On Demand
Evening Music Archive
June 2007
Olivier Messiaen
Saturday, June 30, 2007
One of the most influential musical forces of the 20th century, French composer Olivier Messiaen drew from an astonishingly wide array of sources and disciplines to create his highly individualistic music. Many of his works also explored what he called "the marvelous aspects of the faith" — in Messiaen's case, meaning Catholicism. Tonight we hear one of his works swathed in religious overtones, "L'Ascension" (The Ascension).
view WNYC's music playlists dating back to 2001
Bernard Herrmann
Friday, June 29, 2007
Since his death more than 30 years ago, film score composer Bernard Herrmann's reputation as one of the great American musical figures of the 20th century has only grown. Best known for his iconic scores for the Alfred Hitchcock films "Psycho" and "North by Northwest," as well as a long list of other films such as "Citizen Kane," "Taxi Driver" and "Cape Fear," Herrmann was also a prolific composer of concert music. Tonight we hear an example of the latter, in his deeply expressive and personal string quartet, "Echoes."
view WNYC's music playlists dating back to 2001
The Modern Romantic
Thursday, June 28, 2007
Christopher Theofanidis writes lyrical, expressive music — using what he calls "a Romantic sensibility" to inform his works. Yet he also imbues his pieces with modern coloristic effects that enhance his melodic concepts. Tonight we hear conductor Robert Spano's Grammy award-winning recording of Theofanidis' "The Here and Now," featuring the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra.
view WNYC's music playlists dating back to 2001
Italian Conventionalist
Wednesday, June 27, 2007
Composer Luciano Berio is known for his experimental and progressive works, primarily in electronic music. He focused on the idea of tradition in many of his works by making references to the old masters. Tonight, we feature his orchestral piece, "Rendering," which may sound familiar to any Schubert fanatic.
Bohuslav Martinů
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
Like his countryman Antonín Dvořák had done 50 years earlier, Czech composer Bohuslav Martinů found global fame in the United States after fleeing Europe during the Second World War. Also like Dvořák, Martinů maintained a direct connection to the folk music of his people in his works, but framed it in the language of his times, including Jazz. Tonight we feature one of these Jazz-influenced works, the Concertino for Piano Trio and String Orchestra.
Requiem for Adam
Monday, June 25, 2007
We continue our focus on the music of Terry Riley, who turns 72 this month, with his deeply personal "Requiem for Adam," written in memory of Kronos Quartet founder David Harrington's 16-year-old son Adam. We also hear Riley's tribute to his long-time mentor, in "The Philosopher's Hand."
Life of Riley
Sunday, June 24, 2007
Terry Riley changed the course of modern music in the late 1960's with his revolutionary minimalist work IN C. A life-long student and performer of Indian Classical music, Riley has had an important influence on other important composers, including Steve Reich, Philip Glass, and John Adams. Tonight we celebrate Riley's 72nd birthday with two works that represent his chamber and large-scale output respectively, Cantos Desiertos, and June Buddhas.
view WNYC's music playlists dating back to 2001
Ezequiel Vinao
Saturday, June 23, 2007
Argentine-American composer Ezequiel Viñao's richly complex music has drawn a great deal of attention since he emigrated to the United States in 1981 to study at the Juilliard School in New York. A protégé of Olivier Messiaen, Viñao also counts pianist Earl Wild and composer Milton Babbitt as important influences on his career. Tonight we hear his liturgy-inspired Arcanum, from Kristjan Järvi and the Absolute Ensemble.
view WNYC's music playlists dating back to 2001
From South Africa to Ireland
Friday, June 22, 2007
Composer Kevin Volans was born in South Africa but has made his home in Ireland since the mid-1980's, and the musical influences of each culture are evinced in his works. Volans has journeyed through several compositional techniques, including those rooted in African tradition, and says of categorization: "In the sense that modernism is not a style, but a tenet — nothing is given and there is no received language — I consider myself a committed modernist."
view WNYC's music playlists dating back to 2001
Ranch Ballet
Thursday, June 21, 2007
Composer Alberto Ginastera took a cue from Aaron Copland when he wrote his 1941 ranch-themed ballet Estancia. Unfortunately, the company that commissioned the work disbanded before it could be performed. Tonight we feature Ginastera's rowdy orchestral suite from the ballet, with The New World Symphony under Michael Tilson Thomas.
