Music from H1N1?

From http://stephan-zielinski.com/ (via CNN):

Stephan Zielinski, 41, is not a biochemist or a professional musician, but a writer, photographer, computer programmer, and blogger who creates music in his spare time. He's fascinated that, even though biologists can map the genome of the virus and predict what the hemagglutinin protein looks like, the human body still cannot distinguish it as the "bad guy"; at least, not until there's a vaccine.

The virus has the classification H1N1 because it includes two key viral proteins, hemagglutinin (H) and neuraminidase (N). Zielinski took the genetic sequence of a variant of hemagglutinin and created a computer algorithm to turn it into music.

MKAILVVMLYTFATANADTLCIGYHANNSTDTVDTVLEKNVTVTHSVNLLEDKHNGKLCK

LRGVAPLHLGKCNIAGWILGNPECESLSTASSWSYIVETSSSDNGTCYPGDFIDYEELREQLS

SVSSFERFEIFPKTSSWPNHDSNKGVTAACPHAGAKSFYKNLIWLVKKGNSYPKLSKSYIND

KGKEVLVLWGIHHPSTSADQQSLYQNADAYVFVGSSRYSKKFKPEIAIRPKVRDQEGRMNY

YWTLVEPGDKITFEATGNLVVPRYAFAMERNAGSGIIISDTPVHDCNTTCQTPKGAINTSLP

FQNIHPITIGKCPKYVKSTKLRLATGLRNVPSIQSRGLFGAIAGFIEGGWTGMVDGWYGYH

HQNEQGSGYAADLKSTQNAIDEITNKVNSVIEKMNTQFTAVGKEFNHLEKRIENLNKKVDD

GFLDIWTYNAELLVLLENERTLDYHDSNVKNLYEKVRSQLKNNAKEIGNGCFEFYHKCDNT

CMESVKNGTYDYPKYSEEAKLNREEIDGVKLESTRIYQILAIYSTVASSLVLVVSLGAISFWM

CSNGSLQCRICI

"Although the map is there and you can even make a song out of it, we can't explain it to these itty bitty little cells in body," he said.
Listen to his composition here.

Tenor-itis

Mexican tenor Villazon needs larynx surgery
Rolando Villazon's (seen left) concert organizer in Germany says the Mexican tenor needs surgery to remove a cyst on his larynx and has canceled two performances in the country.
Deutsche Entertainment AG said in Wednesday's statement that Villazon should be well enough to return to the stage by the end of the year.
Villazon apologized to his fans for canceling a concert slated to take place in Berlin on Thursday and another in Hamburg on May 8. They are to be rescheduled for 2010.
Earlier this month Villazon was forced to cancel a series of performances at New York's Metropolitan Opera due to acute laryngitis.

Tune in this Sunday for the artistry of Juan Diego Florez (seen right) on Itinerarios with James Baker. Sunday night at 7pm, we'll have his latest cd and an interview with the Peruvian tenor! The reigning “King of the high C” tells what it’s like to sing an encore at the Met and of his love for the sentimental Latin song. Only on KPAC & KTXI, your classical oasis!

Maestro Sebastian Lang-Lessing

Texas Public Radio will speak with all the candidates for the San Antonio Symphony Music Director Search and have them on Classical Spotlight. You'll get a chance to learn more about the maestros - don't forget to attend the symphony and fill out the questionaire as well!

This week we talk with Sebastian Lang-Lessing. John Clare asked about the program and music.

Welcher Fifth: webisode 5

Tomorrow night the Austin Symphony premieres Dan Welcher's Fifth Symphony. Host John Clare went to UT-Austin to speak with the composer about the new work.

Listen for more this afternoon on Classical Spotlight, starting at 2pm on KPAC & KTXI.

Concert postponed!

The Mid Texas Symphony has delayed their concert this weekend as the city of New Braunfels has closed the Civic Center to public events.
Stay tuned to KPAC & KTXI for more information about all the local classical concerts and events!

Welcher Fifth: webisode 4

Friday night the Austin Symphony premieres Dan Welcher's Fifth Symphony. Host John Clare went to UT-Austin to speak with the composer about the new work.

