The Classical Music Minute

Send us Fan Mail Description Though Felix Mendelssohn was one of the most beloved composers of the Romantic period, 270 of his works remained unpublished until recent years. But why? Take a minute to get the scoop! Fun Fact Thanks to the work of The Mendelssohn Project many of his pieces are now being shared along with his story, letters and artworks. The project aims to establish itself as the wo...

Send us Fan Mail Description The Bach Six Solo Cello Suites are considered a staple for every budding cellist. But in Bach’s day, the cello was not considered a solo instrument and these works were shelved for decades. Not until Pablo Casals came along. Take a minute to get the scoop! Bach Cello Suite No. 2 in D min. BWV 1008 Casals c/o YouTube Fun Fact Since the earliest manuscripts copied by his...

Send us Fan Mail Description Frédéric Chopin loved his food and was afforded great opportunities to develop his rather expensive tastes. Take a minute to get the scoop! Fun Fact Chopin’s favorite restaurant was “Au Rocher de Cancale,” and that particular eatery is still located at rue Montorgueil, Paris 75002. The composer also liked to eat at the “Café de Foy” when it was actually called Café Tor...

Send us Fan Mail Description This holiday season I had the priviledge to talk with  Patrick Rutikanga, Executive Director of the Gisimba Memorial Center in Rwanda. They run an after school program for children, part of which introduces music into their lives. The purpose of the program is to build strong relationships, heal families, restore dignity, and create hope in vulnerable East African comm...

Send us Fan Mail Description As we usher in the New Year, many around the world sing "Auld Lang Syne" to bid farewell to the year gone by. But where did this tune come from and how did it come to be so popular? Take a minute to get the scoop! AULD LANG SYNE ~ GUY LOMBARDO ~ 1947 Version ℅ YouTube Fun Fact Guy Lombardo’s orchestra played at the Roosevelt Grill in the Roosevelt Hotel in Ne...

Send us Fan Mail Description Beginning January 4th 2023, Classical 95.9-FM WCRI will be airing The Classical Music Minute just prior to Noon every Wednesday. Catch it live! About Classical 95.9-FM WCRI Classical 95.9-FM WCRI & Billboard Connection Providence are owned by Judson Group, Inc., a company that includes the son and grandsons of broadcasting pioneer Ted Jones, founder of Charles Rive...

Send us Fan Mail Description This episode I have something special for you, I chatted with Vice-President and Co-Owner of Classical 95.9-FM WCRI situated in Rhode Island. Come January 4th 2023 they will be airing The Classical Music Minute just prior to Noon every Wednesday. But the station also has a really interesting history and approach. Take a listen. About Classical 95.9-FM WCRI Classical 95...

Send us Fan Mail Description The holiday season wouldn’t be marked without a rousing rendition of Handel’s Messiah. But was that its original intent? Take a minute to get the scoop! Enjoy BBC Proms: Handel's Messiah – 'Rejoice greatly' with Trinidadian Soprano Jeanine De Bique . Amazing! ℅ YouTube Fun Fact In the 1730s, the emotional and financial toll of producing operas, as well a...

Send us Fan Mail Description The majority of modern music we hear today would not have been possible without the development of Polyphony in the 12th and 13th centuries. Much of this was accomplished through the innovation of The Notre Dame School in Paris. Take a minute to get the scoop! Listen to a great example of Pérotin’s organum quadruplum —four-voice polyphony ℅ YouTube Fun Fact The earlies...

Send us Fan Mail Description Alma Mahler was an Austrian composer and socialite. First, wife to Gustav Mahler and then after his death re-marrying twice. Take a minute to get the scoop! Here’s a lovely recording of her Laue Sommernacht (mild Summer Night) for Mezzo & Piano ℅ YouTube Fun Fact In 1938, after the Anschluss, Werfel and Alma were forced to flee Austria as it was unsafe for Jews. Ev...

Send us Fan Mail Description What is the oldest known instrument to exist today? Take a minute to get the scoop! Fun Fact The Paleolithic, also called the Old Stone Age (from Greek palaios - old, lithos - stone), is a period in prehistory, distinguished by the original development of stone tools, that covers 99% of the period of human technological prehistory. It extends from the earliest known us...

Send us Fan Mail Description Here’s another one of my favourite pieces, L'Histoire du soldat (The Soldier's Tale) by Igor Stravinsky. Take a minute to get the scoop! L`Histoire du Soldat/ Suite de Concert , Pierre Boulez ℅ YouTube Fun Fact L'Histoire du soldat (The Soldier's Tale) was premiered in Lausanne on 28 September 1918, conducted by Ernest Ansermet. The British conducto...

