Podcasts about Oliver Knussen

How has the classical music industry approached representation and how has the new music community forged new paths to embrace diverse musics? On tonight's episode of Obbligato on APEX Express, Isabel Li is joined by violinist Shalini Vijayan, who discusses her vibrant career and reflects upon the ways contemporary classical music can build community.  Violinist Shalini Vijayan, deemed “a vibrant violinist” by Mark Swed of the Los Angeles Times is an established performer and collaborator on both coasts. Always an advocate for modern music, Shalini was a founding member and Principal Second Violin of Kristjan Jarvi's Absolute Ensemble, having recorded several albums with them including 2001 Grammy nominee, Absolution. Shalini was also a founding member of the Lyris Quartet, one of Los Angeles' most beloved chamber ensembles. With Lyris, she has performed regularly at Walt Disney Concert Hall on the Green Umbrella series, for Jacaranda Music and helped to found the Hear Now Music Festival in Venice, California, a festival dedicated to the music of living composers in Los Angeles.  Shalini performed for over a decade with Southwest Chamber Music and can be heard on their Grammy nominated Complete Chamber Works of Carlos Chávez, Vol. 3. She has been a featured soloist with the Los Angeles Master Chorale in Chinary Ung's Spiral XII and Tan Dun's Water Passion, including performances at the Ravinia Festival. As a chamber musician, Shalini has collaborated with such luminaries as Billy Childs, Chinary Ung, Gabriela Ortiz, and Wadada Leo Smith on whose Ten Freedom Summers she was a soloist. Shalini joined acclaimed LA ensemble, Brightwork New Music in 2019 and also serves as the curator for Brightwork's Tuesdays@Monkspace series, a home for contemporary music and performance in Los Angeles. As a teacher, she has been on the faculty of the Nirmita Composers Workshop in both Siem Reap and Bangkok and coaches composition students through the Impulse New Music Festival.  Shalini received her B.M. and M.M. degrees from Manhattan School of Music as a student of Lucie Robert and Ariana Bronne. As a member of the New World Symphony in Miami Beach, Florida, Shalini served as concertmaster for Michael Tilson Thomas, John Adams, Reinbert de Leeuw and Oliver Knussen. She was also concertmaster for the world premiere performances and recording of Steven Mackey's Tuck and Roll for RCA records in 2000. Shalini was a member of the Pacific Symphony Orchestra for ten seasons and also served as Principal Second Violin of Opera Pacific. She lives in Los Angeles with her son, husband and two dogs and spends her free time cooking Indian food and exploring the culinary landscape of Southern California.  Check out more of her work at:  https://brightworknewmusic.com/tuesdays-at-monk-space/  https://www.lyrisquartet.com/    Transcript  Opening: [00:00:00] Apex Express Asian Pacific expression. Community and cultural coverage, music and calendar, new visions and voices, coming to you with an Asian Pacific Islander point of view. It's time to get on board the APEX Express.    00:01:03 Isabel Li  You're listening to Obbligato, which is a segment about the Asian American Pacific Islander community, specifically in classical music.  00:01:11 Isabel Li  I'm your host, Isabel Li, and today joining me is Shalini Vijayan, who is a violinist, established performer, and always an advocate for modern music.  00:01:21 Isabel Li  Shalini is also a founding member of the Lyris Quartet, one of Los Angeles most beloved chamber ensembles. With Lyris, she has performed regularly at Walt Disney Concert Hall on the Green Umbrella series for Jacaranda Music, and helped to found the Here and Now Music Festival in Venice, California, a festival dedicated to the music of living composers in Los Angeles. She joined acclaimed LA ensemble Brightwork New Music in 2019, and also serves as the curator for Brightwork's Tuesdays at Monk Space series. She currently lives in Los Angeles with her son, husband and two dogs, and spends her free time cooking Indian food and exploring the culinary landscape of Southern California.  00:02:04 Isabel Li  Well, Shalini, thank you so much for joining me in this conversation today.  00:02:09 Shalini Vijayan  I'm so happy to be with you.  00:02:11 Isabel Li  Awesome. I'd like to just get to know you and your story. How do you identify and what communities do you consider yourself a part of?  00:02:18 Shalini Vijayan  I use the pronouns she, her, and I. Um, I identify as South Asian. I grew up in an Indian family. My parents immigrated to the US in the sixties to teach at medical school. And I grew up with a great deal of Indian culture. And I've spent a lot of time going back and forth to India from the time that I was very young. You know, it's interesting because I feel like in LA, where I live and work specifically, there is so much overlap between all of our different musical communities. You know, I went to school in New York, and I feel like there I was much more, I'm very connected to the new music community in New York and felt really kind of entrenched in that at the time I was there. And after coming to LA, I realized that, um, there are a lot of musicians doing so many different things. That's one of the things I love about Los Angeles, actually. And, you know, I'm definitely very, very rooted in the new music community in LA. And that was where I made my first sort of connections when I first moved to Los Angeles. But I also, you know, worked in an orchestra when I first came to LA. I played in the Pacific Symphony for almost ten seasons, and so I became a part of that community as well. And you know, as the years went on, I also became much more involved in the studio music community of LA studio musicians playing on movie scores, playing on television shows, records, what have you, Awards shows, all sorts of things. And these are all very distinct communities in LA in music. But I see a ton of overlap between all of them. There are so many incredibly versatile musicians in Los Angeles that people are able to really very easily move from one of these groups to the other and, you know, with a great deal of success. And I feel like it gives us so much variety in our lives as musicians in LA, you don't feel like you're ever just in one lane. You can really occupy all these different kinds of spaces.  00:04:23 Isabel Li  Right, yeah. So you're classically trained, from what I know, and you describe yourself as an advocate for modern music. So why modern music?  00:04:33 Shalini Vijayan  That's a great question. I have have had to answer this question quite a bit over the years, especially to non-musicians. And it's always an interesting story for me. You know, as a violinist in particular, you know, we have such a storied history of repertoire and pedagogy, and there is such an incredible, um, library of music that we have access to from the very standard classical repertoire. And there is a great deal to be learned about the instrument and about music from playing all that repertoire. I think at some point when I was in high school, I started to become interested in more modern music. And actually I grew up in Davis in Northern California.   My parents both taught at the university there, at the medical school and in Sacramento. Nearby there was a festival of modern American music that I think still goes on to this day at Cal State University, Sacramento. And it was really a great festival. And at that time, you know, they would bring professional artists, they'd have composers, they'd have commissions, all sorts of things. But at the time that I was like in high school, they also had a junior division to the festival, and I was asked to play a couple pieces in the Festival of, um, Modern Works, and I can't remember at this time what the pieces were, but it left such a huge impression on me. And I think what I really took away from that experience as a kid is that in my studies as a violinist, I was always being asked to sort of live up to this history and this legacy of violin music and violin playing in Western classical music. And it's a very high bar. And it's, um, you know, of course, there's so much great stuff there. But there was something so freeing about playing this music that had either never been played or not been recorded. So there was nothing to reference in terms of listening to a recording, um, and listening to how you, you know, quote, should be playing it that it made me feel, uh, you know, all this, this freedom to really interpret the music, how I felt, rather than feeling like I had to live up to a standard that had been set for me, you know, decades or centuries before. And I think that really something really clicked for me with that, that I wanted to have that kind of freedom when I, when I was playing. And so from there on out, um, you know, when I went to college and I really sought out opportunities in new music as much as I could.  00:07:00 Isabel Li  So you were first exposed to new music when you were in high school. Did that influence your decision to become a musician at all? Or were you already set on becoming a musician and that was just part of what shaped your works over the years.  00:07:15 Shalini Vijayan  I think by that time, I had already decided that I wanted to be a musician. I mean, as you know, so many of us as musicians and I think particularly string players, we decide so young because we start our instruments at such a young age and we start studying so early. Um, that I think by that time I, I had decided I wanted to do music, but this sort of opened another door for me that made me realize that it wasn't just one path in music necessarily. I think it's very easy as a, as a kid and as a violinist to think you admire these great soloists that you see and, you know, people like Perlman and, you know, Isaac Stern, who were the stars of the time when I was growing up. But, you know, you get to be in high school and you realize that hasn't happened yet. It's probably not going to happen. And so, you know, what's then then what's your path forward? How do you find a life in music if you're not going to be one of these stars? And I think, you know, new music really opened up that opportunity for me. And yeah, made me look at things a little differently for sure.  00:08:18 Isabel Li  And currently you're in the contemporary classical music ensemble, Brightwork newmusic, and you curate the ensemble's concert series, Tuesdays @ Monk Space. So how do you go about curating concerts with music by contemporary or living composers? What do you look for?  00:08:33 Shalini Vijayan  Well, right now I'm really focused on trying to represent our new music community in LA at Monk Space, which is such, you know, we have such a diverse community of musicians, not just in the makeup of who the people are making the music or writing the music, but also in just the styles of music. And so I think I try to really represent a very diverse set of aesthetics in our season. Um, you know, everything from, you know, last season we had, uh, Niloufar Shiri, who is a traditional Persian kamancheh player, but she also she can play very in a very traditional way, but she also plays with a jazz pianist. And, you know, it does all this very improvisatory stuff. And, you know, then we would have other programs where everything is very much written out and very through, composed and you know, it's been a very wide variety. And, you know, when I try to build the season, I try to make sure that it's really balanced in terms of, you know, the different types of things you'll be hearing because not every audience member is going to want to engage with every type of music. Um, or, you know, if we if we really stuck to one style and it was just in that language for the whole season, then I feel like we would, you know, alienate potential audience members. But with this, I feel like if we can bring people in for one concert and they're really into it, then hopefully they'll come to something else that is new and different for them and be exposed to something that they may really get into after that. So yeah, I think diversity and variety is really where I try to start from.  00:10:09 Isabel Li  How does that engage the community? Have you observed audience reception to this type of new music when there are composers from all different types of backgrounds?  00:10:20 Shalini Vijayan  Yeah, definitely. I mean, I think that each composer and each artist brings their own community into the space, which and so that's another. I feel like another strong reason why I try to make things very different from concert to concert. And, you know, we have some younger players who come in and bring in, you know, everyone from college students to, you know, their friends and family. And then, you know, really established composers. Like this season we have Bill Roper, who is kind of a legend in the music community in LA. Mult instrumentalist and composer who has been around for decades. And, you know, I think people will come out just because they want to see him and he's such a draw. And, um, you know, I, I also would love to be able to incorporate more world music into the series. Like I said, we did do Niloufar concert, which I felt like I really hoped would like engage with the Persian community in LA as well. And a couple seasons ago we had Rajna Swaminathan, who is, I just think, an incredible artist. Um, she plays mridangam, which is a South Indian percussion instrument, but she also writes for Western instruments, uh, and herself. And we had her and a pianist and then Ganavya, who's a vocalist who's amazing. And, you know, Ganavya had her own following. So we had and Rajna has her own following. So we had a whole full audience that night of people who I had never seen in the space before. And that was for me. That's a success because we're bringing in new friends and new engagement. And, um, I was really excited about that. When I'm able to make those kinds of connections with new people, then that feels like a success to me.  00:12:05 Isabel Li  Certainly.  00:12:06 Isabel Li  Let's hear one of Shalini's performances. This is an excerpt from the 10th of William Kraft's “Encounters”, a duologue for violin and marimba, performed here by Shalini Vijayan with Southwest Chamber Music.  00:12:20 [MUSIC – Encounters X: Duologue for Violin & Marimba]  00:17:18 Isabel Li  An excerpt from William Kraft's Encounters, the 10th of which is called Duologue for Violin and Marimba, that was performed by Shalini Vijayan, the violinist, with Southwest Chamber Music.  00:17:31 Isabel Li  And Shalini is here with me in conversation today. We've been discussing contemporary music and her involvement in the new music scene, specifically in Los Angeles.  00:17:40 Isabel Li  Music is all about community, drawing people together. So going back to how you describe yourself as an advocate for modern music, what are other ways that you have advocated for modern music besides curating the concert series?  00:17:53 Shalini Vijayan  Well, over the years, um, you know, I feel like in all the ensembles I've been in, there's been a real focus on commissioning composers and on performing works that have not been, uh, either performed or recorded before. And I feel like the only way to really get the music out there is to, obviously, is to play it and hopefully to be able to record it. We've worked especially with the lyrics quartet. We've worked with so many young composers in LA either just strictly, you know, contemporary classical composers or even film composers who, um, have works that they'd like to have recorded. And, you know, it's been great to see a lot of those people go on to really amazing things and to be a part of their journey, uh, and to help support them. And, uh, the other thing that the quartet has been heavily involved in and now Bright Work Ensemble has been involved in as well, is the Here Now music festival, which has been going on in LA for well over a decade now. We were involved in the first, um, seasons of that festival. We've been one of the resident ensembles since the very beginning, and that festival is dedicated to the music of LA and Southern California composers. And, um, we have a call for scores every year that we, the four of us in the quartet, are part of the panel that reviews all the scores, along with a lot of our other colleagues, um, who are involved with the festival, and Hugh Levick, who is the artistic director of the festival and has we've worked side by side with him on this for a very long time. And that's also been a fantastic avenue for, um, meeting new composers, hearing new works, having them performed. And the thing I always say about that festival every time it comes around, usually in the spring we have at least three concerts. It's this incredible coming together of the new music community in Southern California, where all these great composers and all these amazing players come together and play these series of concerts, because there's such a vast number of pieces that end up getting programmed. They can't rely on just like one group or one or two groups to play them. So it really pulls in a lot of players from all over town. And I don't know, it always just feels like a really fun time, a fun weekend for all of us to see each other and connect. And, um, and again, just build our community to be even stronger.  00:20:20 Isabel Li  That's really cool. How do you ignite interest in new music? Because this is a genre that I think is slightly underrepresented or just underrepresented in general in both the classical music community and the music industry as a whole.  00:20:35 Shalini Vijayan  That's a great question, and I think it's a really important question for our whole industry and community. How do you engage people in new music and get them into a concert? Um, you know, I think one of the biggest hurdles for classical music in general, I will say, um, when I talk to people about why they don't want to come to a concert or why they don't want to, you know, let's say, go see the LA Phil or, you know, wherever, whatever city they're in, the major cultural music institution. I think there is a misconception generally that, oh, it's, you know, I have to be dressed a certain way or I it's going to be really stuffy. And, um, I, you know, I don't know what to wear or I don't know how I'm supposed to dress or how I'm supposed to act when I'm in the concert. Am I going to clap at the wrong time? You know, is it going to be really long? And, you know, and I and I get it, you know, I mean, I understand why that would be uncomfortable for a lot of people.   And it's not, um, it's something that necessarily everyone has grown up with or that it's been a part of their life. So I think it's really up to us, as you know, when we're on the side of programming concerts or putting together festivals or whatever, um, that we make things more accessible in terms of, um, concert length and interaction with audience. And, um, you know, I think it's I know I've been told so many times and I really think it's important that I think audiences love it when performers talk to them, when they talk about the music and, and set things up for a listener. I think that puts a kind of context on things that makes it so much easier for perhaps a new audience member, someone who's never come to a concert before to feel at ease and feel like, okay, I know what I'm getting into.   One of our, actually our former executive director at Brightwork, Sarah Wass, who was fantastic, and I was very happy to work with when I was just starting out programming, Monk Space had the idea of putting on the program the running time of the pieces, and I think even that is just something that, like, can prepare people for what they're getting into when they're about to listen to something new. And in terms of the music itself, I think that if someone, especially a younger person, doesn't feel like they have any connection to Beethoven or Brahms or Mozart, they might actually feel more connected to someone who is their age or a little older.   Someone who has had similar life experiences to them, or grown up in the same era as them, rather than someone who grew up, you know, in the seventeen hundreds. You know, there can be more of a real connection there, and that that person is writing this music and reflection of their life and their experiences. And, um, you know, again, I think that kind of context is important for a listener. And yeah. And then just lastly, I would say also, I feel like our space at Monk space is very inviting. It's very low key. It's, um, you know, it's casual, it's comfortable. Role. Um, we have, you know, snacks and a bar and, you know, everyone is very relaxed at intermission and has a good time. And I mean, for me, every time we host one of those concerts, I feel like I'm hosting a little party, you know? That's what it feels like for me. And that's what I want it to feel like for the audience as well.  00:23:52 Isabel Li  That brings up a really good point in that new music can make classical music or a new classical music, contemporary music, more accessible to different audiences. And certainly I've definitely heard the complaint from people over the years about classical music being a little too uptight. Would you say that these are two different genres?  00:24:11 Shalini Vijayan  I think that there is overlap, and I think, you know, for an ensemble like ours, like Brightwork, we have chosen to make our focus new music. So that's our thing. That's what we do. Um, and, uh, all of our concerts and our programming reflect that. Very rarely do we do anything that's not considered a contemporary piece. Um, but, you know, if you do look at some of our major institutions, like I think the LA Phil and I think the San Francisco Symphony, um, earlier, you know, like in the nineties under MTT, really started to pave the way for incorporating contemporary music into a standard classical format. And, you know, I think that's been very important. And I think it's really changed the way that orchestras have programmed across the country. And there has been such a nurturing of contemporary music in larger spaces. Now that I think that kind of overlap has started to happen much more frequently. I think that in more conservative settings, sometimes there's pushback against that. And even even, you know, in some of the places that I play, you know, sometimes with with the lyrics quartet, um, we are asked to just purely program standard classical repertoire, and we will occasionally throw in a little short piece, you know, just to try and put something in there, you know, something that's very accessible. Um, and, uh, you know that we know the audience will like so that we can help them, you know, kind of get over that fear of connecting to a newer piece. And I, I think in some ways, that's where the path forward lies, is that we have to integrate those things, you know, in order to keep kind of the old traditions of classical music alive. I think we have to keep the newer tradition alive as well, and find a way to put them in the same space.  