All Episodes
Classical Breakdown — 166 episodes
Season 7 Recommended Summer Listening!
Tosca! Puccini's tragic opera on love, lust, and brutality
The Montgomery Variations: A Piece of American History by Margaret Bonds
Haydn's Trumpet Concerto: Revolutionary in ways you didn't know!
Leos Janacek: an original composer who found success late
Bonus! John and James discuss Eine Kleine Nachtmusik and gigs
Also Sprach Zarathustra: Where Music and Philosophy Reach New Heights
Bonus! 2 Opera preludes by Richard Wagner
Richard Wagner: The flawed man who changed opera
Bonus! 3 Preludes and Fugues from the Well-Tampered Clavier Book 1 by Sam Post
The Well-TAMPERED Clavier: A rhythmic reimagining of JS Bach by Sam Post
Brahms Symphony No. 3: Perfection in Orchestration and Form
3 Composers lost to Tyranny
Meet Grammy-Winning Composer Jessie Montgomery!
A performance of Carnival of the Animals featuring Argerich and Freire!
Carnival of the Animals, a work of genius kept hidden (plus animal facts!)
Bonus episode: Ballet music from 2 operas by Verdi!
Giuseppe Verdi: A life of drama, censorship, and even farming!
Jean Sibelius' Violin Concerto, one of the most challenging works for violin!
A performance of Emilie Mayer's Cello Sonata in D minor featuring Grace Mockus
Emilie Mayer; Rediscovering a celebrated 19th-century composer
Clara Wieck Schumann's Piano Concerto; a teenage work of genius
Adolphus Hailstork, an American composer writing for our time
Death in music! 10 works that explore life’s final question
Bonus episode! 3 select performances of guitarist Xuefei Yang
Xuefei Yang performs Erik Satie and shares insight into her new album!
Beethoven's Symphony No. 3 "Eroica", Rejecting Napoleon and Charting a New Path!
The Great World of Percussion with Chris DeChiara: From bones and war drums to symphonies!
Bonus episode! A performance of a suite from the ballet Daphnis and Chloe by Maurice Ravel
Maurice Ravel at 150: celebrating his life, music, and influence!
Recommended listening; 4 new albums to listen to this summer!
Mahler's Symphony No. 5, a story of uncertainty and triumph
Felix Mendelssohn: A prodigy, inventor, and visionary!
Verdi's Rigoletto: Unforgettable tunes, tragedy, and a new concept in opera
John Williams: a defining American composer that goes beyond the silver screen
Shostakovich's Symphony No. 5: a symphony of bravery, intrigue, and survival
An update on Florence Price!
The most difficult music for piano: Gaspard de la Nuit by Maurice Ravel
The Future is Female: Exploring Clarice Assad and the Boulanger Initiative with Laura Colgate
Ethel Smyth's Mass in D: A 19th century mass by an extraordinary woman!
Olly Wilson, an American composer that will change how you hear music!
Carlos Simon's Songs of Separation: An American song cycle set to poetry of Rumi
Lincoln Portrait: Aaron Copland's defense of Democracy
Chris Gekker tells us everything about the trumpet!
Your Guide to JS Bach's Cello Suites!
Aaron Copland: The Sound of America
Dora Pejačević's Symphony in F# minor; Croatia's very first symphony!
The Life and Music of Gioachino Rossini: An overnight success, foodie, and opera sensation
Beethoven’s iconic Violin Concerto: what to listen for and why it was an initial flop!
The horn: Everything you need to know from Mozart, Mahler, to the movie screen!
The lives and music of Silvestre Revueltas and Gabriela Lena Frank
The Great Unfinished Works
Bruckner's Symphony No. 4 "Romantic"; a monumental masterpiece!
Recommended listening; 4 new albums to listen to this summer!
What is a cello? Star cellist Amit Peled tells all!
Elgar's Enigma Variations, a portrait of friends, life, and love!
Robert Schumann's Carnaval: A solo piano brings a masked ball to life!
The Life of Nadia Boulanger: A Lasting Impact from Bernstein to Sesame Street
Haydn's masterpiece for 4 soloists and orchestra, the Sinfonia Concertante
The Evolution of the Piano: A Thousand Year Journey!
Joan Tower's Concerto for Orchestra, an adventure in color, illusion, and rhythm!
The secret life of a classical recording engineer: Meet WETA's Charles Lawson
The life and music of Antonin Dvořák; from humble beginnings to stardom!
6 recommended works by living Black composers!
Korngold's Violin Concerto, from the Golden Age of Hollywood!
Episode 100, let's celebrate!
Jean Sibelius, how a composer became the voice of a nation!
Augusta Holmès' Andromède; an epic Greek myth inspired symphonic poem!
Opera 101, everything you wanted to know but were afraid to ask!
Tchaikovsky’s Romeo and Juliet Overture: 3 themes and Shakespearean connections!
The inspiring life and music of Germaine Tailleferre: plus 5 recommended works!
The Nocturne, a journey from the 19th century to Daft Punk!
