20/21

Joaquin Rodrigo (1901-1999)

Program airs: Tuesday, May 21, 7 p.m.

This broadcast presents music by Czech and Spanish composers. You’ll hear Spanish master Joaquin Rodrigo’s Concierto pastorale with flutist Patrick Gallois, Marilyn Horne will sing De Falla’s Seven Popular Spanish Songs, and Antonio de Alameida conducts the Bamberg Symphony Orchestra in Joaquin Turina’s Sinfonia Sevilliana. Max Bragado-Darman conducts Salamanca, a tone poem by little-known Spanish Composer Tomás Breton.

FromBohemia we’ll hear Garrick Ohlssen play Oldrich Korte’s Piano Sonata, the Martinu Symphony No.5  and Janacek’s Tara Bulba.

It’s music of great color with a definite sense of place.

Composer Arnold Schoenberg

Program Airs: Tuesday, May 14

Broadcast features music of Three Dances for Wind Ensemble by Alfred Uhl, Arnold Schoenberg’s Piano Concerto featuring Alfred Brendl, Paul Hindemith’s Concerto for Orchestra, and Carl Orff’s Carmina burana featuring Gundula Janowitz and Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau.

Simon Rattle conducts the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra in Hans Werner Henze’s Barcarola.

Jacques Ibert (1890-1962)

PROGRAM AIRS: Tuesday, May 7, 7 p.m.

Join me, Joe Truskot, for concert programs from France and Mexico. We’ll open with French composer Jacques Ibert’s Festival Overture, Poulenc’s Concerto champetre, three songs by Ravel sung by Claudine Carlson, and D’Indy’s rarely heard “Summer journey to the mountains.”

The second half of the broadcast is devoted to music from Mexico. We’ll hear Eduardo Angulo’s Guitar Concerto No.2 with guitarist Michael Troester, the Colonial Quartet of Miguel Bernal Jimenez, and Silvestre Revueltas’ “Esquinas.”

Evocative and enjoyable music from the 20th century.

Dmitri Shostakovich (1906-1975)

PROGRAM AIRS: Tuesday, April 30, 7 p.m.

Exploring the world through concert programs, 20♪21 host Joe Truskot presents music from Russian and American composers. You’ll hear a young Yo Yo Ma perform Shostakovich’s First Cello Concerto with Eugene Ormandy and The Philadelphia Orchestra. Vladimir Spivakov leads the Moscow Virtuosi with Rodion Shchedrin’s Music for the town of Kothen and Zdenek Macal conducts the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra with Reinhold Gliere’s The Red Poppy Suite. Sergei Leiferkus sings Rachmaninoff songs.

The second  half of the program includes Robert McDuffie performing Philip Glass’ First Violin Concerto, Leontyne Price singing an aria from Samuel Barber’s Antony and Cleopatra, and Lucas Foss conducts Henry Cowell’s Night at the Firehouse.

The program is certain to cover much ground.

PROGRAM AIRS: Tuesday, April 23, 7 p.m.

Host Joe Truskot presents the first in a series of classic concert programs: overture, concerto, songs, and symphony — or something close to that. We start with Italian composers: an overture from Ermano Wolf-Ferrari to a short opera entitled “La dama boba,” then the Trombone Concerto of Nino Rota, followed by Lotte Lehmann singing two Italian songs, and end the first half with Respighi’s Pines of Rome.

The second half of the broadcast begins with William Walton’s Portsmouth Point Overture, Benjamin Britten’s Piano Concerto featuring Sviatislav Richter, soprano Felicity Lott singing several songs by 20th century British composers, and ending with Harrison Birtwistle’s The Triumph of Time performed by Pierre Boulez and the BBC Symphony Orchestra.

Should be an evening of great music from the 20th century.

William Walton (1902-1983)

PROGRAM AIRS: Tuesday, April 16, 7 p.m.

Themes from one source and sets of variations by the composer, that’s the content of this program. It’s the third in a series of this durable musical form.

We’ll hear William Walton’s Variations on a Theme by Hindemith performed by Andrew Litton and the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra. Also on the program, Michael Tilson Thomas conducts the San Francisco Symphony in Aaron Copland’s Orchestral Variations, Philip Brunell conducts the Plymouth Festival Chorus and Orchestra in Dominick Argento’s Variations for Orchestra (The Mask of Night), pianist Jean Louis Steuerman performs Anton Webern’s Variations for Piano, Op.27 and George Manahan coducts the Richmond Sinfonia in Alberto Ginastera’s Variaciones Concertantes. Plus much more.

