Outside the MusicBox

Australian violist, Katie Yap, talks about Leoš Janáček’s String Quartet No. 2 ‘Intimate Letters’, the influence of Eastern European folk music on Janacek’s composing, and the supportive role of the violist and how this metaphor can help us be better humans.   Useful links: Spotify playlist for Katie’s pieces  https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3ilPPDYJ1WGGgEuffxiZbf?si=iEWFqBznSbiKtFJX-4dyug&p...

Happy 1 year Outside the MusicBox anniversary! Here is an update about what’s next for this podcast.    Get in touch with us! DONATE: PayPal. Me/OutsideMusicBox   Facebook: @MusicBoxConcerts   Instagram: @musicboxconcerts   Twitter: @OutsideMusicBox Email: concerts.musicbox@gmail.com Website: www.musicboxconcerts.com  

Keyboardist Kristian Bezuidenhout talks about Bach’s St. Matthew Passion, obsessing over recordings as a teenager, and the dichotomy of Bach as both a total genius and also just a working guy.   Useful links: Spotify playlist for Kristian’s pieces   Spotify playlist for main pieces  Spotify playlist for final question pieces    Other useful links: Johann Sebastian Bach   St. Matthew Passion backgr...

English violist Annette Isserlis talks about 17th-century music by Orlando Gibbons and Henry Purcell, starting out as a ballet dancer, and being swept up in the experience of collective music making.    Useful links: Spotify playlist for Annette’s pieces   Spotify playlist for main pieces   Spotify playlist for final question pieces     Other useful links: The Viol   Orlando Gibbons   Plainchant  ...

French soprano, Julie Roset, talks about Sigismondo d’India’s Infelice Didone and Jules Massenet’s Ah! Douce enfant, how singers’ voices change as they age, and what it’s like pretending to be a fairy.   Useful links: Spotify playlist for Julie’s pieces  Spotify playlist for main pieces  Spotify playlist for final question pieces    Other useful links: Sigismondo d’India  Claudio Monteverdi  The s...

Violinist Shaun Lee-Chen talks about Chausson’s Poeme, the original cycling hipsters, and old recordings.   Useful links: Spotify playlist for Shaun’s pieces   Spotify playlist for main pieces   Spotify playlist for final question pieces     Other useful links: Ernest Chausson’s Poeme   Violinist, Eugene Ysaye   Maurice Ravel’s Tzigane   Violinist, Jascha Heifetz   For a deep dive nerd out on 19th...

Bonus Christmas Special! Emma and Chloe answer more listener questions and wrap up 2020. Stay tuned for more fun times in 2021 Outside the MusicBox!   Rachael Beesley’s work on Flow http://www.rachaelbeesley.com/flow.html Wonderbound contemporary dance company in Denver, Colorado https://www.wonderbound.com How scales and keys work in music https://learningmusic.ableton.com/notes-and-scales/keys-a...

Composer and cellist Cris Derksen talks about Mussorgsky’s Night on Bald Mountain, braiding her Cree and Mennonite ancestry, and how her dog might be a witch.    Useful links: Spotify playlist for Cris’s pieces    Spotify playlist for main pieces   Spotify playlist for final question pieces     Other useful links: Modest Mussorgsky   Mussorgsky’s Night on Bald Mountain   Youtube video of the Night...

Double bassist Rob Nairn talks about arias by Robert Schumann and Agostino Steffani, his love of opera, and secret bass bonding activities.   Useful links: Spotify playlist for Rob’s pieces   Spotify playlist for main pieces   Spotify playlist for final question pieces     Other useful links: Robert Schumann   Schumann’s Scenes from Goethe’s Faust   Violone   Richard Wagner   Bayreuth Wagner Festi...

Violist Max Mandel talks about Mozart’s Sinfonia Concertante for Violin and Viola, making music with friends, and some viola jokes for good measure.    Useful links: Spotify playlist for Max’s pieces   Spotify playlist for main pieces   Spotify playlist for final question pieces     Other useful links: Violin vs viola   String Quartet description   Symphony description   Concerto description   Cad...

Percussionist Marianna Soroka talks about four different pieces that helped shape her life, sharing the stage with live horses in a 90’s Polish opera house, and the history of the frame drum.    Useful links: Spotify playlist for Marianna’s pieces Spotify playlist for main pieces   Spotify playlist for final question pieces     Other useful links: Modest Mussorgsky   Boris Godunov full opera on Yo...

Violinist Katarina Aleksić talks about Arnold Schoenberg’s Verklaerte Nacht (Transfigured Night), growing up in former Yugoslavia, and the magic of communicating with people on an unspoken level.   Useful links: Spotify playlist for Katarina’s pieces   Spotify playlist for main pieces   Spotify playlist for final question pieces     Other useful links: Traditional Serbian song Katarina was taught...

