Nearly 10 years ago, an earthquake devasted Haiti, destroying a legendary music school. A youth choir and orchestra have been touring the US and hope to rebuild their school in Port-au-Prince.
One of opera's most popular and bankable stars is scheduled to sing at New York's famed opera house next week. But a number of Met employees say that they find the situation untenable.
Early American composers could have shaken off their European sound and mined the rich trove of African American music. They didn't. And one historian believes we're worse off because of it.
After nearly a year, the 103-year-old orchestra's musicians and management are still at odds over a new contract. Its new season is scheduled to begin on Saturday.
Since August, 20 women have made allegations against the highly influential opera star via reports published by The Associated Press. A spokesperson for Domingo disputed the report.
The pianist and programmer has transformed the acoustic piano into his duet partner.
The Black contralto put European art music and African-American spirituals in parity — and in her art, paved the way for generations of singers after her, both inside and outside classical music.
On her new album, Fire in My Mouth , the Pulitzer-winning composer documents the tragedy behind New York City's 1911 Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire.
Raymond Bisha introduces a new recording of music by Austrian composer Hanns Eisler who, in his late years, concentrated increasingly on adapting his film scores for the concert hall. He also began his Leipzig Symphony during this period, but it was left unfinished at the time of his death. Thilo Medek, a young composer at Read More ...
This podcast introduces Vol. 2 in our ground-breaking The Music of Brazil series, a five-year project to record around 100 mostly orchestral works by 19th and 20th-century Brazilian composers, many in world premiere recordings. Released in February, Vol. 1 (8.574067) featured works by Alberto Nepomuceno. Gramophone declared it “urgently recommended”. We follow up with chamber Read More ...
The Creatures of Prometheus was Beethoven’s only full-length ballet score. The work premiered in March 1801 and the composer’s own version for piano solo was published later the same year. The work relates the story from Greek mythology of Prometheus, a lofty spirit who endeavoured to lift human beings from a state of ignorance into Read More ...
Raymond Bisha and composer Derek Bermel discuss the latter’s Migrations, a 3-work programme that observes the universal phenomenon of human transit through an eclectic mix of styles: Migration series depicts the movement of African Americans from the south to the north of the United States in search of a better life during the first half of the 20th Read More ...
As Naxos reaches Vol. 19 of its 23-volume edition of the music of John Philip Sousa, Raymond Bisha talks with the musical director of the project, Keith Brion, a world authority on Sousa’s music, who conducts throughout.
For those unfamiliar with the name of Nikolay Yakovlevich Myaskovsky, Raymond Bisha’s podcast presents the composer’s calling card as the ‘father of the Soviet symphony’. Having lived from 1881 to 1950, Myaskovsky spent all his life under the restrictive influence of Joseph Stalin, yet managed to produce 27 symphonies that preserved his individual voice. This Read More ...
Raymond Bisha talks with Barthold Kuijken about the historical perspective and informed interpretation behind a new release of Baroque flute concertos that feature Kuijken as soloist, accompanied by the Indianapolis Baroque Orchestra. View album details of The Grand Mogul – BLAVET, M. / LECLAIR, J.-M. / PERGOLESI, G.B. / TELEMANN, G.P. at naxos.com Catalogue No.: Read More ...
Raphaël Feuillâtre, winner of the prestigious Guitar Foundation of America’s 2018 International Concert Artist Competition, shares his success with the public through this attractively varied programme; a recording contract with Naxos forms part of the winner’s bundle of opportunities each year. Raymond Bisha presents his selection of intimate compositions. View album details of Guitar Recital: Read More ...
There are scintillating sounds aplenty in our new release of orchestral works by Dmitry Kabalevsky (1904-1987). Raymond Bisha introduces a programme of two overtures and a pair of symphonies by the Russian composer who endeavoured to position himself as both a progressive and a conservative during his country’s difficult Soviet era. The performances are by Read More ...
This podcast from the Naxos Sounds Interesting series presents a selection of soporific representations by composers down the centuries, from John Dowland to Benjamin Britten. The presenter is Richard Kennedy.
With Lew Smoley, Dennis Rooney, and Sedgwick Clark
With Lew Smoley
Listening Guide With Lew Smoley Speight Concerto For Clarinet and Orchestra: Melodious Birds Sing Madrigals Eiriksdottir Sinfonietta Land Possessed by Poems Someone I Have Seen, Act II Olafsson Three Worlds According To One Thordarson Oh Yellow Wonderworld Thorkelsdottir Greetings Thorvaldsdottir Aequa Scape Aequilibria Fields
Listening Guide With Lew Smoley Runolfsson Suite: On Crossroads East North South West Bjornsson Romanza For Violin and Orchestra Nordal Leidsla Choralis Thorarinsson Styr Notturno Capriccioso Symphony No. 2 Sigurbjornsson Hans Variations Sveinsson Time and Water (excerpts) Time and Water Intermezzo Water Flowing Heaven Rains For Me Intermezzo X Flowing Water (conclusion)
Listening Guide With Lew Smoley Sveinbjornsson Two Piano Pieces Idylle Vikivaki Isolfsson Festival Overture Althing Cantata Parts 1 and 2 Parts 3 and 4 Leifs Icelandic Overture Icelandic Folk Songs Largo Maestoso Allegretto Allegro Presto Andante Allegretto Allegro Molto Maestoso Ed Energico Allegro E Molto Ritmico Tempo Di Marcia E Grandioso Allegro Allegro Giocoso Galdra […]
Enter this week's Classical Kids giveaway.
Each week the Daily Download gives away a newly released classical CD to newsletter subscribers. Enter for your chance to win a copy!
Get a free MP3 of Carl Maria von Weber - Flute Trio: III. Schafers Klage as we explore new releases. And don't forget to sign up for the new Daily Download newsletter so you never miss a free MP3!
There is a place suspended somewhere between earth and sky, a place of beauty and release. The Summer Singers' performance of Minnesota composer Jake Runestad's 'Let My Love Be Heard' takes you to that place.
Two of Germany's best exports are music and beer. Explore both for Oktoberfest in this episode of 'Hop Notes,' with Yoerg Brewing Co. in St. Paul, Minn., and works by Mozart and Richard Strauss.
Get a free MP3 of Johannes Brahms - A German Requiem: How Lovely Are Thy Dwellings as we explore new releases. And don't forget to sign up for the new Daily Download newsletter so you never miss a free MP3!
For centuries, and even for most of the 20th, classical music was very much a boy's club. Thankfully that's come to and end, and even though there's still much ground to be gained for women in classical music, female composers are growing in number all the time. Steve Seel features a full two hours of living women composers on this edition of the show, including Sarah Kirkland Snider, Paola Prestini, Laura Cannell, Caroline Mallonee, Shelley Washington, Carmen Braden, and more.
This week on New Classical Tracks, composer Michael Torke discusses his collaboration with violinist Tessa Lark on 'Sky,' a new album inspired by bluegrass and traditional Irish fiddle music. Enter the giveaway for a chance to win a copy of the CD!