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Classical Music Surprise WWFM This Thursday

Surprise!

I’ll be filling in for David Osenberg this Thursday afternoon on The Classical Network, which means we’ll have three more hours together in which to enjoy some of our personal favorites.

These are pieces drawn from the 88 playlists submitted for last week’s “Play It Again” membership campaign. Naturally, we couldn’t get to everything – we still won’t – but maybe some of your favorites will turn up alongside those of other WWFM listeners. Of course, we hope that we strike upon some of your favorites every day of the year and perhaps introduce you to some new ones.

Your contributions have allowed us to discover new worlds and share music of fantastic beauty for the past 35. If you donated last week or at any time over the last twelve months (or, for that matter, within the entire existence of the station), you’re the best. If you have not donated, please consider doing so. It may seem like a bottomless pit, but if we’re to think of it that way, so is food shopping, a trip to the gas station, or putting a new roof on the house. And those things aren’t even fun! If not for the generosity of listeners like you, there would be no WWFM. I offer this as a gentle reminder that your contributions are always gratefully accepted at wwfm.org.

We’ll begin today by sampling the artistry of LaShir, the Jewish Community Choir of Princeton. The choir’s director, Marsha Bryan Edelman, will be along to tell us all about the history of the organization – the oldest Jewish choir in Central Jersey that does not serve the liturgical needs of a synagogue – and its upcoming spring concert, which will take place at Westminster Choir College’s Hillman Hall this Sunday at 2 p.m. The program, which will be made up of repertoire sung in Hebrew, Yiddish, Ladino, and English, will be offered free and open to the public.

In addition, we’ll be sure to celebrate the birthdays today of two fabulous conductors, George Szell and Neeme Järvi. I venture to guess there will be a little something for everyone, from 4 to 7 p.m. EDT, on WWFM – The Classical Network and wwfm.org.

June 7, 2018
Barbara Strozzi Baroque Composer Spotlight

Barbara Strozzi (1619-1677) was a significant anomaly in an art form that, until the 20th century, did not exactly nurture women. She was a singer, but also a composer. More astonishingly, she appears to have been recognized for it.

Today’s Noontime Concert on The Classical Network will be devoted almost exclusively to Strozzi’s music. Brooklyn Baroque will present “Barbara Strozzi and Her World.” The program will also include a sonata by virtuoso cellist Domenico Gabrielli.

Strozzi was the adopted (and possibly biological) daughter of Giulio Strozzi. Giulio was one of the driving forces behind the propulsive growth of opera in Venice in the first half of the 17th century. He was a poet and librettist, a regular collaborator of Claudio Monteverdi and others. He was also unusually supportive of his daughter’s talent, arranging for her studies with Francesco Cavalli (of “La Callisto” fame) and even founding an academy for its display, in order to help legitimize it in the eyes of the public.

Barbara’s music was published and it’s thought that later in life she was able to support herself by means of her investments and compositions. Did she bolster her income as a courtesan, or was this a fabrication of her jealous (male) rivals? Many important details of her life have had to be fleshed out by hearsay and conjecture. After all, she lived 400 years ago, and society hasn’t been particularly attentive to its female artists.

Today’s broadcast comes our way courtesy of Gotham Early Music Scene (GEMS). The program was presented on October 26, 2017 at St. Bartholomew’s Church, 50th Street and Park Avenue, in Midtown Manhattan, where free concerts are held every Thursday at 1:15 p.m. The 2017-2018 season will conclude on June 28. This Thursday, Empire Viols will present “Strictly Organic: Transcriptions of Organ Trios by J.S. Bach and J.L. Krebs.” For a complete schedule of lunchtime performances, look online at midtownconcerts.org.

GEMS also hosts evening concerts. The ensemble Voyces will present “Angels Cry Aloud: Masters of the Roman Collegio Germanico,” featuring music by Victoria, Carissimi, and Charpentier, at Trinity Lutheran Church, 309 St. Paul’s Avenue, Staten Island, tonight at 7:30 p.m. Artek will present “Madrigal Madness,” highlighting the work of Monteverdi, at 17 Frost Gallery, 17 Frost Street, Williamsburg, Brooklyn, Friday at 7:30 p.m. Angelica Women’s Chamber Choir will present “Sanctuary,” a program that seeks refuge from life’s turbulence, with repertoire ranging from the Middle Ages to the present, at the Church of St. John of Nepomucene, 411 East 66th St., New York City, Sunday at 3 p.m.

Gotham Early Music Scene is a non-profit corporation that supports and promotes artists and organizations in New York City devoted to early music – music of the Middle Ages, Renaissance, Baroque, and early Classical periods. For more information and GEMS’ events calendar, look online at gemsny.org.

Following today’s Noontime Concert, I’ll return to some of the unplayed “favorites” left over from last week’s “Play It Again” membership campaign. These will be drawn from lists submitted by WWFM hosts, partners, and listeners. We’ll hear more of this music, in its entirety, until 4 p.m. EDT. David Diamond’s Symphony No. 2 will be a particular highlight.

If you haven’t gotten around to making your contribution to WWFM – The Classical Network, remember, you may do so at any time at wwfm.org. As always, thank you for your support!

June 5, 2018
WWFM Thanks You for “Play It Again” Success!

THANK YOU!

Radio fundraising drives are such that as soon as we cross the finish line, we all basically stagger away, our brains like skillets full of fried eggs. So it is only at the end of an intervening weekend that I get around to thanking you for participating in WWFM’s “Play It Again” personal playlist campaign.

