Jan 09 Blog Britten and Bax Benjamin Britten’s Hymn to St Cecilia was mostly written during the composer’s trip home to the UK after visiting the United States. This work had a long gestation as Britten had problems finding a suitable text. W H Auden was eventually asked and produced the poem in 1940. Britten’s setting was immediately recognised as a […] By Alan Brandt Jan 09 Blog Britten and Bax By Alan Brandt
Jul 03 Blog arnold bax Composer Arnold Bax wrote his Violin Concerto in 1937-38 for Jascha Heifetz. Heifetz, reportedly, was disappointed in the work. Bax himself didn’t acknowledge the opus until he was asked to provide a new work in 1943 for violinist Eda Kersey. The work was reintroduced by the soloist with the BBC Symphony Orchestra conducted by Sir […] By Alan Brandt Jul 03 Blog arnold bax By Alan Brandt
Jun 04 Blog English Ballet Music for the ballet is our feature on this week’s An English Pastorale with music by Edward Elgar, Arnold Bax and Constant Lambert. Edward Elgar’s The Sanguine Fan was written in 1917 for a performance in support of war charity. The light plot of the ballet was taken from the scenario depicted on a sylvan […] By Alan Brandt Jun 04 Blog English Ballet By Alan Brandt
May 15 Blog English Symphonies Vaughan Williams – Symphony No. 6 Arthur Bliss – Colour Symphony Edward Elgar – Symphony No. 2 William Walton – Symphony No. 2 Charles Stanford – Symphony No. 6 On An English Pastorale this week, we’ll explore several symphonies by Englishman written in the 20th century. William Walton (PHOTO) wrote his second symphony in 1959-60. […] By Alan Brandt May 15 Blog English Symphonies By Alan Brandt
Apr 24 Blog Delius and Friends The music of Frederick Delius is unique. Born in Yorkshire, England, Delius was a citizen of the world. His music showed influences from his travels to America, Norway and France. But his approach to composition was all his own. While there was never a “Delius School” of composers to emerge from his output, he did […] By Alan Brandt Apr 24 Blog Delius and Friends By Alan Brandt
Aug 20 Blog Live Broadcast: Chamber Music Festival of Lexington Join us this Friday and Saturday at 7pm for live broadcasts from the Chamber Music Festival of Lexington. Classical 90.5 Afternoon Host, Daniel Giliam, and Roger Duvall from WEKU/WKYL will host two of the final concerts from this year’s festival, with pre-show interviews and recordings starting at 7pm and joining the concerts at 7:30pm. Listen […] By Daniel Gilliam Aug 20 Blog Live Broadcast: Chamber Music Festival of Lexington By Daniel Gilliam