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Richard Strauss

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'Dangerous Melodies' Examines Classical Music And American Foreign Relations

Van Cliburn moves through difficult passage in the final round of Tchaikovsky International Piano & Violin competition on April 11, 1958 in Moscow. AP hide caption

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Author Interviews

'Dangerous Melodies' Examines Classical Music And American Foreign Relations

December 14, 2019 • A new book explores the relation between a few key figures in American classical music and U.S. foreign policy in the 20th century.

'Dangerous Melodies' Examines Classical Music And American Foreign Relations

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Classical Music In 2015: The Year In Review

Osmo Vänskä conducts the Minnesota Orchestra in Havana, Cuba in May 2015. Yamil Lage/AFP/Getty Images hide caption

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Deceptive Cadence

Classical Music In 2015: The Year In Review

January 4, 2016 • As a new year begins, take a quick glance back at some of the notable birthdays, anniversaries, awards, trends and farewells that made 2015 unique in classical music.

Richard Strauss' Musical Mountain Climb

An Alpine Symphony, by Richard Strauss, depicts a dawn to dusk climb up a mountain. iStockphoto.com hide caption

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Deceptive Cadence

Richard Strauss' Musical Mountain Climb

October 28, 2015 • Marking the 100th anniversary of An Alpine Symphony, take a guided tour through Strauss' evocative music with conductor Semyon Bychkov and author David Hurwitz as trail guides.

Richard Strauss' Musical Mountain Climb

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The Composer As Sphinx: A Richard Strauss Puzzler

Composer Richard Strauss in London in 1914. Hulton Archive/Getty Images hide caption

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Deceptive Cadence

The Composer As Sphinx: A Richard Strauss Puzzler

June 11, 2014 • Although his music is popular, Strauss remains an enigma to some and a polarizing figure for others. To mark the composer's sesquicentennial, here's a puzzler to test know-it-alls and tempt newbies.

Fiddle In A Pickle: Jonathan Carney's Concertmaster Quiz

Jonathan Carney is the concertmaster of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra. James Bartolomeo/Baltimore Symphony Orchestra hide caption

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James Bartolomeo/Baltimore Symphony Orchestra

Deceptive Cadence

Fiddle In A Pickle: Jonathan Carney's Concertmaster Quiz

April 8, 2014 • What is a concertmaster? The orchestra's lead violinist who plays all those tricky solos. Test your knowledge of fiddling against Jonathan Carney, concertmaster of the Baltimore Symphony.

New Traffic Signs Near Tanglewood

Pablo Helguera

Deceptive Cadence

New Traffic Signs Near Tanglewood

July 26, 2013 • Fridays are funnier with a classical cartoon at noon, from Deceptive Cadence.

World of Opera

Deadly Dysfunction: Strauss' 'Elektra'

November 21, 2008 • Strauss's lurid yet sumptuous one-act opera tells the story of Elektra and her decidedly dysfuntional family — her murdered father Agamemnon, her frantic sister Chrysothemis and their homicidal mother, Klytaemnestra. The production is from the Washington National Opera.

Washington National Opera on World of Opera -- 'Elektra'

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Music Interviews

Renee Fleming: 'Four Last Songs' Of Strauss

October 4, 2008 • Four Last Songs, by German composer Richard Strauss, is a song cycle marked by the awareness and acceptance of death. A new recording captures world-famous soprano Renee Fleming as she sings his last pieces for a second time — this time with a new direction.

Renee Fleming: 'Four Last Songs' Of Strauss

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From the Top

Young Musicians Show Versatility in Vermont

July 2, 2008 • This week, from the Chandler Music Hall in Randolph, Vermont, a teen violinist from Woodstock plays Kreisler, a French horn player performs Strauss, and a 16-year-old pianist from Pittsburgh honors his grandfather's musical legacy. This program originally aired on November 28, 2007

Young Musicians Show Versatility in Vermont

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From the Top

Teens Tackle the Classics in San Francisco

January 7, 2009 • This week, from San Francisco's Herbst Theatre, a 12-year-old pianist confronts a tricky Hungarian Rhapsody, a teen string quartet plays music by Ravel, and a virtuoso clarinetist from Costa Rica confesses his nostalgia for soccer and salsa dancing.