Respighi's The Pines of Rome: a picturesque tour of Rome!
The short yet musically prolific life of Franz Schubert
Rachmaninoff's Piano Concerto No. 2: a musical comeback story!
Summer Listening Guide: 4 albums to expand your musical horizons!
Theme and Variations: 4 types and what to listen for!
The Illustrious Life and Music of Haydn: From hardship to stardom
Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 5 "Emperor": Breaking expectations!
In conversation with Maestro Gianandrea Noseda: His journey, perspectives on music, conducting, and more!
Mahler's Symphony No. 1: A rewarding symphonic journey!
Fantasia: Music from the realm of imagination!
The life and music of Cecile Chaminade: Genius has no gender
Women in Music: 6 works by 6 composers you should know
Ravel's Piano Concerto for Left Hand: A masterpiece of musical illusions and creativity!
Joseph Bologne, the most interesting 18th century composer?
Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 6 "Pathetique": A symphony of unanswerable questions
Antonio Vivaldi's life, music, and the women who shaped his career
Brahms' Haydn Variations: Don't judge a theme by its composer!
A holiday gem: Margaret Bonds' The Ballad of the Brown King
George Frideric Handel: life of fame, musical style, and 3 things you didn't know before!
WG Still's Afro-American Symphony: Blues idioms, new instruments, and a uniquely American style
The Saxophone, everything you need to know about this unique genre-hopping instrument!
Mozart y Mambo! Horn superstar Sarah Willis shows off her newest album
By Listener Request: 3 deep dives into works by Pachelbel, Liszt, and Vaughan Williams
Claude Debussy: 4 points to hear his music in a new way!
Rachmaninoff's Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini: A Baltimore connection and hidden themes!
Summer Listening Guide: 4 albums to expand your musical horizons!
Grieg’s Piano Concerto: The Heart of Norway
An Unsung Heroine: The Life and Music of Fanny Mendelssohn
Under Pressure: What is an Oboe with Nick Stovall, NSO's Principal Oboe
Ravel's Bolero with Joshua Weilerstein: A conductor's insight
Piano Transformed: The Life and Music of Frederic Chopin
All about that bass! With NSO Principal Bass Robert Oppelt
Louise Farrenc's Symphony No. 3: A hidden gem!
Clara Schumann: A story of stardom, passion, and courage
Florence Price Symphony No. 1: An American Symphony
George Walker: He wants you to play his music
Dvorak's Cello Concerto, 5 things to listen for!
How an orchestra creates a year of concerts, with NSO's Nigel Boon
The life and music of Robert Schumann
Bach's Christmas Oratorio, what to listen for and know!
Bernstein's West Side Story
The life of William Grant Still
Mozart's Clarinet Concerto
The Life of Sergei Rachmaninoff
What is a Clarinet?
Tchaikovsky's triumphant Symphony No. 5
The Life of Leonard Bernstein
Season 3 starts September 7!
New classical albums to listen to this summer!
What is a Viola? Daniel Foster, Principal Viola of the NSO tells us everything!
Berlioz Symphonie Fantastique. A story of obsession, betrayal, and execution.
The Life of Johannes Brahms
What is a Concerto?
Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition. A masterpiece and tribute to a friend.
What is a Bassoon? Sue Heineman, Principal Bassoon of the NSO, tells us everything!
Appalachian Spring, an American classic by Aaron Copland
The Life of Bach
The life of Florence Price
Dvorak's Symphony No. 9 "From the New World." The origins and inspirations you didn't know.
It's fun and it's virtuosic! Exploring Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 21
What does a Concertmaster really do? Concertmaster Nurit Bar-Josef of the NSO explains.
The life of Strauss Jr. aka "The Waltz King"
The Nutcracker, how it became a holiday classic, and what to listen for
Beethoven's Symphony No. 9
What is a string quartet?
Beethoven's triumphant Symphony No. 5
The life of Tchaikovsky
What is an Overture?
Rimsky-Korsakov's enchanting Scheherazade
The life of Beethoven
Recommended summer listening
Lawrence Brownlee on equality in classical music
Haydn's lost cello concerto and its rediscovery
NSO Principal Flute Aaron Goldman talks flute and shares his journey in music
Debussy's La Mer - Part 3
Debussy's La Mer - Part 2
Debussy's La Mer - Part 1
Artist Relief Tree, supporting artists affected by cancellations due to COVID-19
The Life and Music of Amy Beach, an American pioneer
Haydn's final London Symphony
What is a Symphony? Part 2
The life of Mozart
The Planets by Holst
Tchaikovsky's The Seasons
What does a conductor do?
Handel's Messiah, from swords, hidden meanings, to theft!
What is a Symphonic Poem?
Reading between the notes - making a score come alive
The Abeo Quartet performs Moonshot
Kian Soltani, cellist, talks tempo, karate, and his debut album "Home"
What is a Symphony? Part 1
How does a composer actually write music?
The Four Seasons, how Vivaldi depicts the world in sound
Wu Han, pianist and cultural entrepreneur