One Symphony with Devin Patrick Hughes

The Emergence of Electronics in Symphonic Music - with John Clay Allen

Devin speaks with John Clay Allen about musicians and composers who were pioneers in bridging electronic and acoustic sounds, especially around the symphony orchestra. John Clay Allen is a composer, pianist, educator & explorer on the fringes where classical music meets electronic music. Originally from Ruidoso, New Mexico, his music is a synthesis of post-minimalist and spectralist styles, with an underlying predilection for the romantic. His music values the timbral and textural over the traditional note unit, and uses electronics to extend the realm of acoustic possibility. His body of work ranges from pieces for soloist and chamber ensembles to full orchestra, wind symphony, and opera, and his debut album Asnières (silent “s”) was released in 2020. Clay’s compositions have been performed across the United States and internationally at festivals including SEAMUS, CICTeM in Buenos Aires, the Cortona Sessions in Italy, and the New York City Electroacoustic Music Festival. Recent commissions include works for the Boulder Symphony, Pendulum New Music’s Spark Award, sAge Brass, the Boulder Altitude Directive, and Ajax string quartet. Clay has been a fellow at New Music on the Point and the Charlotte New Music. As a performer, Clay frequently appears as a conductor and collaborative pianist, and has performed across the United States. Passionate about education and outreach, Clay has taught lessons and classes in composition, piano, and music technology for nearly a decade and is a founding member of the Equinox New Music Collective, a nonprofit organization dedicated to bringing new music to new audiences. Clay holds degrees from West Texas A&M University, University of North Texas, and the University of Colorado Boulder where he received his doctorate in composition. Clay currently divides his time teaching at Metropolitan State University of Denver and the University of Colorado Boulder. Thank you for joining us on One Symphony and thanks to John Clay Allen for sharing his music, knowledge, & expertise. Thank you to all the incredible performers and record labels that made this episode possible. Tchaikovsky’s 4th symphony was performed by the Oslo Philharmonic and Mariss Jansons. Respighi’s Pines of Rome was played by the Berlin Philharmonic conducted by Herbert Van Karajan. John Adams Transmigration of Souls was performed by the NY Philharmonic and Lorin Maazel on Nonesuch Records. Au Deuxième Etage by Elainie Lillios is from the album Miniatures Concrètes from the Empreintes Digitales label. Pamela Z’s Ethel Dreams of Temporal Distubances is performed by Ethel, Vijay Iyer & Pamela Z from the album Light Cantaloupe Music. Gérard Grisey’s Partiels from Les espaces acoustiques is played by the WDR Sinfonieorchester Köln, conducted by Stefan Asbury on Kairos Records. Warehouse Medicine from the B-Sides by Mason Bates is performed by San Francisco Symphony and Michael Tilson Thomas.The reminder of the tracks come from John Clay Allen’s Asnières, which you can find on all platforms, wherever you listen. You can check out John Clay Allen online at JohnClayAllen.com. You can always find more info at OneSymphony.org including a virtual tip jar if you’d like to support the show. Please feel free to rate, review, or share the show! Until next time, thank you for being part of the music!

Radical Love, a Conversation with Dominique Christina

Dominique Christina is a writer, performer, educator, activist, Mother, troublemaker, agitator, social commentator, star volleyball player, and was a high school and college teacher for ten years. She was the National Poetry Champion in 2011 and Women of the World Slam Champion in 2012 and 2014. Dominique can be found speaking online on TEDX and also on HBO’s High Maintenance. Her books, available everywhere include: -The Bones, the Breaking, the Balm, a Colored Girls Hymnal-Anarcha Speaks-This is Woman’s Work: Calling Forth Your Inner Council of Wise, Brave, Crazy, Rebellious, Loving, Luminous SelvesWe're very excited for you to hear our discussion which covers craft and performance, the etymologies of words, the importance of learning from past poets like Edgar Allen Poe and Beethoven, the relationship between artists and politicians, childhood, motherhood, and more. In additional to some amazing musical selections Dominique shares two of her more recent poems, It’s Morning and Praise Poem at the end of the episode. Thank you for joining us on One Symphony and thank you to Dominique Christina for sharing her amazing performances. Thank you to all the incredible performers and record labels who made this episode possible. Motherless Child was performed by O.V. Wright on Geffen Records. Simply Beautiful comes from Al Green’s I’m Still in Love with You by Fat Possum.  Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata was performed by Daniel Barenboim. Got to Give it Up by Marvin Gaye is on Motown Records, a division of UMG Recordings, Incorporated. Shallows is from If You Leave by Daughter from Glassnote Entertainment, Daughter and A World Artists Love. The Other Side is from Little Ghost performed distributed by Moonchild, and Entertainment OneYou can find Dominique Christina’s books, including Anarcha Speaks and This Is Women’s Work on all platforms, wherever books are sold. You can always find more info at OneSymphony.org including a virtual tip jar if you’d like to support the show. Please feel free to rate, review, or share the show! Until next time, thank you for being part of the music!
 