00:26:00 Isabel Li  I certainly agree with that.  00:26:01 Isabel Li  Let's hear more of Shalini's work in new music. This is a performance of the first movement of Atlas Pumas by Gabriela Ortiz. Violinist Shalini Vijayan is joined by percussionist Lynn Vartan.  00:26:18 [MUSIC – Atlas Pumas, mvt 1 by Gabriela Ortiz]  00:29:21 Isabel Li  The first movement of Gabriela Ortiz's Atlas Pumas played here by violinist Shalini Vijian, and Lynn Vartan plays the marimba.  00:29:30 Isabel Li  And Shalini is actually joining us here for a conversation about new music, performances, identity, and representation.  00:29:38 Isabel Li  Many Asian American Pacific Islander artists in music have varying relationships between their art and their identity. I was wondering, to what extent do you feel that perhaps your South Asian identity intersects or influences the work that you do with music?  00:29:54 Shalini Vijayan  Growing up, um, you know, I grew up in a in a university town in Northern California and, you know, a lot of highly educated and, you know, kids of professors and, you know, but still not the most terribly diverse place. And then going into classical music. And this was, you know, in the early nineties when I went to college, um, it still was not a particularly it was very much not a diverse place at all. And, um, there certainly were a lot of Asian students at, um, Manhattan School of Music where I did my my studies.   But I would say it was a solid decade before I was ever in any sort of classical music situation where there was another South Asian musician. I very, very rarely met any South Asian musicians, and it wasn't until I went to the New World Symphony in the early late nineties, early two thousand, and I was a musician there. I was a fellow in that program there for three years that I walked into the first rehearsal, and there were three other South Asian, I think, of Indian descent musicians in the orchestra, and I was absolutely blown away because I literally had not, um, other than here and there at some festivals, I had not met any other South Asian classical musicians.   So it was really like that was the hallmark moment for me. It was a really big deal. And coming with my family, coming from India, you know, there is such a strong tradition of Indian classical music, of Carnatic music and Hindustani music. And, um, it's such a long, long tradition. And, you know, the people who have studied it and lived with it are, you know, they study it their whole lives to be proficient in it. And it's such an incredible, incredible art form and something that I admire so much. And I did as a kid. Take a few lessons here and there. I took some Carnatic singing lessons, um, and a little bit of tabla lessons when I was very young. Um, but I think somewhere in middle school or high school, I kind of realized that it was, for me at least, I wasn't, um, able to put enough time into both because both of them, you know, playing the violin in a Western classical style and then studying Indian classical music require a tremendous amount of effort and a tremendous amount of study. And I at that point chose to go with Western classical music, because that's what I'd been doing since I was five years old. But there has always kind of been this longing for me to be more connected to Indian classical music. Um, I'll go back again to Rajna. When I presented Rajna Swaminathan on Monk Space a couple of years ago, it was a really meaningful thing for me, because that's kind of what I'd always wanted to see was a joining together of that tradition, the Indian tradition with the Western tradition. And, um, I'm so happy that I'm starting to see that more and more with a lot of the artists that are coming up now. But at the time when I was young, it just it felt almost insurmountable that to to find a way to bring the two together. And, um, I remember very clearly as a kid listening to this, um, there was an album that Philip Glass did with Ravi Shankar, and I thought that was so cool at the time. And I used to listen to it over and over again because I just again, I was so amazed that these things could come together and in a, in a kind of successful way. Um, but yeah, there is, you know, there there's a part of me that would still love to go back and explore that more that, that side of it. Um, and but I will say also, I'm very happy now to see a lot more South Asian faces when I, you know, go to concerts on stage and in the audience. And, you know, a lot of composers that I've worked with now, um, of South Asian descent, it's been, you know, I've worked with Reena Esmail and Anuj Bhutani and Rajna and, um, there's so many more, and I'm so glad to see how they're all incorporating their connection to their culture to, to this, you know, Western kind of format of classical music. And they're all doing it in different ways. And it's it's really amazing.  00:34:22 Isabel Li  That's fantastic.  00:34:24 Isabel Li  I was wondering if you could maybe describe what this merging or combination of different styles entails. Do you think this makes it more accessible to audiences of two different cultures?  00:34:36 Shalini Vijayan  For me, one example, before I started running the series at Tuesdays at Monk Space, Aron Kallay, who is our Bright Work artistic director, had asked me to come and do a solo show on Monk Space, which I did in November of 2019.  00:34:52 Shalini Vijayan  And at the time, I wanted to commission a piece that did exactly that, that, that, um, involved some sort of Indian classical instrument or kind of the language of Indian classical music. And so I actually did reach out to Reena Esmail, and she wrote me a very cool piece called blaze that was for tabla and violin. Um, and I really had so much fun doing that. And Reena, Reena really has a very fluid way of writing for the violin, which she actually was a violinist, too. So she's she's really good at doing that. But being able to write for any melodic instrument or for the voice, which she does quite a bit as well, and incorporating sort of the tonality of Indian classical music, which obviously has its own scales and, um, has its own harmonic, harmonic world that is different from the Western world, um, but finds a way to translate that into the written note notation that we require as, uh, Western classical musicians. And, you know, I think that's the biggest gap to bridge, is that in Indian classical music, nothing is notated. Everything is handed down in an oral tradition, um, over the generations. And for us, everything is notated. And in Indian classical music, you know, there's much more improvisation. And now, of course, with modern classical music, there now is a lot more improvisation involved. But in our old standard tradition, obviously there isn't. And in the way that we're trained, mostly we're not trained to be improvisers. And um, so it's it was great. She has a great way of writing so that it kind of sounds like things are being tossed off and sounding sounds like they're being improvised, but they are actually fully notated, um, which I really appreciated.  00:36:50 Isabel Li  Yeah.  00:36:51 Isabel Li  So your career has spanned orchestras, recording ensembles, chamber music. Having had so much experience in these types of performance, what does representation in classical music mean to you?  00:37:04 Shalini Vijayan  Well, representation is is very important because we're talking about a tradition that was built on white men from centuries ago, European white men. And and it's again, it's an incredible tradition and there's so much great repertoire. But I'm going to circle back to what you were saying or what you asked me about connecting to audiences and, you know, connecting to audiences with new music. It's I think people like to see themselves reflected in the art that they choose. They choose to consume. And, you know, whether that's movies or television or music, I think that's how you connect with your audience is by being a bit of a mirror.  I think the only way that we can really continue to connect with a diverse audience is by having that type of diverse representation on our stages and on our recordings. And again, also not just the people, but the types of music, too. You know, musical tastes run wide, genres run wide as well. And it's I think It's good for all of us to be exposed to a lot of different kinds of music, to figure out what we connect with the most. And, um, yeah, the only way we can do that is by really, you know, opening our arms to a, a much wider variety of styles of music. And so I, you know, I mentioned improvisation, improvisation earlier. And I think that is something that's now starting to happen so much more in modern classical music. And, you know, I think there's something about the energy that a player has when they're improvising that is maybe not something that an audience member could quantify verbally, but there's a looseness and a freedom there that I think, you know, for a lot of audience members, they probably really can connect to. And, you know, that's a lot of why people go and listen to jazz is because there's so much freedom and there's so much improvisation.   I've been very lucky to be able to work with, um, Wadada Leo Smith, who's a trumpet player and composer. I've worked with him for probably almost ten years now. And um, through Wadada, actually, I have learned to become much more comfortable with improvising on stage and not within a jazz language of any kind or any kind of harmonic structure necessarily, but within the language of his music, which is very unique and very open and very free and, um, but also has a really strong core in its connection to history. And, um, you know, he's written a lot of amazing works about the civil rights movement and about a lot of, you know, important moments in history for our country. And, um, that's been a real learning experience for me to connect with him in that, in that way and learn from him and learn to be more comfortable with improvisation. Because I think growing up, improvisation for me always meant jazz, and that was not a language I was comfortable in. And um, or even, you know, jazz or rock music or folk music or whatever, you know, it was just not something that came naturally to me as a kid to, I mean, I listened to all of it. I listened to everything when I was a kid, but I never played in any of those styles. And I think the older you get, the scarier it gets to start branching out in those ways. But, um, I think, uh, that's been a an incredible, like, new branch of my life in the last decade has been working with Wadada.  [MUSIC – “Dred Scott, 1857,” from Ten Freedom Summers, by Wadada Leo Smith]  00:42:23 Isabel Li  An excerpt of Wadada Leo Smith's music to give you a sense of the jazz influences in these types of contemporary new music pieces that also touch on pieces of history. This was an excerpt from his album, Ten Freedom Summers, which also consists of compositions based on pieces of American history. For example, what we just heard was from a piece called Dred Scott, 1857.  00:42:49 Isabel Li  Now that I realize that we've been having a conversation about new music, I realize that, hmm, when does new music really start? So if you take a look at maybe music history, when does new music really become new music?  00:43:07 Shalini Vijayan  I guess it depends on who you ask, probably. Um, it's it's pretty recent. You know, it has to be really legitimately pretty new. And, um, again, you know, if you ask an audience member, um, and I think of some of my friends or family who are maybe who are not musicians who come to concerts, and I'm always so interested in talking to them and hearing their opinions about things. Um, you know, they will listen to Bartok and say, oh, that sounds like new music to me. But, you know, Bartok, Bartok passed away a long time ago, and it's, you know, and for me, that's more like canon now. You know, that's like now for me, part of the the standard repertoire. But there was a time when Bartok was new music. And I think for, you know, maybe the listeners who are more comfortable with the very diatonic, you know, world of Beethoven, Brahms, Mozart, then something like Bartok really does sound so modern for me. Boy, maybe around the time that minimalism started, you know, John Adams and Steve Reich, Terry Riley, Philip Glass, all of that for me feels like maybe that's the older like the The edge of new music now even though that was that would be the eighties, probably seventies 80s, you know, but that we're talking about like, you know, fifty years ago. So yeah, I mean, it's not that new, but those are all still living composers. So maybe, maybe that's part of what it is for me is that it's the composers of our era, the composers who are alive, who we can communicate with and ask questions of. And, um, you know, at the very least, if you can't talk to John Adams, you can talk to somebody who has worked directly with him and get their impressions of how something should be played, um, as opposed to composers who have been gone for hundreds of years. And you can't have that level of communication with them. I think that, for me is what new music, new music is about. It's about working with living composers and, um, having that type of interaction.  00:45:15 Isabel Li  Yeah. So would the word or the phrase contemporary classical music, be a little oxymoronic in a sense?  00:45:26 Shalini Vijayan  No, I don't think so. I think it's still part of the same tradition. Um, yeah. I really do think it is, because I think there is a lineage there. Um, for a lot of composers, not all of them, um, that I mean, I think particularly if you're writing for, let's say, an orchestra or a string quartet or sort of one of these very standard classical ensembles. Um, even if you're writing in a very new language and you're writing in a very different way, I think there is still a through line to the canon of classical music. I guess for me, new music and classical music are not mutually exclusive. I think they can be the same. So I don't I don't think they're totally different. I think that there is a lot of a lot of overlap.  00:46:16 Isabel Li  For sure, considering how new music fits into the classical music or the classical music industry as a whole. Have you noticed any sorts of shifts in the classical music industry in the past several decades in regards to diversity, equity, inclusion? And have you just noticed any changes?  00:46:35 Shalini Vijayan  I have noticed some changes. I mean, I think that most organizations in this country are making an effort to be more inclusive in their programming now. And, um, you know, another another South Asian composer who I just think is fantastic is Nina Shekhar. And, um, she has had pieces played by the New York Phil for the last couple seasons. I mean, you know, so on on major, major stages, I feel like now I'm seeing more representation and that is definitely Encouraging and, um, you know, uh, same for Anuj and Rajna and Reena. They've all, you know, had their works done by major ensembles. And, um, I think I think there is definitely movement in that direction, for sure. I think it could always be more.   I think also for women and women composers, women performers, I think that has also always been a struggle to find enough representation of women composers and you know, especially if like as I mentioned before, when you're in a situation where an organization asks you to program a concert, like, let's say, for our quartet and wants much more standard repertoire than it does limit you, you know, how because there isn't much from the older canon. You know, there is. You know, there's Fanny Mendelssohn and Clara Schumann and, um, you know, I think in the last five to ten years they've both been played a lot more, which is great. But, you know, I think, uh, there's so many amazing female composers right now that I think are starting to get much more recognition. And I think that just needs to be more, more and more, um, but, uh, you know, that is why, again, like on those programs, sometimes we try to just sneak one modern piece in because it's important for those voices to be heard as well. But yes, I do see some forward movement in that direction with, um, classical programming. And, you know, you just have to hope that the intent is always genuine in those situations. And I think, um, you know, I think that's the most important thing. And giving a platform to those voices is really important.  00:48:59 Isabel Li  How would you go about arts advocacy during this current time when, well, the arts are being defunded and devalued by our current administration and how everything is going on right now?  00:49:10 Shalini Vijayan  Yeah, it's really, really difficult right now. And, um, you know, I think a lot of arts organizations are losing a lot of government funding. Obviously, I know of a couple projects that lost their NEA funding because of DEI, and which is so disheartening. And, um, I think, you know, there's going to be a lot of leaning on private donors to try and, uh, make up that difference or, you know, private foundations to make up the difference in funding, hopefully. And, um, uh, you know, it's yeah, it's scary. It's  a scary time. And I think, you know, even for private funding and, um, private donors, it's, you know, everyone is feeling stressed and feeling concerned about our future right now, just as a country. and there's so much uncertainty. And, um, but I think people who really rely on the arts for all the things that it can provide, you know, an escape and pleasure and, you know, stimulation of a different kind. And especially in a time like this, when you want to be able to get away from maybe what's going on around you, you know, I'm hoping we can find a way to really come together and, um, kind of, you know, rally around each other and find a way to support each other. But, um, I think it is going to be hard for the next few years if we can't find ways to replace that funding that so many people have lost. And I certainly don't think that anyone wants to back away from the progress that's been made with inclusion and representation, you know, just to get funding. So I know we have to be very creative with our path ahead and find a way to, to keep doing what we're doing in this current environment.  00:51:07 Isabel Li  Yeah, on a brighter note, I read about your work with Lyris Quartet earlier this year when you presented a concert with Melodia Mariposa called Altadena Strong with the Lyris Quartet, raising funds for those who have been affected by the LA fires. Can you talk a bit about the power of music? And we're going to end on a stronger note here about the power of music in bringing communities together and accelerating community healing.  00:51:31 Shalini Vijayan  Well, I have to say that concert was really a special one for us. You know, um, so many musicians were affected by the fires in LA. And, you know, I, I've lived in LA for over twenty years now, almost twenty five years and, um, certainly seen my share of wildfires and disasters, but this one hit so much more close to home than any of the other ones have. And, you know, I know at least twenty five people who lost their homes in between the Palisades and Altadena and Altadena in particular.   When I moved to LA, it was a place where a lot of musicians were moving to because you could it was cheaper and you could get a lot of space, and it's beautiful. And, you know, they really built a beautiful community there among all the musicians out there. And it's just heartbreaking, um, to see how many of them have lost everything. And I have to say, Irina Voloshina, who is the woman who runs Melodia Mariposa, and just an amazing violinist and an amazing, wonderful, warm, generous person. You know, she started that series in her driveway during COVID as a way to just keep music going during the pandemic, and it really turned into something so great. And she's, you know, got a whole organization with her now and puts on multiple concerts a year. And when she asked us if we would play that concert for the community in Altadena is, you know, there's no question that we were going to do it. I mean, we absolutely jumped at the chance to support her and support the organization and that community. And people really came out for that concert and were so excited to be there and were so warm and, um, you know, and and she talked to the crowd and really connected with everybody on a very personal level, because she also lost her home in Altadena and, um, you know, it was it was a really meaningful show for all of us. And again, those are the moments where you realize that you can use this art to really connect with people that you may have never met before and show your your love for them, you know, through music, as corny as that may sound, but it's true.  00:53:54 Isabel Li  Yeah, definitely. Well, thank you so much, Shalini, for sharing your visions, your knowledge with new music and community building with us today. Thank you so much for being on Obbligato.  00:54:07 Shalini Vijayan  Thank you so much for having me, Isabel. It was really a pleasure.  00:54:10 Isabel Li  What a wonderful conversation that was with LA-based violinist Shalini Vijayan. If you go to kpfa.org, you can check out more of her work. I put the links to two of her ensembles, Brightwork New Music and Lyris Quartet up on kpfa.org. And thank you for listening to our conversation here on Obbligato on Apex Express.  00:54:32 Isabel Li  We thank all of you listeners out there. Keep resisting, keep organizing, keep creating, and sharing your visions with the world. Your voices are important.  00:54:42 Isabel Li  APEX Express is produced by Miko Lee, Jalena Keane-Lee, Preeti Mangala Shekar, Anuj Vaidya, Swati Rayasam, and Cheryl Truong. Tonight's show was produced by Isabel Li. Thanks to the team at KPFA for their support. Have a great night.  [OUTRO MUSIC]  The post APEX Express – 11.13.25 – Obbligato with Violinist Shalini Vijayan appeared first on KPFA.