Listen for more this next Thursday on Classical Spotlight, starting at 2pm on KPAC & KTXI. We'll have more webisodes with the composer here as well!

Welcher Fifth: webisode 3

Later this week, the Austin Symphony premieres Dan Welcher's Fifth Symphony. Host John Clare went to UT-Austin to speak with the composer about the new work.



Listen for more this next Thursday on Classical Spotlight, starting at 2pm on KPAC & KTXI. We'll have more webisodes with the composer here as well!

Welcher Fifth: webisode 2

This Friday, the Austin Symphony premieres Dan Welcher's Fifth Symphony. Host John Clare went to UT-Austin to speak with the composer about the new work.



Listen for more this next Thursday on Classical Spotlight, starting at 2pm on KPAC & KTXI. We'll have more webisodes with the composer here as well!

Welcher Fifth: webisode 1

Next week, the Austin Symphony premieres Dan Welcher's Fifth Symphony. Host John Clare went to UT-Austin to speak with the composer about the new work.

Listen for more this next Thursday on Classical Spotlight, starting at 2pm on KPAC & KTXI. We'll have more webisodes with the composer here as well!

Visiting Composer: Jake Heggie

Composer and pianist Jake Heggie is coming to the Texas Lutheran University campus April 27-29 as artist in residence. While on campus he will present two recitals and conduct a master class, all open to the public.
Heggie is the composer of the acclaimed operas “Dead Man Walking,” “Three Decembers,” “The End of the Affair,” the lyric drama “To Hell and Back,” and the musical scene “At the Statue of Venus.” The recipient of a 2005-06 Guggenheim Fellowship, he has composed more than 200 songs, as well as concerti, orchestral works and chamber music. He is currently at work on an epic opera for the Dallas Opera based on Melville’s Moby Dick, and has been asked to develop an opera project for the Metropolitan Opera and Lincoln Center Theatre.
On April 29, Heggie will perform his compositions along with guest artists Jennifer Black, Rachel Fry, John Seesholtz, Laura Jenschke, and Karla Hamelin. The recital, which is free and open to the public, will begin at 7 p.m. in the Ayers Recital Hall of the Schuech Fine Arts Center on the TLU campus.
A “Recital and Conversation with Jake Heggie” featuring TLU Students will begin at 7 p.m., Tuesday, April 28 in Ayers Recital Hall and is open to the public.
A master class featuring composer and pianist Jake Heggie will be held at 7 p.m., Monday, April 27, in Ayers Recital Hall. Heggie will work with guest artists and students of the TLU School of Music. For more information about TLU, visit the university’s Web site at www.tlu.edu.

Host John Clare will have an interview with Heggie posted next week here on your Classical Oasis!

Classical Spotlight: St. Mark's Trio

St. Mark's Episcopal Church presents a recital of Mendelssohn's music this Sunday. Last Monday morning host John Clare heard musicians prepare including choral music, an organ sonata and this d minor piano trio:

Listen to Classical Spotlight for more, every Thursday afternoon at 2pm on KPAC & KTXI.

Classical Spotlight: Ed Rieke

Host John Clare stopped by St. Mark's Episcopal Church Monday morning to hear musicians prepare for their concert Sunday afternoon. On the program is music by Mendelssohn, including choral music, his d minor piano trio and this organ sonata:


Listen to Classical Spotlight for more, every Thursday afternoon at 2pm on KPAC & KTXI.

Pulitzer Prize

Congrats to Steve Reich for winning the 2009 Pulitzer Prize in Music!

For distinguished musical composition by an American that has had its first performance or recording in the United States during the year, Ten thousand dollars ($10,000).
Awarded to “Double Sextet,” by Steve Reich (Boosey & Hawkes), premiered on March 26, 2008 in Richmond, VA, a major work that displays an ability to channel an initial burst of energy into a large-scale musical event, built with masterful control and consistently intriguing to the ear.

The 22-minute work has two performing options, either as a live sextet of flute, clarinet, violin, cello, vibraphone and piano playing against a pre-recorded sextet on tape, or as an ensemble of 12 instrumentalists.
Steve Reich writes: “By doubling an entire chamber ensemble one creates the possibility for multiple simultaneous contrapuntal webs of identical instruments. In Different Trains and Triple Quartet all instruments are strings to produce one large string fabric. In Double Sextet there is more timbral variety through the interlocking of six different pairs of percussion, string and wind instruments.”