 

Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker - A Guided Tour

Devin breaks down Tchaikovsky’s beloved Nutcracker. It wouldn’t be the Christmas Holiday in the western world without the magical sounds of the Nutcracker, composed by the great Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, and centering around Clara, a young girl who falls in love with a Nutcracker Prince and conjures an epic battle against a Mouse King with Seven Heads.We’ll travel into the fantastical worlds of Tchaikovsky, writer and musician E.T.A. Hoffmann, and choreographer Marius Petipa as we bring this marvelous ballet to life. Don’t worry, there will be plenty of holiday sweets to keep you focused!
Thank you to all the incredible record labels and performers who made this episode possible.Ensembles:Orchestra of the Kirov Opera, Apotheosis Orchestra, Ensemble Musica Nigella, Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela, Oslo Philharmonic, Vienna PhilharmonicConductors:Valery Gergiev, Korneel Bernolet, Takénori Némoto, Jan Koetsier, Gustavo Dudamel, Mariss JansonsSoloists: Éléonore Pancrazi, Rita Streich, Melitta Muszely, Raimund Grumbach, (singers);Philippe Bianconi, pianistLabels: Philips, Apotheosis, Klarthe, La Dolce Volta, Classical Moments, Deutsche Grammophon, Chandos, DeccaThank you for joining us. you can always find more info at OneSymphony.org. Please feel free to rate review or share the show! Until next time, thank you for being part of the music!

The Silent Musician, a conversation with conductor Mark Wigglesworth

Devin speaks with award winning, internationally renowned, and in-demand conductor of symphonic and operatic repertoire, and writer Mark Wigglesworth. Mark’s conducting skills and passions take him equally formidably from the music of Mozart all the way to the present day.  Maestro Wigglesworth has some incredible recordings featuring all fifteen Shostakovich Symphonies, Mahler’s Sixth Symphonies, Britten’s opera Peter Grimes, and many more. Mark has recently released an incredible book titled the Silent Musician: Why Conducting Matters. This is of interest to conductors, beginning or seasoned, musicians, music lovers, and leaders in any field who want to be more connected to their ensembles and more influential.
During the show, Mark speaks about the influence and art of gesture, and the road to discovering you own. He discusses the history of how to decide on tempo, or speed at which music is played, and how it’s all about the character of the music. Mark covers why silence matters, and the effects of COVID on how rehearsals and performances are executed. 
Thank you to all the incredible record labels and performers who made this episode possible. All selections were conducted by our guest, Mark Wigglesworth. The excerpts from the 5th and 10th Symphonies of Dmitri Shostakovich were performed by the BBC National Orchestra of Whales on the BIS Records label.  The Piano Concertos of Johannes Brahms were performed by pianist Stephen Hough and the Mozarteumorchester Salzburg.  The 13th Symphony Excerpt of Dmitri Shostakovich features bass soloist Jan-Hendrick Rootering and the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic OrchestraYou can find Mark’s book, The Silent Musician: Why Conducting Matters, published by University of Chicago Press wherever you buy books!Thank you for joining us. you can always find more info at OneSymphony.org. You can find Mark at MarkWigglesworth.com. Please feel free to rate review or share the show! Until next time, thank you for being part of the music!