Guitar Guru
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
A prolific avant-guard composer, Steven Mackey cut his musical teeth on the electric guitar while growing up in Northern California. Mackey has written extensively for orchestras, chamber ensembles, opera and dance companies—as well as several concert works for the electric guitar, which he often performs himself. Tonight we feature a Mackey piece written for solo cello and orchestra, Banana/Dump Truck.
The Electric Guitar as Concert Instrument
view WNYC's music playlists dating back to 2001
Erkki-Sven Tüür
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
Before Erkki-Sven Tüür found success as a composer of orchestral and chamber music, he fronted one of the most famous rock bands in Estonia. Tüür blends his Eastern European and Rock roots into a highly energetic musical style that is uniquely his own. We'll hear an example with his Concerto for Violin and Orchestra, from Paavo Järvi and the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra.
Classical McCartney
Monday, June 18, 2007
Since his days with the Beatles, Sir Paul McCartney has introduced "classical" instruments and ensembles into the realm of pop, culminating in works such as The Liverpool Oratorio and Ecce cor meum. Today marks the musical icon's 65th birthday; we'll celebrate with some of his orchestral and chamber music.
Birth of a Titan
Sunday, June 17, 2007
Igor Stravinsky was one of the few composers that created a musical style almost single-handedly. We'll mark the anniversary of this musical titan's birth with two of his "neoclassical" compositions, the Divertimento for violin and piano, and his L'histoire du soldat suite.
view WNYC's music playlists dating back to 2001
Crossing Genres
Saturday, June 16, 2007
Philip Glass has found equal success in both the concert hall and on the silver screen as a composer of film scores (three of which have been nominated for Academy Awards). Sometimes one genre "pollinates" the other, as in tonight's featured piece, The Windcatcher.
view WNYC's music playlists dating back to 2001
Jerome Moross
Friday, June 15, 2007
Like many Hollywood composers who also wrote symphonic and chamber music, Jerome Moross found to his chagrin that his success on the silver screen often overshadowed his work for the concert hall. Tonight we hear a different side of Moross, with his Sonata for Piano Duet and String Quartet.
view WNYC's music playlists dating back to 2001
Frontier Symphonist
Thursday, June 14, 2007
American composer Don Gillis sprinkled the music of his native Texas with jazz influences to create his own symphonic style. Often compared to his colleague Aaron Copland, Gillis was inspired by the panoramic history of frontier America. Tonight we hear an example, as Ian Hobson leads the Sinfonia Varsovia in Gillis’ Symphony No.7: "The Saga of a Prairie School."
Carloz Chavez
Wednesday, June 13, 2007
In the wake of the Mexican Revolution, composer Carlos Chavez began writing a new nationalistic style of music which drew heavily on Aztec culture, becoming one of the first Mexican composers to achieve world-wide fame in the process. Tonight we hear his ever-popular "Sinfonia India" from the Simon Bolivar Symphony of Venezuela, conducted by Eduardo Mata.
William Bolcom
Tuesday, June 12, 2007
American composer William Bolcom has won many awards for his substantial body of work, including the Pulitzer Prize, the National Medal of Arts, and three Grammy Awards for his "Songs of Innocence and Experience," a three-hour piece that was 25 years in the making. Tonight we hear an example of Bolcom's genre-blending music in "classical" form, the Violin Concerto in D Major.
How We Listen
Monday, June 11, 2007
Like any language, music is more than just a series of sounds; the way your mind perceives music is just as important as the physical sound itself. In the late 1980's, composers began seriously exploring this concept in their work. Tonight we hear an example from one of the leading "researchers" in the field of music cognition, Columbia professor Fred Lerdahl.
