Classical Music Happy Hour

Renowned American composer John Adams joins Manny to discuss his approach to opera composition, the stories behind his intriguingly titled works, and the time he was once mistaken for John Cage. Adams answers listener questions on the evolution of music and the emotional pull of minor keys.  He also  shares his love of Stravinsky and Handel. For our game segment, Adams puts his knowledge to the test as Manny quizzes him on outrageous performance directions.

Our theme song is Schumann’s Arabeske in C Major, Op. 18 performed by our host, Emanuel Ax.

Music used in today’s episode includes:

Italian Concerto in F Major BWV 971, III: Presto

Bach

András Schiff, Piano

Live Recording at The Greene Space

Goldberg Variations, BWV 988: Var. 25

Bach

Anne-Catherine Bucher, Harpsichord

Courtesy of Naxos of America, Inc.

Goldberg Variations, BWV 988: Var. 25

Bach

Simone Dinnerstein, Piano

Live Recording at The Greene Space

Violin Sonata No. 21 in E minor, K. 304

Mozart

Takako Nishizaki, 

Violin

Jeno Jando, Piano

Courtesy of Naxos of America, Inc.

Cello  Sonata No. 1 in E minor, Op. 38, I. Allegro non troppo

Brahms

Johannes Moser, Cello

Michael Brown, Piano

Liver Recording at The Greene Space

Symphony No. 5, I. Trauermarsch

Mahler

Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra, Antoni Wit

Courtesy of Naxos of America, Inc.

Symphony No. 6 in B minor, Op. 74, IV. Finale–Adagio lamentoso

Tchaikovsky

Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra, Antoni Wit

Courtesy of Naxos of America, Inc.

Tu Del Ciel

Il Trionfo Del Tempo E Del Disinganno

Handel

Claron McFadden, Elisabeth Scholl, Joachim Carlos Martini, Junge Kantorei, Barockorchester Frankfurt, Nicholas Hariades & Peer Abilgaard

Courtesy of Naxos of America, Inc.

Gnossienne No. 3

Satie

Klara Kormendi, Piano

Courtesy of Naxos of America, Inc.

Horn Concert No. 2 in E-Flat Major, K. 417, III. Rondo Allegro

Mozart

Bournemouth Sinfonietta, Michael Thompson

Courtesy of Naxos of America, Inc.

Listen and Subscribe to Classical Music Happy Hour wherever you get your podcasts. 

Credits

Classical Music Happy Hour is supported in part by the Robert and Mercedes Eichholz Foundation and by Linda Nelson.

Our production team includes Lauren Purcell-Joiner, Eileen Delahunty, Laura Boyman, Elizabeth Nonamaker, David Norville, Christine Herskovits, and Ed Yim.

Our engineering team includes George Wellington, Irene Trudel, and Chase Culpon.

Classical Music Happy Hour is produced by WQXR in partnership with Carnegie Hall.

Composer Gabriela Ortiz joins Manny to talk about her grandfather’s surprising connection to Mahler, her own compositional process, and her enduring love for works by Debussy and Stravinsky. Listeners call in with tricky questions about folk music’s influence on classical works, new developments in orchestral instruments, and the realities of orchestra cliques. In our game segment, Manny puts Gabriela to the test—can she identify which famous composer was panned by critics?

Our theme song is Schumann’s Arabeske in C Major, Op. 18 performed by our host, Emanuel Ax.

Music used in today’s episode includes:

Symphony No. 5 in C-Sharp minor, IV. Adagietto

Mahler

Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra, Antoni Wit

Courtesy of Naxos of America, Inc.

Le Sacre du Printemps

Stravinsky

Brussels Philharmonic, Ali Rahbari

Courtesy of Naxos of America, Inc.

La Mer, L. 109, II. Jeux de vagues

Debussy

Brussels Philharmonic, Ali Rahbari

Courtesy of Naxos of America, Inc.

Miroirs, M. 43 Une barque sur l'océan

Ravel

Francois-joel Thiollier, piano

Courtesy of Naxos of America, Inc.

Estancia, Op. 8, Scene 5: Danza Final. Malambo

Alberto Ginastera

London Symphony Orchestra, Gisele Ben-Dor

Courtesy of Naxos of America, Inc.

Romanian Folk Dances

Bartok

Orpheus Chamber Orchestra

Live Recording

Symphony No. 2 in D Major, Op. 36

Beethoven

Danish Chamber Orchestra, Ádám Fischer

Courtesy of Naxos of America, Inc.

Listen and Subscribe to Classical Music Happy Hour wherever you get your podcasts. 

Credits

Classical Music Happy Hour is supported in part by the Robert and Mercedes Eichholz Foundation and by Linda Nelson.

Our production team includes Lauren Purcell-Joiner, Eileen Delahunty, Laura Boyman, Elizabeth Nonamaker, David Norville, Christine Herskovits, and Ed Yim.

Our engineering team includes George Wellington, Irene Trudel, and Chase Culpon.

Classical Music Happy Hour is produced by WQXR in partnership with Carnegie Hall.

