Classical Music Playlist, May 20, 2026
Egypt. Cairo. On the Nile shore near Boulac [ca. 1890-1910] | Source: Library of Congress
French composer Camille Saint-Saëns loved to travel, and because he wrote his Piano Concerto No. 5 while vacationing in Cairo and Luxor, the work is sometimes called the “Egyptian” concerto. After an energetic opening of the second movement, he introduces what he said was a romantic “Nubian love song” sung by boatmen as the composer was sailing down the Nile. The Saint-Saëns “Egyptian” Concerto is today's Midday Masterpiece.
FYI: the photo of Cairo and the Nile River on this page was taken between 1890-1910, and Camille Saint-Saëns composed his Piano Concerto No. 5 in 1896 in Cairo. So this is probably an accurate view as he might have seen while sailing down the Nile. Perhaps on a boat just like this, or THIS boat!
6:00 a.m.
Johann Christian Bach
Quintet for flute, oboe, violin, cello & harpsichord in D major Opus 22/1
Aulos Ensemble
6:15 a.m.
Ethel Smyth
Concerto for Violin, Horn and Orchestra
BBC Philharmonic Orchestra; Odaline de la Martinez, conductor Sophie Langdon, violin; Richard Watkins, horn
6:44 a.m.
Alessandro Piccinini
Passacaglia
Ronn McFarlane, lute
6:49 a.m.
Tielmann Susato
Mon Desir (Basse Dans)
New London Consort; Philip Pickett, conductor
6:54 a.m.
Aram Khachaturian
Masquerade: Waltz
St. Petersburg State Symphony Orchestra; Andre Anichanov, conductor
6:59 a.m.
Camille Saint-Saens
Piano Trio No. 2: I. Allegro non troppo in E minor Opus 92
Neave Trio
7:11 a.m.
Franz Joseph Haydn
Symphony No. 94 "Surprise" in G major
Austro-Hungarian Haydn Orchestra; Adam Fischer, conductor
7:37 a.m.
Connor Chee
Navajo Vocable No. 4
Angelica Hairston, harp
7:40 a.m.
Stanley Myers
Cavatina
Angel Romero, guitar
7:45 a.m.
Zoltan Kodaly
Marosszek Dances
Budapest Festival Orchestra; Ivan Fischer, conductor
7:58 a.m.
Felix Mendelssohn
Trumpet Overture Opus 101
London Symphony Orchestra; Claudio Abbado, conductor
8:08 a.m.
Ludwig Van Beethoven
Piano Trio "Ghost" in D major Opus 70/1
Emanuel Ax, piano; Leonidas Kavakos, violin; Yo Yo Ma, cello
8:40 a.m.
Sonny Kompanek
Killer Tango
Canadian Brass
8:44 a.m.
Alexander Glazunov
Symphony No. 5: II. Scherzo in Bb major Opus 55
BBC Welsh Symphony Orchestra; Tadaaki Otaka, conductor
8:50 a.m.
George Friederich Handel
Organ Concerto No. 3 in G minor Opus 4 HWV 291
Concertgebouw Chamber Orchestra; Joshua Rifkin, conductor Peter Hurford, organ
9:01 a.m.
Ernst von Dohnanyi
Ruralia Hungarica Opus 32b
Budapest Symphony Orchestra; Gyorgy Lehel, conductor
9:27 a.m.
Jean-Baptiste Lully
ARMIDE: Overture
La Petite Bande; Sigiswald Kuijken, conductor
9:29 a.m.
Jean-Philippe Rameau
Les Indes Galantes: Overture
Orchestre de la Chapelle Royale; Philippe Herreweghe, conductor
9:33 a.m.
Johann Nepomuk Hummel
Quartet for clarinet and strings in Eb major S 78/WoO 5
L'Archibudelli Charles Neidich, clarinet
10:00 a.m.
Johann Sebastian Bach
Fantasia and Fugue in A minor in A minor BWV 904
Vikingur Olafsson, piano
10:10 a.m.
John Rutter
Folk Suite
Royal Ballet Sinfonia; David Lloyd-Jones, conductor
10:23 a.m.
Franz Joseph Haydn
Symphony No. 47 "The Palindrome" in G major
Hanover Band; Roy Goodman, conductor
10:51 a.m.
Antonio Vivaldi
Violin Concerto, Op. 3, No. 6 in A minor Opus 3/6 RV 356
Tafelmusik; Jeanne Lamon, conductor Elizabeth Wallfisch, violin
10:59 a.m.
Louise Farrenc
Sextet in C minor Opus 40
Linos Ensemble
11:26 a.m.
Pat Metheny
Last Train Home (Prelude)
Jason Vieaux, guitar
11:31 a.m.
