Wednesday, January 1, 2014

On the radio


Last fall I began producing Letter V Classical Radio for WDCE-FM at the University of Richmond. I’ve waited to promote it here until I got to a certain level of comfort and competence. (It had been 40 years since I last did live radio.)

The show regularly airs on Thursdays from 1-3 p.m. (Eastern US time), 1800-2000 (UTC/GMT). When school is not in session and the student staff is away, I may start earlier and/or stay on longer.

If you live in the near west end of Richmond – roughly, within a 10-mile radius of the university – you can pick up the station at 90.1 FM. For those at more distant points, its broadcasts stream at www.wdce.org

Each program includes, at the end of the first hour, a roundup of the coming week’s live classical events in Richmond, elsewhere in Virginia and the Washington area from the Letter V calendar, referring listeners back to this site for details.

Beginning this week, I’ll post the list of recordings being played, including artists and labels. Given the comings and goings of record-industry inventories, some of the discs may be out of print, or reissued under a different imprint from the one I’m using. This is true especially of “Past Masters,” vintage recordings that will be featured in each program.

About those vintage discs: If you’re averse to 78-era surface noise, fear not. I use the best available remasterings of the oldies, and never – well, hardly ever – play pre-1925 acoustical recordings.

Letter V Classical Radio this week:

Jan. 2
1-3 p.m. ET
1800-2000 UTC/GMT
WDCE, University of Richmond
90.1 FM
www.wdce.org

J.S. Bach: Concerto in A minor, BWV 593 (after Vivaldi)
George Ritchie, organ (Raven)

Chevalier de Saint-Georges: Violin Concerto in A major, Op. 5, No. 2
Rachel Barton Pine, violin
Encore Chamber Orchestra/Daniel Hege (Cedille)

Past Masters:
Mozart: Horn Concerto No. 3 in E flat major, K. 447
Barry Tuckwell, French horn
London Symphony/Peter Maag (Decca)
(recorded 1959)

Schumann: Piano Concerto in A minor, Op. 54
Stephen Kovacevich, piano
BBC Symphony/Colin Davis (Philips)

Elgar: Cello Concerto in E minor, Op. 85
Truls Mørk, cello
City of Birmingham Symphony/Simon Rattle (Virgin Classics)