Classical Music Playlist, April 25, 2024As one of Sweden’s greatest pianists, Wilhelm Stenhammar performed his own Piano Concerto No. 1 for about 15 years with great success. It’s today's Midday Masterpiece.
Classical Music Playlist, April 11, 2024Commissioned by the King of Bavaria for the first clarinetist of his court orchestra, Carl Maria von Weber’s Clarinet Concerto No. 2 from 1811 exploits then-new developments in the instrument including its range. It’s today's Midday Masterpiece.
Classical Music Playlist, April 10, 2024Between the drama of his “Eroica” Symphony No. 3 and the innovations of his Fifth, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 4 is full of spritely good humor and energetic charm. It’s today’s Midday Masterpiece.
Classical Music Playlist, April 9, 2024The most enduring, melodic and passionate of all the Violin Concertos by French composer Camille Saint-Saëns, his Violin Concerto No. 3, is today's Midday Masterpiece.
Classical Music Playlist, April 8, 2024Irish pianist and composer John Field is credited with inventing the Nocturne. He includes one as a slow movement in his Piano Concerto No. 7, today's Midday Masterpiece.
Classical Music Playlist, April 5, 2024Hesitant to compose a symphony in the shadow of Beethoven, Johannes Brahms finally produced his First Symphony at age 43 and included a nod to Beethoven. The Brahms Symphony No. 1 is today's Midday Masterpiece.
Classical Music Playlist, April 4, 2024The early Piano Quartet No. 1 by Gabriel Fauré, that includes a tender but mournful adagio movement that may be a musical response to his broken-off engagement, is today's Midday Masterpiece.
Classical Music Playlist, April 3, 2024Tchaikovsky’s 3rd Symphony is 43 minutes of music that mirror the relaxed summer he spent in the countryside where he composed it. Chill with Tchaikovsky for today's Midday Masterpiece.
Classical Music Playlist, April 2, 2024With the violin and piano as main instruments, in front of a String Quartet mostly as support, the 1891 “Concert for Violin, Piano and String Quartet” by French composer Ernest Chausson is today’s Midday Masterpiece.
Classical Music Playlist, April 1, 2024For his (151st) birthday today we’re going to play the entire 55-minute romantic Rachmaninoff Symphony No. 2 for today’s Midday Masterpiece.
Classical Music Playlist, March 29, 2024Composer Caroline Shaw's 2019 oratorio "The Listeners" is about mankind's eternal contemplation of the cosmos; from gazing at the stars, to actual exploration of space. It's today's Midday Masterpiece as we highlight Shaw for Women's History Month.