Extra Eclectic

As we approach the winter solstice this week, Steve Seel has music in a chilly mood this time ... or is it a warm one? Bundle up and enjoy 20th and 21st century classical music on wintry themes from Johann Johannssen, Alan Hovhanness and Ola Gjelo, as well as cellist Maya Beiser's ethereal rendering of the largo from Vivaldi's Winter concerto and Minnesota violinist Gaelynn Lea's duet with her looping pedal in a beautiful rendition of "O Come O Come Emmanuel."

Sometimes, things that are out-of-focus can be that much more dramatic. This week, Steve brings us works with titles that eschew sharp edges, including "Soft Focus" by Patrick Zimmerli, "Blurred" by Bill Ryan, and "Chiaroscuro" by Giya Kancheli. The second hour of the program showcases a new work by Nico Muhly written for Thomas Gould and his six-string electric violin.

With this edition of Extra Eclectic coming the night before Thanksgiving, Steve Seel has a late-night winter tapestry with an American slant to go with the evening vibes. A "Plea for Peace" by Augusta Read Thomas, John Adams' "Shaker Loops," and a work by Peter Garland that references chimney-smoke and kitchen warmth all inform the atmosphere of the program.

Modern music for strings is the first order of business on this week's program: Steve Seel brings us an hour of 20th and 21st century works for string ensembles big and small -- from Steve Reich's "Duet" for two violins to Michael Tippett's "Concerto for Double String Orchestra," a piece from the 1930s which sounds like it could have been written yesterday. For the second hour, Steve plays a selection of works loosely inspired by the shorter days and cooler temperatures this time of year.

There's a spiritual dimension to the works Steve Seel has for us on this edition of Extra Eclectic. Arvo Part's "Fur Alina," Jennifer Higdon's "Blue Cathedral," and John Luther Adams' "Canticles of the Holy Wind" are among the compositions that create an atmosphere of reverence among the contemporary sounds on the first hour of the program. In the second hour, Steve features David Kirkland Garner's "Dark Holler," a work exploring the sounds and atmospheres of the rural American south.

You'll hear traces of jazz and blues in works that Steve Seel has in store in the first hour, from composers including Derek Bermel, William Bolcom, Paul Bowles, and Valerie Coleman in her amazing tour-de-force "Shotgun Houses." In the second hour, Steve features different uses of the electric guitar -- in contemporary works from the likes of Steve Reich, Bryce Dessner, and Jascha Narveson.

Danny Elfman has written over 100 film and TV scores, from Tim Burton's Batman to the theme from The Simpsons. He says that from time to time, however, he finds that he has to write orchestral music totally free from the influence of film, in order to "keep my sanity" -- a process he says he finds "incredibly liberating and relieving." His latest is his Violin Concerto, "Eleven Eleven," and it's featured on this week's show. Ward Jacobsen guest hosts.

Some of the warmest, most compelling new classical music today is being written for the cello - and, played by cellists with a solid pedigree in new music. This week Steve features two hours of nearly wall-to-wall cellos, in solos, duos, multiples, and concerto settings, with performances by Maya Beiser, Ashley Bathgate, Yo Yo Ma, Zoe Keating, and others.

Avi Avital is an Israeli mandolinist, best known for his renditions of well-known Baroque and folk music, much of which was originally written for other instruments. Just about all those things are defied however in the work Steve features this week - a new work by David Bruce, called "Cymbeline," in which the composer says the mandolin conveys "the warmth of the sun." Steve also features two works by Steve Reich, as well as pieces by Missy Mazzoli, Colin Stetson, and more.

Rene Clausen, the professor of choral music and the Grammy-winning composer and conductor at Concordia College in Moorhead, Minn., depicts the epochs of time it took to form what we now know as the Red River Valley of the North in 'Before the Whirlwind' on this week's Extra Eclectic.