The Musical World of William Bolcom

April 3, 2010

American composer William Bolcom has made a lot of ears happy through decades of composing, recording, and performing.  A triple-Grammy winner and tireless advocate for American music, he’s helped to revive the American songbook, particularly in league with his wife, mezzo-soprano Joan Morris.  He was instrumental in restoring Scott Joplin’s music to the public, and has created an eclectic and appealing legacy of compositions in all genres.

Works discussed: Charles Harris, After the Ball is Over; William Bolcom, Songs of Innocence and of Experience (texts William Blake), Concert Suite for Alto Saxophone and Band, Graceful Ghost Rag.

Podcast: Download (Duration: 9:30 — 8.7MB)

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Sammy’s Songbook

March 7, 2010

What’s this program about?
Sammy Nestico. That name rings in the hearts of bandsmen, swing dancers, fans of movie and TV scores, and generations of music students. Who is this man with his broad smile and open heart, this man who has played with the best, arranged and composed for the best, and is still busy adding to his creative legacy?

Works discussed: Nestico, “Dark Orchid,” “88 Basie Street,” “Good Swing Wenceslas,” “Time Stream”

Podcast: Download (Duration: 11:00 — 10.1MB)

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The Tale of the Firebird

February 9, 2010

Igor Stravinsky’s fairy-tale ballet The Firebird is filled with magical themes, opulent color, and provocative special effects. This program tells the story of Firebird and the Ballets russes, the brilliant theatrical company headed by Sergei Diaghilev that created and staged the work in Paris in 1910. The United States Military Academy (West Point) Band joins forces with the [...]

Podcast: Download (Duration: 7:50 — 7.2MB)

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The King of Wind Instruments

November 10, 2009

What happens when you take a wind ensemble and add the most overpowering wind instrument of all, the pipe organ? On Tuesday, November 17, the Dallas Wind Symphony, the Greater Dallas Youth Orchestra Wind Ensemble, and organist Mary Preston join forces.

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Podcast: Download (9.6MB)

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Snakes, Lobsters, and Concertos

October 6, 2009

Titles are funny things, and Paul Richards knows how to grab your attention with titles like “A Butterfly Coughs in Africa” and “Falling on Lobsters in the Dark.” But he holds your attention with a rich palette of innovative and engaging sounds. The Dallas Wind Symphony will perform his concerto “Snake in the Garden” in [...]

Podcast: Download (Duration: 7:00 — 6.4MB)

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A Modern Medieval Mega-Hit

September 3, 2009

What’s this program about?
Carl Orff selected vivid poems from a Medieval manuscript and super-charged them with color and energy to create the mega-hit “Carmina Burana” in 1937. An innovative music educator and proponent of Eurhythmics, Orff poured his understanding of natural melody and rhythm into this theatrical work, a spectacle for ear and eye.
Works discussed: [...]

Podcast: Download (Duration: 10:09 — 9.3MB)

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An Interview with Timothy Reynish

March 25, 2009

British conductor Timothy Reynish is a great promoter of wind bands and a commissioner of new music for wind bands.  He has conducted many esteemed orchestras, and taught conducting at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester.  Maestro Reynish talks to Professor Carol about guest conducting the season finale of the Dallas Wind Symphony, the program of [...]

Podcast: Download (Duration: 18:52 — 17.3MB)

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Marches in March

March 3, 2009

What’s this program about?
“Marches in March” is full of traditional and unexpected music—marches from the ragtime era, marches for circuses, sultans, bullfights, and films, as well as a new march by David Lovrien and the wind-band premiere of Lowell Liebermann’s Concerto for Flute with soloist Melinda Wilson, Principal Flutist with the Dallas Wind Symphony.
Works discussed: [...]

Podcast: Download (Duration: 11:56 — 10.9MB)

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Big Band Boogie

January 29, 2009

What’s this program about?
Unless you’ve mastered time travel, it’s pretty hard nowadays to hear these big-band classics played as they were – back when Tommy Dorsey was swinging with the tune “Well, Git It.” But when top-notch players of the Dallas Wind Symphony take on these tunes, they’ve got the chops to swing to the [...]

Podcast: Download (Duration: 9:17 — 8.5MB)

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An Interview with David Kehler

December 21, 2008

What’s this program about?
David Kehler will conduct the Greater Dallas Youth Orchestra Wind Symphony as it joins forces with the Dallas Wind Symphony on the upcoming side-by-side concert. Kehler discusses how the young people get involved with the professional ensemble, the differences in conducting youth and professional ensembles, and the music of David Maslanka and [...]

Podcast: Download (Duration: 15:40 — 14.3MB)

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