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Soundcheck (Classical)

  • Next available on WNYC-FM 93.9
  • in 4 hours 45 minutes
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  • Host: John Schaefer
  • WNYC music host John Schaefer showcases the finest composers and performers with a program focused squarely on New York's vibrant cultural scene. Tune in for live music performances by leading musicians and composers, stimulating conversation about the latest trends in arts and ideas, and regular updates about the cultural, musical and artistic life of New York City.
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Last updated 311 days ago Update show info

Tori Amos (Soundcheck: Wednesday, 09 December 2009)

Wed, Dec 9 Listen
Some unlikely artists have produced holiday albums this year, including Bob Dylan and metal god Rob Halford of Judas Priest. But Tori Amos - the minister's daughter who titled her last album Abnormally Attracted to Sin - might be the most surprising candidate. The singer and pianist talks about overhauling carols for her new album, Midwinter Graces, and performs live.

Brian Stokes Mitchell (Soundcheck: Wednesday, 09 December 2009)

Wed, Dec 9 Listen
Brian Stokes Mitchell made his name as Broadway's go-to baritone in musicals like Ragtime, Man of La Mancha, and Kiss Me Kate. But in recent years the Broadway star has explored different sides to his career: appearing with symphony orchestras, doing cabaret at Feinstein's, creating a children's book, and recording a holiday CD/DVD with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir.

Pablo Ziegler Quartet (Soundcheck: Tuesday, 08 December 2009)

Tue, Dec 8 Listen
Tango, with a jazz twist. Buenos Aires' traditional music has hit dance floors lately in a mix with electronica. Now it meets some jazz from Puerto Rico at the seventh annual Tango Meets Jazz Festival. Argentinean pianist Pablo Ziegler brings his quartet for a live performance in our studio. The Pablo Ziegler Quartet perform at the Tango Meets Jazz Festival at Jazz Standard from Thursday, Dec. 10 through Sunday, Dec. 13th. More information here.

Sheryl Crow (Soundcheck: Tuesday, 08 December 2009)

Tue, Dec 8 Listen
In 1993, Sheryl Crow was just a down-on-her-luck backup singer. Her solo debut, Tuesday Night Music Club, was selling slowly and she was in debt to her label. But Crow hit the road to promote the record, and within a few years it had garnered multi-platinum sales, won three Grammys, and made its creator a star. Crow joins us today to talk about the album’s recent deluxe reissue.

Louis Armstrong (Soundcheck: Monday, 07 December 2009)

Mon, Dec 7 Listen
Jazz great Louis Armstrong is one of the most important American musicians of the 20th century. He knocked The Beatles from the pop charts, wrote himself the finest jazz autobiography ever and did sophisticated collages. But he was also a womanizer, a pot smoker, explosive and introspective. Wall Street Journal drama critic Terry Teachout joins us to talk about the man and his music, the subject of his new book Pops.

Mark Padmore (Soundcheck: Monday, 07 December 2009)

Mon, Dec 7 Listen
As New Yorkers get ready to brave the ice, frost and snow, English tenor Mark Padmore joins us with a shivery assortment of music. We hear about Schubert's song-cycle Winterreise, which Padmore has performed with jazz pianist Ethan Iverson and is now taking to Lincoln Center in a new theater production featuring Samuel Beckett poems. And we’ll delve into Padmore’s recordings of Bach’s Christmas Cantatas and Handel’s Messiah, among other wintery favorites. Dec. 9-11: Mark Padmore appears in...

Doomsday's Neverending Appeal (Soundcheck: Friday, 04 December 2009)

Fri, Dec 4 Listen
Hollywood is depicting the end of the world in movies like 2012 and The Road, and the upcoming Denzel Washington vehicle The Book of Eli. Today: how musicians tackle the apocalypse, from pop to classical. We talk with former BBC 6 Music host and reporter Gary Burton and Elayne Rapping, professor of American Studies and Media Studies at the University of Buffalo. Tell us: What's the appeal of end-of-the-world pop culture? In music, what genres or artists are particularly good at soundtracking...

Rachel Barton Pine (Soundcheck: Friday, 04 December 2009)

Fri, Dec 4 Listen
Violinist Rachel Barton Pine survived a near-fatal train accident early in her career and is now a rising star on the concert stage. Along with classical repertoire she performs folk, Celtic, jazz and even heavy metal – earlier this year she joined the thrash/doom metal band Earthen Grave. Today she joins us to perform with her other “band” – the chamber music group Trio Settecento.

Sting (Soundcheck: Thursday, 03 December 2009)

Thu, Dec 3 Listen
Between his career with The Police and as a solo artist, Sting has accumulated countless Grammys and sold almost 100 million albums. He set his sights on the classical world with his latest project, a dramatization of the romantic relationship between German composer Robert Schumann and his wife, pianist and composer Clara Wieck. Sting plays Schumann and his wife, actress and producer Trudie Styler, plays Clara in a piece that is on a DVD called Twin Spirits. He joins us today. WNYC...

