Classic Ross Amico

Tag: WWFM

War of the Worlds Anniversary Events

People of Earth! Hear the difference!

October 30th marks the 80th anniversary of the notorious “War of the Worlds” radio broadcast that brought the Martians to Grover’s Mill, outside Princeton, NJ, and set off a national panic. 2018 also happens to be the 120th anniversary of the publication of the novel.

This week on “Picture Perfect,” we’ll wrap up our “Hear the Difference” fundraiser with a special live double-celebration, featuring music from films inspired by Wells’ classic and other cinematic extraterrestrial-Earthling exchanges.

Strike a blow for humanity! Please support us on the last day of our membership campaign at 1-888-232-1212 or wwfm.org.

Mars attacks, except when it doesn’t. Watch out for that heat ray, this Friday at 6 p.m. EDT, on WWFM – The Classical Network and wwfm.org!

The locals are all stirred up!

West Windsor Arts Center has big plans for the near future, beginning tomorrow with The mARTian Project Kick-off, which will include a screening of the 1953 George Pal classic. Learn more about the Arts Council’s vision for the next few years:

https://communitynews.org/2018/05/16/west-windsor-arts-council-arts-council-war-of-the-worlds/

Grover’s Mill Coffee House has commemorative events planned for tonight, tomorrow, and Sunday, including a recreation of the 1938 Mercury Theatre radio broadcast:

http://www.groversmillcoffee.com/

Keep watching the skies!

PHOTOS: Orson Welles stirs panic; and the “War of the Worlds” monument, installed in Van Nest Park 30 years ago, to mark the 50th anniversary of the broadcast

October 26, 2018
Debussy & Classical Music Fundraiser on WWFM

Claude Debussy’s “Rondes de printemps” has kicked off the second day of our three-day fundraiser on The Classical Network.

It doesn’t matter what time of year it is. Great music has the power to transport, uplift, and, above all, enrich the quality of our lives. Thanks to dedicated and generous listeners just like you, musique de Debussy et ses amis is always in season.

Unfortunately, there is no Maginot Line to keep classical music free. Please make a donation now at 1-888-232-1212 or online at wwfm.org. A steady diet of vin rouge et musique classique has been proven to lead to longer life and plenty of l’amour. Even if it hasn’t, at least you’ll have had a good time, and with plenty of bon goût.

Hear the difference! And merci beaucoup for supporting WWFM – The Classical Network and wwfm.org.

“Mais alors, le phonographe electronique est si limité à côté de WWFM!”

October 25, 2018
Hear the Difference Give to The Classical Network

Ah! So that’s the difference!

Performances from the Marlboro Music Festival. Birthday salutes to Franz Liszt and Ned Rorem. Music from Frankenstein movies. These are just some of the representative offerings you enjoyed on The Classical Network over the past week – and I am drawing only from my own shifts.

The truth is, The Classical Network has always been bigger than one person. Each of us, programmers and listeners alike, has the power to influence what kind of music is available to our community. A lot of radio stations – of the few classical radio stations that are left – feel that they have to play it safe. Whenever you tune in, you know you’re going to get Mozart or Vivaldi or Dvorak or Tchaikovsky. All great composers. But even they wrote a lot of music that never gets heard. We believe the world of music is bigger than that, and you deserve the chance to experience it.

Clearly, many of our listeners agree. We know that one of the things you really enjoy about WWFM is the variety of the selections. You’ve told us time and again that you love the mix. We’re often even told not to change a thing. Our knowledgeable hosts are in the unique position to be able to program most of their own shifts, which is highly unusual in professional radio. In fact, it makes all the difference.

Also, we are community-supported. It is because of the backing and enthusiasm of our listener-members that we are able to do what we do. The Classical Network offers many different perspectives, which keeps the listening experience fresh. The thoughtful juxtaposition of different eras, styles, themes, and personalities makes for an inimitable experience every day that you listen.

Can you hear the difference? If you are a supporter of the station, then in large part it is because of you and generous people just like you.

Today, The Classical Network begins a three-day sprint to raise funds in order to keep doing what we do best. Think about what it is that makes us stand apart, and how that enhances the quality of your life, and make a donation in whatever amount you feel you can afford. You may do so by calling us at 1-888-232-1212, from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. EDT, through Friday, or by donating at wwfm.org.

In addition, we’re curious to know what it is you appreciate most about WWFM. Let us know by sending us your thoughts. Click on the “Hear the Difference” box at the upper right corner of the screen at wwfm.org. We’d love to share your personal observations on what makes us unique and essential to your musical enjoyment. No donation is necessary in order to leave a comment, but we hope that you will support us. We couldn’t do it without dedicated listeners just like you.

Can you “Hear the Difference?” Show us by keeping us strong with your donation at 1-888-232-1212, or online at wwfm.org. Thank you, as always, for helping WWFM – The Classical Network make a difference in our community.

October 24, 2018
Ned Rorem Gary Graffman Birthday Broadcast

Celebrating Ned Rorem at 95 – and Gary Graffman at 90 – coming up in the 2:00 hour EDT, on WWFM – The Classical Network and wwfm.org!

October 23, 2018
Ned Rorem at 95: Celebrating a Musical Genius

It’s hard to believe that Ned Rorem is 95 years-old.

For decades, it seemed as if Rorem was classical music’s answer to Dick Clark, America’s oldest teenager. I often saw him, on the streets of Philadelphia, at the AIA Bookstore, at Borders, and at the Curtis Institute of Music, where he taught, back in the ‘90s. Rorem was in his 70s at the time, but he looked like he couldn’t have been any more than 50.

To celebrate his birthday, and to tie in with Gary Graffman’s 90th birthday earlier this month, we’ll hear Rorem’s Piano Concerto for Left Hand and Orchestra (1991). The work was recorded in concert at Philadelphia’s Academy of Music, with Graffman the soloist, and the Curtis Symphony Orchestra under the direction of André Previn. (If you listen carefully, you may hear me applauding at the end.)

Typical of Rorem’s concertos, the work defies the customary “classical” three-movement structure. Instead, the composer serves up eight movements, bookended by two passacaglias. Material from the opening, which resembles a kind of scat singing, recurs at various points throughout the piece.

At his most reflective, I think, Rorem betrays his formative years in Paris. Though they certainly both followed their own distinctive muses, there is something in Rorem’s uncluttered lyricism that often reminds me of Poulenc with an American accent. The concerto also calls to mind (my mind, anyway) Olivier Messiaen, with its ecstatic dissonances.

Rorem’s genius for the “miniature” – eight short movements, as opposed to three epic statements in the great German tradition – is also reflected in his work as an art song composer and an unusually candid diarist. Rorem has expounded on his predilection for all things French on numerous occasions. “The world is divided into two aesthetic styles: French and German,” he notes. “The color red is German. The color blue is French. Men are German, women are French. Japan is French, and China is German. German art is known for being profoundly superficial, and French art, for being superficially profound. I am French. If you disagree with my analysis, then you are German.”

Rorem’s concerto will be among my featured works this afternoon between 2 and 4 p.m. Prior to that, I hope you will join me for chamber music by Brahms, Dvořák, Liszt, and Mendelssohn, on today’s Noontime Concert, in performances from the Lake George Music Festival.

The music is forever young. You don’t have to be Ned Rorem to hold the secret of youth, from 12 to 4 p.m. EDT, on WWFM – The Classical Network and wwfm.org.

PHOTO: Rorem in Paris, 1953

October 23, 2018

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