The Artist & the Composer, a conversation with Will Day and Jonathan Bingham

Devin speaks about contemporary and historical interactions between music and the art world, featuring two creative entrepreneurs that are paving the way in their respective fields, Contemporary visual artist Will Day, and composer Jonathan Bingham. Jonathan discusses his formative inspirations, including the music of John Williams. Will Day's wife, Aimee, barely survived the 9/11 attacks in tower two and this profoundly affected him as he became an architect and then visual artist.  Their stories will inspire you to find the artist within, discard your fears, follow your passion, and find your life purpose. The podcast episode’s conception revolved around the “Quaternity” project that was created by Devin Patrick Hughes, Boulder Symphony, Jonathan Bingham, and Will Day. The artwork can be viewed on Will’s website: WillDayArt.comThank you to all the incredible performers who made this episode possible including JACK Quartet, New York University Contemporary Ensemble, conductor Jonathan Haas, violinist Charles Wetherbee, Boulder Symphony, tenor Luciano Pavarotti, conductor and composer John Williams, London Symphony Orchestra, conductor Richard Bonynge, and the  English Chamber Orchestra. Also shoutout to the Decca label.Musical excerpts were taken from Jonathan Bingham’s “Music for Four Instruments”, String Quartet No. 1, Third Movement, “Untitled”, Violin Concerto; film scores including I’m Not Special & I Feel Better, and Quaternity.Additional musical passages come from John Williams’ Across the Stars from Star Wars Attack of the Clones and Gaetano Donizetti’s una furtiva Lagrima from l’Elisir D’Amore Thank you for joining us. you can always find more info at OneSymphony.org. For info on composer Jonathan Bingham you can find him online at Jonathan-bingham.com. You can contemporary fine artist Will Day at WillDayArt.com. Please feel free to rate review or share the show! Until next time, thank you for being part of the music!

Jenni Brandon, a Musician’s Composer

In Devin’s interview with composer Jenni Brandon, they discuss composing for soloists and small ensembles, including health and wellness for musicians, and the music of Jenni Brandon, highlighting her Fives Frogs which will have it’s Colorado premiere with the Arapahoe Philharmonic. Jenni Brandon is a consummate composer, conductor, singer & collaborator. She has received commissions to write for soloists, small ensembles, opera companies and orchestras.  Jenni has had her works performed at the Kennedy Center and has more than 20 albums. Her works are published and distributed by all the major publishing companies including her own, Jenni Brandon Music.Thank you to all the incredible performers who performed the works of Jenni Brandon and record labels who made this show possible, including the Blue Griffin Label, MSR Classics Label, New Focus Recordings, and courtesy of Jenni Brandon. 
Wood Song was performed by oboist Lindabeth Binkley on her new CD “From Earth & Sky: Music of Jenni Brandon”. Double Helix was recorded by bassoonist Christin Schillinger with Jed Moss on piano on “Bassoon Unbounded”. In the City at Night for solo English horn from Jaqueline LeClair’s new CD “Music for English Horn Alone”. All movements from “Five Frogs” from Jenni Brandon’s CD “Song of California”.Thank you for joining us. you can always find more info at OneSymphony.org. For info on composer Jenni Brandon, you can find her online at JenniBrandon.com. Please feel free to rate, review or share the show! Until next time, thank you for being part of the music!

Edward Dusinberre, first violin in the Takács String Quartet

Devin interviews Edward Dusinberre, first violin in the legendary Takács String Quartet, author of Beethoven for a Later Age: Living with the String Quartets, and Christoffersen Faculty Fellow and Artist-in-Residence at the University of Colorado College of Music.
 
The interview was excerpted from a preconcert interview from a performance. Devin and Edward speak about playing it safe for ensembles, the lab that is the string quartet, Beethoven and his metronome markings, and how playing in a quartet is like acting. 
 
Be sure to pick up a copy of Living with the String Quartets, available wherever books are sold.

Father & Son - George Walker & Gregory T.S. Walker

Father & Son: George Walker was a trailblazing and multitalented composer and pianist of the 20th Century. Among his many accomplishments he was the first African American composer to win the Pulitzer Prize for music. He passed away in 2018, but his legacy continues in his son composer and performer Gregory T.S. Walker. As a performer Gregory regularly tackles his father’s momentous works for violin, and the interview highlights interplay and the complex relationship between composer and performer, father and son.
 
Special thanks to Summit Records and Newport Classic record labels for making this episode possible.  
George Walker’s "Lilacs" performed by soprano Fay Robinsonand the Arizona State University Symphony OrchestraGeorge Walker’s "String Quartet no. 2" performed by the El Paso Festival QuartetThe Gregory T.S. Walker selections from "Global Solstice" and "Bad Rap" performed by the composer and the Boulder Philharmonic.  "Dream N. The Hood" performed by Dennis Spears and the Plymouth Music Series.

Judith Anne Still, daughter of William Grant Still

Devin interviews Judith Anne Still, daughter of African-American composer William Grant Still, discussing the impact of America's racial dynamics on Still's music and career.  Special thanks to Bridge Records for the use of its recording (Bridge 9086) of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra's performance of "Afro-American Symphony" (available at BridgeRecords.com).