Composer and pianist Marc-André Hamelin joins Manny to talk about growing up with a musical father, the mechanics of piano playing, and the influences behind his prolific performing and recording career. He answers listener questions about piano transcriptions and why music is written in so many different keys. In the music segment, Hamelin performs one of his favorite works by Rachmaninoff live in the studio.

The piece performed by Marc-André Hamelin is Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Etude-Tableau op39/5 in E-flat minor.

Our theme song is Schumann’s Arabeske in C Major, Op. 18 performed by our host, Emanuel Ax.

Music used in today’s episode includes:

53 Studies on the Chopin Études: No. 12 in G-Flat Major (6th Version)

Leopold Godowsky

Robert Helps, Piano

53 Studies on the Chopin Études: No. 45 in E Major (1st Version)

Leopold Godowsky

Robert Helps, Piano

Pictures at an Exhibition: Promenade

Modest Mussorgsky

Yutong Sun, Piano

Pictures at an Exhibition: Promenade

Modest Mussorgsky

Volgograd Philharmonic Orchestra, Edward Serov

Horn Concerto No. 2 in E-Flat Major

Mozart

Bournemouth Sinfonietta, Michael Thompson

Fantasia in C minor, K. 475

Mozart

Péter Nagy, piano

Listen and Subscribe to Classical Music Happy Hour wherever you get your podcasts. 

Credits

Classical Music Happy Hour is supported in part by the Robert and Mercedes Eichholz Foundation and by Linda Nelson.

Our production team includes Lauren Purcell-Joiner, Eileen Delahunty, Laura Boyman, Elizabeth Nonamaker, David Norville, Christine Herskovits, and Ed Yim.

Our engineering team includes George Wellington, Irene Trudel, and Chase Culpon.

Classical Music Happy Hour is produced by WQXR in partnership with Carnegie Hall.

Superstar pianist Yuja Wang joins Manny Ax to talk about bad pianos, encores, what influences her musical interpretations, and her love for Prokofiev. In our Newly Dead game, Yuja puts her knowledge of composer deaths to the test.

Listen and Subscribe to Classical Music Happy Hour wherever you get your podcasts. 

Our theme song is Schumann’s Arabeske in C Major, Op. 18 performed by our host, Emanuel Ax.

Music used in today’s episode includes:

Piano Sonata No. 18 in E-Flat Major, Op. 31 No. 3 "La chasse": IV 

Beethoven 

Boris Giltburg, Piano

Piano Sonata No. 16 in G Major, Op. 31 No. 1: I. Allegro

Beethoven

Boris Giltburg, Piano 

Piano Sonata No. 16 in C Major, K. 545 "Sonata facile": I. Allegro

Mozart

Jenő Jandó, Piano

Concerto No. 2 Op 18 II Adagio Sostenuto

Rachmaninoff

Sergei Rachmaninoff, piano

Leopold Stokowski, conductor

The Philadelphia Orchestra 1924

Scythian Suite, Op. 20: II. The Enemy of God, III. Night 

Prokofiev

Ukrainian State Symphony Orchestra

Theodore Kuchar, conductor

Piano Sonata No. 1 in F Minor, Op. 6: IV. Marche Funebre 

Scriabin

Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra, Konstantin Scherbakov & Igor Golovschin  

Symphony No. 3 in E-Flat Major, Op. 55 "Eroica": II. Marcia funebre 

Beethoven

Danish Chamber Orchestra & Ádám Fischer 

Symphony No. 44 in E minor Trauer Sinfonie Mourning III Adagio

Haydn

Capella Istropolitana & Barry Wordsworth

Credits

Classical Music Happy Hour is supported in part by the Robert and Mercedes Eichholz Foundation and by Linda Nelson.

Our production team includes Lauren Purcell-Joiner, Eileen Delahunty, Laura Boyman, Elizabeth Nonamaker, David Norville, Christine Herskovits, and Ed Yim.

Our engineering team includes George Wellington, Irene Trudel, and Chase Culpon.

Classical Music Happy Hour is produced by WQXR in partnership with Carnegie Hall.

Join renowned pianist Emanuel Ax for Classical Music Happy Hour: a new podcast full of music, merriment, and conversation. Manny (Emanuel) talks with special guests about their lives, listens to some of their favorite classical gems, plays music-inspired games, and answers questions from listeners. Grab a cocktail and press play on a podcast celebrating our love of all things classical music! Episode one with guest  and pianist Yuja Wang drops next week.

Listen and Subscribe to Classical Music Happy Hour wherever you get your podcasts. 

Classical Music Happy Hour is supported in part by the Robert and Mercedes Eichholz Foundation and by Linda Nelson.

Our production team includes Lauren Purcell-Joiner, Eileen Delahunty, Laura Boyman, Elizabeth Nonamaker, David Norville, Christine Herskovits, and Ed Yim.

Our engineering team includes George Wellington, Irene Trudel, and Chase Culpon.

Classical Music Happy Hour is produced by WQXR in partnership with Carnegie Hall.