The idea that we are all three steps removed from anyone is not an unfamiliar one, but I’ve always pictured those who I’m removed from to be alive and, well, not Gertrude Stein. But there is a string that weaves through time and if we tug on it every now and then it pulls us into history. Speaking with chief music critic of The New York Times and author Anthony Tommasini about his relationship with his mentor composer/critic Virgil Thomson, I found myself three steps away from Stein, Stravinsky, Picasso, Copland, Sibelius and many others who felt more alive to me speaking with Tony Tommasini than they ever have.

Ash Fure is at a transitional point as a composer, she is currently exploring musical experiences outside of the concert music context with collaborators who have different kinds of specialties than a conservatory music training. Something To Hunt is her debut album featuring select concert music that she’s written over the past ten years released by Sound American accompanied by a book with extensive writings about her music from her collaborators. While this may be her debut album, it reflects more of where she’s been than where she’s going. At the same time, she feels that the works featured on Something To Hunt give a glimpse into what she’s striving for as a composer; she can hear her muscles flexing.

Is there a right way to listen to an album? How literally should a listener take the track layout of an album? Does learning the intended listening experience of the composer bring you closer to a work? What is innate to a work, what is perspective and how does listening order impact an interpretation? These are some of the questions rummaging through my mind after speaking with Du Yun about her album A Cockroach’s Tarantella, performed marvelously by JACK Quartet with Du Yun.

A remarkable aspect about Ted Hearne, Saul Williams and Patricia McGregor’s 80-minute staged oratorio, Place, is that it holds so many stories and opens the door to numerous conversations. Writings about this work could be centered around how the performers in Place faced the effects of gentrification in their own lives, converting the work into a video piece during COVID-19, how Hearne composed the music, I could go on. But one aspect which gripped me is the collaborative process between Saul Williams and Ted Hearne in creating a libretto for Place. I spoke with Saul Williams and Ted Hearne separately about Place and this collaborative process and have created this piece in the spirit of that dialogue, allowing the reader to alternate between the perspectives of Williams and Hearne.

Virgil Boutellis-Taft’s playing throughout his debut orchestral album with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Incantation, is brilliant, effusive and gripping. He glides above the orchestra while maintaining a core to the tone and unfolding gorgeous intricate phrases. But it is the depth of his relationship with the material, unique combination of works and history behind why he programmed this CD the way that he did that make this album exceptional. History had silenced Virgil Boutellis-Taft’s family violin. Through Incantation, the violin sings again in an unfurling of seemingly contradictory emotions which are all centered around melancholy.

David Lang’s concert-length work for treble vocal quartet love fail tells universal stories. They are about trust, interconnectivity, disappointment and of course love. Before speaking to Quince Ensemble about their recent recording of love fail, I had a hunch that there would be some overlap between the subject matter and their experience of working on this as an ensemble. The subject matter of interconnectedness, communication, compassion, faith and love are mirrored in Quince’s experience of bringing love fail to life. Quince Ensemble, composed of Kayleigh Butcher, Amanda DeBoer Bartlett, Liz Pearse, and Carrie Henneman Shaw, joins Classical Post to discuss.

Unsurprisingly, the first months of the much-anticipated “Beethoven 250” year have already seen several new releases of the string quartets. One standout is the Tetzlaff Quartet’s contribution, which highlights two major works (Op. 132 and Op. 130, with the “Grosse Fuge”) and—as we have come to expect from this formidable group through a patiently growing discography of thoughtful performances—features probing readings that take the artists out of the spotlight, foreground the music’s dynamism, and let these idiosyncratic, philosophical masterpieces stand front and center.

Italian composer and pianist Ludovico Einaudi is one of classical music’s most streamed artists. His music draws from rock, jazz, American minimalism and from his teachers, avant-garde European composers Karlheinz Stockhausen (1928-2007) and Luciano Berio (1925-2003).

Classical Post has curated a selection of new releases in the form of albums, videos, and streamed concerts to help you discover your new favorite artist! The musical selections range from extraordinarily experimental to pop; all are designed to demonstrate the different directions that classically trained musicians can take.

Cellist Alisa Weilerstein joins Classical Post in conversation to discuss her latest album the Bach Cello Suites, Pablo Casals, her #36DaysOfBach, gravitating towards the sixth Bach Suite in these surreal times and more.

Bang On A Can composer Michael Gordon’s new work Anonymous Man for The Crossing Choir was released on March 20, 2020 on Cantaloupe Records. As the first track suggests, Anonymous Man is the tale of two. It is the tale of the man on the street and the man in his bed, two men who lived on Desbrosses St., the love story between Michael Gordon and Julia Wolfe, our true memories and those which we perceive to be true, our inner and outer lives, and the tale of tragedies in New York. These tales bring attention to how the most vulnerable New Yorkers are treated. Michael Gordon joins Classical Post to discuss.

The Wet Ink Ensemble will release a new album on May 1 featuring two large works: Alex Mincek’s Glossolalia and Sam Pluta’s Lines On Black. In this second part of a two part series, Sam Pluta joins Classical Post to discuss his psychedelic new work Lines On Black. The first article featured Alex Mincek in discussion with Classical Post regarding his latest work, Glossolalia.

The Wet Ink Ensemble will release a new album on May 1 featuring two large works: Alex Mincek’s Glossolalia and Sam Pluta’s Lines On Black. In this first part of a two part series, Alex Mincek joins Classical Post to discuss his mind bending new work Glossolalia. The next article will feature Sam Pluta in discussion with Classical Post regarding his latest work, Lines On Black.

In celebration of Easter, Classical Post has curated an Easter playlist of vocal music.

Tonight, April 7, 2020, marks the Super Pink Moon. Classical Post shares a livestream gathering of 250 singers coming together in quarantine along with a curated Super Pink Moon Playlist.

Music for piano is never out of style and there was an abundance of new releases this week. In this spirit, Classical Post shares the following Piano Release Radar, which includes new albums, video premieres, and weekly uploads!

Composer Igor Stravinsky and choreographer Vaslav Nijinsky’s ballet The Rite of Spring feels incredibly relevant in this Spring of 2020. The 1913 world premiere of this work is famous for causing a riot! The Rite of Spring has captivated scholars, journalists and musicians since that fateful Parisian premiere, the following guide is intended to share the wealth of resources about this “work of a madman”!

Brandon Lopez’s new solo bass album quoniam facta sum vilis is out, and it needs to be listened to in its entirety. The album constantly morphs from one musical idea to the next while maintaining its structural congruity as a work.

“I’m interested in sharing an ecstatic, focused experience of sound and time, & it’s intense, dense, and very physical reality – how it shapes us, moves us, recalibrates our bodies and minds,” says Olencki.

Internationally renowned pianist Robert Thies and flutist Damjan Krajacic recently released their third album together, Blue Landscapes III: Frontiers. With 15 improvisational tracks, the third album of their over-a-decade-long collaboration is inspired by Earth’s beauty and natural wonders. This collection of improvisations explores different compositional approaches, with all sounds on the album deriving from solely the piano and flute.