Wavelengths Archive

Winter 2021–22

American composer Paul Lansky, born in 1944, was a pioneer in the creation of electronic music, initially writing his own composition software for the huge mainframe computers of the 1960s. Much of his music involved taping and manipulating real-world sounds and playing them back in a compelling, dance-like groove.

But in the mid 1990s, he began to write for more traditional instrumentation, especially percussion, strings, and classical guitar. Along the way, he has chaired the music department at Princeton University and served as the Alabama Symphony Orchestra’s first composer-in-residence.

Join The Classical Station on Sunday, January 9, 2022, as we feature music for strings and piano by Paul Lansky on Wavelengths.

We showcase the best music of contemporary composers each week on Wavelengths, a mix of 21st century compositions and significant pieces from the last century.

Fall 2021

American composer and harpist Hannah Lash first learned of classical music from her dad, listening with him to recordings of Bach cantatas and Mozart concertos. By the age of four, she knew she was destined to write music herself. Her quest eventually led her to the Yale School of Music, where she serves on the composition faculty, and her works have been commissioned by the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the Minnesota Orchestra, and the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra.

 

Summer 2021

Each week on Wavelengths, The Classical Station showcases the best music of contemporary composers, offering a mix of 21st century compositions with significant pieces from the last century.

Join us this quarter as we feature works by Grammy-winning American composers Richard Danielpour and Christopher Theofanidis, as well as Kim Portnoy, Jonathan Leshnoff, Missy Mazzolli, and Ellen Taaffe Zwilich.

Spring 2021

Gabriela Lena Frank, born in Berkeley, California, in 1972, is an American composer of Peruvian, Chinese, and Lithuanian Jewish ancestry. Her music is informed by her multicultural background, in particular her Latin American roots. Her compositions have included commissions from the Kronos Quartet, Chanticleer, and the Silkroad Ensemble, of which she is a member. She is also composer-in-residence for the Philadelphia Orchestra, a multiple Grammy nominee, and winner of a Latin Grammy.

Join The Classical Station on Sunday, March 7, as we celebrate the music of Gabriela Lena Frank on Wavelengths. It’s part of our larger feature of modern female composers during Women’s History Month.

Winter 2020–21

Polish avant-garde composer Henryk Górecki (1933–2010) set the classical music world ablaze with the 1992 recording of his Symphony no. 3, Symphony of Sorrowful Songs. Inspired by the themes of maternal love and wartime loss, with texts sung by soprano Dawn Upshaw, the release went on to sell more than a million copies, a number unheard of for a classical recording up to that point.

Join The Classical Station as we present this moving performance on Wavelengths on Sunday, December 6, the anniversary of the composer’s birth.

We’ll also hear new music by Anna Clyne, John Luther Adams, and Michael Torke in the coming weeks.

Fall 2020

Carl Vollrath, born to German parents in New York City in 1931, has written a wealth of music in his long career, including six wind symphonies, an opera, and lots of chamber music. He played in the West Point Band in the 1950s and studied composition with Ernst von Dohnányi, Carlisle Floyd, and John Boda. In 2008, clarinetist Richard Stoltzman released a two-disc collection of Vollrath’s compositions called Jack’s Fat Cat. Join The Classical Station on September 20 as we feature music of Carl Vollrath on Wavelengths.

And don’t miss our tribute to Estonian composer Arvo Pärt on September 6, the Sunday before his 85th birthday.

Summer 2020

This summer, we featured works by Pulitzer Prize–winning American composer Caroline Shaw, as well as by Danny Elfman, Adolphus Hailstork, Arvo Pärt, and Ēriks Ešenvalds.

 

 

Spring 2020

On Sunday, March 8, we celebrated the music of Dobrinka Tabakova on Wavelengths. It was part of our larger feature of contemporary female composers during Women’s History Month.

 

Born in Bulgaria and raised in London, Dobrinka Tabakova writes music that draws upon both eastern and western European traditions. Her works have been commissioned by numerous organizations, including the Royal Philharmonic Society and BBC Radio 3, and her 2013 album String Paths was nominated for a Grammy Award.