Send us Fan Mail Description Recently I came across a fabulous Spanish Concert Pianist on YouTube, by the name of Juan Pérez Floristán. He was playing the Prokofiev Piano Concerto No. 1—one of my favourites. Watching him play had me literally jumping out of my seat. So, I decided that I’ve really got to chat with him. And I did, from his home in Spain. Juan’s website Juan’s YouTube Channel Tócala...

Send us Fan Mail Description John Williams is of course known for his Hollywood blockbuster orchestral music. But has also composed many incredible works, including his cello concerto for famed cellist, Yo-Yo Ma. Take a minute to get the scoop! Cello Concerto: I. Theme & Cadenza ℅ YouTube Fun Fact Williams has composed for a staggering number of critically acclaimed and popular movies, includi...

Send us Fan Mail Description One of my favorite pieces of all time is Prokofiev’s Piano Concerto No. 1 in D-flat Major. This episode is dedicated to this breathtaking composition. Take a minute to get the scoop! Listen to Juan P. Floristán play  Prokofiev Piano Concerto No. 1 in D-flat Major ℅ YouTube—Juan will also be a guest of mine coming soon!!! Fun Fact One day during the summer of 1911, Serg...

Send us Fan Mail Description John Gay wrote The Beggar's Opera as an anti-opera rather than an opera, lampooning the Italian opera style and the English public's fascination with it.  Take a minute to get the scoop! Listen to: The Beggar's Opera ℅ YouTube Fun Facts Fact 1 Lavinia Fenton, the first Polly Peachum, became an overnight success. Her pictures were in great demand, verses...

Send us Fan Mail Description Igor Stravinsky was a huge proponent of Neoclassicism in music—much to the shock and dismay of some listeners and critics. Take a minute to get the scoop! Listen to: Igor Stravinsky - Octet for Wind Instruments [With score] ℅ YouTube Fun Fact A pupil of Rimsky-Korsakov in his native St. Petersburg, Stravinsky had inherited the style of the Russian nationalist group, th...

Send us Fan Mail Description What was Neoclassicism in music? And which composers utilized this aesthetic form? Take a minute to get the scoop! Fun Fact Sergei Prokofiev's Symphony No. 1 (1917) is sometimes cited as a precursor of Neoclassicism. Prokofiev himself thought that his composition was a "passing phase" whereas Stravinsky's neoclassicism was by the 1920s "becomin...

Send us Fan Mail Description The tale of Joseph Haydn's Symphony No. 45 in F♯ minor, known as the "Farewell" Symphony was told in Haydn’s later life to his biographers Albert Christoph Dies and Georg August Griesinger. Take a minute to get the scoop! Listen to: Joseph Haydn's Symphony No. 45 , The "Farewell" Symphony ℅ YouTube Fun Fact The symphony could not be perfor...

Send us Fan Mail Description In my past episode about Frederick The Great, I mentioned Sturm und Drang aka "storm and stress". This movement occurred in German literature and music between the late 1760s and early 1780s. It was a style of composition that evoked emotions of stress, fear, horror and anxiety. Take a minute to get the scoop! Listen to: Mozart's Symphony No. 25 (the &qu...

Send us Fan Mail Description King Frederick II of Prussia aka Frederick The Great was passionate about music. He particularly loved to play the flute, which he initially learned in secret due to his father being a straight-laced military man. Take a minute to get the scoop! Check out Friedrich II - Concerto For Flute, Strings & Continuo No.1 in G major 1st Movement - Allegro, c/o YouTube Fun F...

Send us Fan Mail Description Some thought that the virtuoso violinist Paganini was a metaphorical musical God, others thought he literally got his virtuosity from a deal with the Devil. But what was the real story behind Niccolò Paganini’s genius? Take a minute to get the scoop! Check out the trailer for The Devil's Violinist Fun Fact Known particularly for his fiendish 24 Caprices for Solo V...

Send us Fan Mail Description Nowadays, ‘Für Elise’ is undoubtedly one of Beethoven’s most famous works. It seems almost strange then that, at the time it was composed, the piece was relatively incidental. It certainly didn’t provoke much of a reaction and apparently, Beethoven himself was never fully satisfied with the work, returning to it some years later and trying, unsuccessfully in his eyes,...

Send us Fan Mail Description Johann Strauss Jr. found the perfect formula for engaging with the masses. He made a killing money-wise and was considered the biggest pop star of his time. Take a minute to get the scoop! Fun Fact Strauss Jr. had a passion for accumulating an awe-inspiring array of medals, decorations and honours from the world’s sovereigns. As such, the titles and dedicatees of his c...

Send us Fan Mail Description This year marks the 40th anniversary of the compact disk. It’s worth giving a nod to this period in our music recording history because for many of us it was a brave new world. Take a minute to get the scoop! Fun Fact A BBC programme called Tomorrow’s World introduced British audiences to the CD in 1981 – the presenter Kieran Prendiville was skeptical about “whether th...