Bohuslav Martinu Symphony No. 1

Thence the universe resounds With a joyful cry I AM. These are the final lines of Alexander Scriabin's epic Poem of Ecstasy, a 300-line poem that takes nearly 10 minutes to read aloud and is one of the most surreal texts in the world. Scriabin wrote a Poem of Ecstasy in text and ...  Show more

Ancient, mysterious, brooding savage dreams; Within them dwells the Forest's mighty God, And wood-sprites in the gloom weave magic secrets. These lines are affixed to the first page of Sibelius' tone poem Tapiola, a piece that is mysterious in many ways and stands as Sibelius' la ...  Show more

Works include: Schumann's Violin Sonata #1, Bach's Brandenburg Concerto #2, Brahms' Horn Trio, Vivaldi's Cello Sonata #1 and Varese's Ionization. 

When we listen closely to the Fifth, we hear a testament to self-expression and determination. Which means that we get to decide how to honor this symphony today, whether that means taking a break from Beethoven to commission new works from underrepresented composers, bringing ne ...  Show more

Works include: Waltzes #3 &6, The Revolutionary Etude, Prelude #17, Scherzo #1, Nocturne #13 and Mazurka # 26. Pianists include: Alfred Cortot, Arthur Rubinstein, Sviatoslav Richter, Claudio Arrau, Dinu Lipatti and Wilhelm Backhaus. 

When the urge to compose finally struck again, Rachmaninoff took a little theme by Nicolo Paganini and turned it into a tour de force for the piano and orchestra, called Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini. In this final episode of the Great Composers series on Rachmaninoff, we also ...  Show more