You’ll recall that this was structured so that favorites of WWFM listeners and partners were incorporated into the station’s programming. The delightfully varied choices informed the week’s playlists, culminating in a top-40 countdown with, granted, many (though not all) of the usual suspects, though ranked in an often surprising order of popularity.

You’ll find the final top-40 posted on the station’s Facebook page, by following the link:

The results were compiled from 88 playlists – 1,100 entries. Understandably, with so many nominations, not everything made it to the air.

Therefore, I thought I’d do a little mopping up during my shifts this week, and broadcast some of the music we didn’t get around to playing. Not to worry, I won’t be fundraising, beyond perhaps an occasional “thank you” during which I may mention the continuing option of supporting us at our website, wwfm.org. But really it is intended as a show of thanks to everyone who participated, and a celebration, of sorts, of the diversity of the choices. Also, it makes my job as a host and programmer very easy.

I’m sorry to say, we did come up a little short of our goal, which means we will have to come back with our hats in our hands at the end of June, so that we can collect the extra money we need in order to close out the fiscal year (which ends at 11:59 p.m. on June 30) in the black.

For now, let’s all just kick back and take a hard-earned break and enjoy the music. I’ll be playing complete pieces – no more excerpts or individual movements – from 4 to 7 p.m. EDT, on WWFM – The Classical Network and wwfm.org.

Again, thank you for your support!

June 4, 2018
WWFM’s Top Classical Music Countdown

The tumblers fall into place, the planets align. We are on the verge of achieving total syzygy.

This is it – the final day of The Classical Network’s “Play It Again” personal playlist membership campaign. From the 88 playlists (1,100 entries) submitted by WWFM hosts, partners, and listeners, these are the pieces of music that received the most votes. If you were to translate it into a Venn diagram, the “union” would be enormous.

We already know the “bottom five” of the top 40, as we wrapped up yesterday afternoon with music from Leonard Bernstein’s “West Side Story” (#40), Johann Sebastian Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 5 (#39), Maurice Ravel’s “Daphnis et Chloe” (#38), Igor Stravinsky’s “The Rite of Spring” (#37), and Franz Schubert’s String Quintet in C major (#36). We’ve just begun today’s final countdown with Antonin Dvorak’s Symphony No. 8 (#35).

Keep in mind that this our earnest attempt to engage you in end-of-the-fiscal-year fundraising. Whether you participated in this personal playlist project, or you are someone who enjoys the stimulating mix of music we present each and every day, it’s up you, as a listener, whether or not you choose to support it. We hope that you will be moved to do so.

Whether it be $200 or $20, your contribution goes directly into our fuel tank. We can only travel as far as our listeners allow. Won’t you be one of those who share our passion and commitment? Join us today at 1-888-232-1212, or online at wwfm.org.

Together we reach for the stars, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. EDT. Fill your Friday with glorious music beloved by us all, on WWFM – The Classical Network.

June 1, 2018
Earworm Explained What It Is and How to Stop It

What exactly is an earworm?

In case you don’t know, in the parlance of the day, an earworm is a piece of music that gets stuck in your head, so that you “hear” it over and over and over again. It’s kind of a “stuck song” syndrome. This could be pleasurable for a short while, but can also be torturous as the melody becomes so embedded that it can literally haunt your dreams.

As you may be aware by now, we are in the midst of “Play It Again,” a special membership drive at The Classical Network, for which we have solicited lists of favorite pieces from WWFM hosts, partners, and listeners. We have been using these to try to generate captivating playlists and, by extension, a sense of community, as we play off of our shared passions, in the hopes of converting recognition of those commonalities into revenue for the station. You have to admit, it’s certainly a lot more involving than your run-of-the-mill pledge drive.

Nevertheless, we found ourselves fighting hard yesterday afternoon to try to engage our listeners. It was as we were gazing at the seemingly unattainable mini-goal of $10,000, which unaccountably continued to shimmer over the burning sands like a mirage, that David Osenberg and I got into a discussion about earworms. This was prompted by my playing of music from “Raiders of the Lost Ark,” which had turned up on the lists of a couple of our hosts. One listener emailed to thank us a lot (sarcasm noted), since now he would not be able to get “Raiders” out of his head for the rest of the day.

It was then that I recollected an article I had read a couple of years ago about some scientific studies that had been done on the nuisance of the earworm. This I turned into a sales pitch – if we reached our goal of $10,000, I would reveal a surefire antidote for the earworm, and no one would ever again suffer through another restless night precipitated by John Williams.

It turned out it worked. We met our goal, and I shared the knowledge that studies have found, for one reason or another, that singing “God Save the Queen” is the remedy. (Another listener, perhaps nervous that some could surrender to latent colonial tendencies, called in to point out one could also sing “My Country, ‘Tis of Thee.”)

In case you missed it, you can read all about the study here (or google it):

https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/earworm-catchy-tune-song-nursery-rhymes-god-save-the-queen-a7395911.html

In any case, we continue to delight in a sense of discovery as we fan through everyone’s favorites. This afternoon at 5:00 EDT, the Big Countdown of the greatest favorites – the pieces that turned up on the most lists – begins. This will continue throughout the day tomorrow.

If you haven’t had a chance to contribute, consider the value of the information you have learned here today, and drop a few bucks in the jar, so that WWFM – The Classical Network can continue to share new discoveries, imperishable standards, and sound medical advice. We are caught in the inexorable pull of the end of our fiscal year. Toss us a rope at 1-888-232-1212 or at wwfm.org. Thank you for your support!

May 31, 2018

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