Tchaikovsky shares our elation at having concluded another successful membership drive. The votes were tallied, and Ol’ Peter Ilych pulled ahead of Johannes Brahms to be voted the more popular of today’s two famous birthday celebrants among our listener-members. Thank you to all of you who elected to get in on the fun. There certainly were plenty of tempting thank you gifts to get lost in this time around. If you didn’t have a chance to donate, you may still do so and pick up a special token of our appreciation by visiting wwfm.org. Peter Ilych and we are grateful for your support of WWFM – The Classical Network.
Category: Daily Dispatch
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Brahms vs Tchaikovsky Birthday Battle
In this corner, weighing in at 250 pounds… ladies and gentlemen, the original Liebeslieder Waltzer… the Hamburger from Hamburg… Johannes Brahms. In the opposite corner, at 180… the infamous Marching Slav… the Nutcracker from Nadezhda… Peter Ilych Tchaikovsky.
Today… the birthday anniversaries of both. Brahms, born in 1833, and Tchaikovsky in 1840. We pit the two together on The Classical Network in an historic Battle of the Beards, a hummable rumble that will span 12 hours, from 8 to 8 EDT, as we take your bets on a bankable future for classical music on the air waves and your votes for prominence in the pantheon of Brahms or Tchaikovsky.
Call now, at 1-888-232-1212, or contribute online at wwfm.org. We’ll tally the votes tonight in the 7:00 hour. David Osenberg and I will be squinting through the blood, sweat and tears, from 4 to 8 p.m. EDT. Strike a blow for great music. Join us ringside on WWFM – The Classical Network and wwfm.org. As always, we thank you for your support!
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Bortkiewicz Ukrainian Composer’s Lost Chord
Some guys just can’t seem to catch a break.
Sergei Bortkiewicz, born in Ukraine, lived through two world wars and the Russian Revolution. He endured both poverty and personal tragedy. However, through it all, he managed to create music of lasting beauty.
This Sunday night on “The Lost Chord,” learn more about his turbulent life and transporting music, including the Quatre morceaux, Op. 65, the Symphony No. 2 in E flat major, and the Elegie, Op. 46.
I hope you’ll join me for “Big Talent from Little Russia,” tonight at 10:00 EDT, on WWFM – The Classical Network and wwfm.org.
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Classical Music Rocks! Sedaka to Zeppelin
Sanka… or Sedaka?
At any rate, I’m not sure it’s coffee in that mug.
Sure, waking up is hard to do. But we’ll get your feet tapping and your head moshing with classical music by, or influenced by, popular music superstars. Among our featured works will be Neil Sedaka’s piano concerto, “Manhattan Intermezzo.”
We’ll also hear “From Yesterday to Penny Lane,” after the Beatles, by Leo Brouwer, “Dead Elvis” by Michael Daugherty, and “Bonham,” named for the legendary Led Zeppelin drummer, by Christopher Rouse. Worlds collide in the politically subversive Symphony No. 4 – the “Rock” Symphony – by classically-trained Latvian composer Imants Kalniņš. Depending on our timings, we may even hear an electric guitar concerto by Princeton University’s Steven Mackey.
I’ll be attempting my first stage dive, between 7 and 10 EDT, on WPRB 103.3 FM and wprb.com. Even the guitars are electric, on Classic Ross Amico.
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Rock Stars Go Classical on WPRB
They say that waking up is hard to do. Unless you’re Neil Sedaka, of course.
Sedaka may seem like an unlikely choice for a classical music program, but if you join me this Sunday morning on WPRB, you’ll get to hear his piano concerto, titled “Manhattan Intermezzo.” It will be part of a morning devoted to classical music by, or influenced by, popular music superstars.
Among our featured works will be a suite for guitar and orchestra, inspired by the Beatles, by Leo Brouwer, “Dead Elvis” by Michael Daugherty, and a salute to drummer John Bonham, by Christopher Rouse.
When his rock band ran afoul of the Soviet authorities, classically-trained Latvian composer Imants Kalniņš turned to writing symphonies. His Symphony No. 4 was his eloquent response, as much indebted to illegal rock groups of the West as it was to Latvian folklore.
Hear Kalniņš stick it to the man, this Sunday morning between 7 to 10 EDT, on WPRB 103.3 FM and wprb.com. We’ll be caught between “rock” and a hard place, on Classic Ross Amico.
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