Listen / There’s nothing small about Carmina Burana. Carl Orff’s epic work has famously added drama to countless movies, commercials and TV shows, but an upcoming revamped production of the work in Nashville will be a bigger feast for the senses than ever before.
Fowl Notes: A Brief History Of Birdsong In Classical Music
Listen / For centuries, composers have been drawing musical inspiration from the oldest melody-makers in the world: birds.
How Classical Music Underscores America’s Complex History With International Workers’ Day
Even though the spark of International Workers’ Day was lit in Chicago over 130 years ago, Americans are more likely to spend May 1st singing festive music around a maypole than shouting labor songs in a street protest.
Your First Look at the 2019-2020 Nashville Opera Season
Nashville Opera announces its upcoming season today, and the lineup pairs tried and true favorites with two compelling 20th century works. The season opens with Puccini’s iconic Madame Butterfly, featuring a return performance from Cuban-American soprano Elizabeth Caballero as Cio-Cio-San. Caballero has previously performed the title role in Daniel Catán’s Florencia en el Amazonas with Nashville […]
New Concert Series ‘Echo’ Will Showcase The Nashville Parthenon’s Serious Reverb
Listen / Standing at a towering 41 feet, 10 inches, the golden statue of Athena in Nashville’s Parthenon is said to be the tallest indoor sculpture in the Western Hemisphere. Surrounded by huge stone columns and Tennessee pink marble floors, the Parthenon is certainly a sight, but a new concert series is set to […]
With ‘A Thousand Thoughts,’ Kronos Quartet Looks Back On Nearly 50 Years Of Making Music
Listen / Before he founded Kronos Quartet, before the ensemble would go on to stretch the notion of what a quartet could be, before they would collaborate with some of the biggest names in classical music (earning 11 Grammy nominations along the way), violinist David Harrington heard a piece of music that would change everything.
Nashville Ballet Announces 2019-2020 Season
On the heels of their groundbreaking production of Lucy Negro, Redux, Nashville Ballet has announced their upcoming season. Once again, the company seeks to showcase its range, mixing classic offerings—including Prokofiev’s Romeo & Juliet and the annual favorite Nashville’s Nutcracker— with the envelope-pushing work that has become a Nashville Ballet hallmark over the years. […]
Chinese And Jewish Influences Find Harmony In ‘Hello Gold Mountain,’ A Tale Of Refuge
Listen / Eighty years ago, as Jewish refugees fled Nazi rule in Europe, one of the few places that allowed them to come was Shanghai, China. It’s a lesser-known part of World War II history and one that captured the attention of Nashville composer Wu Fei, who wrote a piece about the lost possibilities of […]
Duo Igudesman And Joo Want Us To Take Classical Music Less Seriously
Listen / When you attend a classical concert, there’s generally an agreed upon code of etiquette: sit quietly; try not to cough; clap at the appropriate times. But one classical duo has made it their mission to loosen up audiences by bringing comedy into the concert hall.
Notes In The Margin: ‘Crooked River City: The Musical Life Of Nashville’s William Pursell’
Listen / When he moved to Nashville in 1960, Bill Pursell was a classically trained pianist and composer who found his way into the studios on Music Row during the rise of the Nashville Sound. As he was working with some of country music’s biggest names, including Chet Atkins and Patsy Cline, Pursell was moonlighting […]
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