WNYC® Radio and BBC World Service Co-Produce "Music Party"

Live Classical Music and Conversation from Intimate NYC Settings

Co-hosted by WNYC's Margaret Juntwait and the BBC's Ian Burnside

Saturday, December 4 at 8pm: The Ritz Chambers Players Saturday, December 11 at 8pm: Orion String Quartet

"Music Party" to broadcast internationally on BBC World Service and locally on WNYC 93.9 FM

New York, NY, November 16, 2004 -- WNYC, New York Public Radio®, will broadcast two-one-hour specials of Music Party, a program that takes chamber music into private homes to be performed for enthusiastic live audiences.

On Saturday, December 4 at 8pm, listeners will be transported to a historic brownstone in Harlem, the former residence of African American composer Coleridge Taylor-Perkinson, to hear the Ritz Chambers Players, a two-year old ensemble based in Florida that not only performs standard repertoire but commissions music by black composers.

On Saturday, December 11 at 8pm, the renowned Orion String Quartet will be heard in the lovely parlor setting of the Stefania De Kenessey residence off Central Park West.

The specials are a collaboration between the BBC World Service, which will broadcast the specials in over 40 countries, and WNYC, which will air the specials locally on 93.9 FM.

"We jumped at the BBC's invitation to co- produce programs to bring classical music and conversation back into the most of intimate of settings: the homes of music lovers," said Elena Park, WNYC's Executive Producer for Music & Culture. "The atmosphere fosters great music-making and lively conversation, and the performers and listeners are drawn closer together."

The Music Partywith the Ritz Chamber Players, recorded on location at the Jo-Ann and Archie Hamilton residence in Harlem, will offer a rare opportunity to hear works by prominent African-American composers Adolphus Hailstork and the recently-departed Coleridge Taylor-Perkinson, traditional spirituals arranged by Marvin Mills, plus selections by Mozart, Mendelssohn, and Prokofiev.

Hosts Margaret Junt wait of WNYC and Iain Burnside of BBC World Service talk with the Ritz players about creating a primarily African-American ensemble based in Jacksonville, Florida, championing music of black composers, and forging a path as "the nation's first chamber music ensemble comprised solely of accomplished musicians spanning the African diaspora."

WNYC Music Director George Preston, who scouted locations in New York City to complement the ensembles and repertoire, said "We are thrilled to be able to introduce the Ritz Chamber Players from a home with such rich African American musical history. With this program, they continue this great tradition."

The Music Party featuring the renowned Orion String Quartet, from the De Kennessey Residence, off of Central Park West, offers works by Chick Corea, Wynton Marsalis, Bartok, Beethoven, Haydn, and Ravel. The conversation encompasses the quartet's restaurant touring guide, the endless rewards of interpreting the Beethoven Quartets, and the opportunities of having works written expressly for them by Corea and Marsalis.

The Orion String Quartet, hailed for its exquisite artistry, technical mastery and astute approach to concert programming, is particularly renowned for its interpretations of the Beethoven String Quartets. One of the most admired chamber ensembles on the international music scene, the Quartet has been consistently praised for the fresh perspective and individuality it brings to performances of a broad range of repertoire.

BBC Producer Radek Boschetty, Sound Engineer Michael Bacon, and Host Iain Burnside, who have been creating Music Party for the BBC World Service for several years, traveled from London to collaborate on these programs, which promise to be highlights of WNYC's broadcast offerings.

Other recent WNYC music and culture programs have included The Ring and I: The Passion, The Myth, The Mania, an insightful, funny, and often surprising hour-long exploration of the ways that Richard Wagner's Ring Cycle has inspired passion, impacted culture, and invited controversy over the last 125 years. The special was heard on more than 42 classical music, dual format, and news/talk stations around the country. Recent WNYC live broadcasts, in partnership with NPR, have included two opening weekend concerts broadcast from New York's newest premier concert venue, Zankel Hall at Carnegie Hall, and Leonard Bernstein's Candide with the New York Philharmonic from Avery Fisher Hall last May.

WNYC®, New York Public Radio®, is New York 's premier public radio station, comprising WNYC 93.9 FM and WNYC AM 820. As America's most listened-to public radio stations, reaching more than one million listeners every week, WNYC FM and AM extend New York City's cultural riches to the entire country and air the best national offerings from affiliate networks National Public Radio® and Public Radio International®. WNYC 93.9 FM broadcasts a wide range of daily news, talk, cultural and classical music programming, while WNYC AM 820 maintains a stronger focus on breaking news and international news reporting.