On Demand
Evening Music
-
Olivier MessiaenOlivier Messiaen: A Centennial Celebration
No discussion of new music is complete without the name Olivier Messiaen. On the 100th anniversary of the birth of this composer, teacher (of Boulez, Xenakis, and Stockhausen to name a few) and ornithologist, host Terrance McKnight draws upon a collective of voices recently recorded live in the WNYC studios. We immerse ourselves in Messiaen's deep, loving theology; his lifelong fascination with birds (or what he called "God's messengers"), and his kaleidoscopic soundscapes. Guests include conductor (and Messiaen's friend) Reinbert de Leeuw, pianist Pierre-Laurent Aimard, and hornist/scholar William Purvis.
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.
More
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!
More
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.
More
69th American Music Festival: American Blend
May 21-22, at 7pm; May 23-24 at 8pm; May 25-27 at 7pm
Hosts Terrance McKnight and David Garland will curate and host a weeklong festival with special guests and rare recordings, concluding with live performances in WNYC's Jerome L. Greene Performance Space by Dafnis Prieto, Paola Prestini, Ezequiel Vinao and Yungchen Lhamo May 27.
globalFEST 2009
Listen on Demand
On January 11th, WNYC and NPR Music presented a live webcast of globalFEST 2009, the annual showcase that provides a "sneak peek" of global musicians on the verge of international fame.
Wordless Music
Concerts on Demand
WNYC presents web-exclusive concerts from the Wordless Music Series, hosted by Radio Lab's Jad Abumrad. Devoted to the desegregation of musical boundaries, Wordless Music pairs rock and electronic musicians with more traditional chamber and new music performers, to create an entirely new concert experience.
Deerhoof/Metropolis Ensemble
Live Webcast
WNYC and NPR Music team up to bring you this live webcast from the Prospect Park Bandshell, which pairs indie rock sensation Deerhoof with the progressive Metropolis Ensemble. Presented by Celebrate Brooklyn! and Wordless Music, and hosted by David Garland, the program features an ambitious re-imagining of Igor Stravinsky's Rite of Spring, The Rite: Remixed.
Comments
Refresh
Perhaps evening music can help. I have an extra ticket to the Elliott Carter Making Music concert at Zankel Hall on Friday. If there's an Evening Music listener out there who is interested, they can e-mail me at winenegress@comcast.net. 7:30 liftoff. The George Crumb show was amazing....
Blackbird was a McCartney song, not Lennon. This version of the song is really beautiful though. Thank you!
Terence,
Sorry to be pedantic, but Paul McCartney wrote 'Blackbird', not John Lennon. They say he wrote it in response to the American racial struggle in the 60's.
thanks for the Messiaen night - I've been waiting...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blackbird_(song)
Please - Chopin was Polish, not French.
I had the distinct privilege to choreograph the first moment of Quartet for the End of Time. It has become one of my favorite pieces of music.
When I was directing a theater production of The Conference of the Birds I listened to much of his bird inspired music. This is profound, colorful, sculptural, edgy and passionate music.
A little bird music goes a long way, with me at least.
Ecstatic.... the word for tonight's programming on Messiaen's 100th birthday. Thank you Terence for this wonderful evening.
I had the good fortune to be in NYC when Messiaen and Yvonne Loriod performed the "Vingt Regards..." for 2 pianos at Hunter College - it must have been in the early 70s --what a thrill! It was my first exposure to his music.
I heard you say that Messaien said birds were the greatest musicians on earth; indeed...and hearing les Oiseaux Exotiques is always a treat; I bird by ear and can really get into their songs and calls. (I once heard that Mozart was inspired by the "songs" of his "pet" Starling.)
I'll never forget where I was when I heard Messaien had died. I was driving back to the city late at night on the NJ Turnpike and was just about at the "gas works" where thousands of lights hang in a black sea, and as the car went uphill into what seemed either heaven or nothingness I heard the announcer say Messaien had died. Every time I'm on that bit of highway I remember the moment... it's like my personal memorial to Messaien.
I've been enjoying evening music more and more lately!
... by the way, it was wonderful to hear Pierre Laurent Aimard talk about Messaien -- AImard is a wonderful pianist - his Messaien, his Ligeti, etc -- I try to see him whenever he performs locally.
whoops! At Hunter college in the 70s I heard Messiaen and Loriod play Visions de l"Amen -- and not "Vingts Regards...." which I mistakenly typed on the blog on the 10th. just wanted to correct myself.
Beautiful show.
What is the name of the piece at minute 88?
Leave a Comment
Please stay on topic, be civil, and be brief.
Email addresses are never displayed, but they are required to confirm your comments. Names are displayed with all comments. WNYC reserves the right to edit any comments posted on this site. Please read the WNYC.org Comment Guidelines before posting.