Classical Music Playlist, July 15, 2025
Though Richard Strauss later withdrew section titles that give a narrative to his autobiographical tone poem, “Ein Heldenleben” (“A Hero’s Life”), the epic nature of a hero at battle remains within the music. That battle, as originally described, was Strauss’s battles with critics over his music. Strauss depicts himself as heroic in the opening movement, musically belittles critics in the second, introduces his beloved wife (“The Hero’s Companion” movement) in the third, sounds of battle emerge in the fourth and, in the fifth movement, Strauss makes numerous quotes of his previous tone poems Don Quixote, Don Juan, Also sprach Zarathustra, and more (“The Hero’s Works of Peace” of this movement’s original title) then in the final movement the hero retires, satisfied, into rest with his beloved companion. “Ein Heldenleben” is today’s Midday Masterpiece.
6:00 a.m.
Charles Avison
Concerto No. 3 in D major Opus 4/3
Avison Ensemble; Pavlo Beznosiuk, conductor
6:11 a.m.
Ignaz Moscheles
Piano Concerto No. 5 in C major Opus 87
Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra; Howard Shelley, conductor Howard Shelley, piano
6:42 a.m.
Agustin Barrios
Danza Paraguaya No. 3: London Carape
David Russell, guitar
6:44 a.m.
Mario Albanese
Jequibau
Plinio Fernandes, guitar
6:47 a.m.
Alexander Glazunov
Concert Waltz No. 2 (Valse de Concert) Opus 51
Bamberg Symphony; Neeme Jarvi, conductor
6:59 a.m.
George Friederich Handel
Concerto Grosso No. 11 in A major Opus 6/11 HWV 329
Handel & Haydn Society; Christopher Hogwood, conductor
7:17 a.m.
Louise Farrenc
Trio for clarinet, cello, and piano in Eb major Opus 44
Linos Ensemble
7:41 a.m.
Gustav Holst
The Planets: Mercury, the Winged Messenger Opus 32
Atlanta Symphony Orchestra; Yoel Levi, conductor
7:45 a.m.
Carl Maria Von Weber
Abu Hassan Overture J 106
Tapiola Sinfonietta; Jean Jacques Kantorow, conductor
7:49 a.m.
Johannes Brahms
Symphony No. 4: IV. Allegro energico e passionato in E minor Opus 98
Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra; Riccardo Chailly, conductor
8:00 a.m.
Gustav Mahler
Symphony No. 5: III. Scherzo in C# minor
Berlin Philharmonic; Claudio Abbado, conductor Gerd Seifert, horn
8:18 a.m.
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Piano Concerto No. 16 in D major K 451
English Chamber Orchestra; Jeffrey Tate, conductor Mitsuko Uchida, piano
8:42 a.m.
Randy Edelman
Gettysburg: Reunion and Finale
Cincinnati Pops; Erich Kunzel, conductor Timothy Berens. guitar
8:48 a.m.
Hector Berlioz
Symphonie Fantastique: V. Witches' Sabbath Opus 14
BBC Symphony Orchestra; Andrew Davis, conductor
9:00 a.m.
Johann Sebastian Bach
Brandenburg Concerto No. 1 in F major BWV 1046
European Brandenburg Ensemble; Trevor Pinnock, conductor
9:20 a.m.
Ethel Smyth
Concerto for Violin, Horn and Orchestra: I. Allegro moderato
BBC Philharmonic Orchestra; Odaline de la Martinez, conductor Sophie Langdon, violin; Richard Watkins, horn
9:36 a.m.
Zenobia Powell Perry
Piano Potpurri: No. 5. A Jazz Trifle
LaDoris Hazzard Cordell, piano
9:38 a.m.
Sergei Prokofiev
Piano Sonata No. 7: III. Precipitato in Bb major Opus 83
Wei Luo, piano
9:43 a.m.
Johann Christian Bach
Sinfonia Concertante with two violins and cello in G major
London Festival Orchestra; Ross Pople, conductor Richard Friedman, violin; Steven Smith, violin; Ross Pople, cello
10:00 a.m.
Arcangelo Corelli
Concerto Grosso No. 1 in D major Opus 6
Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra; Nicholas McGegan, conductor
10:12 a.m.
Clarice Assad
Bohemian Queen: III. Hyde Park Jam
Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra; Allen Tinkham, conductor Mary Elizabeth Bowden, trumpet
10:18 a.m.
Ignacy Jan Paderewski
Piano Concerto in A minor Opus 17
Polish National Radio Orchestra; Antoni Wit, conductor Janina Fialkowska, piano
10:53 a.m.
Johannes Brahms
Hungarian Dance No. 4 in F# minor
Staatskapelle Berlin; Otmar Suitner, conductor
11:00 a.m.
Marianna Martines
Sinfonia in C major
La Floridiana; Nicoleta Paraschivescu, conductor
11:12 a.m.