Italian multi-instrumentalist Francesco Turrisi talks about ostinato basslines, the similarities between language and musical improvisation, and how the basslines used in Radiohead and My Funny Valentine are a lot older than we think.   Useful links: Spotify playlist for Francesco’s pieces   Spotify playlist for main pieces  Spotify playlist for final question pieces   More useful links: Ostinato...

Bonus episode! Join us this episode as we answer some great questions from our listeners and announce our NEW PayPal link where you can donate. It’s really easy to donate to keep this podcast going! Just head to PayPal.me/MusicBoxConcerts and choose the currency and amount you want to donate.    Useful links: Opening music that we recorded with Holland Baroque. Highly recommend checking out the wh...

Conductor Joshua Weilerstein chats about Beethoven’s Eroica Symphony, nerdy piano improvisation duels, and how cultural identity shapes our way of listening to music.    Useful links: Spotify playlist for Joshua’s pieces   Spotify playlist for main pieces   Spotify playlist for final question pieces    Other useful links: Ludwig van Beethoven   Lausanne Chamber Orchestra performs all of Beethoven’...

Cellist Guy Fishman chats about Vivaldi’s Cello Concerto in C minor, his introduction to classical music in Texas, and the joys of exploring sheet music stores.   Useful links: Spotify playlist for Guy’s pieces   Spotify playlist for main pieces   Spotify playlist for final question pieces    Other useful links: Antonio Vivaldi   Check out our episode with Kati Debretzeni to find out more about Vi...

Mezzo-soprano Lotte Betts-Dean chats about Luciano Berio’s Folk Songs, Caroline Shaw’s Cant voi l’aube, and how 70s disco shaped her musical taste.   Useful links: Spotify playlist for Lotte’s pieces   Spotify playlist for main pieces   Spotify playlist for final question pieces     Other useful links: Composer Luciano Berio   Australian National Academy of Music   Ensemble Q   Mezzo-soprano Cathy...

Violinist Rachael Beesley talks us through Hector Berlioz’s Symphonie Fantastique, deranged opium nightmares, and whether the violin or the french horn is the most difficult instrument.   Useful links: Spotify playlist for Rachael’s pieces  Spotify playlist for main pieces  Spotify playlist for final question pieces    Aurora Orchestra performing a staged version of Symphonie Fantastique from memo...

Canadian violinist Julia Wedman chats about Biber’s Mystery Sonatas, scordatura, and adventures in Salzburg with the help of a janitor named Ziggy.   Useful links: Julia’s Spotify playlist  Spotify playlist for main pieces from all episodes    Spotify playlist for final question pieces from all episodes      More useful links: Heinrich Iganz Franz von Biber   Scordatura  Photo of the crossed middl...

Keyboardist Tineke Steenbrink talks us through Corelli’s Concerto Grosso Op. 6 No. 11 in B-flat Major, acoustic pots hidden in medieval churches, and her realisation that Harry Potter’s library doesn’t actually exist.    Useful links: Tineke’s Spotify playlist  Spotify playlist for main pieces from all episodes Spotify playlist for final question pieces from all episodes   More useful links: Infor...

Violinist Kati Debretzeni chats about Vivaldi’s Four Seasons, the different stages of drunkenness, and collaborating with dancers and actors.    Useful links: Spotify playlist for Kati’s pieces: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/0DcKrpZrmvPaIgHfKb7jAE?si=16FPqHdDSFCSdta2rGjftw Spotify playlist for main pieces: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3BRom90ebzqKrDudeVZtYo Spotify playlist for final ques...

Bassist Margaret Urquhart chats about Bach’s B minor mass, different types of Violones, and touring in the 80's through the East and West of Europe.   Useful links: Spotify playlist for main pieces: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3BRom90ebzqKrDudeVZtYo Spotify playlist for final question pieces: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2rzB0a4C4nNjO0MR8VLQdQ Spotify playlist for this episode: https://...

American violinist Anna Jane Lester chats about Buonamente’s Sonata Seconda for 3 Violins, ornamentation, and Beyonce.   Useful links: Spotify playlist for main pieces: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3BRom90ebzqKrDudeVZtYo Spotify playlist for final question pieces: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2rzB0a4C4nNjO0MR8VLQdQ   Further information about Baroque music and Baroque instruments: https:...

Australian composer Alice Chance chats about various pieces that shaped her identity as a composer, synesthesia, and viola da gamba.   Useful links: Spotify playlist for main pieces: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3BRom90ebzqKrDudeVZtYo Spotify playlist for final question pieces: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2rzB0a4C4nNjO0MR8VLQdQ   Synesthesia: https://www.psychologytoday.com/intl/basics/...

American clarinettist Dominic Giardino chats about Mozart’s Requiem, the film Amadeus, and the basset horn.   Useful links: Spotify playlist for main pieces: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3BRom90ebzqKrDudeVZtYo Spotify playlist for final question pieces: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2rzB0a4C4nNjO0MR8VLQdQ 1937 recording of Requiem: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xuOtOcDdv6Q&t=586s Amadeu...