Finalists
Also nominated as finalists in this category were: “7 Etudes for Solo Piano,” by Don Byron (nottuskegeelike music/BMI), premiered on March 15, 2008 at Hallwall’s Contemporary Art Center, Buffalo, NY, a deft set of studies that display rhythmic inventiveness and irresistible energy, charm and wit; and “Brion,” by Harold Meltzer (Urban Scrawl Music Company), premiered on April 23, 2008 at Merkin Hall, New York City, a sonic portrait of a cemetery in northern Italy painted with the touch of a watercolorist and marked by an episodic structure and vivid playfulness that offer a graceful, sensual and contemplative experience.

YouTube Symphony Orchestra

The one-of-a-kind YouTube Symphony Orchestra gave its debut on April 15 at New York's renowned Carnegie Hall, with Artistic Advisor and Conductor Michael Tilson Thomas on the podium, and before an enthusiastic, sold-out audience. News coverage – online, in print, and on TV and radio – went around the world in the weeks and days before the concert, which was the brainchild of young staff members at YouTube’s parent, Google, and which was brought to Carnegie Hall and the world stage by a battery of talented people from more than 30 countries.
The unique program featured musical selections ranging from a 16th-century Venetian Canzon by Giovanni Gabrieli – played by two choirs of brasses bracing the stage from first-tier boxes – to two world premieres: Internet Symphony No. 1, “Eroica”, composed for the occasion and conducted by Tan Dun, and Mason Bates’s Warehouse Medicine from The B-Sides, for computer and full orchestra. And the orchestra WAS full – 96 players from 30 countries (4 from Texas!), all of whom earned their places on the Carnegie Hall stage by uploading their auditions to a dedicated page on Google’s gigantic website. A jury of experts selected the finalists, and fans helped decide the winners by voting for their favorites from the auditions posted on YouTube.
A virtual “concert” experience that YouTube titles “The Internet Symphony Global Mashup” is the synchronized performance of Tan Dun’s Internet Symphony as uploaded by many auditioners, featuring those who made it to Carnegie and many others who did not, but brought their unique spirit (and sometimes unique instruments) to the work. It’s had over half a million hits since its debut early in the day of April 15.

The Global Mashup: www.youtube.com/watch?v=oC4FAyg64OI&feature=featured
Carnegie Hall Concert, Act One: www.youtube.com/watch?v=ueJcRmfweSM&feature=featured

Remembrances of things past

There are a number of ways to remember a loved one that passes on, but the most timeless and ethereal is music composed with the person in mind. On the Piano we continue exploring the art of the French Le Tombeau or at the graveside. Starting in the 17th century this memorial has proved hearty and "Tombeaus" are written to this day.

On the Piano this Sunday afternoon at 5 remembrances from heartfelt to amusing on KPAC and KTXI.


host, Randy Anderson

Classical Spotlight: Heart of Texas Band

This Sunday the Heart of Texas Concert Band presents Sounds of San Antonio at McAllister Auditorium at 3pm. TPR's John Clare caught their rehearsal Tuesday night.


Hear an interview with conductor Mark Rogers on Classical Spotlight Thursday afternoon at 2pm on KPAC & KTXI.

