From Dreams of a New Day: Songs by Black Composers on the Cedille label comes Birmingham Sunday which American folk singer Richard Farina (1937-1966) wrote in response to the 1963 bombing of a church in Birmingham, Alabama. This bombing took the lives of four girls. Will Liverman, baritone performs for us.
One of today’s top pianists, Orli Shaham plays W.A. Mozart’s Piano Sonata No. 17 in B flat, K. 570.
José Serebrier
Photo courtesy of www.joseserebrier.com
Our interview this week features acclaimed conductor José Serebrier speaking with Rob Kennedy about a new recording of his Last Tango before Sunrise. Yes, Maestro Serebrier is also a composer, indeed, of over 100 works.
From the renowned Harmonia Mundi label comes a new recording of Beethoven’s Choral Fantasy in C minor, Op. 80, performed by the Freiburg Baroque Orchestra and the Zurich Sing-Akademie with Kristian Bezuidenhout, piano, all conducted by Pablo Heras-Casado.
The French string quartet, The Modigliani Quartet, was founded in Paris in 2003. It performs Josef Haydn’s String Quartet in D minor, Op. 76 No. 2 “Quinten”.
The Trio for Piano, Flute and Cello in G minor, Op. 63, J. 259 is Carl Maria von Weber’s most substantial chamber work. He was known more for his operas, in particular, Der Freischutz. Bonita Boyd, flute, Steven Doane, cello, and Barry Snyder, piano, perform on a Bridge CD entitled Aquarelles.
Works thought to have been written by one composer but attributed to another always raise lots of questions. Listen to Violin Concerto No. 7 in D, K. 271a attributed to Mozart and see what you think. The Classical Station’s Music Director, William Woltz writes that it may have been completed by Mozart in Salzburg in July 1777. It was not published until 1907 and may contain some 19th-century additions by an unknown composer. Jean-Jacques Kantorow conducts Sinfonia Varsovia with violin soloist Liya Petrova.
Rob Kennedy
February 27, 2021