91Classical will continue our Saturday evening broadcasts of the Nashville Symphony this week with symphonies by Haydn and Schubert. These dives into the orchestra’s archive are enjoyable on their own, but one way to enhance the experience is with a well-prepared meal. WPLN News Morning Edition host Rachel Iacovone is also an enthusiastic home chef. She has put together a menu for this week’s broadcast.

More: Several Chefs In Nashville Have Built Menus For Cooking To The Classics

Both of the symphonies featured this week were the last from their composers. After spending so many years in service to the Esterhazy family, Josef Haydn saw the ocean for the first time when he traveled to London, where his music was already known and loved. As he prepared his return to Vienna, a concert series called The Opera Concerts ended its 1795 season with a benefit concert for the departing composer. At that concert, his 104th symphony, the final symphony from the father of the genre, premiered, and 4000 guilder were raised for his journey home.

A less happy story frames Franz Schubert’s 8th symphony. The composer completed a piano score, but only two orchestral movements before he died at the age of 31. During his lifetime the composer never enjoyed the widespread popularity of Haydn, but he had the mutual admiration of his fellow composers, like Johannes Brahms, and Felix Mendelssohn. While the piece holds true to the classical conventions of symphonic form, it is sometimes referred to as the first Romantic symphony.

WPLN News Morning Edition host Rachel Iacovone

Author Brian Newbould, of Schubert and the Symphony: A New Perspective, points to the orchestration as evidence of this, the combinations of instruments being sought for their sound quality rather than any practical conventions.

Iacovone had the challenge of creating a menu for both the culmination of the classical and the innovative romantic symphony. By taking existing favorite dishes and modifying them to find new brilliant flavor combinations, this meal would certainly work in perfect harmony with this week’s broadcast.

To start:
Lemony Whipped Feta With Charred Scallions

From the chef: “Whipped Feta has an unfinished quality to it itself because, after making it, it’s completely up to you how it ends — with soft, warm pita or its much crispier cousin, the pita chip. It can be topped with fresh herbs and garlic oil or roasted cherry tomatoes and honey. Even the major moments — the “happy” moments — of Schubert’s Unfinished Symphony have more to them, a darker tone. It’s that that made me choose a whipped feta to start over something of one note — a labneh or hummus.”

Entree:
Millet and Kale Sauté with Bacon, Dried Fruit and Hazelnuts

(pictured above)

From the chef: “This skillet is a unified dish somehow despite its savory, sweet, meaty, green, crunchy and soft elements. Haydn’s London is his last symphony, and I could find no better way to encapsulate this work and all his work prior than by finding a dish that combines so many elements seamlessly. Such is life and music, is it not?”

Dessert:
Iced Lemon Lavender Loaf

Rachel Iacovone’s lavender lemon loafRachel IacavoneNashville Public Radio

From the chef: “And now, something lemony again to bring us full circle from our starter. I recently followed this recipe for a copycat of my favorite baked good at Starbucks — their iced lemon loaf. But, it needed more. Enter bitter and floral lavender extract. I kept the amount of lemon the same, but added 1 tsp of lavender extract to the batter. In the glaze, I would add 1/4 tsp lavender extract, though you can add a touch more (no more than 1/2 tsp). Lavender is an interesting addition to anything because too much and your dish becomes soapy, but just enough of its biting flavor and the sweetness in the rest of your dish sings.”

Tune in to hear the Nashville Symphony on Saturdays at 8pm. Listen on 91.1FM, stream on our website, or ask your smart speaker to play 91Classical.