New Leadership @ ASCAP

Songwriter Paul Williams was elected President and Chairman of the Board of ASCAP (the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers) today by the ASCAP Board of Directors at its meeting in Nashville, TN.
Williams' election follows on the heels of songwriter Marilyn Bergman's decision to step down from the ASCAP Presidency effective today, although she will continue as an active Board Member. Bergman announced her plans on April 8, 2009, after 15 distinguished years as President and Chairman of the Board.
Songwriter Jimmy Webb has been elected writer Vice Chairman to replace Williams, who held that post for the prior two years. On the publisher side, the re-elected officers are: Irwin Robinson of Paramount Allegra Music as Vice Chairman; Kathy Spanbergerof peermusic as Secretary; and James M. Kendrick of Schott Music Corporation/European American Music Corporation as Treasurer.
Commenting on the Board's choice for her successor, Bergman said: "I have worked closely with Paul during his eight years as a member of the ASCAP Board of Directors, and particularly since he assumed the post of writer Vice Chairman. He is an outstanding choice to lead the vital work that ASCAP conducts on behalf of all of us who create music. In addition to his tremendous talent as a songwriter, Paul has deep knowledge of both the challenges and opportunities that face music creators in today’s environment. I have no doubt that he will be a powerful and vigorous advocate for our needs and rights. And I'm very pleased that illustrious songwriter and performer Jimmy Webb will be serving as writer Vice Chair."
Williams added: "It's a great honor and privilege to be elected President and Chairman of the Board of ASCAP. On behalf of my fellow Board members, I would like to thank Marilyn for her extraordinarily productive work and the dedication she has shown over the last fifteen years. The ability to make a viable living from creating music is of critical importance not just to songwriters and composers, but also to our society as a whole. Recent advances in areas like technology have opened many new doors for music creators. But we also face a host of daunting challenges relative to how the act of creating music is both fairly valued and compensated. ASCAP must remain a strong voice for our creative community, and I plan to do all I can to ensure this is the case."

Paul Williams is an Oscar, Grammy and Golden Globe winning Hall of Fame songwriter. "We’ve Only Just Begun," "Rainy Days and Mondays," "You and Me Against the World," "An Old Fashioned Love Song," "I Won’t Last a Day Without You" and "Let Me Be The One" are among his timeless standards.
His songs have been recorded by such diverse musical icons as Elvis Presley, Frank Sinatra, Willie Nelson, Ella Fitzgerald, David Bowie, Ray Charles, R.E.M., Tony Bennett, Sarah Vaughn, Johnny Mathis, Luther Vandross and Kermit the Frog.
Bugsy Malone and Phantom of the Paradise are among his song scores for film. "The Rainbow Connection" from the children's classic The Muppet Movie and "Evergreen" from A Star is Born are two of his songs that grace the American Film Institute’s list of the top 100 movie songs of all times.
Having completed the music and lyrics for the Garry Marshall musical Happy Days, Williams joined forces with the Henson Company to produce a new Christmas musical based on the perennial favorite, Emmet Otter’s Jugband Christmas. In 2008, NBC aired A Muppet Christmas: Letter To Santa, an original Christmas special with both story and songs by Williams. Publicly lauded for his work as a songwriter, performer, actor and humanitarian, Williams predicts he’ll be most remembered for playing Little Enos in the Smokey and the Bandit trilogy and for his lyrics to "The Love Boat" theme. As a devoted husband to writer Mariana Williams and proud father, he considers his son Cole and daughter Sarah to be his best work.

Talk about a "trouser" role!

From the Telegraph:

Before leaving his hotel to perform on a warm day in the South Korean capital of Seoul, the Welsh bass-baritone opted to wear a pair of shorts. But, his mind no doubt on the performance ahead, he unfortunately forgot to pack his trousers.
Arriving at the venue with only minutes before he was due on stage there was no time to return to the hotel, and Terfel was left with the prospect of singing in his shorts. However, fortune smiled on the singer. When he appealed for help one good-natured Korean opera lover agreed to the odd request of equipping 6ft 4 ins Terfel with an alternative pair.
Speaking to Shân Cothi, a soprano and presenter on the Welsh language television channel S4C, Terfel explained: "One can be a bit forgetful on the day of a concert – and I forgot my trousers at the hotel. "But what could I do? Tell the audience 'I'm sorry, but I have to wear my shorts'?" he recalled. However, he said by a stroke of luck he managed to find someone with almost exactly the same build.