The composer, academic and writer Robin Holloway has just published a new book, Music's Odyssey, An Invitation to Western Classical Music (Allen Lane). He's Emeritus Professor of Music at the University of Cambridge, where James Jolly went to visit him a couple of weeks ago to talk about the book's genesis and aims. The podcast features an excerpt from Holloway's Second Concerto for Orchestra played by the BBC SO conducted by Oliver Knussen on NMC which won Gramophone's Contemporary Music Award in 1994, and also one from Hans Werner Henze's Undine, played by the London Sinfonietta, also conducted by Oliver Knussen on DG.

Greetings! This week's audio stew consists of some more recent thrift store goodies, new releases & a couple of tracks buried on my hard drive. Enjoy! Joel e-mail: pushingtheenvelopewhus@gmail.com Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/envpusher1.bsky.social      9-13-25 PTE Playlist   Rain Spell (1982) - The London Sinfonietta, cond. Oliver Knussen / composer: Toru Takemitsu - Riverun, Water-ways, etc. - Virgin Classics (1991)    Piwal 5 - composer: Putu Septa / gamelan ensemble: Nata Swara - Piwal - Other Minds Records (2025) https://othermindsrecords.bandcamp.com/album/piwal   Descending Moonshine Dervishes - Terry Riley / Don Cherry / Karl Berger - Köln – February 23, 1975 - unofficial release https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i6449e2LsUI    Wand Arise - Wet Tuna - In the Running 3 - Wet Tuna / DUNZA (split single) - I Heart Noise (2025) https://iheartnoise.bandcamp.com/album/ihn010-in-the-running-3-wet-tuna-dunza    Habibon - SANAM - Sametou Sawtan (I Heard A Voice) - Constellation Records (2025) https://sanambeirut.bandcamp.com/album/sametou-sawtan    g00d4_u - Ran Slavin - Neon Swans - Nocturnal Rainbow Recordings (2025) https://ranslavin.bandcamp.com/album/neon-swans    Evening Star - Evan Ziporyn & ContaQt - Art Decade - Cantaloupe Music (2025) https://contaqtnewmusic.bandcamp.com/album/art-decade    Hope - Robert Fripp String Quartet - The Bridge Between - Discipline Records (1993) https://www.dgmlive.com/robert-fripp/robert-fripp-string-quartet    Mega Cicada - Pathos Trio / composer: Ian Chang - Polarity - Imaginary Animals Music (2025) https://pathos-trio.bandcamp.com/album/polarity    Jeux Deux (Two Games) for Hyperpiano & orchestra (2005) - Odense Symphony Orchestra, Paul Mann, cond. / Michael Chertock, Hyperpiano - ...but not simpler... - Bridge Records (2011) https://bridgerecords.com/products/9346?_pos=1&_sid=4c7917fe5&_ss=r    Foundation - Chris Relkneus aka Aesthetic Mobilization  - First Steps - TonCollage - digital release (2021) https://relkneus.bandcamp.com/album/first-steps-toncollage     

Tom Morris is the author of Always the Music, a book I consider a must-read for anyone looking to understand the ins and outs of the classical music business—how it operates, its challenges, and the fascinating personalities involved. Tom has had an extraordinary journey in the world of music, having experienced it all from multiple perspectives. He started as a percussionist, performing with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, and eventually became the General Manager of the same institution. Later, he served as the Executive Director of the Cleveland Orchestra for 17 years, where he made a lasting impact. Most recently, he was the Artistic Director of the renowned Ojai Music Festival, a position he held from 2004 to 2019. In our conversation, we delve into many aspects of his book and his life, a life filled with passion, dedication, and invaluable insights into the classical music world.In Part 1, we explore Tom's early musical journey, beginning as a percussion student and the significant influence of Vic Firth, the legendary timpanist of the Boston Symphony. From there, Tom moved into a pivotal role as the General Manager of the BSO. Along the way, he formed lasting friendships with some of the most influential figures in classical music, including composer Oliver Knussen, conductor John Williams—who joined the Boston Pops in 1980—and the visionary Pierre Boulez. We also discuss Tom's time at the Cleveland Orchestra, where he made a lasting impact, especially through successful European tours and innovative programming that helped elevate the orchestra's profile.In Part 2 [Subscriber Content], we turn to an influential figure who shaped Tom's approach to leadership and problem-solving: author Jim Collins, best known for his book Good to Great. Tom shares how he brought Collins in to help refine the Cleveland Orchestra's strategy, offering a fascinating insight into his thinking on organizational development. We also discuss a significant shift in how conductors approach programming, with many now focusing on the concert as a whole rather than simply selecting individual pieces. Finally, we wrap up with Tom reflecting on his time as Artistic Director of the Ojai Music Festival, where his leadership left a lasting legacy.Would you like more inspirational stories, suggestions, insights, and a place to continue the conversations with other listeners? Visit anthonyplog-on-music.supercast.com to learn more! As a Contributing Listener of "Anthony Plog on Music," you'll have access to extra premium content and benefits including: Extra Audio Content: Only available to Contributing Listeners. Podcast Reflections: Tony's written recaps and thoughts on past interviews, including valuable tips and suggestions for students. Ask Me Anything: Both as written messages and occasional member-only Zoom sessions. The Show's Discord Server: Where conversations about interviews, show suggestions, and questions happen. It's a great place to meet other listeners and chat about all things music! Can I just donate instead of subscribing? Absolutely! Cancel at anytime and easily resubscribe when you want all that extra content again. Learn more about becoming a Contributing Listener @ anthonyplog-on-music.supercast.com!

