Hank Reynolds
Charles Ives: Variations on “America” For a celebration of the Fourth of July, we should turn to something American. Who are the quintessential American composers? We could toss out some names like Sousa, Billings, Copland, or Irving Berlin, and pretty soon we would have a … Read more
Brahms: Intermezzo, Op. 116, No. 6 My father was a big Brahms fan. At the age of 5 or so, I was not often allowed to handle his collection of easily breakable 78 rpm recordings, but I can remember wearing out an vinyl LP of the … Read more
Shostakovich: Piano Concerto No. 2 I grew up playing band arrangements of Shostakovich’s symphonic music. They were some of the more challenging works we took on as students, and Shostakovich wrote interesting horn parts. So I developed an early interest in his music. I still … Read more
Bernstein/Pierobon: West Side Story Suite West Side Story changed the face of American music. So says Professor Carol, and I believe her. In fact, in you want to delve into this topic, you can find a podcast that Carol did a few years ago explaining how … Read more
Quantz: Capriccio in G Major Yesterday began in Brandenburg an der Havel, at least for Professor Carol and me as we neared the end of our journey on the Elbe River from Prague to Berlin. The rest of the day was spent in Potsdam, the … Read more
Dvořák: Nocturne in B Major, Op. 40 While Professor Carol is still in the Czech Republic, let’s continue with the Czech theme for one more week. Last week we listened to Smetana. Another giant of Czech music, who followed very much in the path of … Read more
Smetana: The Bartered Bride Overture Wake up! Last week’s lullaby is over and it’s time for more spirited fare. This coming week finds Professor Carol in Prague for the start of her boat tour down the Elbe for Smithsonian Journeys. It’s such tough duty that … Read more
Mozart: Symphonie Concertante in E-flat Major, K. 364 This week, we go back into the heart of the Classical era and take up Mozart for the first time. Mozart left his mark on all virtually all of the Classical genres. But I think his Symphonie Concertante, K. 364 … Read more
Morley: Now Is the Month of Maying Well, it’s May. We could do something on International Worker’s Day, but drawing on older celebrations of May Day seem more appropriate. May Day is celebrated in many countries with dances and songs and Maypoles marking the beginning … Read more
Holst: The Planets (IV Jupiter, The Bringer of Jollity) If you grew up listening to the musical themes from Star Trek and Star Wars, you will find the sounds of Gustav Holst’s The Planets quite familiar. (No, I’m not even suggesting musical plagiarism, a subject … Read more