Classic Ross Amico

Tag: John McCormack

Hope Is the Thing with Feathers on “Sweetness and Light”

This week on “Sweetness and Light,” I’ve assembled a playlist of avian music for the month of May.

Yes, yes, I’ve programmed Ottorino Respighi’s “The Birds,” his evergreen suite for small orchestra based on musical bird portraits of the 17th and 18th centuries, and Handel’s Organ Concerto in F major, “The Cuckoo and the Nightingale.”

But I’ve also included a lesser-heard selection by Hubert Parry, from his incidental music for Aristophanes’ “The Birds,” a bridal march revived for the weddings of both Princess Elizabeth (soon to be Elizabeth II) and Prince William; a piece of light music kitsch juxtaposing bird song and chanting monks by Albert Ketèlbey; and a galop by Danish composer Hans Christian Lumbye, the Johann Strauss of the North, celebrating the exotic birds of the Tivoli Volière.

Finally, it’s very much my pleasure to have dusted off some vintage recordings of Elisabeth Schumann (whose hobby it was to engage in bird-whistling) and John McCormack, who will sing works by Carl Zeller and Eric Coates, respectively.

Better start lining the cage with newspaper. It’s “For the Birds” this week on “Sweetness and Light,” this Saturday morning at 11:00 EDT/8:00 PDT, exclusively on KWAX, the radio station of the University of Oregon!

Stream it wherever you are at the link:

https://kwax.uoregon.edu/

May 30, 2026
Haydn Wood’s Enduring Melody

Haydn Wood was born on this date in 1882. Although his name is pronounced “Hayden,” his parents, both musicians, indeed named him for Franz Joseph Haydn. Wood composed larger works for the concert hall, including concertos for piano and violin, and there was once a symphony, now lost, but his reputation rests on his light music and songs. He composed over 200 ballads.

This was one of his biggest hits, one of the great tear-jerkers of the First World War. Wood was riding atop a double-decker bus when the melody came to him. He hopped off and jotted it down onto an envelope by lamplight. The text was added by Frederick Weatherly.

During the war, the song sold 50,000 copies of sheet music. Its singing was used in the rehabilitation of shell-shocked soldiers, who had lost the ability to speak. It was recorded many, many times.

These days, it’s often employed to add flavor to period dramas. Of the earliest recordings, John McCormack’s rendition was notably popular.

Happy birthday, Haydn Wood!

March 25, 2023
St Patricks Day Vintage Ireland and Irish Song

Happy St. Paddy’s Day! I hope you’ll join me for a pint of stout over this vintage footage of the Emerald Isle, set to the John McCormack favorite “The Garden Where the Praties Grow.” McCormack was one of the great tenors of his day, by all accounts a weak stage actor, but with a clarion voice and superior diction that pleased in both the opera house and in recital. For the latter, he was always sure to include Irish songs, many of which he recorded. These feature prominently in my St. Patrick’s Day playlist.

March 17, 2023
Irish Music on WPRB St Patricks Day

Right now on Classic Ross Amico, we’re listening to Frank Martin’s “Piano Trio on Irish Folk Tunes.” Yet to come, Sir Arthur Sullivan’s “Irish Symphony,” and selections performed by the great Irish tenor, John McCormack (pictured). We’ll also have music by Irish composer Joan Trimble. We’re hoisting a few for St. Patty’s this morning, until 11 EDT, on WPRB 103.3 FM and at wprb.com.

March 17, 2016

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