Mark-Anthony Turnage is a composer of contemporary classical music. Once called “Britain's hippest composer”, he has been in a rock band, got drunk with Francis Bacon, and tackled anything from drug abuse to football in his works. Mark was born in June 1960 in the Thames estuary town of Corringham in Essex. His musical talent was nurtured by his parents and he studied composition at the junior department at the Royal College of Music from aged fourteen. There he met the composer Oliver Knussen who became his tutor, mentor, and life-long friend. His first performed work, Night Dances, written while still at the Royal College, won a prize and heralded Mark's evolution into what one critic calls “one of the best known British composers of his generation, widely admired for his highly personal mixture of energy and elegy, tough and tender”. Greek, his debut opera, a reimagining of the Oedipus myth whose protagonist is a racist, violent and foul-mouthed football hooligan, shocked the establishment, which flinched, but accepted “Turnage, the trouble-maker” as a forceful voice. Over the past four decades he has sustained a distinguished and productive career that has seen him working closely with conductors of the stature of Bernard Haitink, Esa-Pekka Salonen and, particularly, Simon Rattle. He has been attached to prestigious institutions, such as English National Opera and both the BBC and Chicago symphony orchestras, and has written a vast range of music for many different instruments and ensembles. His influences include soul, gospel, all sorts of jazz and the great symphonic works of the repertoire. He has written operas, ballets, concertos, chamber pieces and choral works together with orchestrating a football match. His key works include Three Screaming Popes and Blood on the Floor (both inspired by Francis Bacon paintings, and the latter containing an elegy for his younger brother, Andrew, who died of a drug overdose in 1995), as well as more operas including one about the former Playboy model Anna Nicole Smith. Mark lives in North London with his partner, the opera director, Rachael Hewer. DISC ONE: Symphony No. 9 in D Minor, Op. 125 II. Molto vivace - Presto - Molto vivace – Presto. Composed by Ludwig Van Beethoven and performed by The Berlin Philharmonic, conducted by Sir Simon Rattle DISC TWO: St. Matthew Passion, BWV 244 Pt. 1 No. 1, Kommt, ihr Töchter, helft mir klagen. Composed by Johann Sebastian Bach and performed by Bach Collegium Japan, conducted by Masaaki Suzuki DISC THREE: Two Organa, Op. 27 – 1 “Notre Dame des Jouets”. Composed and conducted by Oliver Knussen and performed by The London Sinfonietta DISC FOUR: Blue in Green - Miles Davis DISC FIVE: Living for the City - Stevie Wonder DISC SIX: Puccini: Madama Butterfly, Act II: Un bel dì vedremo. Composed by Giacomo Puccini and performed by Mirella Freni (Soprano) and Wiener Philharmoniker, conducted by Herbert von Karajan DISC SEVEN: Symphony of Psalms (1948 Version): III. Alleluja. Laudate Dominum - Psalmus 150 (Vulgata) Composed by Igor Stravinsky and performed by English Bach Festival Choir and The London Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Leonard Bernstein DISC EIGHT: Let's Say We Did. Composed by John Scofield and Mark-Anthony Turnage and performed by John Scofield, John Patitucci, Peter Erskine, Frankfurt Radio Symphony, hr-Bigband and Hugh WolfBOOK CHOICE: Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier LUXURY ITEM: A grand piano and tuning kit CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: St. Matthew Passion, BWV 244 Pt. 1 No. 1, Kommt, ihr Töchter, helft mir klagen. Composed by Johann Sebastian Bach and performed by Bach Collegium Japan, conducted by Masaaki Suzuki Presenter: Lauren Laverne Producer: Sarah Taylor

SynopsisAt Carnegie Hall on today's date in 2015, the Met Chamber Ensemble gave the posthumous premiere of a new work by American composer Elliott Carter, who died in November 2012, a month or so shy of what would have been his 104th birthday.The debut of The American Sublime marked the last world premiere performance of Carter's 75-year-long composing career.Hearing Igor Stravinsky's Rite of Spring at Carnegie Hall in the 1920s inspired Carter to become a composer. A high school teacher introduced him to Charles Ives, who became a mentor. By the mid-1930s, Carter was writing music in the “populist modern” style, à la Copland, but during a year spent in the Arizona desert in 1950, Carter finished his String Quartet No. 1 — 40 minutes of music uncompromising in both its technical difficulty and structural intricacy."That crazy long first quartet was played in Belgium," Carter recalled. "It was played over the radio, and I got a letter from a coal miner, in French, who said, 'I liked your piece. It's just like digging for coal.' He meant that it was hard and took effort."Music Played in Today's ProgramElliott Carter (1908-2012): Horn Concerto (2006); Martin Owen, fh; BBC Symphony; Oliver Knussen, cond. Bridge 9314

SynopsisOn today's date in 1962, Russian-born composer Igor Stravinsky returned to his homeland for the first time in nearly half a century. When he left in 1914, Czar Nicholas was still on the throne. By 1962, a lot had changed. For starters, Stravinsky's music had been severely criticized in the Soviet Union. Tikhon Khrennikov, first secretary of the Soviet Composers' Union, branded Stravinsky “the apostle of reactionary forces in bourgeois music.” Dimtri Shostakovich had condemned “the unwholesome influence of Stravinsky” and his “complete divorce from the true demands of our time.” Whether Khrennikov or Shostakovich really believed this, or merely parroted the official party line, is debatable. But Stravinsky's return to Russia proved a profoundly emotional experience for all concerned. The 80-year-old composer reconnected with old friends he had not seen in 50 years and relatives he had never met. And, yes, Stravinsky even met with Khrennikov and Shostakovich.Stravinsky led the Moscow Symphony in his Symphonic Ode and Orpheus Ballet.  Robert Craft, Stravinsky's American assistant, then led the orchestra in Stravinsky's revolutionary Rite of Spring — all to thunderous applause.  For an encore, Stravinsky returned to conduct a quintessentially Russian score: his own 1917 arrangement of the Volga Boatmen's Song.Music Played in Today's ProgramIgor Stravinsky (1882 - 1971) — Ode (Cleveland Orchestra; Oliver Knussen, cond.) DG 4843064

Donald Macleod celebrates the programme's 80th anniversary with highlights from 10 memorable interviews Composer of the Week is one of the longest-running strands on the BBC, first heard on the airwaves during the Second World War on the 2nd of August 1943. The first to be featured was Mozart – and today, the programme tells the stories of well-known and rediscovered composers across classical music, jazz, contemporary and beyond. Donald Macleod celebrates its 80th anniversary with highlights and behind-the-scenes stories from his encounters with some of our greatest living composers. Across the week, he looks back on 10 memorable interviews from his nearly 25 years in the presenter's chair, showcasing the range of musical styles and personalities he's encountered. Part 1 includes interviews with Stephen Sondheim, Judith Weir, Meredith Monk, Steve Reich & Harrison Birtwistle. Part 2 includes interviews with Hans Werner Henze, Adolphus Hailstork, Thea Musgrave, Anoushka Shankar & Oliver Knussen. Music Featured: Stephen Sondheim: Pretty Little Picture (from A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum) Jule Styne/Stephen Sondheim: Everything's Coming Up Roses (from Gypsy) Stephen Sondheim: Free (from A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum) Stephen Sondheim: There's Always a Woman (from Anyone Can Whistle) Judith Weir: Variations For Judith, No 5 Judith Weir: Vertue for chorus Judith Weir: Piano Quartet (1st movement) Judith Weir: Airs from Another Planet for wind quintet and piano (excerpt) Meredith Monk: Gothum Lullaby Meredith Monk: Quarry (Quarry Weave 2) Meredith Monk: Dolmen Music (excerpt) Steve Reich: The Cave (excerpts from Act III) Steve Reich: Different Trains (iii. Europe, After the War) Steve Reich: Piano Phase (remixed by D*Note) Harrison Birtwistle: Virelai (sous une fontayne) Harrison Birtwistle: The Minotaur (Part Two – excerpt) Harrison Birtwistle: The Moth Requiem Hans Werner Henze: Chamber Concerto, Op 1 (final movement) Hans Werner Henze: Serenade for piano trio (Adagio, Adagio) Hans Werner Henze: Scorribanda sinfónica Hans Werner Henze: Requiem (excerpt) Adolphus Hailstork: Fanfare on Amazing Grace Adolphus Hailstork: Three Spirituals for Orchestra Adolphus Hailstork: Symphony No 2 (excerpts) Thea Musgrave: On the Underground, Set 1: Sometimes Thea Musgrave: Two's Company Anoushka Shankar: Traces of you Anoushka Shankar: Voice of the Moon Anoushka Shankar: Red Sun Oliver Knussen: Flourish with Fireworks, Op 22 Oliver Knussen: Music for a Puppet Court, Op 11 Oliver Knussen: …Upon One Note Presented by Donald Macleod Produced by Amelia Parker for BBC Audio Wales and West For full track listings, including artist and recording details, and to listen to the pieces featured in full (for 30 days after broadcast) head to the series page for Anniversary Special: Composers in Conversation https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001p28b And you can delve into the A-Z of all the composers we've featured on Composer of the Week here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3cjHdZlXwL7W41XGB77X3S0/composers-a-to-z

Donald Macleod celebrates the programme's 80th anniversary with highlights from 10 memorable interviews Composer of the Week is one of the longest-running strands on the BBC, first heard on the airwaves during the Second World War on the 2nd of August 1943. The first to be featured was Mozart – and today, the programme tells the stories of well-known and rediscovered composers across classical music, jazz, contemporary and beyond. Donald Macleod celebrates its 80th anniversary with highlights and behind-the-scenes stories from his encounters with some of our greatest living composers. Across the week, he looks back on 10 memorable interviews from his nearly 25 years in the presenter's chair, showcasing the range of musical styles and personalities he's encountered. Part 1 includes interviews with Stephen Sondheim, Judith Weir, Meredith Monk, Steve Reich & Harrison Birtwistle. Part 2 includes interviews with Hans Werner Henze, Adolphus Hailstork, Thea Musgrave, Anoushka Shankar & Oliver Knussen. Music Featured: Stephen Sondheim: Pretty Little Picture (from A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum) Jule Styne/Stephen Sondheim: Everything's Coming Up Roses (from Gypsy) Stephen Sondheim: Free (from A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum) Stephen Sondheim: There's Always a Woman (from Anyone Can Whistle) Judith Weir: Variations For Judith, No 5 Judith Weir: Vertue for chorus Judith Weir: Piano Quartet (1st movement) Judith Weir: Airs from Another Planet for wind quintet and piano (excerpt) Meredith Monk: Gothum Lullaby Meredith Monk: Quarry (Quarry Weave 2) Meredith Monk: Dolmen Music (excerpt) Steve Reich: The Cave (excerpts from Act III) Steve Reich: Different Trains (iii. Europe, After the War) Steve Reich: Piano Phase (remixed by D*Note) Harrison Birtwistle: Virelai (sous une fontayne) Harrison Birtwistle: The Minotaur (Part Two – excerpt) Harrison Birtwistle: The Moth Requiem Hans Werner Henze: Chamber Concerto, Op 1 (final movement) Hans Werner Henze: Serenade for piano trio (Adagio, Adagio) Hans Werner Henze: Scorribanda sinfónica Hans Werner Henze: Requiem (excerpt) Adolphus Hailstork: Fanfare on Amazing Grace Adolphus Hailstork: Three Spirituals for Orchestra Adolphus Hailstork: Symphony No 2 (excerpts) Thea Musgrave: On the Underground, Set 1: Sometimes Thea Musgrave: Two's Company Anoushka Shankar: Traces of you Anoushka Shankar: Voice of the Moon Anoushka Shankar: Red Sun Oliver Knussen: Flourish with Fireworks, Op 22 Oliver Knussen: Music for a Puppet Court, Op 11 Oliver Knussen: …Upon One Note Presented by Donald Macleod Produced by Amelia Parker for BBC Audio Wales and West For full track listings, including artist and recording details, and to listen to the pieces featured in full (for 30 days after broadcast) head to the series page for Anniversary Special: Composers in Conversation https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001p28b And you can delve into the A-Z of all the composers we've featured on Composer of the Week here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3cjHdZlXwL7W41XGB77X3S0/composers-a-to-z

Synopsis At Westminster Abbey on today's date in 1998 a haunting new setting of the Latin mass written by the British composer Roxanna Panufnik received its premiere performance. Roxanna Panufnik was born in London in 1968, and if her family name sounds familiar, it's because her father was Andrzej Panufnik, one of the greatest Polish composers of the 20th century. Roxanna's interest in music began early: “I was three years old ... when I said ‘Mummy, I want a violin with a stick to make it sing!' I started violin, piano and flute. But I only wanted to make up my own music. When I was 12, [the composer] Oliver Knussen, visiting my parents, told me I should write down my improvisations. It all went from there.” And in response to questions about having a famous composer as her father, she says: “My father had enormous integrity, always teaching me to be myself... Early in my career I was very sensitive to being compared to him and a few stray remarks about nepotism dented my confidence. However, I plodded on and now I'm thrilled to be regularly programmed alongside him and I'm so proud of where and who I came from.” Music Played in Today's Program Roxanna Panufnik (b. 1968) Westminster Mass Westminster Cathedral Choir; James O'Donnell, conductor. Teldec 28069