Erin McKeown (Soundcheck: Thursday, 03 December 2009)

Thu, Dec 3 Listen
Erin McKeown has seen her share of successes over her decade long career that has seen her release records on a major label and tour the world with artists such as Andrew Bird and Ani DiFranco. Her latest record, Hundreds of Lions, was recently released on DiFranco's Righteous Babe Records. She joins us to perform live in our studio.

The Only Thing We Have to Fear: An Audience (Soundcheck: Wednesday, 02 Dece

Wed, Dec 2 Listen
Paul McCartney recently revealed his stage fright was so bad in the early 1960s he thought about quitting The Beatles. The condition has curtailed the careers of major artists like pianist Vladimir Horowitz and singer Barbra Streisand. Today: some of the latest methods for coping with performance anxiety, from coaching to beta-blocker medication. Guests include Dr. Noa Kageyama, a performance psychology coach and Juilliard-trained violinist; and Blair Tindall, author of the book Mozart in...

Antarctica Gets Spooky (Soundcheck: Wednesday, 02 December 2009)

Wed, Dec 2 Listen
In 1949, Ralph Vaughan Williams composed a musical portrait of Antarctica entitled Sinfonia Antarctica. Sixty years later, New York-based artist DJ Spooky went to the rapidly transforming continent to make field recordings. In a live performance, he gives us a preview of his commissioned multimedia piece, Terra Nova: Sinfonia Antarctica. DJ Spooky performs at the New York City premiere of Terra Nova: Sinfonia Antarctica at BAM in Brooklyn on Wednesday, Dec. 2, Friday, Dec. 4 and Saturday,...

Smackdown: Radiohead (Soundcheck: Tuesday, 01 December 2009)

Tue, Dec 1 Listen
Everything's in its right place for today's Soundcheck Smackdown as we debate whether Radiohead deserve to be regarded as the best band of the decade. Joining us are Rachael Maddux, assistant editor at Paste magazine, and Chris Norris, a contributor to Spin magazine who recently argued that Radiohead is "an exceptionally well-dressed jam band." Weigh in! Radiohead: wonder band or downright bland? (We might read your comment on the air today!)

Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson (Soundcheck: Tuesday, 01 December 2009)

Tue, Dec 1 Listen
It’s been hardly a year since Brooklyn-based singer-songwriter Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson released his self-titled debut album, but Robinson has stayed busy. In addition to his rigorous touring, he just released his sophomore effort, Summer of Fear, in October. He joins us to perform live in our studio.

Rock Critic Requiem (Soundcheck: Monday, 30 November 2009)

Mon, Nov 30 Listen
When the music writer Paul Nelson died in 2006, few people remembered who he was: one of the first to champion a young Bob Dylan, an influential contributor to magazines like Rolling Stone and Sing Out! -- and the guy who dared to sign the New York Dolls to a contract. Now, Nelson is inspiring other scribes. Author Jonathan Lethem has created a fictionalized Paul Nelson character in his new book Chronic City. And writer Kevin Avery has gone a step further, writing an actual biography. They...

Gerald Clayton (Soundcheck: Monday, 30 November 2009)

Mon, Nov 30 Listen
The 25-year-old jazz pianist Gerald Clayton is already a veteran in jazz circles, having worked with people like singer Diana Krall, trumpet player Roy Hargrove, and The Clayton Brothers (which includes his bassist father and saxophonist uncle). Gerald joins us for a live performance of songs of his debut album as a bandleader.

Where Brooklyn and Cincinnati Meet (Soundcheck: Friday, 27 November 2009)

Fri, Nov 27 Listen
The hip hop trio Tanya Morgan hails from Brooklyn and Cincinnati, and naturally their new album is called Brooklynati. The loose concept album is built around a fictional city that honors hip-hop giants and offers a chance at the good life. MCs Von Pea and Donwill join us to perform in our studio.

Picks of the Week (Soundcheck: Friday, 27 November 2009)

Fri, Nov 27 Listen
Three outstanding new releases picked by the Soundcheck staff. Read full reviews of our picks of the week. Jonsi & Alex – Riceboy Sleeps (XL Records) - picked by John Schaefer Cu – Vagarosa (Six Degrees – picked by Gisele Regatao The Phenomenal Handclap Band (s/t) (Friendly Fire) – picked by Joel Meyer

The Art and Life of Lena Horne (Soundcheck: Friday, 27 November 2009)

Fri, Nov 27 Listen
Lena Horne performed in all-white nightclubs at a time when blacks were still relegated to the back of the bus. But according to a new biography, the award-winning Brooklyn-born singer also battled discrimination and self-doubt. We talk with James Gavin, author of Stormy Weather: The Life of Lena Horne. This is a repeat edition of Soundcheck Blog: John Schaefer on Lena Horne's stormy life

Leif Ove Andsnes (Soundcheck: Thursday, 26 November 2009)

Thu, Nov 26 Listen
Leif Ove Andsnes is among today’s most enterprising concert pianists, tackling the music of his fellow Norwegian, Edvard Grieg, the works of Beethoven and Debussy, and today’s most scintillating modern works. The latter are featured on his latest CD, The Shadows of Silence. He joins us to share some of it and to perform in our studio.