Gang Chen; Zhanhao He
The Butterfly Lovers (Concerto for Violin)
Singapore Symphony Orchestra; Lan Shui, conductor Gil Shaham, violin; Jonathan Fox, gu ban; Nella Hunkins, cello; Ta Jin, flute; Gulia Mashurova, harp
12:00 p.m.
Antonin Dvorak
Scherzo capriccioso Opus 66
Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra; Jose Serebrier, conductor
12:17 p.m.
Ennio Morricone
The Mission: Gabriel's oboe
Roma Sinfonietta Orchestra; Ennio Morricone, conductor Yo Yo Ma, cello
12:24 p.m.
Ludwig Van Beethoven
Symphony No. 1 in C major Opus 21
Minnesota Orchestra; Osmo Vanska, conductor
12:51 p.m.
Thomas de Hartmann
Cello Concerto: III. Finale. Allegro ma non troppo Opus 57
Leipzig Radio Symphony Orchestra Matt Haimovitz, cello
1:00 p.m.
Benjamin Britten
Matinees musicales (Suite after Rossini) Opus 24
National Philharmonic Orchestra; Richard Bonynge, conductor
1:14 p.m.
Joe Hisaishi
A Town with an Ocean View (from Kiki's Delivery Service)
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra; Joe Hisaishi, conductor
1:22 p.m.
Carel Anton Fodor
Symphony No. 3 in C minor Opus 19
Netherlands Radio Chamber Orchestra; Anthony Halstead, conductor
1:52 p.m.
Giuseppe Verdi
AIDA: Triumphal March from Act II
Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra; Leonard Slatkin, conductor
2:00 p.m.
Camille Saint-Saens
Piano Concerto No. 5 in F major Opus 103
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra Pascal Roge, piano
2:30 p.m.
Joaquin Turina
Fandanguillo Opus 36
Narciso Yepes, guitar
2:36 p.m.
Antonin Dvorak
Czech Suite Opus 39
Janacek Philharmonic; Theodore Kuchar, conductor
2:59 p.m.
Georges Bizet
Carmen Suite No. 1
Cincinnati Pops; Erich Kunzel, conductor
3:12 p.m.
Johann Heinichen
Concerto in F major S 234
Musica Antiqua Koln; Reinhardt Goebel, conductor
3:22 p.m.
Frederic Chopin
Les Sylphides: Suite
Philadelphia Orchestra; Eugene Ormandy, conductor
3:48 p.m.
Erich Korngold
The Sea Hawk (1940) Suite
Oregon Symphony; James DePreist, conductor
3:58 p.m.
Arcangelo Corelli
Concerto Grosso No. 6 in F major Opus 6
Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra; Nicholas McGegan, conductor
4:10 p.m.
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Piano Concerto No. 10 (for two pianos) in Eb major K 365
English Chamber Orchestra; Murray Perahia, conductor Murray Perahia, piano; Radu Lupu, piano
4:34 p.m.
Isaac Albeniz
Suite Espanola: No. 3 "Sevilla" Opus 47
Pepe Romero, guitar
4:39 p.m.
Claude Debussy
Arabesque No. 1 in E major
Philharmonia Orchestra; Geoffrey Simon, conductor
4:44 p.m.
Felix Mendelssohn
A Midsummer Night's Dream: Overture
London Symphony Orchestra; Claudio Abbado, conductor
4:58 p.m.
Bedrich Smetana
Ma Vlast: IV. From Bohemia's Woods and Meadows
Janacek Philharmonic; Theodore Kuchar, conductor
5:11 p.m.
Robert Schumann
Symphony No. 1 "Spring" in Bb major Opus 38
Orchestre Revolutionnaire et Romantique; John Eliot Gardiner, conductor
5:42 p.m.
Phil Rosheger
Good Luck Waltz
David Russell, guitar
5:45 p.m.
Claude Champagne
Rustic Dance (Dance Villageoise)
Quebec Symphony Orchestra; Yoav Talmi, conductor
5:51 p.m.
Alessandro Scarlatti
Concerto Grosso No. 3 in F major
Europa Galante; Fabio Biondi, conductor
5:59 p.m.
Gabriel Faure
Piano Quartet No. 1 in C minor Opus 15
Emanuel Ax, piano; Isaac Stern, violin; Jaime Laredo, viola; Yo Yo Ma, cello
6:31 p.m.
Stanislaw Moniuszko
Overture to THE COUNTESS
Warsaw Philharmonic; Antoni Wit, conductor
6:41 p.m.
Catrin Finch
Celtic Concerto
Sinfonia Cymru; John Rutter, conductor Catrin Finch, harp
6:55 p.m.
Caroline Shaw
Microfictions [volume 1]: I. Under the hot sun...
Mir� Quartet
