Classical Conversations

Two members of the Chicago-based Black Oak Ensemble, cellist David Cunliffe and violist Aurélien Fort Pederzoli, joins us for a conversation about their debut album from Cedille Records, Silenced Voices. The CD contains extraordinary works by six promising, early 20th century Jewish composers originally from Austria-Hungary, Czechoslovakia, and the Netherlands. One survived World War II as a membe...

Percussionist/composer David Skidmore, co-founder of the Grammy Award-winning, Chicago-based percussion quartet Third Coast Percussion, discusses their genre-defying collaboration with record producer and composer Devonté Hynes for their new album Fields.

Haley Taylor talks with Grammy nominated composer and clarinetist Derek Bermel about his new album Migrations. The album includes his Migration Series for Jazz Ensemble and Orchestra (2006); the song cycle Mar de Setembro (2011), with texts by Eugénio de Andrade; and the three-movement orchestral A Shout, a Whisper, and a Trace (2009), in performances by the Juilliard Jazz Orchestra, saxophonist T...

Listeners are well acquainted with the violinist Angèle Dubeau and her ensemble La Pieta through their many recordings. The latest entry in her discography is called Pulsations – a collection of short works by composers with their own unique musical pulse. Angèle joins Haley Taylor for a conversation about the new disc, which contains music by Ludovico Einaudi, Yann Tiersen, Johan Johannsson, and...

Violinist/concertmaster Margaret Batjer celebrates 20 years with the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra by releasing a new album of violin works, including a piece she helped premiere: the violin concerto by composer Pierre Jalbert. Also on the disc: soulful, beautiful works for violin and orchestra by Baltic composers Arvo Pärt and Peteris Vasks, balanced with a lovely rendition of J.S. Bach's Concert...

The Boston-based Neave Trio (violinist Anna Williams; cellist Mikhail Veselov; pianist Eri Nakamura) have released a wonderful new album of music by three female composers (Amy Beach; Louise Farrenc; Rebecca Clarke) – each of them unique and absolutely essential. The trio's members join us for a conversation about the composers and music heard on the critically-acclaimed disc.

The Grammy-nominated early music vocal quartet New York Polyphony has released an album of remarkable sacred works from the Spanish renaissance. Entitled Lamentatione (Lamentations), the recording shines light on four composers, including Francisco de Peñalosa and Pedro de Escobar – both of whom helped spark the flowering of polyphony in the 16th century. New York Polyphony's Craig Philips joins...

Star pianist Jeffrey Biegel is in town to channel the spirit of the late, great Liberace with the Toledo Symphony this weekend! Listen to his extended interview from Afternoon Classics with Brad Cresswell, including selections from his digital album A Pianist's Journey, plus a preview of his TSO debut in Michael Daugherty's Le Tombeau de Liberace (The Tomb of Liberace). Note: musical selections fr...

Irish composer Donnacha Dennehy takes us on a deep dive into his docu-oratorio The Hunger, inspired by Ireland's Great Famine (1845-52). At once devastating and hauntingly beautiful, The Hunger draws on the letters of American humanitarian Asenath Nicholson, who traveled to Ireland to bear witness to the horrible events. The new album (from Nonesuch Records) features contemporary music ensemble Al...

Grammy-winning guitarist (and Musical America's 2020 Instrumentalist of the Year) Sharon Isbin joins us to preview her new album Souvenirs of Spain and Italy. A collaboration with the Pacifica Quartet, the disc uncovers delightful surprises and recasts old favorites in a new light.

John Lunn has scored a number of British TV dramas, none of them more famous than the BBC/PBS hit Downton Abbey. Now, as the film version is released in theaters, the Emmy Award-winning composer joins us to talk about his music for the show, including how he came up with that icon theme.

Becky and David Starobin, librettists for The Thirteenth Child, join us for the backstory on the latest opera from Danish composer Poul Ruders (pictured). Based on a fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm, The Thirteenth Child tells the story of a mad king who wants to kill his twelve sons – so that if his thirteenth child is a girl, she alone can inherit his kingdom. We hear about the process of bringi...

