• Eric Whitacre and The Sacred Veil
    May 19 2023

    Sam chats to composer Eric Whitacre about their experience recording The Sacred Veil together with VOCES8. The 12-movement work is a collaboration between Whitacre and poet-lyricist Charles Anthony Silvestri, and comprises texts by Silvestri, Whitacre and Silvestri’s late wife Julie. Its intimate score ‘tells a story of courtship, love, loss and the search for solace’.

    Find out more about the piece here: https://ericwhitacre.com/music-catalog/the-sacred-veil

    Featured Clips:
    Mov. 1: The Veil Opens
    Mov. 11: You Rise, I Fall
    Mov. 4: Magnetic Poetry
    Mov. 12: Child of Wonder

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    50 mins
  • The Lord of the Rings: A Musical Pilgrimage
    Apr 29 2023

    Today’s episode is all about geography. Tim talks international competition politics and how Rachmaninov’s disputed legacy ties into the debate. Meanwhile Sam forges a musical map of Middle Earth in a Lord of the Rings analytical pilgrimage. All topped off with a very literal fluffy-dog story. Live long and prosper.

    Check out Russia Beyond’s dubious Rachmaninov listicle: https://www.rbth.com/arts/334377-sergei-rachmaninoff-russian-composer

    Music Referenced
    Beethoven’s Piano Sonata No. 17, ‘The Tempest’
    ’Meet the Flintstones’ by Hoyt Curtin
    The Open University theme tune
    Various themes from Howard Shore’s soundtrack to The Lord of the Rings trilogy and Bear McCreary’s soundtrack to The Rings of Power

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    28 mins
  • Anna Thorvaldsdottir Doesn’t Need a Programme
    Apr 14 2023

    Tim travels to the home of Icelandic composer Anna Thorvaldsdottir for a classical chat. They discuss Icelandic’s musical pedigree, her upcoming role as Featured Artist at the Aldeburgh Festival, her cameo in Todd Field’s Tár and the importance (or unimportance) of a work’s conceptual inspiration in the ears of the listener.

    Featured Clips:
    ARCHORA, performed by the Iceland Symphony Orchestra under Eva Ollikainen
    AIŌN, performed by the Iceland Symphony Orchestra under Eva Ollikainen
    Ró, performed by CAPUT Ensemble under by Guðni Franzson

    Links:

    Anna’s website: https://www.annathorvalds.com/
    Some info on her upcoming residency: https://www.annathorvalds.com/blog/2022/12/20/featured-artist-at-the-2023-aldeburgh-festival
    Andrew Mellor on Iceland as a classical music powerhouse: https://www.theguardian.com/music/2023/apr/05/iceland-classical-music-symphony-orchestra-uk-tour

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    41 mins
  • Scoring Jane Austin
    Mar 31 2023

    In today's episode Sam and Tim discuss recent concert hall dramas as unionised musicians seize the means of sound production. Meanwhile Sam peers into the gilded musical cages of Jane Austin’s Sense and Sensibility in the next instalment of his film music series.

    Music Referenced
    ‘Mars’ from Holst’s The Planets
    ‘Gallop’ interlude from Shostakovich’s opera The Nose
    ‘My Father's Favourite’ from Patrick Doyle’s score to Sense and Sensibility

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    28 mins
  • Caroline Shaw and Her Many Composer Hats
    Mar 17 2023

    Tim speaks to the US singer, composer and producer Caroline Shaw. They cover her various composer hats, the upcoming performance of her Four Portraits at the Lyric Opera of Chicago, and their shared appreciation for Abba and Fiona Apple.

    Links:
    Caroline’s website: https://carolineshaw.com
    Some info on Four Portraits: https://www.lyricopera.org/lyric-lately/notes-on-four-portraits/

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    46 mins
  • Hans Zimmer is Batman
    Mar 3 2023

    In our latest instalment: *POW* Sam investigates Batman’s secret musical identity *WHAM* Tim holds the Anglican Church to account in a hard-hitting exposé (not) *ZOINKS* We discuss Ukrainian composer Galina Grigorjeva’s new disc of choral music *ZAP* And yes, another excuse to talk about Star Trek.

    Music Referenced
    ‘The Ritual/Ancient Battle /2nd Kroykah’ by Gerald Fried
    ‘Batman Theme’ by Neal Hefti
    Danny Elfman’s Batman theme
    Shirley Walker’s theme to Batman: The Animated Series
    Main theme from Batman Forever by Elliot Goldenthal
    Hans Zimmer’s score to The Dark Knight
    ‘Journey to the Line’ from Hans Zimmer’s score to The Thin Red Line
    ‘Gollum’s Theme’ from Howard Shore’s score to The Lord of the Rings
    Galina Grigorjeva: Agnus Dei; Prayer; Diptych; In Paradisum; God is the Lord; and Nox vitae, performed by the Estonian National Male Choir under Mikk Üleoja

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    36 mins
  • Ella Taylor Juggling Opera Roles
    Feb 17 2023

    Sam speaks to soprano Ella Taylor about their upcoming roles in Philip Glass’s Akhnaten at ENO and Verdi’s Don Carlo at the Royal Opera. The conversation turns to Ella’s trepidation at embarking on a new production with a new set of co-workers, what it means to be a trans singer playing trouser roles – and ancient Egyptian trivia.

    Links:
    Trans Voices video: https://www.theguardian.com/culture/video/2022/mar/10/the-uks-first-professional-trans-choir-its-a-joyful-act-of-resistance
    Akhnaten at ENO: https://www.eno.org/whats-on/akhnaten/
    Don Carlo at ROH: https://www.roh.org.uk/tickets-and-events/don-carlo-by-nicholas-hytner-details
    Shadwell’s Powder Down: https://shadwell.bandcamp.com/album/powder-down

    … 

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    49 mins
  • The Banshees of East Dulwich
    Feb 3 2023

    Returning to your ears for the first time this year, the boys bring with them a film-music special. Sam unwraps Carter Burwell’s magnificent score to The Banshees of Inisherin while Tim quizzes Sam on Oscar nominations, German model trains and a certain topless dictator.

    Music Referenced
    John Williams’s soundtracks to Jaws, ET, Schindler’s List, Superman and Star Wars
    Richard Strauss’s Death and Transfiguration
    Carter Burwell’s score toThe Banshees of Inisherin: ‘The Mystery of Inisherin’, ‘Walking Home Alone’
    Bulgarian Women’s Choir: Polegnala E Toudora
    John McCormack: ‘Siciliana / Cavalleria’

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    25 mins