Classical

The Des Moines Symphony’s Yankee Doodle Pops concert once again rings in Independence Day celebrations. On Monday, July 2nd, DMSO will perform on the West Terrace of the Iowa State Capitol for its 25th annual show. Described as “family-friendly and patriotic”, this event is free, and audience members are invited to bring picnic baskets and lawn chairs. The evening begins at 8:00 pm with IPR’s preshow and is followed by DMSO’s “Simon Sings America” concert at 8:30 pm.

This week’s Symphonies of Iowa features Orchestra Iowa’s “Mahler Symphony 3” concert.

This week’s Symphonies of Iowa features the Des Moines Symphony’s “Rhapsody in Blue” concert. The orchestra performs works by Strauss, Shostakovich, Gershwin, and Ravel.

As part of their 20th Anniversary Season, The Cedar Rapids Opera Theatre will visit Iowa Public Radio once again! Tune in for performances and interviews at noon on Tuesday, June 12th featuring enchanting arias from the CROT’s production of Lerner and Loewe’s Brigadoon. The CROT’s cast features Matt Chastain, Stephanie Johnson, Ian Butler, Ashley Armstrong, Sarak Mikulski, Wesley Frye, Alicia Jayourba, Thaddeus Ennen, Liang Zhao, and Christina Bernardoni. The ensemble will treat us to a few musical gems from their upcoming performances of Brigadoon.

On April 16th, Dubuque’s Michael Gilbertson taught a morning class at San Francisco Conservatory, joined a colleague for a lunch meeting, then saw a warm but puzzling text message. It was congratulating him, and he didn't know why. The texts and calls kept coming, and the reason soon emerged: the Pulitzer committee had announced the winners of its annual Music prize, for "a distinguished [composition] by an American," and Michael was one of the three finalists. He'd had no idea that he was even under consideration.

This week’s Symphonies of Iowa features wcfsymphony’s “The Hungarian Project” concert. The orchestra performs works by Brahms, Bartók, and Kodály.

This concert focuses on music from Hungary, featuring Bartók’s Divertimento. Bartók lived in Europe during World War II and was a very vocal opponent for fascism. During that time, he was given an opportunity to live in the Swiss mountains, and he did so, allowing himself to compose peacefully. It was there that he composed Divertimento. After its premiere, he fled for the US and never returned to Europe.

This week’s Symphonies of Iowa broadcast features Orchestra Iowa’s “Rachmaninoff’s Rhapsody” concert. The program focuses on Rachmaninoff’s Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini with guest pianist Joyce Yang.

It’s that time of the year! The Des Moines Metro Opera is about to kick off its 46th annual Festival Season. As stated by the Chicago Tribune, “For the past 45 years, the Des Moines Metro Opera has produced an annual festival that is among the oldest and most enterprising summer opera fests in the nation." This year, their Mainstage Festival includes Die Fledermaus by Johann Strauss II, Rusalka by Antonín Dvořák, Flight by Jonathan Dove on the Mainstage. The Tender Land by Aaron Copland is part of their 2nd Stage Series.

Tune in to hear The Metropolitan Opera National Council Finals on Sunday, May 20th at noon and again on Sunday, May 27th at noon!

Last month, we showcased two rising Iowa opera stars. This month, we have another!

University of Iowa graduate, Jessica Faselt, competed alongside Megan Grey, another Iowan, in the Metropolitan Opera National Council Audition Finals. Ms. Faselt emerged victorious as a grand prize winner! Read more about her budding opera career below.

This Iowa Arts Showcase broadcast features an interview with wcfsymphony’s Jason Weinberger. The symphony will be presenting their concert, “The Hungarian Project,” on Saturday, May 12 at 7:30 p.m.

The concert is special exploration of Hungarian music informed by Pauline Barrett, Artistic Director and Conductor Jason Weinberger’s heritage and his recent musical work in Budapest. Featuring the wcfsymphony strings in one of Bartók’s most intriguing works, Divertimento, and the full orchestra in vibrant, folk-flavored music by Brahms and Kodály. 

This week’s Symphonies of Iowa features the Dubuque Symphony’s “A Confession of the Soul – Sibelius 2” concert. The orchestra performs works by Warlock, Mozart, and Sibelius.

The Dubuque Symphony’s Concertmaster Eleanor Bartsch is featured in Mozart’s glorious “Turkish” Violin Concerto. The Capriol Suite continues the orchestra’s exploration of lively dance suites, and Sibelius’ Second Symphony brings mystery and majesty together in a sweeping, climactic musical expression. Sibelius considered this symphony to be a “confession of his soul.”

For this Iowa Arts Showcase, we’re featuring a story by Rob Dillard showcasing the work of the Oakdale Community Choir. But the choir is not made up of your average community choir members. It is comprised entirely of inmates in the medium security Iowa Medical and Classification Center in Coralville.

This week’s Symphonies of Iowa features the Quad City Symphony’s “Postcards from the Wild West” concert. The orchestra performs works by John Williams, Aaron Copland, David Ludwig, and Jacob Bancks.

This Iowa Arts Showcase broadcast features an interview with the Des Moines Symphony Orchestra’s Music Director and Conductor, Joseph Giunta. The symphony will be performing a Beyond the Score® concert featuring Edward Elgar’s Enigma Variations.

This week’s Symphonies of Iowa features wcfsymphony’s “Bernstein @ 100” concert.

Dr. Robert Washut has been a jazz educator at the University of Northern Iowa for 38 years, where he served as Director of Jazz Studies from 1980-2002. An accomplished jazz composer and arranger, Washut has received numerous commissions from collegiate and high school jazz ensembles, professional jazz artists, and symphony orchestras. Many of his works are published by Kendor Music, UNC Jazz Press, ejazzlines, C.L. Barnhouse, Heritage JazzWorks, Sierra Music, and Really Good Music. Washut also has served as a jazz composer-in-residence at several universities around the country.

The Northeast Iowa School of Music in Dubuque’s founder and executive director, Tracey Rush, is announcing her retirement after 17 years of service. She still plans to work with the school as an Artistic Advisor, and is looking forward to hiring their first full-time Executive Director. Rush has also been the Dubuque Community String Orchestra’s conductor since she founded the ensemble in 1998 to give adult amateur musicians an outlet for ensemble performance.

This week’s Symphonies of Iowa features the Des Moines Symphony’s “Apotheosis of the Dance” concert. The performance includes works by Beethoven and Augusta Read Thomas.