"There was one person there who happened to be the same height and size as me. And if there was ever a pair of trousers that fits like a glove – that's the one." Terfel handed back the trousers at the end of the concert, at which nobody noticed anything was awry, and went back to his hotel in his shorts. The 43-year-old would have been relieved that his trouser donor enabled him to avoid the embarrassment of going on stage half-dressed, or having to postpone or cancel the concert.
In September 2007 he faced severe criticism for deciding to withdraw from performing as Wotan in Wagner's Ring Cycle at the Royal Opera House. He pulled out after just one day of rehearsals because his youngest son had a broken finger, leading some to question his professionalism. A professional opera singer for most of his adult life, Terfel was initially regarded as something of a Mozart specialist before branching out into heavier roles, particularly Wagner. He made his operatic debut as Guglielmo in Mozart's Cosi fan tutte and in the title role of the composer's The Marriage of Figaro, at the Welsh National Opera in 1990. Just two years later the singer made his Covent Garden debut as Masetto in Don Giovanni. He was named Male Artist of the Year in 2004 at the Classical Brit Awards and won a Grammy in 2007 for Best Classical Crossover Album.
Terfel has increasingly performed abroad but his busy work schedule has often been at odds with his desire for a quiet home life. He lives with his wife Lesley and their three sons in a village near Caernarvon in North Wales.

This is, of course, way different than Kiri TeKanawa's lawsuit a few years ago...

Listen for the greatest singers every Thursday night with Ron Moore and for the Met Opera Saturday afternoons at noon on KPAC & KTXI.

Consuelo Velazquez: Composer of Besame Mucho

Consuelo Velazquez was sweet sixteen and had never been kissed romantically when she began listening to a seductive composition by Granados. She was so moved by what she heard that she wrote her most famous song, Bésame Mucho. This week, on Itinerarios (Sunday @ 7PM), we hear this heart-throbbing song and explore its origins

Velazquez was no one hit wonder, nor was she exclusively a songwriter. At the age of four she began to play piano and by the time she was a teenager she was making her solo debut at Bellas Artes, in Mexico City. But it was entertaining as a singer and songwriter which ultimately appealed to Velazquez. In addition to Bésame Mucho, she wrote Amar y vivir, Verdad amarga, Franqueza, Que seas feliz, Cachito, and Enamorada. Many of these songs were written as she worked on XEQ Radio. She admitted in a 2003 interview that the music came easy, but that she often struggled with the poetry of the lyrics. By the way, Consuelo Velazquez was eventually courted and kissed by Mariano Rivera Conde, the artistic director at XEQ. They married in 1944, enjoying life together until his death in 1977.

Bésame Mucho is reported by BMI, the music publishing giant, to have had more than two million performances on radio and television. The song was recorded by a wide range of artists, including Danny Aiello, Josephine Baker, Dave Brubeck, the Beatles, Vikki Carr, José Carreras, Charo, the Coasters, Nat King Cole, Xavier Cugat, Plácido Domingo, Bill Evans, the Flamingos, Connie Francis, Dexter Gordon, Chris Isaak, Harry James, Spike Jones, Diana Krall, Frankie Laine, Steve Lawrence and Eydie Gorme, Julie London, Trini Lopez, Dean Martin, Carmen McRae, Nana Mouskouri, Les Paul, Art Pepper, the Platters, Tito Puente, Artie Shaw and the 101 Strings Orchestra.

James Baker, host and producer of Itinerarios.

More forte than piano?

We thought you might enjoy this news report about the world's largest piano:

Listen for great piano music on KPAC & KTXI, and every Sunday night at 5 on The Piano with Randy Anderson.

Rafael Mendez on Itinerarios

Rafael Mendez was a mere joven, all of 9 years old, when he was drafted into Pancho Villa’s army. The general liked the way the young man played the bugle. At the height of his storied career, trumpeter Rafael Mendez was known around the world. He played in the MGM orchestra, performed on the Red Skelton show, and entertained with his two sons who were also trumpeters. On this week’s Itinerarios we hear the tone, technique and showmanship which made Rafael Mendez one of the greatest entertainers to come out of Mexico. Flight of the Bumblebee and more on Itinerarios this Sunday at 7 o’clock.

Rafael Mendez was born into a family of Mexican musicians. They came from the small town of Jiquilpan, Michoacan. This points up a couple of interesting aspects of “classical” music in Mexico. First, there are band instruments and fiddles found nearly everywhere in Mexico. Forget the notion that Mexico’s music is based on the guitar. Look at the mariachi orchestras and you find a combo of strings, guitars and trumpets. But more importantly, walk around almost any town large or small in Mexico and you will eventually hear a band rehearsing. The Rossini overture they are playing might not sound exactly as you expect it, but many of those bands can and do play all the notes. A frequent element of a town fair, or “feria”, is a band contest, where bands from several surrounding towns, match off against each other. Of special note are the bands which are found in remote parts of the State of Oaxaca.