Antonin Dvorak
Silent Woods for cello and orchestra (Waldesruhe) Opus 68/5
Royal Liverpool Philharmonic; Libor Pesek, conductor Timothy Walden, cello
11:17 a.m.
Paul Dukas
Villanelle for horn and orchestra
Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra; Kurt Masur, conductor Hermann Baumann, horn
11:25 a.m.
Fredrich Ernst Fesca
Symphony No. 2 in D major Opus 10
NDR Radio Philharmonic Hanover; Frank Beermann, conductor
11:51 a.m.
Louis Moreau Gottschalk
Grand Tarantelle Opus 67/5
Cincinnati Pops; Erich Kunzel, conductor William Tritt, piano
12:00 p.m.
Fela Sowande
African Suite: Selections
Chicago Sinfonietta; Paul Freeman, conductor
12:11 p.m.
Cecile Chaminade
Arabesque Opus 61
Peter Jacobs, piano
12:15 p.m.
Claude Debussy
Arabesque No. 1 in E major
Jean-Yves Thibaudet, piano
12:20 p.m.
Edward Elgar
Enigma Variations Opus 36
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra; Andre Previn, conductor
12:52 p.m.
Richard Wagner
DIE WALKURE: Ride of the Valkyries
Chicago Symphony Orchestra; Daniel Barenboim, conductor
12:59 p.m.
Franz Schubert
String Quartet No. 14 "Death and the Maiden" in D minor D 810
Emerson String Quartet
1:38 p.m.
Clara Schumann
Three Romances for Piano Opus 11
Isata Kanneh-Mason, piano
1:53 p.m.
Sergei Prokofiev
Romeo & Juliet: Dance of the Knights Opus 64
Boston Ballet Orchestra; Jonathan McPhee, conductor
2:00 p.m.
Richard Strauss
A Hero's Life (Ein Heldenleben) Opus 40
Staatskapelle Dresden; Rudolph Kempe, conductor
2:45 p.m.
Teresa Carreno
Un reve en mer A dream at sea
Sarah Cahill, piano
2:52 p.m.
Johannes Brahms
Symphony No. 4: III. Allegro giocoso in E minor Opus 98
Berlin Philharmonic; Herbert von Karajan, conductor
3:00 p.m.
George Friederich Handel
Occasional Suite in D major
The English Concert; Trevor Pinnock, conductor
3:16 p.m.
George Butterworth
Banks of Green Willow
English Sinfonia; Neville Dilkes, conductor
3:23 p.m.
Camille Saint-Saens
Piano Concerto No. 3 in Eb major Opus 29
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra; Andre Previn, conductor Jean-Philippe Collard, piano
3:55 p.m.
Antonin Dvorak
Slavonic Dance No. 15 in C major Opus 72
Cleveland Orchestra; Christoph Von Dohnanyi, conductor
4:00 p.m.
Hubert Parry
Symphonic Variations
London Philharmonic Orchestra; Adrian Boult, conductor
4:14 p.m.
William Grant Still
Symphony No. 1 "Afro-American"
Detroit Symphony Orchestra; Neeme Jarvi, conductor
4:39 p.m.
Dmitri Shostakovich
Jazz Suite No. 1
Concertgebouw Orchestra; Riccardo Chailly, conductor
4:49 p.m.
Antonio Vivaldi
Concerto for 2 mandolins in G major RV 532
Europa Galante; Fabio Biondi, conductor
5:00 p.m.
John Field
Rondo for piano & strings in Ab major
London Mozart Players; Matthias Bamert, conductor Miceal O'Rourke, piano
5:08 p.m.
John Rutter
Lullaby for Ana Gwen
Sinfonia Cymru; John Rutter, conductor Catrin Finch, harp
5:13 p.m.
Hugo Wolf
Italian Serenade in G major
I Solisti Italiani
5:21 p.m.
Alexander Borodin
Petite Suite
Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra; Ghennady Rozhdestvensky, conductor
5:52 p.m.
Samuel Coleridge-Taylor
African Suite: African Dance Opus 35/4
Chineke! Orchestra; Kevin John Edusei, conductor
5:59 p.m.
Edvard Grieg
String Quartet No. 1 in G minor Opus 27
Guarneri Quartet
6:33 p.m.
Aram Khachaturian
Spartacus: Adagio of Spartacus & Phrygia
Monte Carlo Philharmonic Orchestra; Lawrence Foster, conductor
6:44 p.m.
Gentil Montana
Suite Colombiana No. 2: II. Guabina Viajera (Traveller Guabina)
Jose Antonio Escobar, guitar
6:51 p.m.
Stephen Warbeck
Shakespeare in Love: Main Title
Cincinnati Pops; Erich Kunzel, conductor
6:54 p.m.
Edward Elgar
Salut d'amour (Love's Greeting) Opus 12
Philharmonia Orchestra; Sir Charles Groves, conductor
