This Week AtThe Classical Station

Photo by Dale Marie Muller

This Week At The Classical Station

by Robert Kennedy

Sunday, July 24, 2022

The Leipzig Gewandhaus orchestra opens Preview! this evening with the Andante movement from Bruckner’s Symphony No. 2. Rob Kennedy speaks with Anne-Marie Mcdermott about her new recording of Schubert’s Piano Sonatas.

Tell your smart speaker to “Play The Classical Station” at 6 p.m. for Preview!, bring you the latest classical releases and local arts news.

This morning Great Sacred Music includes music sung by the Oxford Camerata, Blue Heron, and the Vocal Ensemble of Lausanne. Also on the playlist is music by Johann Sebastian Bach, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and Charles Gounod. One of our featured works is the 11th-century Mass for St. Martial. You can find the playlist with program notes on the Great Sacred Music page.

Great Sacred Music. Beautiful choral and organ music. Every Sunday morning. 8 a.m. Eastern. Right after Sing For Joy. With Rob Kennedy.

 

On July 24 we observe the birthdays of French composer Adolphe Adam (1803-1856), Swiss-born American composer Ernest Bloch (1880-1959), and American pianist Peter Serkin (1947-2020). Monsieur Adam was a prolific composer of operas and ballets. Ernest Bloch left us about one hundred works in several formats. Serkin studied at the Curtis Institute and was a champion of new music and contemporary composers.

Photos: Adolphe Adam, Charles Vogt, Publc Domain, Wikimedia Commons; Ernest Bloch, Unknown Author, Wikimedia Commons; Peter Serkin by Kathy Chapman


Saturday, July 23, 2022

The Classical Station has been broadcasting great classical music since 1978, thanks to listener support. One of the many ways that you can help The Classical Station to continue playing classical music for years to come is to leave a planned gift in your will or estate.

Leaving a legacy gift to The Classical Station will help ensure that the station has a solid foundation to continue operating for generations to come. Educational Information Corporation is the legal name of The Classical Station. The station is a nonprofit 501 (c)(3), listener-supported radio station that relies on your tax-deductible support for its funding. We receive no financial support from local, state, or federal government entities. Neither do we receive a grant from a university or public radio organization. We have been listener-supported and volunteer-powered since 1978.

For more information, read our Planned Giving Brochure. Thank you for supporting The Classical Station. We couldn’t do this without you.

Photo: Unknown Author, Fair Use

On July 23 we observe the birthdays of Swedish composer Franz Berwald (1796-1868), American pianist Leon Fleisher (1928-2020), and Portuguese pianist Maria João Pires (1944-), and American mezzo-soprano Susan Graham (1960-).

Berwald was another composer who made his living doing something other than composing. He was a very successful orthopedic specialist. Focal dystonia drastically changed the focus of Leon. Fleisher’s musical career in 1964.  Ms. Pires is a musical phenomenon. Ms. Graham shows no signs of slowing down after a long, remarkable career.

Photos: Franz Berwald, Unknown Author, Public Domain, Wikimedia Commons;  Leon Fleisher, Unknown Author, Public Domain, Wikipedia.org; Susan Graham/Ken & Carl Fischer Photography, NY; Maria João Pires/Felix Broede


Friday, July 22, 2022

Classical music is a tapestry of instruments, of experience, of emotion, of story. Every piece of music you hear on The Classical Station is also part of the larger tapestry of musical history, a history that goes back through centuries of composition and more than a century of recordings. Every day The Classical Station weaves a tapestry drawn from the many thousands of recordings in our vast music library.

But today the story is all about you – our listener. So seize the day by showing your support today for The Classical Station. Give securely online. Thank you for your support.

Photo: North Carolina Chamber Music Institute
Today is the birthday of American composer Alan Menken (1949-).  Alan attended New York University where he earned a degree in musicology.  He was won two Academy Awards and composed scores for the Disney films Aladdin, Hunchback of Notre Dame, and many more.

