WGBH - Music Lists RSS http://www.wgbh.org/ WGBH Content Relevant to the Topic of: Music Lists RSS en-us Wed, 22 May 2013 00:00:00 EST Wed, 21 Mar 2012 08:24 AM +0000 <![CDATA[Goldberg Week at NPR Music]]> http://www.wgbh.org//articles/Goldberg-Week-at-NPR-Music-5824 ]]> http://www.wgbh.org//articles/Goldberg-Week-at-NPR-Music-5824 The so-called Goldberg Variations by J.S. Bach represent one of the high points of the composer's music. NPR Music explores the Goldbergs through performances, commentary, and articles.

  Listen to The Bach Channel

 More from Goldberg Week:

"Beyond Glenn Gould: Five Great Goldberg Variations," by Benjamin K. Roe

"Why I Hate the Goldberg Variations," by Jeremy Denk

More Bach Month
New to Bach's delightfully intricate and huge keyboard piece? Read and listen to a brief Goldberg Variations FAQ, featuring Harvard University's Christoph Wolff, the world's pre-eminent Bach scholar and director of the Bach Archive in Leipzig, in conversation with Tom Huizenga of NPR Music.

What are the Goldberg Variations?

Around 1741, Bach published a long and complicated keyboard piece, calling it Aria with diverse variations for a harpsichord with two manuals (keyboards). Wolff says it was the final work in a much larger endeavor: "This is the capstone of a publication project which is called in German Clavier-Übung — in English perhaps best translated as Keyboard Practice — where he wanted to show what was possible at the keyboard in terms of technical development, technical, virtuosic finesse and compositional sophistication."

The music is constructed symmetrically, beginning with a beautifully tranquil and highly ornamented Aria, the bass line of which fuels the 30 variations that follow. There is something of a dividing line after variation 15, and the piece ends as it begins, with the return of the Aria. Every third variation is a canon — the melody of each is laid over itself, as in "Row, Row, Row Your Boat" — with the additional complication that the pitch difference between the melodies rises from a canon in unison up to the canon in ninths.

Why The Name Goldberg?

Legend has it that Bach wrote the music to sooth the sleepless nights of one Count Kaiserling, who asked his private harpsichordist, Johann Gottlieb Goldberg, to perform the variations. Wolff maintains the legend isn't true.

"It is not true, at least not as a story that explains the origin of the work," Wolff says. "It may be related to the history of the work during Bach's time. When Bach wrote the variations, Johann Gottlieb Goldberg was 13 years of age. He apparently was a very gifted kid. He was a student of Bach's son, Wilhelm Friedemann in Dresden, but he also took lessons with J.S. Bach in Leipzig."

What Is The Source Of The Variations?

Although Bach published the Goldberg Variations around 1741, Wolff says he apparently came up with the opening Aria some years earlier.

"We do have a copy of just the Aria in the hand of Anna Magdalena Bach, Johann Sebastian's second wife, who was a singer," Wolff says. "She apparently wanted to play the piece, and it probably wasn't copied by her until the late 1730s."

"But I think the origin goes back to an idea Bach got from Handel. Handel, in 1733, published an aria with 64 variations. The variations are based on the same Aria bass, but it's only eight measures long. And Bach thought that 'This is a wonderful idea to have many variations on such a promising ground bass. But the bass is too short for me, I'll make it longer.' So instead of eight measures, he turned it into 32 measures."

Bach turned his set of 30 variations into a deeper, much more sophisticated showpiece that Handel's. It may have even been Bach's way of saying "I can do much better than you."

What Happened to the Goldbergs after Bach died?

There are many gaps in the story after Bach's death in 1750. "We do not know how widely disseminated the piece was," Wolff says, "but it clearly was printed in at least 100 copies, so it was circulating quite widely. But we have no specific record of any public performances of the work essentially until the late 19th and the 20th centuries."

Who were some of the first Goldberg champions?

Pianist Rudolf Serkin took up the Goldberg Variations in the late 1920s, but Polish harpsichordist Wanda Landowska was the first to record the Goldbergs in the early 1930s. She was a pioneer of the harpsichord revival who went on to teach in Berlin, Paris and the U.S. She made several recordings of the Goldbergs.

"I think they were really, absolutely crucial with respect to making the piece known across Europe, and then also in the United States, as a work for harpsichord, an instrument that was not very well known at the time," Wolff says.

Landowska played an instrument far from what Bach would have recognized. Her late 19th-century harpsichord, Wolff says, was made with Steinway technology. The Pleyel harpsichord had an iron frame, which meant that it held the tuning better but had a much thinner sound than wood-framed models from Bach's time.

What's Up With Glenn Gould?

In 1955, at age 22, Canadian pianist Glenn Gould signed a recording contract with Columbia Records and recorded the Goldberg Variations. At the time, the piece was considered esoteric and a risky choice for a debut recording. But Gould's Goldbergs exceeded all expectations, becoming a runaway bestseller and launching Gould's international career.

"After this Glenn Gould recording," Wolff says, "the Goldberg Variations really had become a household word."

Gould's recording is brilliantly fast, precise and transparent. He ignores Bach's repeat markings in the score, which shrinks the total time of the Goldbergs to less than 39 minutes, neatly fitting on two sides of an LP. Recordings today typically clock in between 60-80 minutes. Gould would record the Goldbergs again in 1981 with a vastly different, less flashy approach.

What Would Bach Think Of Gould's recording?

"He primarily would have enjoyed knowing that more than 200 years after the work originated, it was performed by modern musicians for modern audiences," Wolff says. As far as Gould's recording being on the modern day piano, Wolff believes that it may not have mattered to Bach, as he was interested in new sonorities all his life. Bach was asked to test-drive the latest technologies in keyboard manufacturing.

Piano vs. Harpsichord: What's Better?

"I wouldn't want to argue about it," Wolff says. "I think a good harpsichordist on a good instrument would present the piece just as well as a pianist thinking about the stylistic requirements, using very little pedal and so forth, but making the best out of the piano sound and creating the kind of transparency that Bach's polyphonic designs require. I think there is no aesthetic difference between the two."

"But I think for the listener it is a difference," Wolff concludes, "because the listener will hear things on the piano that he may not hear when the piece is performed on the harpsichord and vice versa. So I think it is a good experience to hear it both ways."
]]> Tue, 20 Mar 2012 17:29 PM +0000 <![CDATA[Beyond Glenn Gould: Five Great 'Goldberg Variations']]> http://www.wgbh.org//articles/Beyond-Glenn-Gould-Five-Great-Goldberg-Variations-5820 ]]> http://www.wgbh.org//articles/Beyond-Glenn-Gould-Five-Great-Goldberg-Variations-5820

Its status as an icon of Bach recordings secure, Glenn Gould's 1955 account is also just the starting point for exploring a wealth of other performances.


Just as Miles Davis' Kind of Blue was one of those jazz albums you saw in the collections of people who otherwise didn't listen to jazz, Glenn Gould's 1955 LP of Bach's Goldberg Variations stuck out in record collections otherwise devoid of classical music.