Scottish composer Helen Grime is this week's guest on Composing Myself, talking to Wise Music Group CEO Dave Holley and Creative Director Gill Graham about her life in and out of music. Melodic motifs on the conversational score today include her formative years studying the oboe, why a first rehearsal is more nerve-wracking than a premiere, experiences at Tanglewood - the summer home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, why passing knowledge forward through teaching and learning is so important, and the nature of inspiration - “sometimes I seek it, and sometimes I really need it”. As ever, a joyful and enlightening hour.https://helengrime.com/The music of Helen Grime has been performed by leading orchestras around the world, among them the London Symphony Orchestra, Hallé Orchestra, Boston Symphony Orchestra, Orchestre de Paris, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin and Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra. Conductors who have championed her music include Sir Simon Rattle, Sir Mark Elder, Pierre Boulez, Kent Nagano, Oliver Knussen, George Benjamin, Daniel Harding, Marin Alsop and Thomas Dausgaard. Her music frequently draws inspiration from related artforms such as painting (Two Eardley Pictures, Three Whistler Miniatures), sculpture (Woven Space) and literature (A Cold Spring, Near Midnight, Limina) and has won praise in equal measure for the craftsmanship of its construction and the urgency of its telling.Born in 1981, Grime attended St Mary's Music School in Edinburgh and, following studies at the Royal College of Music in London, was awarded a Leonard Bernstein Fellowship to attend Tanglewood Music Center in 2008. Between 2011 and 2015 she was Associate Composer to the Hallé Orchestra in Manchester and in 2016 was appointed Composer in Residence at Wigmore Hall in London. She was Lecturer in Composition at Royal Holloway, University of London, between 2010 and 2017 and is currently Professor of Composition at the Royal Academy of Music in London. She was appointed MBE in the 2020 New Year Honours List for services to music. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

*In English Language* Das Herz der Geigerin schlägt für die zeitgenössische Musik. Im Podcast spricht sie über den Komponisten und langjährigen Freund John Adams und das Stück, das er kürzlich für sie geschrieben hat.  Auf die Frage, wann sie eigentlich zuletzt ein Stück von Beethoven oder Mendelssohn gespielt hat, antwortet die gesprächige Geigerin: »Vermutlich seit meinen Zwanzigern nicht mehr«. Denn Leila Josefowicz spielt am liebsten Musik aus dem 20. und 21. Jahrhundert. Sie hat zahlreiche Violinkonzerte uraufgeführt, darunter Werke von Colin Matthews, Luca Francesconi, John Adams, Oliver Knussen und Esa-Pekka Salonen, die allesamt für sie geschrieben wurden. Im Elbphilharmonie Talk spricht sie über das Stück »Scheherazade.2«, das John Adams ihr widmete und das sie im Februar 2023 im Rahmen des Festivals »Elbphilharmonie Visions« gespielt hat. Außerdem verrät sie, warum die Musikwelt sie manchmal an die Welt der Hedgefonds erinnert, wie sie zur zeitgenössischen Musik gefunden hat und warum sie es hasst, ihre eigenen Aufnahmen zu hören. 

Conductor David Robertson explains why you shouldn't be too sad about Tchaikovsky's last days, his final symphony and applauding before the last movement. Has he ever heard a better French Horn virtuoso than Pittsburgh Principal William Caballero? No, and Robertson started his musical life as a horn player. Oliver Knussen adds considerable virtuosity and  color to the  program too. What's it like to train the next generation of conductors at Juilliard and exactly how do you do it? Find out in this conversation with Jim Cunningham recorded in the conductor's dressing room at Heinz Hall after rehearsal on Thursday November 10, 2022.

durée : 00:19:55 - Disques de légende du mardi 13 septembre 2022 - Le chef d'orchestre britannique Oliver Knussen, a été l'ami très proche de Takemitsu, dévasté par la mort du compositeur, il lui rend hommage avec ce disque enregistré juste après la mort de Takemitsu.

From the bees on the roof to one of the finest violins in the world, the Academy is full of surprising treasures. In this episode, Anna Picard introduces people and parts of the building that listeners might not know about, and discovers what goes on behind the scenes to ensure that the Academy's remarkable collection of instruments will be played by generations to come. Including singing from an original Elizabethan part book, an introduction to Oliver Knussen's beloved collection of owls, and violinist James Ehnes playing a priceless Stradivarius, the stories behind these objects unlock the history of the Academy. Presenter: Anna PicardProducer: Natalie Steed Contributors: Jonathan Freeman-Attwood, Ian Brearey, Kathryn Adamson, Patrick Russill, Barbara Meyer, IJmkje van der Werfe, James Ehnes, Sheldon Gabriel, Philip Cashian Executive Producers, Royal Academy of Music: George Chambers, Jonathan Freeman-Attwood, Safi Schlicht Featured music: JS Bach Adagio from Sonata in G minor, BWV 1001, performed by James EhnesBeethoven Symphony No 8 in F, Op 93, performed by the Academy Chamber Orchestra with Lorenza BorraniMendelssohn A Midsummer Night's Dream performed by the Academy Symphony Orchestra with Andrew GourlayTallis O Nata Lux performed by Academy students Isla MacEwan, Anita Monserrat, Samuel Kibble, Henry Ross, Charles CunliffeJS Bach Largo from Sonata in C, BWV 1005, performed by James EhnesStravinsky Marche triomphale du diable from L'histoire du soldat performed by the Academy Manson Ensemble with Oliver Knussen See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Synopsis The American composer Elliott Carter lived to be 103 and remained amazingly productive, publishing more than 40 works between ages 90 and 100, and over 20 more AFTER he turned 100 in the year 2008. On today's date in 2012, a new chamber work by Carter with an odd title received its first performance at a concert in the New York Philharmonic's CONTACT! Series. The work was titled “Two Controversies and a Conversation” and showcased the percussive aspects of the piano, highlighting that instrument alongside a solo percussionist. The premiere was an international triple-commission from the New York Philharmonic, the Aldeburgh Festival in England, and Radio France. An earlier version of part of the new work, titled just “Conversations,” had been premiered in the UK the previous year. The composer explained the title as follows: “How does one converse?” asked Carter. “One person says something and tries to get the other person to respond, or carry on, or contradict a statement. Those conversing are also all the time playing a kind of game with each other. I tried to put all that into my music … After the premiere of ‘Conversations' at the Aldeburgh Festival in June of 2011, [the British composer] Oliver Knussen suggested I expand this piece. I decided to add two more movements, which became the two ‘Controversies.'" Music Played in Today's Program Elliott Carter (1908 – 2012) –“Conversation,” from “Two Controversies and a Conversation” (Eric Huebner, piano; Colin Currie, percussion; New York Philharmonic; David Robertson, cond.) NYP 20120112

Synopsis On today's date in 2003, a new orchestral work by the American composer Elliott Carter had its premiere in Boston. Carter was then 94 years old – he would live to be a month shy of 104, and, even more remarkable, he was composing new works almost to the end of his days. When you live that long, you experience a lot of changes. Carter had studied English and Greek at Harvard, and recalled a time when at Boston Symphony concerts conservative members of the audience would joke that the emergency exits signs should read “Exit – in case of Brahms.” Apparently, even in the 1920s, for some Boston Brahmins, Brahms was still “difficult music.” For his part, Carter felt the complexity of his own music reflected the complex world into which he was born – the world of Proust, Picasso, and Stravinsky. His music was technically very, very difficult, but Carter always insisted it was all in service of the greater freedom and fantasy of his imagination, not difficult for difficulty's sake. Carter's “Boston Concerto” was dedicated to the memory of his wife, Helen, who died shortly before its premiere. Carter prefaced his score with the opening lines from a poem entitled “Rain” by William Carlos Williams: “As the rain falls So does your love bathe every open Object of the world—“ Music Played in Today's Program Elliott Carter (1908 - 2012) — Boston Concerto (BBC Symphony; Oliver Knussen, cond.) Bridge 9184

It was a real pleasure to chat with a composer and conductor I have admired for so long - Sir George Benjamin was so open and honest and I found him to be such a warm person to chat with. We discussed how a composer/conductor must learn to distance themselves from their own music in performance, he had so many fond memories and stories about his dear friend, the late, great, Oliver Knussen, and I hear about an awful "birthday present" he once received! If you would like to join the supporters club for this podcast and find out more about the world of conducting and conductors, why not subscribe at https://www.patreon.com/amiconthepodium, and for a monthly fee starting from just £5 a month, you can access two new series of interviews, group Zoom meetings with other fans of the podcast and myself, a monthly bulletin about the podcast and my own career as well as articles, photos, videos and even conducting lessons from myself. If you listen via Apple podcasts, please do leave a rating and review - it really helps the podcast get noticed and attract more listeners. If you want to get involved on social media, you can via Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/amiconthepodium) or Twitter (@amiconthepodium). This interview was recorded on 18th October 2021 via Zoom.

The music of Augusta Read Thomas has been performed all over the world by conductors such as Daniel Barenboim, Pierre Boulez, Mstislav Rostropovich, Seiji Ozawa, Oliver Knussen, George Benjamin, Vimbayi Kaziboni, Christoph Eschenbach and many others. She is Vice President for Music at The American Academy of Arts and Letters, among many other distinctions, and is a long-standing, exemplary citizen of the profession at large supporting the work of others. Her music is published by G Schirmer and, since 2016, by Nimbus Music Publishing. Her music has been featured on nearly 100 commercial CDs. Since 2013, Nimbus Records has been recording her complete works. She is currently a University Professor of Composition in Music at The University of Chicago. Thomas played piano as a young child, starting private lessons at age four.  In third grade, she took up the trumpet and played for 14 years, attending Northwestern University as a trumpet performance major.  She played trumpet in brass quintet, chamber orchestra, orchestra, band, and Jazz band and she sang in choirs for many years.Thomas also had the distinction of having her work performed more frequently in 2013-2014 than any other living composer, according to statistics from performing rights organization ASCAP.MUSICAL EXCERPTS (in order)Words of the Sea  for orchestra (3rd movement)Chicago Symphony OrchestraPierre Boulez, conductorCarillon Sky  for violin and chamber orchestraBaird Dodge, violinChicago Symphony Orchestra MusicNOW ensembleOliver Knussen, conductorAugusta Read Thomas official websiteSUPPORT THIS PODCASTPatreonDonorboxORDER SAMUEL ANDREYEV'S NEWEST RELEASEIridescent NotationLINKSYouTube channelOfficial WebsiteTwitterInstagramEdition Impronta, publisher of Samuel Andreyev's scoresEPISODE CREDITSPodcast artwork photograph © 2019 Philippe StirnweissSupport the show (http://www.patreon.com/samuelandreyev)

Our sponsor: Houghton Hornswww.houghtonhorns.comUse these codes at checkout!hornspit1221 = $300 gift card with the purchase of any new horn over $3000casespit1221 = $50 gift card with the purchase of any new horn case over $400mouthpiecespit1221 = $10 gift card with the purchase of any new horn mouthpiece over $60Scott Leger, from The Woodlands, TX, is pursuing his Master of Music degree from the Yale School of Music. Previously, he studied Music Education, Performance, and Mathematics at Southern Methodist University's Meadows School of the Arts, graduating summa cum laude. Leger has spent summers at a variety of music festivals including the Tanglewood Music Center, National Repertory Festival, Norfolk Chamber Music Festival, and others. He has received many awards, most recently winning Second Prize at the International Horn Competition of America. Other awards include an Honorable Mention in the Woolsey Concerto Competition (performing Oliver Knussen's Horn Concerto), SMU's Undergraduate Award for Excellence in Music, and being one of two winners of the Meadows School of the Arts' Undergraduate Concerto Competition, where he performed Gordon Jacob's Concerto for Horn and String Orchestra. As a chamber musician, he has appeared on the Yale School of Music's Vista recital series and on Yale's Oneppo Chamber Series.  He has arranged music for horn, wind quintet, and other instrumentations, with the specific goal of adapting genres and styles that are uncommon for these ensembles, to refresh and expand the repertoire.Support the show (https://thatsnotspit.com/support/)

Ben Goldscheider appeared with members of the Kaleidoscope Chamber Collective at the recent Lammermuir Festival in East Lothian, Scotland. In this conversation he discusses horn player Dennis Brain, plus works by Oliver Knussen and Ruth Gipps. 

I am going to go out on a limb and say that this is possibly my favourite interview so far! Robert (or is that Bob?!) Spano was everything one could hope for - wise, open, honest, and very funny. We found out that we shared a bad habit when we were students, we discussed how an assistant conductor "should" observe a rehearsal, we get very geeky looking at the scores on my shelves and he tells a funny story about score marking involving Oliver Knussen, Reinbert de Leeuw and himself, as well as many other funny stories! If you would like to hear the Patreon exclusive bonus mini-episode that comes attached to this episode, why not subscribe at https://www.patreon.com/amiconthepodium, and for a monthly fee starting from just £5 a month, you can access two new series of interviews, group Zoom meetings with other fans of the podcast and myself, a monthly bulletin about the podcast and my own career as well as articles, photos, videos and even conducting lessons from myself. If you listen via Apple podcasts, please do leave a rating and review - it really helps the podcast get noticed and attract more listeners. If you want to get involved on social media, you can via Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/amiconthepodium) or Twitter (@amiconthepodium). This interview was recorded on 14th June 2021 via Zoom.

