This Classical Life

Latest Episodes:

Jess Gillam with... Jasdeep Singh Degun Jun 09, 2023

Show notes

Jess Gillam is joined by sitarist and composer Jasdeep Singh Degun to share and talk about the music that they both love, with tracks from Philip Glass, Monteverdi, Nishat Khan and Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings. Along the way they discover some of the links between western and Indian classical music, and find out more about Jasdeep's childhood in Leeds, and his experiences in the world of classical composition.

Playlist: Rachmaninov: Elégie (Morceaux de Fantasie, Op 3 No 1) Nishat Khan: Raga Gaoti Nick Cave / Nicholas Lens: Litany of Gathering Up Monteverdi: Ahi, caso acerbo! (L'Orfeo) Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings: This Land is Your Land Philip Glass: Violin concerto Nadia Boulanger: Cantique Abi Sampa & Rushil: Man Kunto Maula (Orchestral Qawwali)

Jess Gillam with... Missy Mazzoli May 20, 2023

Show notes

Jess Gillam's guest is pianist and composer Missy Mazzoli. They share some of the music that they love, including Ellen Reid, JS Bach, Julian Lage and Sudanese singer Aamina Camaari.

Jess Gillam with... Hazel Askew May 17, 2023

Show notes

Jess's meets folk singer and multi-instrumentalist Hazel Askew to swap some of their favourite music. Hazel is a fixture in the UK folk music scene known for her bands Lady Maisery and the Askew Sisters, as well as numerous collaborative projects across different musical genres.

Today they sit down to listen to a full-blooded folk waltz by Warsaw Village Band, a symphony with all the tunes by Dvorak, Stevie Wishart channelling Hildegard of Bingen and a surprisingly emotional David Bowie cover by M Ward.

Playlist: WARSAW VILLAGE BAND – At My Mother’s ERIK SATIE – Gnossienne No.1 [Alexandre Tharaud (piano)] LEONARD BERNSTEIN – Chichester Psalms 1st mvt. Psalm 108 vs 2, Psalm 100 [Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra / Marin Alsop (conductor)] M WARD – Let’s Dance ANTONIN DVORAK – Symphony no 9 – 4th mvt [Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra / Andris Nelsons (conductor)] STEVIE WISHART – Azeruz ELIZA CARTHY & MARTIN GREEN – Fen LITTLE SIMZ & MICHAEL KIWANUKA – Flowers

Jess Gillam with... Gabriella Teychenné May 03, 2023

Show notes

Jess Gillam's guest this week is conductor Gabriella Teychenné. Her musical life bounces between conducting brand new music, collaborating with symphony orchestras and she's the founder of Sinfonia Humanitas, a new ensemble whose concert programmes fuse early and contemporary music.

Gabriella and Jess settle in for a listening party of the music they love, including a slice of Italian sunshine from Mendelssohn, a collaboration between folk artist Sam Lee and singer Elizabeth Fraser, a Schumann romance and a classic by Nick Drake.

Playlist:

LUTOSLAWSKI – Variations on a Theme by Paganini [BBC SO/Edward Gardner (conductor)] TRAD – The Moon Shines Bright [Sam Lee, Elizabeth Fraser] SCHUMANN – Symphony no 4 – 2nd mvt Romanza [London Symphony Orchestra/John Eliot Gardiner (conductor)] NICHOLAS BRITELL - Agape MENDELSSOHN – Symphony no 4 ‘Italian’ – 1st mvt [Chamber Orchestra of Europe/Yannick Nezet-Seguin (conductor)] JAMES BLAKE – Life Round Here RESPIGHI – Ancient Dances and Airs – Siciliana [Filarmonica della Scala/ Riccardo Chailly (conductor)] NICK DRAKE – River Man

Jess Gillam with... Soweto Kinch Apr 22, 2023

Show notes

Jess Gillam is joined by a fellow saxophonist the Award-winning composer, poet, MC and producer Soweto Kinch to chat and share the music they love.