Gould's Goldbergs introduced millions of Americans to a breathtakingly new sonic landscape. Davis achieved his unique sound by introducing ancient musical modes to the world of jazz. Gould, on the other hand, unlocked the hitherto unknown emotional depths of Bach's powerfully mathematical musical intellect.

In short, Glenn Gould gave Bach soul — and Bach gave Gould great source material. Picking five great recordings of the Goldberg Variations these days without mentioning Gould is a little like leaving Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band out of a list of greatest rock albums of all time.

Love Gould or hate him, without him we wouldn't be discussing this — or any other — list of recordings of what has been called the longest, most ambitious and most important solo keyboard work written before Beethoven. As you ponder that, consider what else Gould wrought: His was the first prominent album devoted to Bach's magisterial 32-movement work. The tally of recordings today is no fewer than 193. So, leaving Gould to his own category, here are some highly personal and subjective recommendations.
 

Busoni's Vision

Ferruccio Busoni, arguably the most ardent champion of Bach in his — or any — time, was the first to revive the Goldbergs in concert (1914), though characteristically he performed them in his decidedly personal and virtuosic style, lovingly recalled in this recording by German pianist Claudius Tanski. Busoni also decided that the entire piece was too long and unsuited for the concert hall; hence the Busoni Goldbergs omit 10 of the 30 variations and divide the rest into three parts. At least Busoni got the use of three parts right — some musicologists argue that Bach's choice to bookend his aria with 30 variations was a deliberate attempt to express "the trinity times ten fingers."

Purchase

Listen to Busoni's version of the Goldberg 'Aria' with pianist Claudius Tanski:

 

Landowska the Pioneer

Any survey of the Goldbergs has to include Wanda Landowska's original 1933 account — the first full recording of the Goldberg Variations. Much as in Glenn Gould's LP recording from 22 years later, you can hear the sound of history being made as Landowska carefully and somewhat quirkily charts the maiden voyage through the Goldberg archipelago on her sturdy (if wholly inauthentic) Pleyel harpsichord. Also noteworthy is the fact that Landowska was the first of a series of fiercely individual female keyboard artists (including Rosalyn Tureck, Angela Hewitt and more recently Simone Dinnerstein) who have made some of the most distinctive Goldbergs recordings around.

Purchase

Listen Landowska's Variation No. 5:

 

Perahia's Perfection

In the modern piano era, there are dozens of worthy candidates for a "straight ahead" version of the Goldbergs — clean, unhurried, technically unassailable yet emotionally rich performances. For my money — or, more to the point, your money — look no further than Murray Perahia. Critic David Hurwitz gets it right when he says these Goldbergs offer "incontestable evidence of Perahia's penetrating musical intellect, sensitivity to emotional nuance, and exceptional technical gifts." A can't-miss choice.

Purchase

Listen to Perahia's Variation No. 1:

 

Staier's Kaleidoscopic Harpsichord

You can't have a "Great Goldbergs" list without including at least one recording on the instrument for which it was intended: a two-manual (that is, two-keyboard) harpsichord. Point of fact is that playing the Goldbergs on a single keyboard instrument means that a pianist has to resort to tricks, compromises, fudging or outright studio chicanery to play all the notes as Bach wrote them. Happily, harpsichord recordings — and the quality of both the instruments and their performers — have long since evolved from being mere academic curiosities. Case in point is this 2010 recording by German harpsichordist Andreas Staier on a reproduction of a 1734 instrument "with so many stops with exotic colors and textures that suddenly the piano seems challenged," in the words of my WGBH colleague Brian McCreath. It comes with a fascinating bonus DVD for confirmed Goldberg geeks.

Purchase

Listen to Staier's Variation No. 20:

 

Sitkovetsky's Game Changer

From Glenn Gould in 1955 to Simone Dinnerstein's debut in 2005, every decade seems to have its game-changing Goldbergs. In the decade before Dinnerstein, it belonged to Russian-born violinist Dmitri Sitkovetsky, who in 1995 made this transformative recording of his own string orchestra arrangement with the New European Strings. "Sitkovetsky has turned the Goldberg Variations into a tone poem," raved one critic. The sensitive, nuanced recording confirmed that the greatness of the Goldbergs could go far beyond the keyboard, opening the floodgates for new interpretative possibilities, which in recent years have included solo harp, string trio and even a band of Renaissance viols.

Purchase

Listen to Sitkovetsky's Variation No. 30:


]]> Thu, 01 Dec 2011 09:41 AM +0000 <![CDATA[Classical New England Holiday Channel Playlist]]> http://www.wgbh.org//articles/Classical-New-England-Holiday-Channel-Playlist-4949 ]]> http://www.wgbh.org//articles/Classical-New-England-Holiday-Channel-Playlist-4949 Here is the complete playlist for the 2012 Holiday Music Channel from Classical New England. 

Please join us for our special holiday broadcasts. 

Happy Holidays!

Hour One, with Laura Carlo


Ding Dong Merrily
Baltimore Consort
Purchase

The Seven Joys of Mary
Andrew Parrott
Purchase

Bach - In Dulci Jubilo
Thomas Goeman, organ
Purchase

Reger - Aus Der Jugendzeit, Op. 17 - Aus Der Jugendzeit, Op. 17: No. 9. Weihnachtstraum
Jeffrey Biegel
Purchase

Holst - Lullay, My Liking, Op. 34/2, H 129
E. Power Biggs, Gregg Smith Singers
Purchase

The First Nowell
Dale Warland Singers
Purchase

Billings - A Virgin Unspotted
His Majestie's Clerkes
Purchase

Vivaldi - Concerto, RV 270, Per Il Santissimo Natale
Angele Dubeau & La Pieta
Purchase

Holst - In The Bleak Midwinter
Lionheart
Purchase

Dancing Day
Toronto Children's Chorus
Purchase

Joy To The World
Trombones Under The Tree
Purchase

Once in Royal David's City
Choir of King's College, Cambridge, Stephen Cleobury, director
Purchase

Pez - Minuet-Trio
Les Violins Du Roy, Bernard Labadie, director
Purchase

Vaughan Williams - In Bethlehem City
Members Of The New London Chamber Choir, Members Of The Henrietta Barnett School Choir, Andrew Parrott, director
Purchase

Angel Tidings
Westminster Concert Bell Choir
Purchase

Howells - A Spotless Rose
Handel & Haydn Society Chorus, Grant Llewellyn, director
Purchase

Bach - Jesu, Joy Of Man's Desiring
Angela Hewitt, piano
Purchase

We Wish You A Merry Christmas
Westminster Choir
Purchase

Hour Two, with Brian McCreath


Handel - For Unto Us A Child Is Born, from Messiah
Westminster Choir
Purchase

Gabriel's Message
Choir Of King's College Cambridge, Stephen Cleobury, director
Purchase

