Classic Ross Amico

  • Einojuhani Rautavaara Obituary A Loss for Music

    Einojuhani Rautavaara Obituary A Loss for Music

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    Ross Amico
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    4 responses

    Okay, this one hurts.

    I learn with dismay of the passing of the great Finnish composer Einojuhani Rautavaara, who died last night at the age of 87. Rautavaara, widely regarded as one of the world’s great composers, the grand old man of Finnish music, and the spiritual heir of Jean Sibelius, wrote eight symphonies, nine operas, 14 concertos, and dozens of other orchestral and vocal compositions.

    By coincidence, I just played his Symphony No. 7, “Angel of Light,” on WWFM – The Classical Network on Tuesday. (Well, perhaps it’s not so much of a coincidence, since I played his “Cantus Arcticus” last week.)

    I met Rautavaara once, backstage at the Academy of Music in Philadelphia in 2000, after the premiere of his Symphony No. 8. Somewhere, I’ve got a pre-digital photo of the two of us, me smiling like a Tyrannosaurus Rex. If I can find it, I will post it soon.

    R.I.P. Einojuhani Rautavaara. You were one of the best we had.

    https://www.theguardian.com/music/2016/jul/28/einojuhani-rautavaara-obituary

    The final movement of “Angel of Light”:

  • Yellowstone Inspires Violin Concerto

    Yellowstone Inspires Violin Concerto

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    Ross Amico
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    3 responses

    A violin concerto of Brahmsian proportions, inspired by Yellowstone National Park? You’ll have a chance to hear it this morning. I’ll be playing Jett Hitt’s cinematic “Yellowstone” in the 10:00 hour. Hitt, who holds a doctorate in composition, conducts guided horseback tours at the park!

    We’ll also hear the “Chicago Fantasie Overture” by Helmuth Fuchs, who makes his home in New Jersey. The work was given its area premiere by the Westminster Community Orchestra, right here in Princeton, this past season.

    Also ahead: Princeton University professor emeritus Paul Lansky’s “Travel Music” (featuring a segment about getting lost in Philadelphia) and Michael Daugherty’s exuberant “Route 66.”

    We’re collecting musical postcards this morning on a road trip across country until 11 EDT on WPRB 103.3 FM and at wprb.com.

    PHOTO: Composer-cowboy Jett Hitt

  • American Composers Road Trip on WPRB

    American Composers Road Trip on WPRB

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    Ross Amico
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    2 responses

    Why is it I feel like Albert Brooks in “Lost in America?” Maybe because I’ve decided to sell my house, liquidate my assets, and drop out of society, “just like in ‘Easy Rider.’” Just kidding. I don’t have any assets. What I do have, however, is a bag full of CDs featuring music by American composers reflective of their experiences traveling across this picturesque country of ours.

    We’ll hear works inspired by the nation’s highways and byways, its cities, its vacation spots and its natural wonders. Sure, there’s every chance we may get lost (as in Paul Lansky’s “Travel Music”) or have to top off the tank (as in Virgil Thomson’s “Filling Station”), but that’s all part of the experience, isn’t it?

    At any rate, the RV is all gassed up and ready to go. We hit the road from 6 to 11 EDT on WPRB 103.3 FM and at wprb.com. We’ll try not to blow the nest egg, on Classic Ross Amico.

  • Staycation Summer Road Trip on WPRB

    Staycation Summer Road Trip on WPRB

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    Ross Amico
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    6 responses

    Why travel abroad this summer, when there’s plenty to see right here?

    This Thursday morning on WPRB, we’ll load up the RV and accompany composers on a trip around the country. We’ll have musical evocations of our states, cities and natural wonders. Along the way, we’ll travel Route 66 with Michael Daugherty, view some road movies with John Adams, and stop off to fill the tank with Virgil Thomson. We’ll even get lost in Philadelphia with Paul Lansky – during the Democratic National Convention, no less!

    “The man who goes alone can start today,” wrote Henry David Thoreau, “but he who travels with another must wait until the other is ready.” I’m perfectly happy to wait until tomorrow.

    Join me from 6 to 11 a.m. EDT, on WPRB 103.3 FM and at wprb.com. We’ll do our best not to sing along with the radio, on Classic Ross Amico.

  • Frank Zappa Music Time Is Boring

    Frank Zappa Music Time Is Boring

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    Ross Amico
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    4 responses

    “Without music to decorate it, time is just a bunch of boring production deadlines or dates by which bills must be paid.”

    -Frank Zappa

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