Koechlin's Oboe
Sunday, June 10, 2007
French composer Charles Koechlin achieved success as a prolific composer, music critic and educator by the early 20th Century. Koechlin was inspired by many sounds and subjects—from nature to Hollywood movies—but the sound he loved the most was the oboe.
Transformations
Saturday, June 09, 2007
On the MTT Files, Michael Tilson Thomas explains Aaron Copland's musical transformation, and the political and artistic sentiments behind it. Later on, David Garland spins music by other transformative composers, including David Diamond and Charles Wourinen.
Emerson String Quartet
Friday, June 08, 2007
Formed in 1976, the New York-based Emerson String Quartet has released over twenty albums and won six Grammy Awards. Named for the American poet and philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson, the ensemble brings equal mastery to both standard and contemporary repertoire with characteristic enthusiasm. Tonight they will explore the modern aspect of this repertoire, performing Webern’s Five Movements for String Quartet.
Absolute Adams
Thursday, June 07, 2007
The Absolute Ensemble, formed in 1993, is an 18 piece electro-acoustic ensemble that fuses jazz, classical, and funk. Frank Zappa and Charles Mingus have found a place on the bill with Bach and Beethoven — along with premiere performances of works by younger composers. Tonight we feature music by John Adams, as the ensemble performs his Chamber Symphony.
Guru of Electronic Music
Wednesday, June 06, 2007
Paul Lansky spent years at Princeton University crafting sounds on his computer, earning the reputation as one of the pioneers of electronic algorithmic composition. Then, while in his 50s, something funny happened: Lansky actually started putting musical notes down on paper. Tonight we'll hear an example with his "Etudes and Parodies" for horn, violin and piano.
American Impressionist
Tuesday, June 05, 2007
George Gershwin found fame and fortune writing tunes for Tin Pan Alley, but his musical language was firmly rooted in the European classical tradition—especially the impressionism of Maurice Ravel and Claude Debussy. Ravel himself admired Gershwin's music, but was even more impressed with the young songwriter's salary: when Gershwin once asked the French composer for lessons, Ravel wryly responded, "how about you give me some lessons instead?"
Alarm Will Sound
Monday, June 04, 2007
The Manhattan-based new music group Alarm Will Sound saw its beginnings at the Eastman School of Music, eventually growing into a 20-member ensemble that the New York Times calls "the future of classical music." Tonight they team up with another Eastman ensemble, Ossia, for Steve Reich's "Music for a Large Ensemble."
Americana Redux
Sunday, June 03, 2007
David Garland wraps up WNYC's American Music Festival with a special Spinning on Air, highlighting the musical theater piece "Passing Strange" at The Public Theater. And later on, David spins some of his own favorite pieces of musical Americana from his personal collection.
The 2007 American Music Festival on WNYC
The American Sound
Saturday, June 02, 2007
Airs Saturday, June 2 at 8PM on 93.9 FM
The MTT Files premieres on WNYC, as Michael Tilson Thomas examines how American concert music broke free from European tradition. Also, David Garland spins American music from the WNYC archives, including WNYC commissions and premieres.
The 2007 American Music Festival on WNYC
American Music after the Age of Aquarius
Friday, June 01, 2007
David Garland chats with young composers about their digital compositional toolbox, and examines the emerging musical scene in which the newest generation is writing complex, minimalist pieces using rock instrumentation. Also, Boston-based composer Montserrat Torras joins David for a discussion of her work.
The 2007 American Music Festival on WNYC
Music Playlists
View WNYC's music playlists dating back to 2001 (full playlists are generally posted the day after broadcast). For playlist inquiries, please contact Listener Services via email or at 646-829-4000.
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Festivals and Specials
Listen on demand to our online archive of music festivals and specials, where you'll find a treasure-trove of stimulating conversations, opinions, reflections, and of course, great music!
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Ear to Ear
Ear to Ear takes innovative musicians off the New York stages and into the studio for relaxed, insightful conversation, as they share their personal recordings with host David Garland.
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