Tchaikovsky - Dance Of The Sugar Plum Fairy & Trepak, from The Nutcracker
Handbell Ensemble Sonos
Purchase

God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen
London Cello Sound With Choir Of Clare College
Purchase

Leontovych - Ukrainian Bell Carol
Gregg Miner
Purchase

Rise Up, Shepherd, And Follow
Denyce Graves, mezzo-soprano; Warren Jones, piano
Purchase

Greensleeves/Scottish Jig
A Scottish Christmas
Purchase

Torelli - Christmas Concerto in G minor, Op. 8, No. 6
Collegium Mozart Salzburg, Jürgen Geise, director
Purchase

Mendelssohn - Hark! The Herald Angels Sing
Taverner Consort & Players, Andrew Parrott, director
Purchase

The Christmas Song
New England Brass Band

I Wonder As I Wander
Emily Van Evera; Taverner Consort & Players, Andrew Parrott, director
Purchase

The Cherry Tree Carol
Edward Flower
Purchase

Mary Had a Baby
Cantus
Purchase

Es Ist Ein Ros' entsprungen/Wir Singen Dir, Immanuel
Baltimore Consort
Purchase

What Sweeter Music
Bell Voce Women's Chorus of Vemont
Purchase

Deck The Halls
Camilli Quartet
Purchase

Angels We Have Heard On High
Chanticleer
Purchase
 

Hour Three, with Cathy Fuller


Go Tell It on the Mountain
Boston Boys Choir

Joulun Kellot (The Bells Of Christmas)
Angele Dubeau & La Pieta
Purchase

Bring A Torch
Dale Warland Singers
Purchase

Fetes De Noel (Svyatki), Op. 41, No. 3: Chanteurs
Jeffrey Biegel
Purchase

Rutter - Nativity Carol
Richard Stoltzman, clarinet
Purchase

Johann Michael Bach - In dulci jubilo
Baltimore Consort
Purchase

Coventry Carol
Kiri Te Kanawa, soprano; Coventry Cathedral Choir and BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, Robin Stapleton, director
Purchase

Corelli - Chistmas Concerto, Op. 6, No. 8
Musica da Camera, Robert King, director
Purchase

Veni, Veni Emmanuel
His Majestie's Clerkes, Paul Hillier, director
Purchase

Winter In Cairo
Turtle Island String Quartet
Purchase

Olatunji - Betelhemu
University Of Kansas Combined Choirs
Purchase

Joy to the World
E. Power Biggs, organ; Gregg Smith Singers
Purchase

Sussex Carol (On Christmas night all Christians sing)
Choir Of King's College, Cambridge, Stephen Cleobury, director
Purchase

A Suite of English Carols: The First Noel, Coventry Carol, Deck the Halls
Solid Brass
Purchase

 

Hour Four with James David Jacobs


Gloucestershire Wassail - Somerset Wassail
Western Wind Vocal Ensemble
Purchase

Wassailing Song
Arturo Delmoni and friends
Purchase

Patapan
E. Power Biggs, organ; Gregg Smith Singers
Purchase

Little Drummer Boy
Pittsburgh Symphony Brass
Purchase

Thomson - O My Deir Hert
Handel & Haydn Society Chorus, Grant Llewellyn, director
Purchase

Bach - Wachet Auf
Newman-Oltman Guitar Duo

Berlioz - Shepherds' Farewell
Westminster Choir
Purchase

Yon - Jesu Bambino
Jon Weber
Purchase

Gruber - Silent Night
Cantus
Purchase

O Come All Ye Faithful
Gloucester Cathedral Choir
Purchase

Manfredini - Concerto Grosso In G Minor, Op. 6, No. 8
Collegium Mozart Salzburg, Jürgen Geise, director
Purchase

Morten Lauridsen - O Magnum Mysterium
Handel & Haydn Society Chorus, Grant Llewellyn, director
Purchase

Holst/Liszt/Taylor - In The Bleak Midwinter/Etudes De Concert, No. 3, "Un Sospiro”
Jeffrey Biegel, piano
Purchase

Bring A Torch, Jeannette, Isabella
Gregg Miner
Purchase

 

Hour Five with Benjamin K. Roe


Tchaikovsky – March, from The Nutcracker
Pittsburgh Symphony Brass
Purchase

Huron Carol Interlude
Angele Dubeau & La Pieta
Purchase

Bach, arr. Lor - Sarabande, Cello Suite No. 1
Scott Kritzer
Purchase

Christmas Tidings
Sonos Handbell Ensemble, James Meredith, Scott Anderson
Purchase

Vivaldi – Concerto, RV 270, Per Il Santissimo Natale: I. Allegro
Angele Dubeau & La Pieta
Purchase

Winter
Richard Stoltzman,Robert Salter
Purchase

Vivaldi – Concerto, RV 270, Per Il Santissimo Natale: II. Adagio
Angele Dubeau & La Pieta
Purchase

Thin Ice
Turtle Island String Quartet
Purchase

Vivaldi – Concerto, RV 270, Per Il Santissimo Natale: III. Allegro
Angele Dubeau & La Pieta
Purchase

Christmas Day in da Mornin'
Baltimore Consort
Purchase

Calling the Children
Tony Trischka
Purchase

In Dulci Jubilo
Renaissonics
Purchase

Tchaikovsky - Les Saisons (The Seasons), Op. 37b: XII. December: Christmas
Jeffrey Biegel, piano
Purchase

What Child Is This? (Greensleeves)
Gregg Miner
Purchase

O Come, O Come, Emannuel
Nicolaus Esterhazy Sinfonia, Peter Breiner
Purchase

Corelli - Chistmas Concerto, Op. 6, No. 8
Ensemble Pantaleon
Purchase

Hour Six with Alan McLellan


O Come All Ye Faithful
Dale Warland Singers
Purchase

Bach - Sheep May Safely Graze
The Bach Choir Of Bethlehem
Purchase

Bach - Te Deum laudamus
Manfred Schuler Zither and Folk Music Ensemble
Purchase

Puer Natus Est
Abby Of Liguge
Purchase

Praetorius - Es Ist Ein Ros' Entsprungen
Dale Warland Singers
Purchase

Ding Dong! Merrily On High/Jesu Joy Of Man's Desiring
Jeffrey Biegel, piano
Purchase

Quelle Est Cette Odeur Agreeable
Chanticleer
Purchase

Riu, riu, chiu
Choir Of King's College, Cambridge, Stephen Cleobury, director
Purchase

Humperdinck - Hansel and Gretel Prelude
Pittsburgh Symphony Brass
Purchase

Prokofiev - Troika
Sonos Handbell Ensemble, James Meredith, director
Purchase

Tomorrow Shall Be My Dancing Day
Baltimore Consort
Purchase

Good King Wenceslas
Westminster Choir
Purchase

Carol Of The Birds
Nicolaus Esterhazy Sinfonia, Peter Breiner
Purchase

Goss, arr. Willcocks - See Amid The Winter's Snow
Toronto Children's Chorus
Purchase

