Britten for young persons
Benjamin Britten (1913 – 1976) The Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra Royal Philharmonic Orchestra; André Previn, cond,. Telarc 80460
John Birge
YourClassical MPR
Composers Datebook®
Reminding you that all music was once new ® • with host John Birge
Argento does Morocco
Dominick Argento (b. 1927) A Postcard from Morocco Minnesota Opera; Philip Brunelle, cond. CRI 614
Daniel Asia's "Black Light"
Daniel Asia (b. 1953) Black Light New Zealand Symphony; James Sedares, cond. Koch 7372
Zwilich celebrates
Ellen Taafe Zwilich (b. 1939) Celebration Indianapolis Symphony; John Nelson , cond. New World 336
Prokofiev's Sixth and Seventh
Sergei Prokofiev (1891 – 1953) Symphony No. 6 National Symphony; Leonard Slatkin, cond. RCA/BMG 68801 Symphony No. 7 French National Orchestra; Mstislav Rostropovich, cond. Erato 75322
Berio's "Sinfonia" in New York
Luciano Berio (1925-2003) Sinfonia New Swingle Singers; French National Orchestra; Pierre Boulez, cond. Erato 88151
Lloyd Webber at the Opera
Andrew Lloyd Webber (b. 1948) The Phantom of the Opera Royal Philharmonic Pops; Paul Gemignani, cond. MCA 6230
Ligeti's "out there" Violin Concerto
György Ligeti (1923-2006) Violin Concerto Saschko Gavrilov, violin; Ensemble InterContemporain; Pierre Boulez, cond. DG 439 808
Jake Heggie's opera "Dead Man Walking"
Jake Heggie (b. 1961) Dead Man Walking San Francisco Opera; Patrick Summers, cond. Erato 86238
Music for the movies
Felix Arndt (1889 – 1918) An Operatic Nightmare (Desecration Rag No. 2) Paragon Ragtime Orchestra; Rick Benjamin, cond. Newport Classics 60039 Erich Wolfgang von Korngold (1897 – 1957) The Prince and the Pauper filmscore National Philharmonic; Charles Gerhardt, cond. RCA/BMG 0185
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.