Episodes
Monday Jun 10, 2024
Episode 51 - 1993: Christopher Rouse, Trombone Concerto
Monday Jun 10, 2024
Monday Jun 10, 2024
In this episode, Dave and Andrew consider one of the few concertos to win the Pulitzer Prize, this time for an instrument whose sound some critics claimed grew "tiresome." Will they agree? And what famous composer's music is quoted in the piece?
If you'd like more information about Christopher Rouse, we recommend:
- This interview with Joe Alessi mentioned in the episode.
- R. Burkhardt Reiter's 2005 dissertation, Symmetry and Narrative in Christopher Rouse's Trombone Concerto with white space waiting (an original composition for chamber orchestra).
- Laurie Shulman's article, "Christopher Rouse: An Overview" in Tempo, no. 199 (1997): 2-8.
Friday May 24, 2024
Friday May 24, 2024
In this episode, Dave and Andrew address one of the most controversial awards in Pulitzer history. What happened in 1992 and was Wayne Peterson's music worthy of the ruckus that grew around it?
If you'd like more information about Wayne Peterson, we recommend:
- Joshua Kosman's Obituary of the composer in the New York Times.
- Peterson's professional management service (with discography, video, etc.)
- The Boston Modern Orchestra Project's recording of The Face of the Night, The Heart of the Dark.
Friday Apr 19, 2024
Bonus: An Interview with Howard Pollack
Friday Apr 19, 2024
Friday Apr 19, 2024
In this episode, Dave and Andrew are joined by Howard Pollack, John and Rebecca Moores Professor of Music at the University of Houston. Dr. Pollack is the author of acclaimed biographies of several Pulitzer Prize winners from the early years, including a recent biography of two-time winner Samuel Barber.
Friday Mar 29, 2024
Episode 49 - 1991: Shulamit Ran, Symphony
Friday Mar 29, 2024
Friday Mar 29, 2024
In this episode, Dave and Andrew explore the second Pulitzer Prize in music won by a female composer, Shulamit Ran for her Symphony, in 1991. What will they think about this fourth freely-atonal work in a row to win the prize? And what snags did they run into researching this episode?
As mentioned in the podcast, here is Shulamit Ran performing with the New York Philharmonic in 1965:
If you'd like more information on Shulamit Ran, we recommend:
- Malcolm Miller, "Between Two Cultures: A Conversation with Shulamit Ran" Tempo, 2004, 58(227):15-32.
- "Casting Musical Spells: Time, Passion, and Inevitability in the Music of Shulamit Ran," In: Kouvaras, L., Williams, N., Grenfell, M. (eds) The Composer, Herself. Palgrave Macmillan (2023).
Tuesday Jan 30, 2024
Episode 48 - 1990: Mel Powell, Duplicates
Tuesday Jan 30, 2024
Tuesday Jan 30, 2024
In this episode, Dave and Andrew explore a composer who played with Benny Goodman as a jazz pianist, and then embraced Arnold Schoenberg's musical ideas as a member of the academy. What kind of music does that concoction create? Listen to this episode on Duplicates, Powell's winning piece for two pianos and orchestra.
If you'd like more information about Mel Powell, we recommend:
- Sally Lamb, “An Analytical Guide to the Works of Mel Powell.” DMA diss., Cornell University, 1988.
- Jeffrey Perry, "Constructing a Relevant Past: Mel Powell's Beethoven Analogs" American Music 29, no. 4 (2011): 491–535.
Finally, you might like to see Mel Powell in action with Benny Goodman:
Friday Jan 12, 2024
Episode 47 - 1989: Roger Reynolds, Whispers Out of Time
Friday Jan 12, 2024
Friday Jan 12, 2024
In this episode, Dave and Andrew explore a work for string orchestra that Kyle Gann opined was the first experimental composition to win the Pulitzer since Charles Ives. Given how much Dave loves Ives, how does he react to Whispers Out of Time? How does the piece fit in the context of music written in the late 1980s?
If you'd like more information about Roger Reynolds, we recommend:
- Kyle Gann's American Music in the 20th Century (Schirmer, 1997).
- Roger Reynolds's "Ideals and Realities: A Composer in America" American Music Vol. 25, No. 1 (2007): 4-49.
Thursday Dec 07, 2023
Bonus: An Interview with William Bolcom
Thursday Dec 07, 2023
Thursday Dec 07, 2023
In this special bonus episode, Dave and Andrew talk with 1988 Pulitzer Prize Winner William Bolcom. What is the difference between the Etudes and the New Etudes? What impact did John Cage have on his career? And who is answering the phone? We hope you enjoy hearing from him about these insights and many more!
Thursday Nov 16, 2023
Episode 46 - 1988: William Bolcom, Twelve New Etudes
Thursday Nov 16, 2023
Thursday Nov 16, 2023
In this episode, Dave and Andrew discuss the first solo piano work to ever win a Pulitzer Prize. And they try to answer the question–if these are "new" etudes, what are the "old" etudes? They also examine how Bolcom incorporates various styles and techniques into the etudes, and ponder the set's historical place among other etude collections.
If you'd like more information about William Bolcom, we recommend:
- Henry S. Jones's dissertation "William Bolcom's Twelve New Etudes for Piano" (Louisiana State University, 1994).
- Ji Sun Lee's dissertation "Revolutionary Etudes: The Expansion of Piano Technique Exploited in the Twelve New Etudes of William Bolcom" (University of Arizona, 2001)
- William Bolcom's website.
And if you'd like to read Dave's interview with Marc-André Hamelin (who premiered the entire set), you can find it here.
Saturday Sep 23, 2023
Bonus: An Interview with John Harbison
Saturday Sep 23, 2023
Saturday Sep 23, 2023
In this special bonus episode, Dave and Andrew talk with Pulitzer Winner John Harbison. Why did he decide to play the tuba? What was it like to study composition with two-time winner Walter Piston? What was the impetus for looking at the darker side of Christmas in The Flight Into Egypt? We hope you enjoy hearing from him about these insights and many more!
Wednesday Aug 30, 2023
Episode 45 - 1987: John Harbison, The Flight Into Egypt
Wednesday Aug 30, 2023
Wednesday Aug 30, 2023
In this episode Dave and Andrew discuss a composer known for his eclecticism, who writes music that features the influence of jazz, Stravinskian neoclassicism, Schoenbergian serialism, and a variety of popular idioms. But will that mixture of styles win them over when applied to a Biblical text about the "dark side" of Christmas?
If you'd like more information about Harbison, we recommend:
- Brian Galante's dissertation "John Harbison's The Flight into Egypt: An Analysis for Performance," University of North Texas, 2008.
- Mike Seabrook's "John Harbison and His Music," Tempo 197 (July 1996): 7–11.
- Tom Jacob's profile in the San Francisco Classical Voice.