Praetorius - Lo, How a Rose E'er Blooming
Turtle Island String Quartet
Purchase

Bach - Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme, BWV 645
David Russell, guitar
Purchase

Hour Seven, with Cheryl Willoughby


Trad. English - The Old Yeare Now Away is Fled
Sandra Simon and Apollo's Fire, Jeanette Sorrell, director
Purchase

David Cutforth - There is no rose
St. Martin's Chamber Choir of Denver
Purchase

Traditional Shaker Hymn - Simple Gifts
Christopher Parkening, guitar
Purchase

Francisco Guerrero - ¡Hombres, victoria, victoria!
The Rose Ensemble
Purchase

Traditional Austrian, arr. David Dusing - Da Droben Vom Berge (Lullaby)
Counterpoint Ensemble, Robert De Cormier, director
Purchase

Leroy Anderson - Sleigh Ride
Cleveland Orchestra
Purchase

Traditional French arr. Lawson - Noel Nouvelet
The King's Singers
Purchase

Ralph Vaughan Williams - Fantasia on 'Greensleeves'
James Ehnes viola, Eduard Laurel, piano
Purchase

Traditional Irish - The Darkest Midnight in December
Meredith Hall, soprano; Sylvain Bergeron, lute;  La Nef
Purchase

John Playford (from the English Dancing Master, 1651) - Drive The Cold Winter Away
Sylvain Bergeron, lute;  La Nef
Purchase

Alf Houkom - The Rune of Hospitality
The Dale Warland Singers
Purchase

Handel (orch. Mozart) - Hallelujah Chorus from Messiah
Boston Pops and Tanglewood Festival Chorus, Keith Lockhart, conductor
Purchase

Traditional French - Il est ne, le divin Enfant
Die Singphoniker
Purchase

Howad Blake - The Snowman
Richard Stoltzman & Friends
Purchase

Peter Niedmann - In The Ending Of The Year
Harvard University Choir
Purchase

Traditional Italian - Ballata di Gloria - La Rotta
Altramar Medieval Music Ensemble
Purchase

Prudence Houston - To All The Good Children, a Happy New Year
The Pro Arte Singers and Indiana University Children's Chamber Choir, Paul Hillier, director
Purchase

Traditional Scottish - Dona Nobis Pacem (Give Us Peace)/Auld Lang Syne
Chris Botti, trumpet;  Yo-Yo Ma, cello
Purchase

Hour Eight, with Brian McCreath

Emile Waldteufel - Les Patineurs (The Skater's Waltz)
Hollywood Bowl Orchestra, Felix Slatkin, conductor

Traditional French, arr. Gustav Holst - Masters In This Hall
The Sixteen, Harry Christophers, conductor
Purchase

Traditional Italian - Glory 'n Cielo
The Boston Camerata and The Sharq Arabic Music Ensemble, Joel Cohen, director
Purchase

Yakiv Yatsynevych - Bells Rang in Early Jerusalem
Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir, Paul Hillier, director
Purchase

Leroy Anderson - Carol of the Bells
Hollywood Bowl Symphony Orchestra, Carmen Dragon, director
Purchase

Tomas Luis de Victoria - O Magnum Mysterium
Robert Shaw Festival Singers & Chamber Singers, Robert Shaw, director
Purchase

Ottorino Respighi - Three Botticelli Pictures: Adoration of the Magi
Lausanne Chamber Orchestra, Jesus Lopez-Cobos, conductor
Purchase

Traditional arr. James Galway - Patapan
James Galway, flute;  Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
Purchase

Georg Friderich Handel - Judas Maccabaeus: See, the Conqu'ring Hero Comes, March, and Sing Unto God
U.C. Berkeley Chamber Chorus & Soloists and Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra, Nicholas McGegan, conductor
Purchase

Traditional English - A "Wassail" Suite
The Waverly Consort, Michael Jaffee, director
Purchase

Poem written by Susan Cooper - The Shortest Day
Robert J. Lurtsema, narrator; The Revels, John Langstaff, director
Purchase

Peter Tchaikovsky - Waltz of the Snowflakes, from The Nutcracker
Cincinnati Pops Orchestra, Erich Kunzel, conductor
Purchase

Francis Poulenc - Hodie Christus natus est
RIAS Chamber Choir, Marcus Creed, director
Purchase

Traditional - We Wish You A Merry Christmas
Tanglewood Festival Chorus and Boston Pops, John Williams, conductor
Purchase

]]> Fri, 05 Aug 2011 11:26 AM +0000 <![CDATA[Reflections In Song; Music For September 11]]> http://www.wgbh.org//news/reflections_in_song.cfm http://www.wgbh.org//news/reflections_in_song.cfm Thu, 23 Jun 2011 14:08 PM +0000 <![CDATA[WGBH Hosts Pick Their Favorite Summer Books And Events]]> http://www.wgbh.org//articles/WGBH-Hosts-Pick-Their-Favorite-Summer-Books-And-Events-3455 http://www.wgbh.org//articles/WGBH-Hosts-Pick-Their-Favorite-Summer-Books-And-Events-3455 Summer is a great time to travel, enjoy the outdoors or just kick back with a good book. We’ve asked a cross-section of WGBH Radio personalities for their suggestions of what to do and read this summer.

Books
Festivals
Events/Venues
 

Books

Jared Bowen, Arts & Culture contributor on 89.7 WGBH; reporter, Greater Boston

Life
Keith Richards
Little, Brown and Co., May 2011
“I’ve been dying to sink my teeth into the drug-addled, rollicking and surreal world of Rolling Stones’ guitarist Keith Richards, courtesy of his recently released memoir. I’ll never strut the stadium stage so Richards can help me fantasize. Without the heroin.”
 


Callie Crossley, The Callie Crossley Show, 89.7 WGBH
“Every year I promise I’ll head to Cape Ann or Maine, but then I find myself once again on my two-step jaunt via Peter Pan bus and Woods Hole Ferry to Martha’s Vineyard. In my beach bag, I’ll have the latest In Death mystery from J.D. Robb, and a new novel from Lorene Cary, If Sons, Then Heirs, a fictionalized story about the great migration North so well told in the nonfoction The Warmth of Other Suns by Boston University professor Isabel Wilkerson. And any day I’m ‘on island,’ you can find me admiring the sunset on a pal’s porch and sipping my favorite summer adult beverage: Vinho Verde, the green Portuguese wine with a touch of fizz. Cheers!”
 
Treachery in Death
J.D. Robb
(Putnam, Feb 2011)
 
If Sons, Then Heirs: A Novel
Lorene Cary
(Atria, Apr 2011)
 
The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America’s Great Migration
Isabel Wilkerson
(Random House, Sep 2010)
 
Cathy Fuller, 99.5 All Classical
Charles Jessold, Considered as a Murderer
Wesley Stace
(Picador, Feb 2011)
“It’s not every summer that you can find a thriller with as much stylish and sophisticated musical intrigue as Wesley Stace’s Charles Jessold, Considered as a Murderer. A composer murders his wife, her lover and himself on the eve of his new opera’s premiere. The opera’s plot is an echo of the triple murder and never gets staged. Highly praised by The New Yorker’s Alex Ross!”
 


