A wild night with Berlioz
Hector Berlioz (1803-1869) Symphonie fantastique, Op. 14 Cleveland Orchestra; Pierre Boulez, cond. DG 453 432
John Birge
YourClassical MPR
Composers Datebook®
Reminding you that all music was once new ® • with host John Birge
Composers Datebook for December 5, 2007
1:58
Tchaikovsky and North endure unkind cuts
Peter Tchaikovsky (1840-1893) Violin Concerto, Op. 35 Itzhak Perlman, violin; London Symphony; Alfred Wallenstein, cond. Chesky 12 Alex North (1910-1991) Unused "Opening Theme," for 2001: A Space Odyssey National Philharmonic; Jerry Goldsmith, cond. Varese Sarabande 66225
1:59
Gershwin's Jazz Age concerto
John Harbison (b.1938) Remembering Gatsby Baltimore Symphony; David Zinman, cond. Argo 444 454 George Gershwin (1898-1937) Piano Concerto in F Peter Jablonski, piano; Royal Philharmonic; Vladimir Ashkenazy, cond. London 430 542
1:59
Bartok in Minneapolis
Béla Bartók (1881-1945) Viola Concerto (completed by Tibor Serly) Hong-Mei Xiao, viola; Budapest Philharmonic; Janos Kovacs, cond. Naxos 8.554183
1:59
"Four Weddings and a Funeral" by Clarke and Wagner?
Jeremiah Clarke (ca. 1674-1707) Trumpet Voluntary (Prince of Denmark March) Maurice André, trumpet; Jane Parker-Smith, organ EMI 64899
1:59
Massenet (and Laurie Anderson)
Jules Massenet (1842-1912) O souverain, o juge, o pere, from Le Cid Ben Heppner, tenor; Munich Radio Orchestra; Roberto Abbado, cond. RCA/BMG 62504
1:59
New York City "firsts" by Rossini and Cole Porter
Gioacchino Rossini (1792-1868) selections from The Barber of Seville Academy of St. Martin in the Fields; Neville Marriner, cond. Philips 412 266 Cole Porter (1891-1964) Gay Divorce Overture London Sinfonietta; John McGlinn, cond. EMI 68589
1:59
Rachmaninoff and Hanson get romantic
Sergei Rachmaninoff (1873-1943) Piano Concerto No. 3 in d, Op. 30 Martha Argerich, piano; Berlin Radio Symphony; Riccardo Chailly, cond. Philips 446 673 Howard Hanson (1896-1981) Symphony No. 2, Op. 30 (Romantic) RCA Symphony; Charles Gerhardt, cond. Chesky 112
1:59
Spacey music by Strauss and Ligeti
Richard Strauss (1864-1949) Also Sprach Zarathustra Chicago Symphony; Fritz Reiner, cond. RCA/BMG 60833 György Ligeti (1923-2006) Atmospheres Hollywood Bowl Orchestra; John Mauceri, cond. Philips 446 403
1:59
A pre-premiere premiere by John Corigliano
John Corigliano (b.1938) selections from The Red Violin Joshua Bell, violin; Philharmonia Orchestra; Esa-Pekka Salonen, cond. Sony 63010
1:59
About Composers Datebook®
Host John Birge presents a daily snapshot of composers past and present, with timely information, intriguing musical events and appropriate, accessible music related to each.
He has been hosting, producing and performing classical music for more than 25 years. Since 1997, he has been hosting on Minnesota Public Radio's Classical Music Service. He played French horn for the Cincinnati Symphony and Pops Orchestra and performed with them on their centennial tour of Europe in 1995. He was trained at the Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, Eastman School of Music and Interlochen Arts Academy.