Bonnie Raitt and Taj Mahal (Soundcheck: Thursday, 26 November 2009)

Thu, Nov 26 Listen
Blues guitarists Bonnie Raitt and Taj Mahal have been friends since the late 1960s and worked together on Raitt's 1973 album, Takin' My Time. But they’ve led separate touring careers ever since -- until now. Today, they join us to talk about reuniting and about their respective brands of rootsy blues. This is a repeat broadcast of Soundcheck.

Concert Photos: The Pros Weigh In (Soundcheck: Wednesday, 25 November 2009)

Wed, Nov 25 Listen
Fans are revolutionizing music photography with digital cameras, iPhones and social networking sites. But has the art of the image suffered? Today: two photographers from different generations, Bob Gruen and Elizabeth Weinberg, explain how they have responded to this revolution. This is a repeat edition of Soundcheck. Blog: John Schaefer on concert photography

Xiayin Wang (Soundcheck: Wednesday, 25 November 2009)

Wed, Nov 25
Xiayin Wang is one of the rising young concert pianists to emerge from China’s thriving classical music scene. Her father was a professional erhu player (a Chinese string instrument) and she won several prizes in China before coming to the U.S. She joins us to perform selections from her third album, an all-Scriabin CD on the Naxos label. This is a repeat edition of Soundcheck.

Picks of the Week (Soundcheck: Tuesday, 24 November 2009)

Tue, Nov 24 Listen
This week’s picks have a European theme: a Spanish singer who is a muse of director Pedro Almodovar, an adventurous French cellist, and an old British art-rock band. 801 Live – Collector's Edition - Picked by John Schaefer Buika - El Ultimo Trago (Warner Music Spain) - picked by Gisele Regatao Chants d'est – Songs from Slavic Lands Sonia Wieder-Atherton, cello; Sinfonia Varsovia, Christophe Mangou, conductor (Nave) - Picked by Brian Wise

Whole album as concert: roaring or boring? (Soundcheck: Tuesday, 24 Novembe

Tue, Nov 24 Listen
A growing number of artists – from rock star Bruce Springsteen to the hip-hop group Public Enemy to singer-songwriter Liz Phair – have performed entire, old albums on the stage recently. One critic says those shows are “a cruel perversion of a concert's real-time magic.” Another claims they are often better than regular gigs. Our guests include Washington Post music critic Chris Richards.

The Jazz Loft Project: More Tapes (Soundcheck: Tuesday, 24 November 2009)

Tue, Nov 24
Thousands of hours of tape recorded in a Manhattan loft in the late 1950s and early '60s were recently discovered. They became The Jazz Loft Project -- and a 10-part WNYC radio series produced in association with the Center for Documentary Studies at Duke University. In today’s episode, "More Tapes," Sara Fishko takes a close listen to some of the music and conversation captured by photographer W. Eugene Smith's tape recorders, starting in 1957. This series is produced in conjunction with...

The Way We Were (On Tape) (Soundcheck: Monday, 23 November 2009)

Mon, Nov 23
In the 1980s and '90s, young lovers traded cassette mixtapes instead of sending love letters. But in this decade, iPods and file-sharing changed the way we romance one another with music. Today: Jason Bitner, editor of the essay collection Cassette From My Ex: Stories and Soundtracks of Lost Loves, explains why old mixtapes are still powerful. And, authors (and exes) Rick Moody and Stacey Richter attempt to recreate the playlist of a long-lost mixtape. Tell us: Why do some people have such...

The Underrated Haydn (Soundcheck: Monday, 23 November 2009)

Mon, Nov 23
Franz Joseph Haydn is considered the father of the symphony and the string quartet. He might also be history’s most underrated composer. As the music world marks the bicentennial of Haydn's death, we explore how the composer’s gift for humor may be at the root of why he’s not taken seriously. Austria's Haydn Trio Eisenstadt join us to perform two of their namesake’s works. Also with us is Fred Plotkin, author of several books on music including Classical Music 101.

New York's "Underground Economy" (Soundcheck: Friday, 20 November 2009)

Fri, Nov 20 Listen
Making a living has never been easy for subway musicians but some say it's only getting tougher. Some buskers are striking up deals with corporate sponsors. Others complain that transit police have been cracking down on performers. Today, we get several views on New York’s “underground economy.” Joining us is Luke Ryan, a musician who struck a deal to be in a deodorant campaign; Heather Haddon, a reporter at amNewYork newspaper, and Steve Zeitlin, executive director of the organization City...

They Might Be Giants (Soundcheck: Friday, 20 November 2009)

Fri, Nov 20 Listen
Are you confused by cosmology? Do you really understand photosynthesis? The brainiacs of They Might Be Giants want to help demystify those scientific concepts and many others, by playing songs from their new album, Here Comes Science, live in our studio. They Might Be Giants perform an all ages in-store at Barnes & Noble in Union Square on Thursday, Dec. 3 at 6 p.m. More information here.

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