Drostan Hall, music director of Camerata Chicago, joins us to talk about the ensemble's latest release: an"educational" version of Antonio Vivaldi's Four Seasons. Featuring the wonderful young violinist Amelia Piscitelli, this special two-CD set also includes Vivaldi's sonnets paired with enlightening and entertaining commentary read by radio veteran Steve Robinson.

Augustin Hadelich has released a masterful new album which pairs the concertos of two unlikely bedfellows: Johannes Brahms and György Ligeti. The powerhouse violinist joins us to talk about the project – and why these two seemingly disparate composers might be more alike than you think.

John Schneider, radio personality and music director of the Los Angeles-based Partch Ensemble introduces us to the wild and wooly world of American maverick composer Harry Partch (1901-1974). The ensemble's latest album includes some of Partch's greatest hits (including a heretofore unheard recording of Partch himself performing his hobo song cycle Barstow). Also heard: some lesser-known gems incl...

The latest album from Anna Shelest is an inspired compendium of solo piano selections by female composers spanning the 19th through the 21st centuries. Donna Voce (Woman's Voice) includes spirited works by Fanny Mendelssohn, Amy Beach, Lili Boulanger and more. The international award-winning pianist joins us to preview the disc.

Anthony McGill (principal clarinet of the New York Philharmonic) and his brother Demarre McGill (principal flute of the Seattle Symphony) have released a new joint album entitled Winged Creatures on the Chicago-based Cedille record label. Anthony joins us to talk about growing up in Chicago, playing in the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra (which joins them on the disc), and to preview the music on...

Harpist extraordinaire Yolanda Kondonassis and Rochester Philharmonic Music Director Ward Stare join us to preview their new album, American Rapture from Azica Records. Included on the disc are the Symphony No. 1 by Samuel Barber; a cave-diving inspired tone poem by the young composer Patrick Harlin (Rapture), and the world premiere centerpiece of the recording: the Harp Concerto by Grammy Award a...

Grammy Award-winning classical guitarist Jason Vieaux joins us to preview his new (world premiere!) recording of American composer Jonathan Leshnoff’s Guitar Concerto. Leshnoff calls the work, “an exploration of worlds, from its mysterious beginnings to its fiery, dance-inspired finale.” Jason calls it a worthy addition to the repertoire and shares his own take on this virtuosic work, originally w...

Polish-born, Canadian based pianist Katarzyna Musial joins us to talk about her latest album, My Spanish Heart. Including works by Manuel de Falla, Isaac Albéniz, and Enrique Granados, the disc takes the listener on a delightful tour of Spain. Katarzyna also tells us about her annual Stella Musica Festival, which takes place in Montreal and promotes the role of women in music.

Pianist Roman Rabinovich has been garnering praise all over the globe for his Haydn Project, in which he plans to perform and record all 62 of Joseph Haydn's rarely heard (but nonetheless brilliant) piano sonatas. He joins us to talk about the first volume in the set, now available at all the usual outlets.

Grammy-nominated composer Gernot Wolfgang talks about his new album Vienna and the West – a jazz-influenced collection of chamber music performed by some of the Los Angeles area's finest musicians.

Pianist/composer Craig Swanson joins us to talk about his fascinating project The French Suite Kit, which presents the music of Bach in a unique fashion – "played on the piano with variety enough to suit every taste." Swanson's version of Bach's so-called "French" suite includes several different interpretations of each movement, handing control over to the listener to assemble their own "definiti...

Pianist Lara Downes joins Haley Taylor for a discussion of her new album, Holes in the Sky - a star-studded collection of female artists which pays tribute to the remarkable women of American music, past, present and future. Photo of Lara Downes by Shervin Lainez

Artistic Director of Ballet Theatre of Toledo Nigel Burgoine joins us to talk about his work with the great Rudolf Nureyev - who is the subject of a new film by Ralph Fiennes called The White Crow. We also hear from the film's composer, Elan Eshkeri.