Synopsis The American composer Elliott Carter lived to be 103, completing more than 40 works between ages 90 and 100, and some 20 more AFTER he turned 100 in the year 2008. On today's date in 2012, a new chamber work by Carter with an odd title was premiered at a concert in the New York Philharmonic's CONTACT! Series. The work was titled “Two Controversies and a Conversation” and showcased the percussive aspects of the piano, highlighting that instrument alongside a solo percussionist. The premiere was an international triple-commission from the New York Philharmonic, the Aldeburgh Festival in England, and Radio France.  An earlier version of part of the work, titled “Conversations,” had been premiered in the UK the previous year.  The composer explained the title as follows: “How does one converse?” asked Carter. “One person says something and tries to get the other person to respond, or carry on, or contradict a statement. Those conversing are also playing a kind of game with each other. I tried to put all that into my music … After the [Aldeburgh] premiere of ‘Conversations,' [the British composer] Oliver Knussen suggested I expand this piece. I decided to add two more movements, which became the two ‘Controversies.'" Music Played in Today's Program Elliott Carter (1908 – 2012) “Conversation,” from “Two Controversies and a Conversation” (Eric Huebner, piano; Colin Currie, percussion; New York Philharmonic; David Robertson, cond.) NYP 20120112

Synopsis The American composer Elliott Carter lived to be 103, completing more than 40 works between ages 90 and 100, and some 20 more AFTER he turned 100 in the year 2008. On today's date in 2012, a new chamber work by Carter with an odd title was premiered at a concert in the New York Philharmonic's CONTACT! Series. The work was titled “Two Controversies and a Conversation” and showcased the percussive aspects of the piano, highlighting that instrument alongside a solo percussionist. The premiere was an international triple-commission from the New York Philharmonic, the Aldeburgh Festival in England, and Radio France.  An earlier version of part of the work, titled “Conversations,” had been premiered in the UK the previous year.  The composer explained the title as follows: “How does one converse?” asked Carter. “One person says something and tries to get the other person to respond, or carry on, or contradict a statement. Those conversing are also playing a kind of game with each other. I tried to put all that into my music … After the [Aldeburgh] premiere of ‘Conversations,' [the British composer] Oliver Knussen suggested I expand this piece. I decided to add two more movements, which became the two ‘Controversies.'" Music Played in Today's Program Elliott Carter (1908 – 2012) “Conversation,” from “Two Controversies and a Conversation” (Eric Huebner, piano; Colin Currie, percussion; New York Philharmonic; David Robertson, cond.) NYP 20120112

I'm very exciting to have international violin soloist Leila Josefowicz on the show for the second time. Leila shares incredible wisdom in our conversation, including: Her outlook for how things are going to be like in the coming months How her recent incredible project at The Metropolitan Museum of Art unfolded, from where it originated to the vision coming to reality The significance of her performing Bach, and how she sees Bach as the music of infinite possibilities What she calls the performance headspace Thoughts about performance preparation and performance anxiety What having fun in performance means to her And many other wonderful musings !   This discussion is a window on the way artists like Leila approach a project - the power of the intention and the thoughtfulness they put behind each decision. How each aspect is carefully evaluated, weighed, and curated, and very angle crafted with care and love.   Partita   for Leila Josefowicz   Unseen in the field a sapling trembled naked. You touched   its slim trunk with flayed fingertips, tenderly and hard,   and it gave forth a cry, oh. Sun ran like water on line upon   line of buds. Bare, you stood, electric, head in this world,   feet planted. We heard what we never knew before. _________ Natania Rosenfeld Writer Independent Scholar Professor Emerita of English, Knox College     Frustrated with your playing?  Unsatisfied with you career?  Ready for a change? Whatever your challenge, you don't have to go at it alone, and I can help.  Visit www. https://www.mindoverfinger.com/workwithme to learn more and book your call and let's discuss how to get you from where you are to where you want to be!   THE MUSIC MASTERY EXPERIENCE will be back in June 2021!  This is my LIFE CHANGING, highly personalized group coaching program where I show you how to implement mindful & effective practice techniques, how to make them habits, and how to get RESULTS. Save your spot at http://www.mindoverfinger.com/mme and get access to some really cool bonuses!     MORE ABOUT LEILA JOSEFOWICZ: Website: https://www.leilajosefowicz.com/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Leila+Josefowicz Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LeilaBJo Leila Josefowicz at the The Metropolitan Museum of Art: The Condo Concerts: Fred Sherry String Quartet: In Performance: Leila Josefowicz at Hauser & Wirth  Leila's first conversation on the Mind Over Finger Podcast: Episode 82 - The Art of Authentic Music Making Biography Leila Josefowicz's passionate advocacy of contemporary music for the violin is reflected in her diverse programmes and enthusiasm for performing new works. In recognition of her outstanding achievement and excellence in music, she won the 2018 Avery Fisher Prize and was awarded a prestigious MacArthur Fellowship in 2008, joining prominent scientists, writers and musicians who have made unique contributions to contemporary life. Highlights of Josefowicz's 2019/20 season include opening the London Symphony Orchestra's season with Sir Simon Rattle and returning to San Francisco Symphony with the incoming Music Director Esa-Pekka Salonen to perform his Violin Concerto. Further engagements include concerts with Los Angeles Philharmonic, NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchester, Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and the Cleveland and Philadelphia orchestras, where she will be working with conductors at the highest level, including Susanna Mälkki, Matthias Pintscher and John Adams.   A favourite of living composers, Josefowicz has premiered many concertos, including those by Colin Matthews, Steven Mackey and Esa-Pekka Salonen, all written specially for her. This season, she will perform the UK premiere of Helen Grime's Violin Concerto with the BBC Symphony Orchestra and Dalia Stasevska. Other recent premieres include John Adams'Scheherazade.2 (Dramatic Symphony for Violin and Orchestra) in 2015 with the New York Philharmonic and Alan Gilbert, and Luca Francesconi's Duende – The Dark Notes in 2014 with Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra and Susanna Mälkki. Josefowicz enjoyed a close working relationship with the late Oliver Knussen, performing various concerti, including his violin concerto, together over 30 times. Alongside pianist John Novacek, with whom she has enjoyed a close collaboration since 1985, Josefowicz has performed recitals at world-renowned venues such as New York's Zankel Hall, Washington DC's Kennedy Center and London's Wigmore Hall, as well as in Reykjavik, Chicago, San Francisco and Santa Barbara. This season, they appear together at Washington DC's Library of Congress, New York's Park Avenue Armory and Amherst College. She will also join Thomas Adès in recital to perform the world premiere of his new violin and piano work at Fondation Louis Vuitton in Paris and the Japanese premiere at the Tokyo Opera City Cultural Foundation. Recent highlights include engagements with the Berliner Philharmoniker, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Washington's National Symphony Orchestra, Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich and Boston and Finnish Radio symphony orchestras. In summer 2019, Josefowicz took part in a special collaboration between Los Angeles Philharmonic, the Royal Ballet, and Company Wayne McGregor featuring the music of composer-conductor Thomas Adès. Josefowicz has released several recordings, notably for Deutsche Grammophon, Philips/Universal and Warner Classics and was featured on Touch Press's acclaimed iPadapp, The Orchestra. Her latest recording, released in 2019, features Bernd Alois Zimmermann's Violin Concerto with the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra conducted byHannu Lintu. She has previously received nominations for Grammy Awards for her recordings of Scheherazade.2 with the St Louis Symphony conducted by David Robertson, and Esa-Pekka Salonen's Violin Concerto with the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra conducted by the composer.     Join the Mind Over Finger Tribe for access to my weekly live videos and to exchange with a community of like-minded musicians   Visit www.mindoverfinger.com and sign up for my newsletter to get your free guide to an exceptionally productive practice using the metronome.  This guide is the perfect entry point to help you bring more mindfulness and efficiency into your practice and it's filled with tips and tricks on how to use that wonderful tool to take your practicing and your playing to new heights.   If you enjoy the show, leave a review on Apple Podcast or your favorite podcast provider!  I genuinely appreciate your support!     THANK YOU: A HUGE thank you to my fantastic producer, Bella Kelly, who works really hard to make this podcast as pleasant to listen to as possible for you! Most sincere thank you to composer Jim Stephenson who graciously provided the show's musical theme!  Concerto #1 for Trumpet and Chamber Orchestra – Movement 2: Allegro con Brio, performed by Jeffrey Work, trumpet, and the Lake Forest Symphony, conducted by Jim Stephenson. Thank you to Susan Blackwell for the introduction!  You can find out more about Susan, her fantastic podcast The Spark File, and her work helping creatives of all backgrounds expand their impact by visiting https://www.susanblackwell.com/home.   MIND OVER FINGER: www.mindoverfinger.com https://www.facebook.com/mindoverfinger/ https://www.instagram.com/mindoverfinger/

Sonya Knussen talks to Alex about her musical life and work, and shares music by Sean Shepherd, Joanna Lee, and Oliver Knussen.Subscribe to New Notes on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts and you'll be the first to hear new episodes each week!New Notes is now on Instagram! Head to: https://www.instagram.com/newnotespod/

I'm very excited to have world-renowned violinist Leila Josefowicz on the show for you today! As you'll hear in our discussion, Leila is a profoundly passionate and dedicated musician who approaches her craft with great depth and she shares incredible wisdom with us. Among many things, Leila elaborates on: The power of memorization What the “practice of violin playing” means to her How exploring new repertoire helped her transition out of her “child prodigy” years Her advice to all musicians suffering from lack of motivation The importance of desire and dedication in the cultivation of talent How our need to feel comfortable while performing is counterproductive Vivid mindful practice This is a particularly powerful conversation, and I know you'll find inspiration and incredible value in this episode.   MORE ABOUT LEILA JOSEFOWICZ: Website: https://www.leilajosefowicz.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LeilaBJo   Find all the details for Leila's World Premiere performance of ‘la linea evocativa. un disegno per violino solo' by Matthias Pintscher HERE. On the occasion of ‘George Condo. Internal Riot' we are honored to host classical violinist Leila Josefowicz in the gallery to perform a new piece of original music in response to ‘George Condo. Internal Riot,' an exhibition of the artist's new paintings and works on paper that runs through 23 January 2021 at Hauser & Wirth New York. ‘Music is such a huge part of my life, without it I don't know if I'd ever have painted anything. There are so many great pieces of music that have inspired me to paint…My favorite thing is to put on a record in the studio and to still be painting without noticing the fact that the music has stopped playing for hours and is just running through my head.'–George Condo The performance comes at an incredibly challenging time for professional musicians. Condo is deeply aware of the adversity they face, and this specially organized event signifies his support for live music and for new ways in which it can reach people. Join us on Friday 20 November 2020 11 am PST / 2 pm EST / 7 pm GMT.  Click here to register. The performance will be streaming live from New York City on hauserwirth.com     Leila's last Pre-Covid performance in Prague, Performing the Alban Berg Violin Concerto with the Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra:  https://prso.czechradio.eu/leila-josefowicz-and-prso-8179758   Biography Leila Josefowicz's passionate advocacy of contemporary music for the violin is reflected in her diverse programmes and enthusiasm for performing new works. In recognition of her outstanding achievement and excellence in music, she won the 2018 Avery Fisher Prize and was awarded a prestigious MacArthur Fellowship in 2008, joining prominent scientists, writers and musicians who have made unique contributions to contemporary life. Highlights of Josefowicz's 2019/20 season include opening the London Symphony Orchestra's season with Sir Simon Rattle and returning to San Francisco Symphony with the incoming Music Director Esa-Pekka Salonen to perform his Violin Concerto. Further engagements include concerts with Los Angeles Philharmonic, NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchester, Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and the Cleveland and Philadelphia orchestras, where she will be working with conductors at the highest level, including Susanna Mälkki, Matthias Pintscher and John Adams.   A favourite of living composers, Josefowicz has premiered many concertos, including those by Colin Matthews, Steven Mackey and Esa-Pekka Salonen, all written specially for her. This season, she will perform the UK premiere of Helen Grime's Violin Concerto with the BBC Symphony Orchestra and Dalia Stasevska. Other recent premieres include John Adams'Scheherazade.2 (Dramatic Symphony for Violin and Orchestra) in 2015 with the New York Philharmonic and Alan Gilbert, and Luca Francesconi's Duende – The Dark Notes in 2014 with Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra and Susanna Mälkki. Josefowicz enjoyed a close working relationship with the late Oliver Knussen, performing various concerti, including his violin concerto, together over 30 times. Alongside pianist John Novacek, with whom she has enjoyed a close collaboration since 1985, Josefowicz has performed recitals at world-renowned venues such as New York's Zankel Hall, Washington DC's Kennedy Center and London's Wigmore Hall, as well as in Reykjavik, Chicago, San Francisco and Santa Barbara. This season, they appear together at Washington DC's Library of Congress, New York's Park Avenue Armory and Amherst College. She will also join Thomas Adès in recital to perform the world premiere of his new violin and piano work at Fondation Louis Vuitton in Paris and the Japanese premiere at the Tokyo Opera City Cultural Foundation. Recent highlights include engagements with the Berliner Philharmoniker, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Washington's National Symphony Orchestra, Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich and Boston and Finnish Radio symphony orchestras. In summer 2019, Josefowicz took part in a special collaboration between Los Angeles Philharmonic, the Royal Ballet, and Company Wayne McGregor featuring the music of composer-conductor Thomas Adès. Josefowicz has released several recordings, notably for Deutsche Grammophon, Philips/Universal and Warner Classics and was featured on Touch Press's acclaimed iPadapp, The Orchestra. Her latest recording, released in 2019, features Bernd Alois Zimmermann's Violin Concerto with the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra conducted byHannu Lintu. She has previously received nominations for Grammy Awards for her recordings of Scheherazade.2 with the St Louis Symphony conducted by David Robertson, and Esa-Pekka Salonen's Violin Concerto with the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra conducted by the composer.     Visit www.mindoverfinger.com and sign up for my newsletter to get your free guide to an exceptionally productive practice using the metronome.  This guide is the perfect entry point to help you bring more mindfulness and efficiency into your practice and it's filled with tips and tricks on how to use that wonderful tool to take your practicing and your playing to new heights. You can check out amazing books recommended by my podcast guests, as well as my favorite websites, cds, the podcasts I like to listen to, and the practice and podcasting tools I use everyday by visiting: www.mindoverfinger.com/resources!   And click here for details on how to work with me: https://www.mindoverfinger.com/workwithdrg   And don't forget to join the Mind Over Finger Tribe for additional resources on practice and performing!   If you enjoyed the show, please leave a review on iTunes!  I truly appreciate your support!     THANK YOU: Most sincere thank you to composer Jim Stephenson who graciously provided the show's musical theme!  Concerto #1 for Trumpet and Chamber Orchestra – Movement 2: Allegro con Brio, performed by Jeffrey Work, trumpet, and the Lake Forest Symphony, conducted by Jim Stephenson. Thank you to Susan Blackwell for the introduction!  You can find out more about Susan, her fantastic podcast The Spark File, and her work helping creatives of all backgrounds expand their impact by visiting https://www.susanblackwell.com/home. Also a HUGE thank you to my fantastic producer, Bella Kelly!   MIND OVER FINGER: www.mindoverfinger.com https://www.facebook.com/mindoverfinger/ https://www.instagram.com/mindoverfinger/