Photo: Sarah Ackerman, CC-by-2.0., Wikimedia Commons


Thursday, July 21, 2022

This evening the Thursday Night Opera House features Almicare Ponchielli’s La Gioconda in a performance from the archives of the late Al Ruocchio, long-time host of Opera House. Here’s the plot in a nutshell:  When La Gioconda, a street singer, crosses paths with Barnaba, an evil-hearted spy, a tangled web ensues. This opera has everything: deception, deceit, intrigue, suicide, murder, disguises, trickery, evil characters and more than a few poison elixirs.

Tell your smart speaker to “Play The Classical Station” at 7 p.m. Eastern.

On July 21 we observe the birthdays of American violinist Isaac Stern (1920-2001) and Austrian-born Canadian pianist Anton Kuerti (1938-).

Stern made a point of championing younger players including such notable artists as Yo-Yo Ma, Itzhak Perlman, and Pinchas Zukerman. Kuerti has served on the faculties of the University of Toronto and McGill University besides producing 25 recordings.

Photo: Isaac Stern, PBS, Public Domain, Wikimedia Common


Wednesday, July 20, 2022

Music makes memories. Hearing our favorite pieces brings us back to those special times when we first heard the music of Bach or Beethoven or Brahms. We each can recall the effect that music had on us.

That’s what we do here at The Classical Station. We program music that soothes you when the stress of everyday life gets to be too much. Our rousing overtures get you going during Rise and Shine in the morning. Classical Cafe and As You Like It keep you company while you go about your daily routine. Allegro and Concert Hall provide a pleasant musical backdrop for your end-of-the-day activities. Then, Music In The Night brings your day to a peaceful close. Sleepers Awake is there for you overnight for those times when you can’t sleep.

What makes all of these programs special is that they are hosted by a live announcer, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. You can the station anytime and speak with a member of staff. We have been doing this since 1978 thanks to the support of thousands of listeners like you.

To make sure this marvelous legacy remains alive, please become a Sustaining Member. It’s simple to set up! Click the Donate button here on our website or app. Then choose the amount you wish to donate each month. It can be $10, $15, $20 or more. Whatever you decide. Fill in your contact information and payment information on our secure server. Don’t forget to choose a Thank You Gift while you are there. Prefer to call in your gift? Call 800-556-5178 anytime!

Your donation ensures this legacy of great classical music continues to thrive here on The Classical Station. Please become a sustainer now. This classical music we play is counting on you.


Tuesday, July 19, 2022

Individual contributions… from thousands of listeners just like you … make up the most important part of our income. And there is strength in those numbers… because when more people give to The Classical Station…the future of classical music on the radio is more secure. Become a Sustaining Member today. You can do it securely online, or call anytime. A member of staff will take down your information and help you select a Thank You Gift. 800-556-5178

Photo: Unknown Author, Public Domain Pictures


Monday, July 18, 2022

This evening, Monday Night at the Symphony celebrates the 44th birthday of The Classical Station with a concert by the London Philharmonic. On the program is music by Robert Schumann, Felix Mendelssohn, and more in performances conducted by Bernard Haitink, Kurt Masur, and conductor emeritus Vladimir Jurowski. The Classical Station brings you a concert by a great orchestra on Monday Night at the Symphony, every Monday at 8 p.m. Eastern.

On July 18 we observe the birthdays of German conductor Kurt Masur (1927-2015), Czech composer Julius Fučík (1872-1916), and The Classical Station (1978-).

Kurt Masur conducted most of the world’s principal orchestras in his lifetime. He also served as director of the Gewandhaus Orchestra and the New York Philharmonic Orchestra. Fučík wrote hundreds of marches. Think of him as a Czech John Philip Sousa. WCPE The Classical Station went on the air on July 18, 1978, with a 1,000-watt transmitter in Raleigh, North Carolina, and a vision of bringing classical music to everybody, everywhere. Forty-four years later, thanks to listener support and volunteer power, our great classical music reaches around the world.

Photo: WCPE Photo Services