Cristina Quinn, Weekend Edition, 89.7 WGBH
First Family: Abigail and John Adams
Joseph J. Ellis
(Knopf, Oct 2010)
“This is a great read that gives us a comprehensive look at the lives of John and Abigail Adams during monumental times in history through the intimate letters they wrote to each other. They were a fascinating couple with a bottomless well of embarrassingly adorable pet names for one another. It’s also really neat reading about local landmarks and events in firsthand detailed accounts. First Family has been my bedside table book for a couple months now, but I’m looking forward to finishing it up at the beach!”
 

Emily Rooney, The Emily Rooney Show, 89.7 WGBH

The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic and Madness at the Fair That Changed America
Eric Larson
(Vintage Books, Feb 2004)
“Last summer I got off my usual track and wound up reading the Stieg Larsson Dragon Tattoo series, but this summer I’m back with my usual nonfiction indulgence and am about to dig into Eric Larson’s The Devil in the White City.”


 
Andrea Smarden, Reporter, 89.7 WGBH

The Imperfectionists: A Novel
Tom Rachman
(The Dial Press, Jan 2011)
“This story of people who work at a fictional English-language newspaper in Rome weaves together the perspectives of characters at the paper—from its heyday of clacking typewriter keys through the Internet age. Rachman’s book is a great contemplative read for summer. It’s moving, funny, and—as a journalist—it rings uncomfortably true.”
 

Mindy Todd, The Point, WCAI

Caleb’s Crossing
Geraldine Brooks
(Viking, May 2011)
“Geraldine Brooks is one of my favorite authors, so I always look forward to her books. This one is based on the true story of the first Native American to graduate from Harvard College in 1665. Little is known about him, but Brooks weaves a tale that not only honors this Wampanoag from Martha’s Vineyard, but also gives insight into what an amazing accomplishment this was.”

 

Festivals

Laura Carlo, 99.5 All Classical 
Newport Music Festival
Thursday, July 7 – Sunday, July 24
Newport, RI
“Less than a tank of gas away is the Newport Music Festival. Make a full day of it by flying kites at Adams State Park, having lunch overlooking the ocean, and then heading over to hear amazing performers from around the world at one of those exquisite ‘summer cottages’ built by the Vanderbilts and Rockefellers. This year, be sure to catch the 13-concert miniseries in honor of Liszt in his 200th anniversary year.”



Brian O’Donovan, A Celtic Sojourn, 89.7 WGBH
Lowell Folk Festival
Friday, July 29 – Sunday July 31
Boarding House Park, Lowell, MA
“Now in its 25th year, this free festival celebrates all the diversity of traditional music, from Irish to Ethiopian to Louisiana Zydeco to Québécois. Not to be missed. Three bands alone are worth the trip: Dervish, a supergroup from Ireland, La Vent du Nord from Canada and Shemekia Copeland. Wow! If you can’t make it to Lowell, listen to WGBH on Saturday afternoon at 3pm for a live broadcast, which I will host.”

 
The Boston Irish Festival
Friday, June 17 – Sunday, June 19
Canton, Mass
“The Boston Irish Festival, produced by the Irish Cultural Centre of New England, offers a great weekend of Irish sports, music, dancing, ?lm, art, food, song and history.’
 
The Blackstone River Theatre Summer Solstice Festival
Saturday, June 18
Cumberland, RI
“The Blackstone River Theatre Summer Solstice Festival presents a day of great artists like Annalivia, Robbie O’Connell, and The Gnomes.”
 
Bob Seay, Morning Edition, 89.7 WGBH 
Newport Jazz and Folk Festivals
Newport, RI
“For me, summer means a chance to enjoy the Newport Jazz and Folk Festivals, the granddaddies of all summer music festivals. Newport is legendary for good reason. Founder George Wein, now 86 and still running the show, always is able to get the very best in talent—many of whom feel it’s an honor to be invited. Hear great music in an unforgettable setting at Fort Adams State Park overlooking beautiful Newport Harbor. Well into their sixth decade, both festivals are well run and world renowned.”
 

Events/Venues

Jared Bowen, Arts & Culture contributor on 89.7 WGBH; reporter, Greater Boston 
Porgy and Bess
Wedneday, August 17 – Monday, October 3
Loeb Drama Center, American Repertory Theater
Cambridge, Mass
“Diane Paulus and the A.R.T. have scored a major coup in landing the rights from the Gershwin estate to stage the iconic piece Porgy and Bess.It’s a little known fact that Porgy and Bess premiered here in Boston at the Colonial Theatre. With the ever-inventive Paulus directing and Broadway icon Audra McDonald starring, Porgy and Bessshould be the summer’s sublime show.”
 
Laura Carlo, 99.5 All Classical 
Boston Pops Fireworks Spectacular
Monday, July 4
Boston Esplanade
“A Boston native, I remember heading out to the Esplanade with my friends when Arthur Fiedler conducted that amazing concert in 1976, the bicentennial year. We were just kids but we knew that an amazing Boston tradition was being launched and we were thrilled that we got to be part of it. I love broadcasting from the scene even though my voice has to compete with flyovers, Howitzers and fireworks!”
 
The Boston Landmarks Orchestra Summer Concert Series
Wednesdays at 7pm, July 13 – August 31
“99.5 All Classical is so pleased again to be the media partner of this free summer concert series. Pack some munchies and a blanket, and gather with your family at the Hatch Shell to hear gorgeous music under the stars. Landmarks welcomes new conductor Christopher Wilkins.” 
 
Brian McCreath, 99.5 All Classical 

Calmus Ensemble at the Rockport Chamber Music Festival
Friday, July 15
Rockport, Mass
“On July 15, two of my favorite places come together when the Calmus Ensemble brings the amazing choral tradition of Leipzig, Germany, to the Rockport Chamber Music Festival’s gorgeous Shalin Liu Performance Center. A spectacular seaside setting, stellar acoustics and a cappellafrom Brahms to Sting: A definite winner.”
 


Emily Rooney, The Emily Rooney Show, 89.7 WGBH 
Saratoga Performing Arts Center
Saratoga Springs, New York
“As for summer concerts, I like to take in an event or two at the Saratoga Performing Arts Center as I have a summer place at nearby Lake George. They have several events I’m looking forward to in July, including performances by the New York City Ballet, The Philadelphia Orchestra and Opera Saratoga throughout the month.”
 
Tennis Hall of Fame
Newport, RI
“Tennis is my real passion, and I’ll take a day off from playing Saturday, July 9, to attend the International Tennis Hall of Fame in Newport for the annual inductees ceremony.”
 
Mindy Todd, The Point, WCAI
Cape Cod Melody Tent
Hyannis, MA
“This intimate venue doesn’t have a bad seat in the house (tent): every seat is within 50 feet of the stage! Concerts this summer range from The Wiggles to Chris Botti to Tony Bennett.”

