Italian American Music
Evening Music | May 6, 2010
Bach’s “Italian” Concerto and Dvorak’s “American” Quartet head up our Playlist this evening.
Today marks the 23rd anniversary of Glenn Gould’s death, the extraordinarily talented (yet troubled) pianist who left behind many legendary recordings of Bach’s keyboard works. Tonight we’ll hear Gould play Bach’s “Italian” concerto in F Major – a piece Bach wrote to showcase his compositional abilities, by incorporating the more florid “Italian” style into his own musical voice.
Antonin Dvorak composed some of his most beloved music while living in America in the 1890s (the “New World” Symphony being the best known). Tonight we’ll hear his “American” String Quartet, which Dvorak wrote over a few days while vacationing with a Bohemian colony in Iowa. The Smetana Quartet (named for another great Czech composer) does the honors.
And, later in the evening, a couple of powerhouses: Mariss Jansons leads the Oslo Philharmonic in Jean Sibelius’ Symphony No. 2 while pianist Richard Goode brings life to Beethoven’s vibrant Piano Sonata No. 21, the “Waldstein.”
Today marks the 23rd anniversary of Glenn Gould’s death, the extraordinarily talented (yet troubled) pianist who left behind many legendary recordings of Bach’s keyboard works. Tonight we’ll hear Gould play Bach’s “Italian” concerto in F Major – a piece Bach wrote to showcase his compositional abilities, by incorporating the more florid “Italian” style into his own musical voice.
Antonin Dvorak composed some of his most beloved music while living in America in the 1890s (the “New World” Symphony being the best known). Tonight we’ll hear his “American” String Quartet, which Dvorak wrote over a few days while vacationing with a Bohemian colony in Iowa. The Smetana Quartet (named for another great Czech composer) does the honors.
And, later in the evening, a couple of powerhouses: Mariss Jansons leads the Oslo Philharmonic in Jean Sibelius’ Symphony No. 2 while pianist Richard Goode brings life to Beethoven’s vibrant Piano Sonata No. 21, the “Waldstein.”