Playlist: Debussy - Dances for Harp and Orchestra, L.103:2. Danse profane [Lavinia Meijer, Amsterdam Sinfonietta] Ben Webster - When I Fall in Love Steve Reich - Different Trains: America Before the War [Kronos Quartet] Amy Beach - 4 Sketches - Dreaming [Ambache Chamber Ensemble] Scott Joplin - Treemonisha: Act 3: A Real Slow Drag [Paragon Ragtime Orchestra and Singers] Blanck Mass - Chernobyl Abel Selaocoe - Qhawe/Hero Beethoven - Symphony No 7 - 2nd movement [Berlin Philharmonic, Kirill Petrenko]

Jess Gillam with... Tine Thing Helseth Apr 01, 2023

Show notes

Jess Gillam is joined by acclaimed Norwegian trumpeter Tine Thing Helseth to chat and share the music they love.

Playlist: Stravinsky - Rite of Spring - XIV Pt2 le sacrifice: danse sacrale l’Elue [Philadelphia Orchestra, Riccardo Muti] Mozart – Die Zauberflote, K.620; Act 2, no.17; Ach, ich fuhl's, es ist verschwunden [Mari Eriksmoen, Stavanger Symphony Orchestra, Jan Willem de Vriend] Massive Attack – Teardrop Ibrahim Maalouf - Una Rosa Blanca Wilhelm Friedemann Bach– Duet for 2 Flutes in E minor, F. 54 [Patrick Gallois (flute), Kazunori Seo (flute)] Tchaikovsky – Eugene Onegin, Op. 24, TH 5: Lensky’s Aria [Janine Jansen (violin), Antonio Pappano (piano)] Sigrid – Mirror Janacek - In The Mists; I. Andante [Leif Ove Andsnes]

Jess Gillam with... Jack Bazalgette Mar 25, 2023

Show notes

Jess Gillam chats to conductor Jack Bazalgette, co-founder of ‘through the noise’ which aims to innovate and revolutionise live classical music. Their musical journey takes them to Zimbabwe with the music of mbira player Chiwoniso, a forest in Sweden with the Danish String Quartet plus we have the sounds of Barbara Moore, Mahler and Floating Points & Pharoah Sanders.

Playlist: Franz Ignaz Beck - Symphony in C major, Op. 1, No 6, I. Allegro [New Zealand Chamber Orchestra, Donald Armstrong] Floating Points / Pharoah Sanders – Movement 1 (Promises) Rune Tonsgaard Sørensen - Waltz After Lasse in Lyby [The Danish String Quartet] Debussy - String Quartet in G Minor, Op. 10, CD 91, L. 85: III. Andantino. Doucement expressif [Ebene Quartet] Barbara Moore - Steam Heat Domenico Scarlatti - Sonata in F Minor, K466 [Vladimir Horowitz] Chiwoniso - Zvichapera Mahler - Symphony No.4: I. Bedächtig, nicht eilen [Wiener Philharmoniker, Claudio Abbado]

Jess Gillam with... Laura van der Heijden Mar 18, 2023

Show notes

Jess is joined by the cellist Laura van der Heijden to share some of their favourite musical discoveries, including JS Bach interpreted by the Lodestar Trio, music from Philip Glass’s Book of Longing, a track from the trumpeter Ibrahim Maalouf and Elena Urioste playing Samuel Coleridge-Taylor.

Jess Gillam with... Peter Gregson Mar 11, 2023

Show notes

Cellist and composer Peter Gregson joins Jess from LA. They share some of their favourite tracks and new discoveries, including Steve Reich's Different Trains, a special recording of Schubert's String Quintet, Bach's Mass in B minor, and songs by Eva Cassidy and Bon Iver.

Jess Gillam with... Laura Misch Feb 25, 2023

Show notes

Jess Gillam and fellow saxophonist Laura Misch share the music they love, including tracks by Bjork, Hildegard von Bingen and Bob Marley.

Playlist: Sibelius - Impromptu V (Leif Ove Andnes) Bendik Giske - Cruising Sarah Vaughan - Just One of Those Things Hildegard von Bingen - O vis eternitatis (Sequentia) Bob Marley & The Wailers - Three Little Birds Saint-Saens - Carnival of the Animals: The Swan (Sheku, Jeneba, and Isata Kanneh-Mason) Strozzi - Che si puo fare? (Simone Kermes, Enrico Casazza) Bjork - The Anchor Song

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