Synopsis American composer and singer-songwriter Gabriel Kahane claims someone once described one of his songs as having been from the wastepaper basket of Schubert — but, Kahane hastened to add, “I think he meant that as a compliment.” Certainly Kahane is a successful songwriter ...Show more
Maazel's 'Ring without Words'
Synopsis In 1987, Telarc Records asked conductor Lorin Maazel if he would make a purely orchestral distillation of the four operas that make up Richard Wagner’s The Ring of the Nibelung. Telarc wanted it all to fit on just one CD. Now, with these four Wagner operas clocking in at ...Show more
Recommended Episodes
Composer Jake Heggie on 25 years of writing operas
Composer jake Heggie joins Hattie Butterworth to speak about the recording release of 'Intelligence', an opera premiered at Houston Grand Opera in 2023 and out now on the LSO Live label. They also look back on 25 years since Heggie's first opera 'Dead Man Walking' was premiered a ...Show more
Series exploring famous pieces of music and their emotional appeal.Dido's Lament is a popular name for a famous aria, 'When I am laid in earth', from the opera Dido and Aeneas by Henry Purcell, with the libretto by Nahum Tate. Mezzo soprano Sarah Connolly talks about why she find ...Show more
This mini episode sees Stephen having flashbacks to the most challenging piece of music he’s ever had to play, Joanna asks about composers who've been lost in time, and we investigate the first ever real opera... Got questions for Joanna and Stephen? Drop them a line hello@joanna ...Show more