The Modern Period – Part I This week we hear works by Frederick Delius, Arnold Schoenberg, Arthur Benjamin, Dmitri Shostakovich, Jean Guillou, Steve Reich, Oliver Knussen, Richard Einhorn, Thomas Bloch, Torsten Rasch, and Olga Neuwirth. 167 Minutes – Week of November 02, 2020

Pianist Gloria Cheng discusses how she and her students grew closer together while facing the unique challenges of virtual music education, how incorporating new recording exercises provided surprising gifts, and how she returned to her own daily artistic practice during the pandemic. We also share memories of the late composer Steven Stucky, and how Gloria channeled her grief at his passing into a creative tribute, her album entitled "Garlands for Steven Stucky," which includes my composition, "Snowprints." Grammy and Emmy Award-winning pianist GLORIA CHENG has long been devoted to a process of creative collaboration, having worked extensively with such internationally renowned composers as John Adams, Terry Riley, Thomas Adès, and the late Steven Stucky. Ms. Cheng has appeared as a concerto soloist with the Los Angeles Philharmonic under Zubin Mehta and Pierre Boulez, and on its acclaimed Green Umbrella series with Esa-Pekka Salonen and Oliver Knussen. She has been a recitalist at the Ojai Music Festival (where she first appeared in 1984 with Pierre Boulez), the Chicago Humanities Festival, William Kapell Festival, and Tanglewood Festival of Contemporary Music. Ms. Cheng inspired and premiered such notable compositions as Esa-Pekka Salonen's Dichotomie (of which she is the dedicatee), John Adams' Hallelujah Junction for two pianos (written for her and Grant Gershon), and Steven Stucky's Piano Sonata. Partnering with composers in duo-recitals, she premiered Thomas Adès's two-piano Concert Paraphrase on Powder Her Face and Terry Riley's Cheng Tiger Growl Roar. Ms. Cheng received a Grammy Award for her 2008 recording, Piano Music of Salonen, Stucky, and Lutosławski, and a second Grammy nomination for her 2013 disc, The Edge of Light: Messiaen/Saariaho. On screen, Ms. Cheng's film, MONTAGE: Great Film Composers and the Piano — documenting the recording of works composed for her by Bruce Broughton, Don Davis, Alexandre Desplat, Michael Giacchino, Randy Newman, and John Williams — aired on PBS SoCal and captured the 2018 Los Angeles Area Emmy Award for Independent Programming. Her most recent disc, Garlands for Steven Stucky, is a star-studded tribute to the late composer by 32 of his friends and former students. After obtaining a Bachelor's degree in Economics from Stanford University, Ms. Cheng studied in Paris on a Woolley Scholarship and earned graduate degrees in performance from UCLA and the University of Southern California, where her teachers included Aube Tzerko and John Perry. Ms. Cheng now is on the faculty at the UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music where she has created courses and programs designed to unite performers, composers, and scholars. www.gloriachengpiano.com   Questions or comments may be shared on Julia Adolphe's YouTube Channel  

1. Mark-Anthony Turnage's Blood On The Floorhttps://open.spotify.com/album/4xHOUUef30vZftklRI0JRO2. Nina C. Young's Rising Tidehttps://youtu.be/K42sIHsHW6o3. Karlheinz Stockhausen's Klang 13. Stunde: Cosmic Pulseshttps://youtu.be/8HaqC_DuLRIPanelists:Sonya Alexandra Knussen runs Go Compose! – North America, providing online workshops encouraging kids ages 11-18 to start or continue composing during the 2020 global pandemic. Additionally, she teaches in Maryland and on online platforms. As a singer, Sonya has been praised by The New York Times for her “gracefully shaped vocal lines” and The Washington Post for her “confident and penetrating account of line.” She has premiered many works at festivals in the U.S. and U.K and, as a featured soloist, she has worked with ensembles including the Washington Bach Consort, Bang on a Can Summer Music Festival, Tanglewood Festival Chorus and the Baltimore Symphony. She is a seasoned ensemble singer and founder of hexaCollective, an ad hoc vocal ensemble based in Maryland. Media experience includes blind direction of cameras throughout live performances at Elliott Carter’s Centenary Celebrations at Tanglewood, producer for recordings of Carter’s Boston and Cello Concertos, music assistant on recordings of works by August Read Thomas, Oliver Knussen and Hans Werner Henze, score-reader for LWT/Channel 4’s series on 20th-century orchestral music with Simon Rattle entitled Leaving Home and researcher for Sounds from the Big White House for BBC 4.Elizabeth Milligan is a musician and arts administrator in the Baltimore/D.C. metro area. A versatile flutist and piccolo player, they enjoy a wide variety of traditional and contemporary collaborations, from Stravinsky dance raves to J.S. Bach marathons. Their research has explored and documented the progression of flute techniques and performance standards from late 19th century to present day. They currently serve as the Admissions and Recruitment Coordinator for the University of Maryland School of Music. A graduate of The Peabody Institute and UMBC, they have earned a Bachelor of Arts, a Post Baccalaureate Certificate in Contemporary American Music, and a Master of Music. Their primary teachers have included Laurie Sokoloff, Lisa Cella, Lori Kesner, and Gina Eichman.Rudolf Kämper has performed as a trumpet player with symphonies in Mexico, Omaha, Baltimore, as well as in Germany. He studied trumpet with Jim Darling, Ed Hoffman, Mauro Maur, and Jack Sutte. As a composer, Kämper’s works have been performed both in the U.S. and in Germany. He studied composition with Loris Chobanian and attended workshops by Karlheinz Stockhausen, Lucas Foss, and John Corigliano. He has also been a director for complete performances of Stockhausen’s works, including Klang at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and in Montreal at the SAT. Kämper is the founding director of ANALOG arts ensemble, a musicians’ and artists’ collective dedicated to a fresh perspective of the arts. Dolf Kämper also runs North Coast Imports, Sternreiter, and Suburban Clock, a family of companies devoted to the design and restoration of complicated timepieces and mechanical musical curiosities.More information at pauseandlisten.com. Pause and Listen was created by host John T.K. Scherch and co-creator/marketing manager Michele Mengel Scherch.

As composer Mark-Anthony Turnage turns 60, Kate Molleson talks to him about the influences he received from Oliver Knussen, Gunther Schuller and Hans-Werner Henze. He speaks candidly about continuing to want to compose pieces that challenge, and shares his thoughts about how Covid-19 might change the music scene over the coming years. In light of the recent death of George Floyd at the hands of the police in the USA, Kate reflects on the discourses of solidarity we’ve heard from within the music world and the wider issue of racism in classical music with composer Eleanor Alberga. Kate also asks Heather Wiebe from King's College London to review a new book, 'Aaron Copland's Hollywood Film Scores', by the musicologist Paula Musegades who argues that the composer used movies to try out his new 'American sound'. And we talk to Maggie Rodford, managing director of one of UK's busiest recording studios, about the impact of Covid-19 on the film and TV music recording industry.

At Westminster Abbey on today’s date in 1998 a haunting new setting of the Latin mass written by the British composer Roxanna Panufnik received its premiere performance. Roxanna Panufnik was born in London in 1968, and if her family name sounds familiar, it’s because her father was Andrzej Panufnik, one of the greatest Polish composers of the 20th century. Roxanna’s interest in music began early: “I was three years old ... when I said ‘Mummy, I want a violin with a stick to make it sing!’ I started violin, piano and flute. But I only wanted to make up my own music. When I was 12, [the composer] Oliver Knussen, visiting my parents, told me I should write down my improvisations. It all went from there.” And in response to questions about having a famous composer as her father, she says: “My father had enormous integrity, always teaching me to be myself... Early in my career I was very sensitive to being compared to him and a few stray remarks about nepotism dented my confidence. However, I plodded on and now I’m thrilled to be regularly programmed alongside him and I’m so proud of where and who I came from.”

At Westminster Abbey on today’s date in 1998 a haunting new setting of the Latin mass written by the British composer Roxanna Panufnik received its premiere performance. Roxanna Panufnik was born in London in 1968, and if her family name sounds familiar, it’s because her father was Andrzej Panufnik, one of the greatest Polish composers of the 20th century. Roxanna’s interest in music began early: “I was three years old ... when I said ‘Mummy, I want a violin with a stick to make it sing!’ I started violin, piano and flute. But I only wanted to make up my own music. When I was 12, [the composer] Oliver Knussen, visiting my parents, told me I should write down my improvisations. It all went from there.” And in response to questions about having a famous composer as her father, she says: “My father had enormous integrity, always teaching me to be myself... Early in my career I was very sensitive to being compared to him and a few stray remarks about nepotism dented my confidence. However, I plodded on and now I’m thrilled to be regularly programmed alongside him and I’m so proud of where and who I came from.”

När Hans Werner Henze gick bort 2012 hade han under nästan åtta årtionden skrivit mängder av musik. På den nya skivan, gjord av vännerna dirigenten Oliver Knussen och cellisten Anssi Kartunen, kommer den tyske tonsättaren till sin fulla rätt. I panelen denna vecka: Edith Söderström, musikjournalist, Bengt Forsberg, pianist, och Tony Lundman, författare och redaktör på Stockholms konserthus. Programledare är Johan Korssell. Béla Bartók Konsert för orkester och svit nr 1 BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra Thomas Dausgaard, dirigent Betyg: 4 Hanz Werner Henze Heliogabalus imperator Works for orchestra Anssi Karttunen, cello BBC Symphony Orchestra Oliver Knussen, dirigent Betyg: 5 (totalfemma!)  Johann Sebastian Bach, Johan Ludwig Bach, Johan Bernhard Bach Complete ouvertures for orchestra Concerto Italiano Rinaldo Alessandrini, cembalo och dirigent Betyg: 4 Frédérique Chopin  Pianokonsert nr 1 och 2 Benjamin Grosvenor, piano Elim Chan, dirigent BBC Scottish National Orchestra Betyg: 3

Oliver Knussen, Requiem, Songs for Sue Lezioni di musica del 23/02/2020 con Carlo Boccadoro

About this Performance: To honor the memory of our talented and beloved colleague Oliver Knussen, Mälkki and Josefowicz have programmed three of his remarkable creations and surrounded them with chamber-sized music by his friends, colleagues, and his students. Come celebrate a musical life.   Program: Colin MATTHEWS Hidden Variables KNUSSEN Reflection Helen GRIME A Cold Spring Huw WATKINS Piano Quartet KNUSSEN Ophelia Dances Book 1 KNUSSEN Two Organa HARVEY Mortuos Plango, Vivos Voco   Artists: LA Phil New Music Group Susanna Mälkki, conductor Leila Josefowicz, violin John Novacek, piano Co-curated by Susanna Mälkki and Leila Josefowicz

About this Performance: The late Oliver Knussen, acclaimed as composer and conductor, had a long connection with the LA Phil. His Violin Concerto is, by turns, intensely dramatic, lyrical, somber, skittish, and – as you would expect from a skilled conductor – it's masterfully orchestrated. Thrilling to this day, Beethoven's “Eroica” is one of the most revolutionary works in Western music, expanding the Classical symphony in almost every way imaginable.   Program: KNUSSEN Violin Concerto BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 3, “Eroica”   Artists: Los Angeles Philharmonic Susanna Mälkki, conductor Leila Josefowicz, violin

Aasmah and Richard are joined by: Patrick Grant - he bought and revived a failing tailors in Savile Row in 2005, since then he’s been awarded Menswear designer at the British Fashion Awards, become a judge on The Great British Sewing Bee and promotes sustainable fashion. Adam Kay used to be a junior doctor, and left to become a writer and comedian. His book This is Going to Hurt was based on diaries written as a junior doctor, exposed the highs and lows of the job and became a bestseller. Nichola McAvoy lost her hair age 11 and will tell us how finding a friend who also had alopecia was invaluable to her. Jess Herbert left her job as a trilingual assistant and retrained as an aborist - she's since won tree climbing competitions. We'll have your thank you and the Inheritance tracks of composer Mark Anthony Turnage who chooses Stravinsky's ‘The Fairy’s kiss’ conducted by Oliver Knussen with the Cleveland orchestra, and Miles Davis' ‘Blue in Green’. Producer: Corinna Jones Editor: Eleanor Garland

There's a subsection of contemporary music called ‘Musical Historicism;' a genre of music that uses historical elements and revives them in modern works. From Minimalism to Totalism, Modernism to Post-Modernism to Neomodernism; we're taking a look at pieces that influence contemporary compositions, either to mimic the past or to be the antithesis. Hosted by Seth Boustead Produced by Dan Goldberg Music A Reliquary for Igor Stravinsky by Charles Wuorinen London Sinfonietta; Oliver Knussen, conductor Concerto for Orchestra by Luciano Berio Orchestre National de France; New Swingle Singers; Pierre Boulez, conductor Absolute Jest by John Adams San Francisco Symphony; Michael Tilson Thomas, conductor

Pictured: Oliver Knussen Julian Worricker on: British composer and conductor, Oliver Knussen, described as a towering figure in contemporary music.... Barbara Harrell-Bond, who founded and then directed the Refugee Studies Centre at Oxford University.... The media executive, Sam Chisholm, who drove the development of multi-channel television in Britain.... Steve Ditko, the American artist and writer best known as co-creator of the Marvel Comics superheroes Spider-Man and Doctor Strange... and the last Transylvanian aristocrat to have lived through the communist purges, Anna Sandor de Kenos. Archive clips from: Jonathan Ross in Search of Steve Ditko, BBC Four, 16/09/07; Music Matters, Radio 3, 09/07/18; Horizon: Exodus, BBC Two, 06/03/95; Breakfast Time, BBC One, 05/01/89.