]]> Sun, 24 Apr 2011 21:48 PM +0000 <![CDATA[What's Your Sense of Place]]> http://www.wgbh.org//995/sense_of_place.cfm digital mural. ]]> http://www.wgbh.org//995/sense_of_place.cfm Fri, 11 Mar 2011 21:06 PM +0000 <![CDATA[Celebrating Bartók]]> http://www.wgbh.org//articles/Celebrating-Bartk-2255 http://www.wgbh.org//articles/Celebrating-Bartk-2255 During this 130th anniversary year of the birth of Béla Bartók (born March 25, 1881), 99.5 All Classical celebrates the groundbreaking Hungarian composer with a series of on demand performances and features.
 


New England Conservatory Philharmonia
The Concerto for Orchestra, one of Béla Bartók's most enduring and popular masterpieces, was commissioned by conductor Serge Koussevitzky and the Boston Symphony Orchestra.  Performed for the first time in December 1944, it remains a regular fixture on orchestra programs around the world, and on March 9, 2011, Benjamin Zander conducted a performance at New England Conservatory's Jordan Hall, with the NEC Philharmonia.
Listen On Demand


Discovery Ensemble
Courtney Lewis conducts one of Boston's most exciting orchestras, Discovery Ensemble, in Bartók's kaleidoscopic Music for Strings, Percussion, and Celesta. 99.5 All Classical host Brian McCreath talks with Lewis about the piece, with a walk-through of each of the movements, all recorded in 99.5 All Classical's Fraser Performance Studio.

Listen On Demand
 


Duke Bluebeard's Castle
In 1911, Bartók completed a one-act opera based on Charle Perrault's French fairy tale "Bluebeard," further revising it before its first performance in Budapest in 1918. A dark, pyschologically rich piece, Brian Bell offers a guided tour.
(image:  Gustave Doré's Barbe Bleue, courtesy Wikimedia Commons)

Hear a guided tour at Backstage with Brian Bell

 

Takács Quartet, Muzsikás, and Márta Sebestyén
One of the premiere string quartets on today's concert stages joins forces with a legendary Hungarian folk ensemble and equally legendary Hungarian folk singer to explore the roots of Bartók's music.



Listen On Demand
 


Pianist Hung-Kuan Chen
Recorded in 2008 in 99.5 All Classical's Fraser Performance Studio, Hung-Kuan Chen performs a piece that combines Bartók's fascination with folk music and his evolving perspective of the piano as a percussion instrument, the Out of Doors Suite, in a program that also includes music by Brahms and Ravel.

Listen On Demand
 

 

Violinist Augustin Hadelich
Recorded in 2008 in 99.5 All Classical's Fraser Performance Studio, Augustin Hadelich performs Bartók's Sonata for solo violin, Sz. 117.




Listen On Demand
 



Violinist Lara St. John and Pianist Anton Kuerti at the Montreal Chamber Music Festival
Recorded on May 14, 2009, at St. James Church during the Montreal Chamber Music Festival, Lara St. John and Anton Kuerti perform Bartók's Rhapsody No. 2, Sz. 89, BB 96, written in 1928, part of a program that also includes music by Beethoven, Franck, Hindson, Ravel, and Liszt.

Listen On Demand
 

 
]]> Fri, 11 Feb 2011 12:59 PM +0000 <![CDATA[The Mix: Slow And Low Valentine Jams]]> http://www.wgbh.org//articles/The-Mix-Slow-And-Low-Valentine-Jams-1909 http://www.wgbh.org//articles/The-Mix-Slow-And-Low-Valentine-Jams-1909

What is a slow jam? Is it any down-tempo ballad that speaks to the emotional ups and downs of a romantic relationship? Is it an R&B song about falling in love? How about a soul song that details exactly how badly the singer needs someone in his or her life? Do breakup songs count? Where does heartbreak figure in? What about beats per minute? Or is the determination more about when and where (and with whom) you listen to the song in question?

We know a few things, to be sure. It would not be a slow-jam mix without D'Angelo or SWV's "Weak." Gerald Levert is a hero. Teddy Pendergrass, Lenny Williams and Chico Buarque are titans in this field. Tony Toni Tone. Anita Baker. Keith Sweat. Oh, it's on.

You could debate the definition of a slow jam for hours, and are welcome to do so in the comments section below. Or you could click the listen link above, call your special someone and just see what happens.

THE PLAYLIST
Michael Jackson, "Lady In My Life"
Teddy Pendergrass, "Love TKO"
Hall & Oates, "Sarah Smile"
Guy, "Piece Of My Love"
Earth Wind & Fire, "Can't Hide Love"
Radiohead, "No Surprises"
Guns & Roses, "November Rain"
Massive Attack, "Protection"
Luther Vandross, "Make Me A Believer"
SWV, "Weak"
Billy Joel, "Just The Way You Are"
DeBarge, "Love Me In A Special Way"
Prince, "Adore "
Lenny Williams, "Cause I Love You"
Hector Lavoe, "Que Lio"
Chico Buarque, "Eu Te Amo"
Janet Jackson, "Any Time, Any Place"
Destiny's Child, "Cater To U"
Mariah Carey, "Breakdown ft. Bone Thugs N Harmony"
R. Kelly, "Bump & Grind"
Esthero, "Thank Heaven For You"
Stevie Wonder, "Knocks Me Off My Feet"
Sade, "No Ordinary Love"
Tony Toni Tone, "Whatever You Want"
Paul McCartney & Wings, "Maybe I'm Amazed"
DeBarge, "I Like It"
Mazzy Star, "Blue Light"
Aerosmith, "Crazy"
Amy Winehouse, "(There Is) No Greater Love"
Frank Sinatra, "Strangers In The Night"
Foreigner, "Waiting For A Girl Like You"
Marvin Gaye, "I Want You"
Rick James & Teena Marie, "Fire & Desire"
Anita Baker, "Angel"
Lauryn Hill, "The Sweetest Thing"
The Foreign Exchange, "I Wanna Know"
Aaliyah, "At Your Best"
The Isley Brothers, "Footsteps In The Dark"
Art Of Noise, "Moments In Love"
Bob Marley, "Stir It Up"
Concha Buika, "No Habra Nadine En El Mundo"
Draco Rosa, "Obra de Arte"
Mayer Hawthorne, "A Strange Arrangement"
Maxwell, "Fortunate"
D'Angelo, "One Mo' Gin"
Mary J. Blige, "I'm Going Down"
TLC, "Red Light Special"
Player, "Baby Come Back"
Bobby Caldwell, "What You Won't Do For Love"
Raphael Saadiq, "Ask Of You"
LL Cool J, "I Need Love"
Bad Company, "Feel Like Making Love"
Alice Russell, "Hurry On Now"
Spandau Ballet, "True"
Al Green, "Love & Happiness"
Prince, "If I Was Your Girlfriend"
Atlantic Starr, "Always"
Usher, "U Got It Bad"
Ready For The World, "Love You Down"
Gerald Levert ft. Eddie Levert, "Baby Hold On To Me"
Jodeci, "Forever My Lady"
New Edition, "Can You Stand The Rain"
Whitney Houston, "You Give Good Love"
Keith Sweat ft. Jacci McGhee, "Make It Last Forever"
Ginuwine, "Pony"
Kanye West ft. Jamie Foxx & Twista, "Slow Jamz"
Boyz II Men, "End Of The Road"