Teens Tackle the Classics in San Francisco

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Marin Alsop on Music

Mountain Music: Alsop Leads the 'Alpine Symphony'

November 4, 2007 • In 1913, Richard Strauss composed a musical hike into the Alps. Conductor Marin Alsop guides her audience, and her Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, up to the summit of Strauss' monumental "Alpine Symphony," and back down again.

Song Of The Day

Richard Strauss: Perfecting the Swan Song

June 12, 2007 • Strauss' gorgeous music in "At Sunset" is lit with the golden rays of a fall afternoon slipping away into twilight. An opening burst of orchestral color soars, but gets muted in a haze of French horns. The strings, floating high and sweet, weave a long-lined melody.

Music

Strauss Lyricist's Family Sues for Opera Royalties

April 15, 2007 • Relatives of the man who helped composer Richard Strauss create famous works are suing the heirs of the composer for royalties. Hugo von Hofmannsthal wrote the words for nine Strauss works, including Der Rosenkavalier.

Strauss Lyricist's Family Sues for Opera Royalties

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Music

Young Tuba Player Gets Nod from Phila. Orchestra

September 15, 2006 • Carol Jantsch, 21, soon will be the Philadelphia Orchestra's youngest member, and the first woman to be a principal tuba player in a top U.S. orchestra.

Young Tuba Player Gets Nod from Phila. Orchestra

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Music

Remembering Soprano Elisabeth Schwarzkopf

August 4, 2006 • German soprano Elisabeth Schwarzkopf died Thursday at age 90. Along with Maria Callas, she was considered one of the greatest opera singers of the 20th century. Here's some commentary on her life and career, followed by Schwarzkopf singing music by Richard Strauss.

Remembering Soprano Elisabeth Schwarzkopf

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Music

In the Mix: Britten, Bach, Mozart and Strauss

August 2, 2006 • In the spirit of mixing and matching music on MP3 players, Performance Today mixes a set of four short pieces, back to back, by Benjamin Britten, J.S. Bach, Mozart and Richard Strauss.

In the Mix: Britten, Bach, Mozart and Strauss

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Music News

Swedish Opera Star Birgit Nilsson Dies at 87

January 11, 2006 • Birgit Nilsson, who is often described as the greatest Wagnerian soprano of the post-World War II era, has died at the age of 87. Her family in Sweden is keeping private the cause and exact date of her death.

Swedish Opera Star Birgit Nilsson Dies at 87

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In Performance

Sextet Harmonies from Concertante

April 14, 2005 • There are countless established chamber quartets and trios, but in the world of classical music, touring sextets are uncommon. The string ensemble Concertante is one of the rare exceptions. The acclaimed group performs music by Strauss and Schoenberg in NPR's Studio 4A.

Sextet Harmonies from Concertante

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Music Interviews

Deborah Voigt's 'Obsessions'

April 29, 2004 • Soprano Deborah Voigt has just released Obsessions, her first solo recording of Strauss and Wagner arias. The release coincided with her highly publicized firing from a Covent Garden production because of her weight.

Deborah Voigt's 'Obsessions'

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Books

Alex Ross Listens to the 20th Century's 'Noise'

January 1, 2008 • In his new book, New Yorker critic Alex Ross dispels the notion of a classical music deathwatch. The Rest Is Noise explores the 20th century through the richness of its music.

Alex Ross Reads from the Book

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How Slow Can You Go?

What happens when musicians slow the music way down? iStockphoto.com hide caption

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Deceptive Cadence

How Slow Can You Go?

August 20, 2012 • It's good to take it easy during the dog days of summer. But how slow is too slow in classical music?

Tracing The Trail Of Musical Fathers

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Matthew Scherf/iStockphoto.com

Deceptive Cadence

Tracing The Trail Of Musical Fathers

June 15, 2012 • Commentator Miles Hoffman introduces a few famous dads whose children became master musicians.

Tracing The Trail Of Musical Fathers

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