Wimbledon, musicians’ weddings, and the word “klang” make for some worthy discussion in this episode. We also touch on the recent passing of the great British composer Oliver Knussen, and the start of this year’s BBC Proms.  Our special guest is the Director of Wigmore Hall and Chairman of the Royal Philharmonic Society, John Gilhooly. John became the youngest director of any of the world’s concert halls at the age of 32. We pick his brains on what it takes to be successful in arts administration and performance. And of course, we conclude with a weird gig of mistaken identity...how intriguing! (Photo credit: Kaupo Kikkas) Mentioned in this episode:   Oliver Knussen passing: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-44764282 First night of the BBC Proms: https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b0b9zrlx/bbc-proms-2018-first-night-of-the-proms Wigmore Hall Under 35s £5 ticket scheme: https://wigmore-hall.org.uk/wigmore-series/under-35 Upcoming events: Jacob Collier Prom 19 July: https://www.bbc.co.uk/events/e88qwh OperArt at V & A museum Friday Lates: https://www.vam.ac.uk/event/Bp2PWgaQ/an-evening-of-opera-seven-angels London Contemporary Orchestra late night prom 23 July: https://www.bbc.co.uk/events/ebzcd4 Southbank Sinfonia events: https://www.southbanksinfonia.co.uk/events/

„Naujienų pulse“ kelios žinios iš užsienio – prisiminsime neseniai žemiškąją kelionę baigusį britų kompozitorių ir dirigentą Oliverį Knusseną bei praėjusią savaitę 2018 m. Pierre Fournier prizą pelniusį amerikiečių violončelininką Reinerį Crosettą. Vėliau susitiksime su jaunuoju kompozitoriumi Simu Šakeniu, jau netrukus pradėsiančiu studijas Harvardo universitete. Taip pat prisiminsime ir prieš 160 metų gimusį belgų smuikininką ir kompozitorių Eugène‘ą Ysaÿe. O paskutines laidos minutes skirsime poilsiaujantiems ar bent jau svajojantiems neskubančiai atsikvėpti. Ved. Ignas Gudelevičius.

„Naujienų pulse“ kelios žinios iš užsienio – prisiminsime neseniai žemiškąją kelionę baigusį britų kompozitorių ir dirigentą Oliverį Knusseną bei praėjusią savaitę 2018 m. Pierre Fournier prizą pelniusį amerikiečių violončelininką Reinerį Crosettą. Vėliau susitiksime su jaunuoju kompozitoriumi Simu Šakeniu, jau netrukus pradėsiančiu studijas Harvardo universitete. Taip pat prisiminsime ir prieš 160 metų gimusį belgų smuikininką ir kompozitorių Eugène‘ą Ysaÿe. O paskutines laidos minutes skirsime poilsiaujantiems ar bent jau svajojantiems neskubančiai atsikvėpti. Ved. Ignas Gudelevičius.

Lekker veel Franse muziek voor iedereen die in Frankrijk op vakantie is (of zou willen zijn). Met muziek van Jean Baptiste Davaux, Francis Poulenc, Maurice Duruflé, maar ook de onlangs overleden Oliver Knussen.

The acclaimed composer and conductor, Oliver Knussen, has died aged 66. He began composing at just six years-old and as well as continuing to write music, went on to conduct around the world and in 1994 he was made a CBE. He was perhaps best known for the operatic adaptation of the children's classic Where the Wild Things Are. Mark Anthony Turnage and Roger Wright pay tribute.A reimagining of the iconic Australian novel, Picnic at Hanging Rock, begins on BBC2 this week. The six episodes explore the mysterious disappearances of three schoolgirls and their governess on Valentine's Day in 1900. Natalie Dormer speaks to John about her starring role in the drama, and about her other roles portraying strong women in The Tudors and Game of Thrones. What's it like being a life model and what makes drawing from life a unique and important discipline for artists? We speak to professional life model Rachel Welch, artist Jonathan Yeo and tutor Charlotte Mann, as Quentin Crisp's autobiography The Naked Civil Servant which depicts his own experiences as a life model turns 50.Presenter: John Wilson Producer: Ben Mitchell.

-En förfärligt profetisk roman som handlar om intolerans och kvinnoförtryck. Boken innehåller starka känslor, sex, förräderi och oförlöst kärlek. Rena Tosca, säger Poul Ruders. Det var tilfälligheternas spel som 1982 gav den 31-årige Poul Ruders möjligheten till succé på de internationella musikscenerna. Oliver Knussen hörde hans stycke Four Compositions och spelade in det med London Sindonietta. Resten är historia. Poul Ruders föddes 1949 och, som han säger, är han autodidakt och har jobbat mycket hårt med att komponera sedan han var 18 år. Visst är Poul Ruders självlärd tonsättare men han har fått en mycket professionell träning i notation och instrumentation. Han ser symfoniorkestern som en gammal, men krävande dam, som han känner utan och innan. Någon skrivkramp har Poul Ruders aldrig haft. Tvärt om, noterna rinner mellan fingrarna på honom. Till den grad att han medvetet måste sålla bland dem och skriva, vad han menar, mer komplicerat. Musiken finns ständigt i hans huvud. Att människor ser bilder till hans musik besvärar inte Poul Ruders. Första satsen i hans andra violinkonsert, inspelad av Rebecca Hirsch, för tankarna till en fågel. Så skall det vara. Tonsättaren såg kondoren ovan molen där han satt på toppen av en utdöd vulkan i Chile. Där föddes den musikaliska idéen.   Ruders skäms inte över att han älskar programmusik. -Nu har bölden spruckit och vi får skriva den musik vi vill, utan puritanska pekpinnar. Och det viktigaste för mig är att få skriva fler operor innan jag trillar av pinn, säger Poul Ruders som 2018 är 69 år. Operan Tjänarinnans berättelse, baserad på kanadeniska författarinnan Margaret Atwoods bok The Handmaids Tale, uruppfördes på Det Kongelige Opera i Köpenhamn den 6 mars 2000. Verket är för sju sopraner, fem mezzosopraner, två altar, fyra tenorer, en bas, orkester och kör. Librettot skrev Paul Bentley. För operan erhöll Poul Ruders priset Cannes Classical Award i kategorin The Living Composer Award. Genom Tjänarinnas berättelse fick han blodad tand vad gäller opera. -Tänk att bli spelad kväll efter kväll. Att uppleva en helt annan publik än den som kommer till konserter. Att varje dag under två månader repetera samma stycke timme ut och timme in. Och att träffa alla dessa människor som tillsammans ger järnet fram till premiären. -Det blev jag totalt förälskad i, berättar Poul Ruders, som annars, när han komponerar, sitter helt isolerad tillsammans med sin hund i en liten skrivarstuga söder om Köpenhamn.

The French horn, elemental and atavistic, noble and heroic, has long held a special place in composers' affections. Just think of the horn writing of Bach and Handel, at once earthy and sophisticated, the concertos and chamber music of Mozart, the horns of Beethoven symphonies! Not to mention Schumann's supercharged Konzertstuck for four horns, or the central role the horn plays in Wagner's epic Ring - and in the orchestra of Brahms, Strauss and Mahler. And then there are today's composers... Tom Service unwinds this 12-foot metal tube to discover its continuous appeal over three centuries with the help of natural horn virtuoso Anneke Scott and self-confessed French horn superfan Oliver Knussen, whose very personal concerto for the instrument was inspired by family and friendship, as well as the great horn writing of the past. David Papp (producer).

I programmet diskuterades Haydn-symfonier med Il Giardino Armonico, Alice Coote sjunger sångcykler av Mahler, Krystian Zimerman spelar Schubert samt sena verk av Elliott Carter. Johan möter Schwabe. I panelen Alexander Freudenthal, Evert van Berkel och Johanna Paulsson som tillsammans med programledaren Johan Korssell betygsätter följande skivor:  GUSTAV MAHLER Sångcykler Alice Coote, mezzosopran Nederländska filharmonikerna Marc Albrecht, dirigent Pentatone PTC 5186 576 FRANZ SCHUBERT Pianosonater D 959 och D 960 Krystian Zimerman DG 479 7588 JOSEPH HAYDN DOMENICO CIMAROSA Il Distratto Symfonier nr 60, 70, 12 Il Maestro di Cappella Riccardo Novaro, baryton Il Giardino Armonico Giovanni Antonini, dirigent Alpha Classics ALPHA 674 ELLIOTT CARTER Late Works Pierre-Laurent Aimard, Colin Currie, Isabelle Faust, Jean-Guihen Queyras Birmingham Contemporary Music Group BBC symfoniorkester Oliver Knussen, dirigent Ondine ODE 1296-2 Johan möter Gabriel Schwabe Johan Korssell träffade den 29-årige cellisten på Stockholms-visit, ett samtal om sin alldeles färska CD där han är solist i Saint-Saëns cellokonserter. Schwabe spelar tillsammans med Malmö symfoniorkester under ledning av Marc Soustrot. Inspelningen är gjord på Naxos.  Referensen Schuberts Sonat D 960 Johan jämför med och refererar till Schuberts pianosonat nr 21 D 960 B-dur, med pianisten Wilhelm Kempff. Inspelad 1967 på DG. Andra i programmet nämnda eller rekommenderade inspelningar: Haydns symfonier i komplett utgivning (box med 32 CD) med The Academy Of Ancient Music, London, ledd av Christopher Hogwood på skivmärket Oiseau Lyre. Il Giardino Armonico ledd av Giovanni Antonini i Mozarts violinkonserter med Isabelle Faust som solist, inspelad på Harmonia Mundi. Mahlers sångcykler med mezzosopranen Christa Ludwig tillsammans med Philharmonia Orchestra i inspelningar ledda av Otto Klemperer och Adrian Boult på märket EMI samt med Berlins filharmoniker ledda av Herbert von Karajan på DG. Vidare rekommenderades Christa Ludwig ackompanjerad på piano av Leonard Bernstein på Sony; Janet Baker tillsammans Halléorkestern under John Barbirolli på EMI; Brigitte Fassbaender med Deutsche Sinfonieorchester ledda av Riccardo Chailly på Decca samt med barytonen Thomas Hampson ackompanjerad av Wiens filharmoniker dirigerade av Leonard Bernstein på DG. Schuberts pianosonater med Wilhelm Kempff på skivmärke DG (Referensen); Andreas Staier, hammarklaver, på Teldec; Alfred Brendel på Philips; Svjatoslav Richter på Music & Arts; Clara Haskil på Archipel; Artur Rubinstein på Philips samt med András Schiff på Decca. Nelson Freire spelar Bach på Decca. Arkadij Volodos spelar Brahms på Sony Classical. Elliott Carters klarinettkonsert med solisten Michael Collins och Londons Sinfonietta ledda av Oliver Knussen på DG. Elliott Carters orkestermusik med Londons Sinfonietta ledd av Oliver Knussen på Virgin Classics. Inget Svep denna vecka

Donald Macleod invites composer Oliver Knussen to join him to discuss his life and career

Oliver Knussen & Claire Booth discuss their collaboration on 'Requiem: Songs for Sue'

April 11, 2014. Oliver Knussen and Mark Neikrug discuss their residency at the Library of Congress and commission, "Tiger's Nest for Piano Trio." For transcript, captions, and more information, visit http://www.loc.gov/today/cyberlc/feature_wdesc.php?rec=6683

April 8, 2014. Stephen and Jackie Newbould of Birmingham Contemporary Music Group join the Library's Nicholas Brown to discuss the work of the ensemble, Oliver Knussen and their unique Sound Investment commissioning scheme. Speaker Biography: Stephen Newbould has been artistic director of Birmingham Contemporary Music Group since 2001, having helped launch the Group from within the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra in 1987 with its co-founders Ulrich Heinen and Simon Clugston. He is responsible for programming BCMG's concerts, commissioning new work and guiding the overall direction of the company. Speaker Biography: Jackie Newbould is executive producer of the Birmingham Contemporary Music Group. For transcript, captions, and more information, visit http://www.loc.gov/today/cyberlc/feature_wdesc.php?rec=6395

con Francesco Antonioni

Sara Mohr-Pietsch launches her Composers' Rooms series with an interview at the Suffolk home of Oliver Knussen, one of the most celebrated figures in contemporary music. Knussen explains why he works in the corner of his cottage kitchen, and talks to Sara about his fascination for miniature objects and how that translates into the music he writes.

The distinguished British composer and conductor Oliver Knussen is Christopher's guest on this week's edition of the NACOcast. NAC Orchestra audiences know Oliver Knussen from his appearances with the NAC Orchestra in 2001 when he conducted his own Second Symphony, and from 2004 when he conducted the Canadian premiere of his Violin Concerto with its dedicatee Pinchas Zukerman as soloist.