Accessibility links
Spring for Music: Oregon Symphony Hear the orchestra perform works possessed with the turbulent spirit of war, including music by Ralph Vaughan Williams, Benjamin Britten, Charles Ives and John Adams.
Special Series

Classics in Concert

Established masters, emerging musicians, powerhouse orchestras and intimate chamber groups

Conductor Carlos Kalmar leads the Oregon Symphony in music inspired by war. Leah Nash/Oregon Symphony hide caption

toggle caption
Leah Nash/Oregon Symphony

Classics in Concert

Spring for Music: Oregon SymphonyWQXR-APM

Hear the orchestra perform works possessed with the turbulent spirit of war, including music by Ralph Vaughan Williams, Benjamin Britten, Charles Ives and John Adams.

Editor's note on Oct. 29, 2015: The writing that initially appeared on this page has been removed because some unattributed words or phrases in it matched those in previously published sources. NPR cannot allow such work to stand. But a news organization should not hide its mistakes. We have moved the material that was on this page to another location, highlighted the words and phrases that were at issue and added links to show where the material was originally published. NPR's policy on plagiarism is clear: It is unacceptable.

Personnel

Carlos Kalmar, music director

Program

  • Charles Ives: The Unanswered Question
  • John Adams: The Wound-Dresser (feat. Sanford Sylvan, baritone)
  • Benjamin Britten: Sinfonia da Requiem
  • Ralph Vaughan Williams: Symphony No. 4
[+] read more[-] less

More From Classical

Burt Bacharach & Daniel Tashian: Tiny Desk (Home) Concert

Burt Bacharach & Daniel Tashian plays a Tiny Desk (home) concert. NPR/NPR hide caption

toggle caption NPR/NPR

Tiny Desk

Burt Bacharach & Daniel Tashian (Home) Concert

Burt Bacharach, one of pop's historic melody makers, is still performing at age 92, as you'll see in this Tiny Desk quarantine concert with lyricist Daniel Tashian.

Víkingur Ólafsson: Tiny Desk (Home) Concert

Víkingur Ólafsson plays a Tiny Desk (home) concert. NPR hide caption

toggle caption NPR

Tiny Desk

Víkingur Ólafsson (Home) Concert

Watch the rising young pianist, in a final performance from his Berlin home, make the case for two seemingly disparate French composers born nearly 200 years apart.

Lara Downes: Tiny Desk (Home) Concert

Lara Downes NPR/NPR hide caption

toggle caption NPR/NPR

Tiny Desk

Lara Downes (Home) Concert

Watch the pianist reimagine old spirituals and songs of freedom that continue to resonate in new ways.

Watch Harpsichordist Mahan Esfahani Play The Tiny Desk

Mahan Esfahani plays a Tiny Desk Concert. Kisha Ravi/NPR/NPR hide caption

toggle caption Kisha Ravi/NPR/NPR

Tiny Desk

Watch Harpsichordist Mahan Esfahani Play The Tiny Desk

The harpsichord is alive and well. Watch Mahan Esfahani give the first solo harpsichord recital at the Tiny Desk, playing music that spans over 250 years.

Lang Lang: Tiny Desk (Home) Concert

Lang Lang plays Tiny Desk Home concert. NPR/NPR hide caption

toggle caption NPR/NPR

Tiny Desk

Lang Lang (Home) Concert

Watch the superstar pianist at home in Shanghai, China, play a soothing Chopin Nocturne and Bach you can dance to.

Kirill Gerstein: Tiny Desk Concert

Kirill Gerstein performs at NPR's Tiny Desk, Washington, D.C. on January 28th, 2020. Max Posner/NPR hide caption

toggle caption Max Posner/NPR

Tiny Desk

Kirill Gerstein

Watch the award-winning pianist play a hit by Chopin, a premiere by Thomas Adès and a cherished song by Gershwin dressed in a virtuosic arrangement.

Mellotron Variations: Tiny Desk Concert

Robby Grant, Pat Sansone (Wilco), Jonathan Kirkscey and John Medeski (Medeski, Martin & Wood) give an all-Mellotron performance at the Tiny Desk on December, 11, 2019. (Photo by Mhari Shaw/NPR) Mhari Shaw/NPR hide caption

toggle caption Mhari Shaw/NPR

Tiny Desk

Mellotron Variations

Robby Grant, Pat Sansone (Wilco), Jonathan Kirkscey and John Medeski (Medeski, Martin & Wood) give an all-Mellotron performance, making music of magic and mystery.

Max Richter: Tiny Desk Concert

Max Richter performs during a Tiny Desk concert, on Oct. 21, 2019. Mhari Shaw/NPR hide caption

toggle caption Mhari Shaw/NPR

Tiny Desk

Max Richter

The eclectic composer joins members of the ACME ensemble for some of his most affecting music, which moves the audience to tears.

Back To Top