Host Joe Truskot will introduce each piece and discuss the various themes and composers.

Jürgen Simpson, based at the University of LImerick, Ireland, is creating new soundscapes for the concert halls.

PROGRAM AIRS: Tues., Apr. 9, 7 p.m.

Even though when you write the year 2013 it looks oddly wrong, we are now well into the 21st century. This entire 20♪21 broadcast is devoted to the wide range of music being composed today. Composers are no longer just experimenting with sound today, but using the results of 20th century explorations to make profound musical statements.

From new compositions for baroque violins and harpsichord to electronic melanges, from traditional instrument ensembles to diverse combinations of voice, instruments and sound. The diversity is great and it bodes well for the future.

We’ll hear Steven Mackey’s viola concerto entitled “Ground Swell” with violist Hsin-Yun Huang and the American Modern Ensemble. Eve Beglarian’s haunting Robin Redbreast, Thomas Adès’ Tevot with the Berlin Philharmonic conducted by Simon Rattle, Eduardo Angulo’s Noche de Alebrijas with Trio Coghlan, and Jürgen Simpson’s electroacoustic work, Sigilum.

Plus much more.

Joe Truskot, host

PROGRAM AIRS: Tue., April 2, 7 p.m.

We’ll hear Benjamin Britten: Variations on a Theme of Frank Bridge described as one of the most beautiful works for string orchestra composed in the 20th century.

Ever since music began, composers have taken one short melody and made something more of it. Perhaps a traditional tune from one composer is adopted by another who writes a series of variations of that melody. Or, selections from one work are extracted, re-ordered and embellished. Either was a theme and variations often provides an enjoyable listening experience.

Tune in to KUSP’s 20♪21, a showcase of music composed in the 20th century and today. We’ll listen to Paul Hindemith’s Symphonic Metamophises on Themes of Weber, Franz Waxman’s Carmen Fantasy performed by its original intendee Jascha Heifitz, Max Reger’s monumental Variations and Fugue on a Theme of Johann Adam Hiller, and George Gershwin’s “I Got Rhythm” Variations. Plus much more.

PROGRAM AIRS: Tuesday, March 26, 7 p.m.

Holy Week brings a time of personal reflection. Tune in to 20♪21 on KUSP to hear 20th century composers devote their talents to literugy and religious observation. You’ll hear Francis Poulenc’s Stabat Mater with Kathleen Battle and the Boston Symphony Orchestra conducted by Seiji Ozawa, Herbert von Karajan conducting the Berlin Philharmonic in Arthur Honegger’s Symphony No.3 “Liturgique,” and also soprano Dawn Upshaw and the London Sinfonietta conducted by David Zinman in one of the most popular works of the last quarter of the 20th century, Henryk Gorecki’s Symphony No.3.

John Tavener’s Funeral Ikos and Krzysztof Penderecki’s Lacrimosa are also part of the evening’s program. Tune in and let your mind reflect.

 PROGRAM AIRS: Tuesday, March 19, 7 p.m., Pacific Daylight Time

 Join host Joe Truskot for a program celebrating the first day of  spring. It’s also, Nowruz, or the Iranian New Year. The calendar used in astrology is actually the Persian calendar and the first day of Spring begins a new year. Nowruz is literally “new day.” Several different events take place during this two-week holiday. One being the setting of the “haft seen” table. Each item on the table has a symbolic reason for being there and most begin with the letter “s.” The selection of music includes Western takes on the Iranian poetry and music or the delight of welcoming Spring.

Californian composer Henry Cowell spent time studying the classical music of Iran and transcribing it for Western instruments. Polish composer Karol Szymanowski wrote a beautiful setting of the poems of Hafiz for high soprano and large orchestra.

Spring is no stranger to classical composers. We’ll hear Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring performed by Herbert von Karajan and the Berlin Philharmonic, Aaron Grad’s Lepidopterology played by the Palisades Virtuosi, and the Spring Cantata of Sergei Rachmaninoff with Dmitri Kitajenko and the Danish National Orchestra.

20♪21, now in it’s second season of presenting music from the 20th century and today.