness of texture and variety of colour in his music for choirs reflects his practice of dividing Read More ...
No lover of classical music from the Romantic period should miss an opportunity to become acquainted with the music of Hans Rott, a little known composer (even in his day), but one who made a significant impact before his untimely death at the age of 25. Improbable though it may seem, it’s likely that not Read More ...
Peter Breiner is one of the world’s most performed composer/arranger/conductors with record sales in the millions and over 200 CD titles to his credit. Slovak Dances, Naughty and Sad, the latest of his many releases for Naxos, consolidates his outstanding reputation as an arranger. It features Breiner’s typically colourful orchestrations that include a wide variety Read More ...
Considering the size of the wind band industry in the United States, the occasion of an established classical composer writing for the medium comes as a rare but highly welcome treat. Raymond Bisha introduces a programme of wind band music by Kenneth Fuchs, during which the American composer describes the progression of his experience and Read More ...
Alexander Kastalsky’s Requiem for Fallen Brothers was written between 1914 and 1917, during World War I, a conflict that killed more than 20 million people and injured even more. Kastalsky achieved poignancy in his memorial by using melodies and texts from many of the countries involved in the war — Russia, Serbia, Italy, England, Japan, Read More ...
Listening Guide – with Lew Smoley Dreyfus Sextet For Didjeridu and Wind Instruments Williamson Piano Concerto No. 3 Eb Allegro Toccata Allegro, Allegretto, Scherzo Molto Largo E Cantando Ben Allegro Travel Diaries: Sydney North Head Pyrmont Dockside Harbour Bridge Botanical Gardens At Central Railway Harbour Ferry Lane Cove King’s Cross A Morning Swim Kirribilli The […]
Listening Guide: With Lew Smoley Glanville-Hicks Sinphonia Da Pacifica Allegro Energico Recitativo, Lento Tranquillo Allegro Giocoso Hughes Sea Spell Holland Trio for Violin, Cello, and Piano Allegro Non Troppo Allegro Scherzando Allegro Maestoso Hyde Fantasia on Waltzing Matilda Sonata in g minor Le Gallienne Sinfonietta Penberthy Symphony No. 6: The Earth Mother Werder Violin Concerto: […]
Listening Guide: With Lew Smoley Selections Marshall-Hall Symphony in Eb: Finale – Allegro con spirito Symphony in c: Adagio Sostenuto Hart The Bush – Symphonic Suite: Poco lento e sostenuto Allegro Vivace Hill Symphony No. 3 Adagio, Allegro Molto Adagio Allegro Maestoso, Allegro Grainger Colonial Song The Warriors Hutchens The Enchanted Isle The Island Benjamin […]
With Lew Smoley
With Lew Smoley, and Simon Wynberg
Welcome to the Choral Stream Download, a handpicked, free, downloadable piece of choral music available every week for subscribers to the Choral Stream newsletter. This week, get a free MP3 of Robert Parsons - Ave Maria.
Celebrating Beethoven's 250th, this week on New Classical Tracks, we revisit pianist Stephen Hough discussing the recording process of his latest release, a 3-CD set of Beethoven's piano concertos, and how he made them relevant to the 21st century. Enter the giveaway for a chance to win a copy of the CD!
Get a free MP3 of Arnold Bax - The Happy Forest. Can you guess this week's theme? Let us know for a chance to win more free music. And don't forget to sign up for the Daily Download newsletter so you never miss a free classical track!
Here is a day-by-day guide to all of our special holiday programming for the 2020 season.
As Christmas 1914 approached, opposing armies famously put their differences aside and shared common celebrations. Listen to the audio on-demand as the Minnesota Opera shares that story in the opera 'Silent Night,' by composer Kevin Puts and librettist Mark Campbell.
Here is the classic Piano Puzzler, an exclusive bonus for subscribers to the Piano Puzzler newsletter from Performance Today.
We're planning a virtual community sing-along to celebrate the winter solstice on Dec. 21. Check back soon for details!