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 British wind music, his commitment to new music, and the always entertaining distinctions between the Americans and the Brits.

Works discussed: Adam Gorb, Dances from Crete; Kenneth Hesketh, Masque; Guy Woolfenden, Illyrian Dances; Daniel Basford, Arkendale; Percy Grainger, Marching Song of Democracy

 Timothy Reynish Interview [18:52m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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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 Eric Whitacre.

Works discussed: Eric Whitacre, Ghost Train Trilogy; David Maslanka, Give Us This Day – A Short Symphony for Band

 An Interview with David Kehler [15:40m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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Carol found the U.S. Marine Drum & Bugle Corps warming up for a concert at the Texas State Fair and took that opportunity to ask Sgt. Kyle Baker about the organization’s mission and its performances at the Fair.

U.S. Marine Drum & Bugle Corps from Carol Reynolds on Vimeo.

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Major Jim Keene took his musical training and talents into the Army, becoming conductor of the premier Army musical ensembles and now commanding the U.S. Army School of Music in Little Creek, Virginia.  Professor Carol spoke with her former graduate student when he returned to Dallas to conduct the Dallas Wind Symphony’s Fourth of July concert.  Major Keene talks about musical life in the military, performances at state events, and the role of musical ensembles in supporting the troops and representing the United States throughout the world.

 Interview with Major Keene: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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Weimar. This former East German city (that seems so pastoral and peaceful) is actually a bubbling caldron for the arts and culture! Designated in 1999 as UNESCO’s Cultural Capital of Europe, Weimar is a small but unbelievably beautiful and famous city where virtually every movement in German and European cultural history seems to have left its mark.

Weimar combines the cultures of the Reformation (Luther), European Baroque (Bach and Herder), Classicism (Goethe and Schiller), and Romanticism (Liszt) with modern movements in the arts (Bauhaus), politics (Weimar Republic), and military history (Napoleon, Hitler and World War II).

After discovering Weimar in 1998, I helped create SMU’s Summer in Weimar program and co-directed the program for many years.  During that time, I developed a deep admiration for one of our German guides, Dieter Kunkel.  I asked Dieter to help me explain what makes Weimar so special.

 Dieter Kunkel Interview [18:37m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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I enjoyed my interview with conductor and virtuoso oboist Vladimir Lande so much, I decided to present highlights of it in a shorter program. Listen and enjoy as Maestro Lande talks about the legendary conductor Evgenii Mravinsky and about the powerful influence of the Russian Bells.  Lande’s upbringing in the Soviet musical system, his many achievements, and his rich opportunity to learn from the greatest of Russian musicians, have given him wonderful insights into music and life. 

 Lande Interview Highlights [12:34m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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Conductor and oboist Vladimir Lande talks with Professor Carol about the legacy of Evgeny Mravinsky and Soviet composers Shostakovich and Khachaturian, as well as the influence of folklore and the bells of the Orthodox Church on Russian composers. He discusses performances of music by John Corigliano, Gaetano Panariello, and Lorenzo Ferrero and his enthusiasm for performing contemporary music of Russia, America, and Italy at the St. Petersburg Musical Spring and Ravello Festivals.

In addition to his conducting career, Lande is a virtuoso oboist with the Poulenc Trio and the D’Amore duo. He began his career as principal oboist of the St. Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra (1984-1989), playing under such legendary conductors as Mravinsky, Mariss Jansons, Leonard Bernstein, Claudio Abbado, Valery Gergiev, and Yuri Temirkanov.

Lande has been awarded many prestigious prizes, including the First Prize of the Russian Republic Wind Competition. He was named principal guest conductor of the St. Petersburg Symphony Orchestra in Russia, as well as music director and conductor of the Washington Soloist Chamber Orchestra in Washington, D.C.

 An Interview with Vladimir Lande: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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In today’s classical music world, there are not many composers who can stir up the excitement that might have accompanied the premiere of a new work by Brahms.  But John Mackey is a composer who can.  He has a popular following from all over the world.  The Dallas Wind Symphony collaborated with a group of wind bands to commission Mackey’s new Concerto for Soprano Sax and Wind Ensemble.  Mackey dedicated the work to Don Fabian, principal saxophonist of the Dallas Wind Symphony, and Professor Carol talks to Fabian about the upcoming premiere.

Works discussed: John Mackey’s Concerto for Soprano Sax and Wind Ensemble

 Commissions, Dedications, and Premiers: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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Professor Carol interviews New York Times veteran reporter James Barron, author of Piano: The Making of a Steinway Concert Grand (New York: Times Books, 2006), which tells the story of a single piano (K0862) and its eleven-month journey from its beginnings as raw lumber to the concert stage at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

The 9-part series in The New York Times is available online with images and interactive features.

Visit the Steinway & Sons site to learn more.

 The Making of a Steinway [23:24m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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 The Musicians' Perspective on Mahler [21:39m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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