]]> Wed, 09 Feb 2011 07:39 AM +0000 <![CDATA[My Favorites: Introspective Brahms and Soaring Gnattali]]> http://www.wgbh.org//articles/My-Favorites--Introspective-Brahms-and-Soaring-Gnattali-1869 ]]> http://www.wgbh.org//articles/My-Favorites--Introspective-Brahms-and-Soaring-Gnattali-1869 For the week of Valentine's Day, we'll be playing the music you love most, and in that spirit, here is the next in a series of what a few of us here at 99.5 All Classical love most.  Alice Abraham is our Music Librarian, responsible for a collection of over 90,000 individual recordings and books in support of the classical music we bring you 24 hours a day.

We hope these ideas prompt you to think through your favorites, which you can submit here!

Feb. 9

My favorite music Valentines features intense emotional dialogues for strings.

I was the youngest of four and was second fiddle in our family string quartet. Brahms’s Violin Sonata No. 1 in G, Op. 78, reminds me of my parents encouraging us to spread our wings and to be adventurous. But the melancholy woven throughout this work represents to me our loss and resignation when my sister disappeared/died on an expedition. Long ago I performed this sonata on my sister’s 1747 violin. The second movement is one of those rare occasions where Brahms borrowed a theme from one of his earlier works. The introspective Adagio quotes the rain motif from his song “Das Regenlied” Op. 59 No. 3.

In contrast, Radames Gnattali’s Sonata, written in 1969, is a vibrant and passionate dialogue for cello and guitar influenced by strong sonorities and rhythms found in Brazilian popular music. I’m so glad that cellist Maxine Neuman, one half of the Claremont Duo, introduced me to this work, which the duo included on a CD from Artek called “Histoires.” The first and third movements are especially inspirational, lifting you up, soaring and swirling with the wind through new adventures in life!

]]> Wed, 12 Jan 2011 15:47 PM +0000 <![CDATA[Music and Art: Louis Moreau Gottschalk & Fitz Henry Lane]]> http://www.wgbh.org//articles/Music-and-Art--Louis-Moreau-Gottschalk--Fitz-Henry-Lane-1561 .
]]> http://www.wgbh.org//articles/Music-and-Art--Louis-Moreau-Gottschalk--Fitz-Henry-Lane-1561 Pairing a piece of music with one of the pieces of art in the Museum of Fine Arts’ new Art of the Americas Wing, I’ve tried to find pairs that were created in the same year. Even when artists have vastly different sensibilities, there is inevitably a meaningful connection to be made.

The year is 1855, and the two artists come from very different circumstances. One of them was forced to stay in one place all his life; the other was famous for globetrotting.

The painter Fitz Henry Lane (1804-1865) lost the use of his legs before his second birthday. The paralysis was thought to have come from ingesting poisonous jimsonweed. He would never recover.

The musician Louis Moreau Gottschalk (1829-1869) became America’s first traveling virtuoso – a pianist/composer who did an unbelievable amount of touring. He gave uncountable concerts in Europe, Central America, South America and Cuba. Sometimes called the “Chopin of the Creoles,” he worked into his music the syncopations of Louisiana and the Caribbean, creating pieces that anticipated jazz and ragtime. His music really had little to do with Chopin’s, but his spectacular control of the instrument was caricaturized by images of a wild pianist with hundreds of flying fingers.

Fitz Henry Lane was born in Gloucester. While he could have followed in his father’s footsteps as a sail maker, his artistic talents bloomed early. He went to Boston and apprenticed as a lithographer, and then came back to Gloucester, where he designed a house and lived at Duncan’s Point until his death. It’s easy to feel his deep connection to the water. The 1855 painting “New York Harbor” radiates a rich and emotional glow with noble ships and a warm sunrise. There is a kind of reverence in his vision that makes the busy place seem serene.



While Lane was sitting still, mastering his evocative, signature marine style, composer/pianist Louis Moreau Gottschalk was taking the world by storm, giving concerts of his own music to adoring crowds. America’s first touring virtuoso became a sort of matinee idol, giving monster concerts, sometimes with up to 650 musicians! If you’re interested, the diaries of his travels are published and available. Notes of a Pianist: The Chronicles of a New Orleans Music Legend (Princeton University Press) tells his story masterfully. In one account he describes an unfortunate piano that he had to play in Panama: "The audience appears to be charmed, while I am playing on a cottage piano that I suspect was the product of an illicit union between a jew's-harp and a large kettle."

In 1855 Gottschalk wrote his famous piece “The Banjo”. Here are clips of Boston-based pianist Michael Lewin playing it, as well as the Mazurka “Souvenir de Lima”.

Gottschalk: The Banjo (excerpt)
Gottschalk: Souvenir de Lima (excerpt)

Let me know what you think! Please post a comment below.

(image courtesy of Museum of Fine Arts)

  ]]> Thu, 23 Dec 2010 16:33 PM +0000 <![CDATA[Top 10 Classical of 2010]]> http://www.wgbh.org/http://www.npr.org/blogs/deceptivecadence/2010/12/01/131673326/top-10-classical-albums-of-2010 ]]> http://www.wgbh.org/http://www.npr.org/blogs/deceptivecadence/2010/12/01/131673326/top-10-classical-albums-of-2010 ]]> Thu, 16 Dec 2010 14:33 PM +0000 <![CDATA[The Best Rock And Folk Of 2010]]> http://www.wgbh.org//articles/The-Best-Rock-And-Folk-Of-2010-1293 Stephen Thompson, editor and reviewer for NPR Music, and Steve Almond, author of Rock and Roll Will Save Your Life, share their favorite albums of the year. ]]> http://www.wgbh.org//articles/The-Best-Rock-And-Folk-Of-2010-1293 The music industry is a juggernaut, the Rock Band video game franchise is thriving, TV singing competitions like The Sing Off are scoring in the ratings, and—despite the near total disappearance of retail record stores—recorded albums continue to be released in droves.

NPR Music editor and reviewer Stephen Thompson and writer Steve Almond.

By some estimates, upwards of 100,000 albums were released in the United State this year alone. With nearly all of them available for download with the click of a mouse, it can be difficult to know where to start when it comes to new music. Stephen Thompson, editor and reviewer for NPR Music, and Steve Almond, author of Rock and Roll Will Save Your Life, help out by sharing their favorite albums of the year.

