Music composed for the Olympics or inspired by Brazil this morning as we look forward to the Summer Games in Rio. The opening ceremonies take place tomorrow night. Tune in to WPRB 103.3 FM or wprb.com this morning until 11 EDT to enjoy works by Michael Torke, John Harbison, David Gunn, Darius Milhaud, John Williams and Mikis Theodorakis. We’re going for the gold, on Classic Ross Amico.
Tag: WPRB
-
Olympic Music Anthems & Brazil on WPRB
The City of Philadelphia, I’m sure, is only too happy to have the media spotlight shift to Rio de Janeiro for what must be the only city on the planet even more unprepared to host an event of significant magnitude.
Tomorrow morning on WPRB, we’ll look past the mosquito-borne viruses, raw sewage, and kidnappings to celebrate the 2016 Summer Olympics. We’ll hear Olympic music composed by Leo Arnaud, Angelo Badalamenti, Robin Frost, Philip Glass, Basil Poledouris, Richard Strauss (his notorious “Olympic Hymn” for the 1936 Berlin games), Mikis Theodorakis, and of course John Williams.
We’ll also hear works by Brazilian composers Antônio Carlos Gomes , Camargo Guarnieri and Heitor Villa-Lobos, along with music inspired by Brazil, written by visitors Darius Milhaud, Ottorino Respighi, Martin Butler and David Gunn.
It’s a little-known fact that arts competitions were part of the Olympic Games from 1912 to 1948. Categories included architecture, literature, painting, sculpture, and music. The competitions were discontinued because of concerns about the artists being professionals, in contrast to the amateur status of the athletes. A non-competitive art and cultural festival has been presented in conjunction with the games since 1952.
Tomorrow morning, we’ll hear probably the best-known piece of music to emerge from the competitions, “Toward a New Life,” by Josef Suk, a former pupil and son-in-law of Antonin Dvořák. Suk was the recipient of a Silver Medal in 1932. (No Gold or Bronze medals were awarded that year.) We’ll also hear the Bronze medal winner from 1928, the Symphony No. 2 “Hellas,” by the Danish composer Rudolph Simonsen.
Also featured will be Michael Torke’s “Javelin,” commissioned by the Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games and the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra for performance in 1996; John Harbison’s “Olympic Dances;” and Lee Holdridge’s score for the 1986 documentary, “16 Days of Glory.”
We carry the torch for Rio tomorrow morning, from 6 to 11 EDT on WPRB 103.3 FM and at wprb.com. It will be way more fun than getting a Brazilian wax, on Classic Ross Amico.
-
American Composers Road Trip on WPRB
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.
-
Yellowstone Inspires Violin Concerto
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
-
Staycation Summer Road Trip on WPRB
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.
Tag Cloud
Aaron Copland (92) Beethoven (95) Composer (114) Film Music (124) Film Score (143) Film Scores (255) Halloween (94) John Williams (188) KWAX (229) Leonard Bernstein (101) Marlboro Music Festival (125) Movie Music (139) Opera (202) Philadelphia Orchestra (89) Picture Perfect (174) Princeton Symphony Orchestra (106) Radio (87) Ralph Vaughan Williams (85) Ross Amico (244) Roy's Tie-Dye Sci-Fi Corner (290) The Classical Network (101) The Lost Chord (268) Vaughan Williams (103) WPRB (396) WWFM (881)