It’s December 3, and we’re still feeling the aftershocks of Thanksgiving – and also perhaps the gravitational pull, a little bit, of Christmas.

It is the season of giving, and on this Giving Tuesday, The Classical Network will salute a number of non-profit organizations that continue to make a difference in our community. WWFM hosts will conduct brief interviews throughout the day, from 10:15 a.m. to 5 p.m., with representatives from the following:

HomeFront (10:15 a.m.); SAVE, A Friend to Homeless Animals (11 a.m.); Trenton Music Makers (2 p.m.); Womanspace, Inc. (3:30 p.m.); Princeton Senior Resource Center – PSRC (4:15 p.m.); and Trenton Area Soup Kitchen (5 p.m.)

Tune in to learn more and see how you, too, can lend a helping hand.

Of course, we’ll also serve up ample helpings of music along the way. Today’s Noontime Concert is a kind of Early Music Advent program. The Salisbury Four will present “The Soft Complaining Flute,” with selections from the 16th and 17th centuries. The program was presented last December, as part of the Midtown Concerts series, hosted by Gotham Early Music Scene, or GEMS, at the chapel of St. Bartholomew’s Church, 325 Park Avenue, in midtown Manhattan. Free concerts are held at St. Bart’s every Thursday at 1:15 p.m.

GEMS supports artists and organizations in New York City devoted to Early Music. You can learn more and view a complete schedule by visiting the events calendar at gemsny.org.

Following today’s concert broadcast, and in between interviews, I’ll be peppering my playlist with music of love, thanks, and concern for our fellow human beings, including Michael Abels’ “Global Warming” (the title inevitably suggests climate change, but the music itself celebrates the coming together of the world’s diverse cultures), Beethoven’s String Quartet No. 15 in A minor, Op. 132 (its third movement is inscribed by the composer, “Holy song of thanksgiving of a convalescent to the Deity”), and Aaron Copland’s suite from “The Tender Land” (with its song of thanks, “The Promise of Living”).

In addition, apropos of our visit from Trenton Music Makers, we’ll hear “The Music Makers” by Sir Edward Elgar.

You don’t have to give ‘til it hurts. It actually feels pretty good.
Giving makes the world a better place. Consider offering your time and support to those in our community who make it their mission to help others.

Music is hope. It’s consolation, and it’s inspiration. It’s the gift that keeps on giving, from 12 to 4 p.m. EST, on WWFM – The Classical Network and wwfm.org.