Stephen Thompson's Picks

Jonsi, Go
Though its name has become synonymous with atmospherically eccentric beauty, Sigur Ros has taken steps to find its quirky, joyful side in recent years. But it took a side project called Jonsi — technically a band led by singer Jon Thor Birgisson, who prefers not to be addressed as "Jonsi" — to dump out Birgisson's endlessly surprising toy-box of exhilarating ideas. Go showcases plenty of swirling ballads to balance out relentlessly ingratiating thrillers like "Go Do" and "Boy Lilikoi," but the net result is the year's most life-affirmingly sweet, unexpectedly sunny gem.




Horse Feathers, Thistled Spring
The first minute of Thistled Spring is as exquisitely lovely as any 60 seconds of music this year, and that's before Justin Ringle has begun lending his simultaneously comforting and disconcerted voice to the mix. If Horse Feathers' ingredients were listed in order of their prominence, strings and portent would be right at the top, but Ringle's soft croon keeps Thistled Spring grounded in genuine grace. He may sing of "a blossom that's bloomed / a house that's a tomb," but he's also peddling comfort food, to be washed down with an ice-cold glass of sweet tea.




Jeremy Messersmith, The Reluctant Graveyard
The phrase "worthy heir to the power-pop throne long held by Fountains of Wayne" and the phrase "concept album about death" don't usually appear in the same sentence, but here we are. Minneapolis singer-songwriter Jeremy Messersmith closes out his self-released "life-cycle trilogy" with an absolute corker of a record, full of songs that sparkle and shine while Messersmith examines the personae of dead gangsters, casket salesmen and others who traffic in life after life. But for goodness' sake, don't be put off by the concept: The Reluctant Graveyard is an immensely sweet string of infectious pop ringers. As colorfully as they shine, these songs could just as easily be about rainbows or suncatchers.




Titus Andronicus, The Monitor
It's been a great year for New Jersey rock 'n' roll, all suitable for blaring through car stereos on turnpikes. The Gaslight Anthem's American Slang is a terrific slab of Springsteenian odes to fading youth, but even better is The Monitor, Titus Andronicus' messy, monster sprawl of a concept album. Name-checking not only its favorite musicians — including Bruce Springsteen, naturally — but also the history of the Civil War, The Monitor finds room for back-to-back nine-minute anthems, a 14-minute album-closer and several historical speeches. All, of course, while rocking spectacularly.




The Heligoats, Goodness Gracious
The Heligoats' Chris Otepka doesn't write songs so much as he stuffs them with ideas until they brim over with imagination. Take "Fish Sticks," from the sublime Goodness Gracious: It's about a guy who escapes the day-to-day grind by building a biosphere in a swamp, only to learn that the swamp-dwellers view him as an outsider, too. As Otepka's intellectually curious observations whiz by, it takes a while to sink in that the singer has an awful lot to say about the way escape routes often lead back to where they began. Like his friend and frequent tour-mate Eef Barzelay — whose band Clem Snide also released a fine album in 2010 — Otepka has a way of writing sideways, so that the poignancy hits harder when it inevitably arrives.



See more of Stephen Thompson's favorite albums of 2010 on NPR Music

Steve Almond's Picks

Kim Taylor, Little Miracle (Don't Darling Me Records, 2010)
A record so good it reminded me of Patty Griffin's epic Living With Ghosts. It’s got the same haunted beauty—a woman with a guitar speaking straight to her demons. "Anchor Down" is to going to stay with you through the beautiful doom of autumn.




Gil Scott Heron, I'm New Here (XL Recordings, 2010)
The great unsung prophet of American music returns in triumph.




Drew Smith, Drew Smith's Lonely Choir (Fat Caddy Records, 2010)
A pop record so pure-hearted and lush you'll swear Van Morrison has taken an apprentice. Smith filters his soul music through the stringed instruments of Americana. His obvious pleasure in the obvious pleasure of hooks feels both old-fashioned and completely revolutionary.




Robbie Fulks, Happy (Boondoggle Records, 2010)
Fulks has been a world-class wisenheimer for years, a welcome antidote to the soggy cornpone of the Country Music Industrial Complex. Happy brings his shenanigans to its logical conclusion. It is composed entirely of ... Michael Jackson covers. They range from gorgeous traditional country ("Going Back to Indiana") to wiry swamp rock ("The Way You Make Me Feel"). Fulks is entirely reverential to the source material and, at the same time, able to find new magic inside the mishegas.




Boris McCutcheon, Wheel of Life (Cactusman, 2010)
Brother Boris keeps producing albums that make me and missus long for the days of our cross country drives. There's an endless quality to these songs, as if they've been around forever, waiting for you to find them. Meg Whitman should listen to "I Remember California" until she grows a legitimate soul.




 

]]> Sat, 27 Nov 2010 13:12 PM +0000 <![CDATA[A New Pergolesi Stabat Mater]]> http://www.wgbh.org//articles/A-New-Pergolesi-Stabat-Mater-1080 http://www.wgbh.org//articles/A-New-Pergolesi-Stabat-Mater-1080
Giovanni Battista Pergolesi died when he was only 26. 18th-century opera lovers were wild about his comic opera “La Serva Padrona” and a Pergolesi craze erupted after he succumbed to tuberculosis.

For a very long time, it was believed that he had managed to write some 320 works, until it was discovered that publishers had been printing pieces by obscure composers with Pergolesi’s name attached. In the end, there are only thirty-six that are certainly his.

One work that has profoundly affected people throughout these last 300 years (born in 1710, this is Pergolesi’s tricentennial year) is the Stabat Mater, written just before he died. There has been great temptation to imagine Pergolesi writing it on his deathbed, bringing up the similar and painful picture of Mozart and his Requiem. But it was apparently conceived in many stages, intended to be sung each Friday in Lent at the church of San Luigi di Palazzo in Naples.

The great philosopher/writer/composer Jean-Jacques Rousseau wrote: “The first movement of the Stabat Mater is the most perfect and most moving that has ever issued from the pen of any composer.”

The Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin has a new recording of the Stabat Mater and one of Pergolesi’s Salve Regina settings. The voices belong to soprano Anna Prohaska (left) and mezzo-soprano Bernarda Fink. We’ll hear some of it at 10am on Monday on New and Notable, as well as conductor Valery Gergiev’s recent release on the LSO Live label of music by Ravel with the London Symphony Orchestra.

(Visit ArkivMusic to purchase Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin's Stabat Mater and Gergiev's Ravel.)
]]> Wed, 24 Nov 2010 11:32 AM +0000 <![CDATA[WGBH Hosts Pick Their Holiday Favorites]]> http://www.wgbh.org//artsdrama/Hosts_Holiday_Picks_for_2010.cfm http://www.wgbh.org//artsdrama/Hosts_Holiday_Picks_for_2010.cfm ]]> Tue, 24 Aug 2010 13:34 PM +0000 <![CDATA[Center Stage]]> http://www.wgbh.org//programs/programDetail.cfm?programid=459 Center Stage with Jared Bowen, and see what other fans of the program are saying. ]]> http://www.wgbh.org//programs/programDetail.cfm?programid=459 ]]>