Another interesting aspect of music making in Mexico is how often it stays within the family. The case of the Mendez family is not exceptional. This is not to say that every Mexican musician is descended from musician parents, but on the other hand, it is not unusual. Interesting in the case of Rafael Mendez is that he is already 2nd generation. He passes on his trumpet playing skills to his twin sons, Ralph and Robert, and like the Mendez family orchestra in Mexico, Rafael and his sons would frequently perform as a trumpet trio.

James Baker

Young composers

ASCAP Foundation President Marilyn Bergman has announced the recipients of the 2009 ASCAP Foundation Morton Gould Young Composer Awards. The young composers will be recognized at the 10th Annual ASCAP Concert Music Awards at The Times Center in New York on May 21, 2009. This year 39 composers, from 10 to 30 years of age, were selected from amongst 680 applicants. Established in 1979, with funding from the Jack and Amy Norworth Memorial Fund, The ASCAP Foundation Young Composer Awards program grants cash prizes to young Concert Music composers up to 30 years of age whose works are selected through a juried national competition. These composers may be American citizens, permanent residents, or students possessing US Student Visas.

Morton Gould, a Pulitzer Prize-winning composer, served as President of ASCAP and The ASCAP Foundation from 1986 – 1994. Gould, an eminent and versatile American composer, was a child prodigy whose first composition was published by G. Schirmer when he was only six years of age. To honor Gould’s lifelong commitment to encouraging young creators, the annual ASCAP Foundation Young Composer program was dedicated to his memory, following his death in 1996.

The award-winning composers share prizes of approximately $45,000, including the Leo Kaplan Award, in memory of the distinguished attorney who served as ASCAP Special Distribution Advisor, the Charlotte V. Bergen Scholarship for a composer 18 years of age or younger, and grants from The ASCAP Foundation Jack and Amy Norworth and Morton Gould Funds. Jack Norworth wrote such standards as "Shine On Harvest Moon" and "Take Me Out to the Ballgame." The Awards are also sponsored by Sibelius, the music notation software company, which generously awards the recipients with free software.

The 2009 Morton Gould Young Composer Award recipients are listed with their current residence, and place of origin: Victor Agudelo of Memphis, TN (Medellin, Colombia); Andy Akihoof New York, NY (Columbia, SC); Juhi Bansal of Pasadena, CA (Chandigarh, India); Ryan DeNardis of Aliquippa, PA (Hopewell, PA); Simon Fink of Chicago, IL (Carrboro, NC); Sean Friar of Princeton, NJ (Santa Monica, CA); Ruby Fulton of Baltimore, MD (Cherokee, IA); David Kirkland Garner of Durham, NC (Atlanta, GA); Michael Gilbertsonof Dubuque, IA; Ted Hearne of New Haven, CT (Chicago, IL); Leo Hurley of Winston-Salem, NC (Rollinsford, NH); Shawn Jaegerof Chicago, IL (Louisville, KY); Christopher Kapica of Carmel, NY; Elizabeth A. Kelly of Rochester, NY (New York, NY); Missy Mazzoli of Brooklyn, NY (Abington, PA); Clint Needham of Bloomington, IN (Texarkana, TX) Andrew Norman of New Haven, CT (Grand Rapids, MI); Sam Pluta of New York, NY (Rockeville, CT); Gitty Razazof New York, NY (Tehran, Iran); Steven Rice of Rochester, NY (Lawrence, KS); Steven Snowden of Austin, TX (Walnut Shade, MO); Paul Swartzel of Durham, NC (Raleigh, NC); Christopher Trapaniof Paris, France (New Orleans, LA); Jude Vaclavik of New York, NY (Houston, TX); Lu Wang of New York, NY (Xi’ an, China) and Daniel Wohl of Brooklyn, NY (Paris, France).

The youngest ASCAP Foundation composer Award recipients range in age from 10 to 18 and are listed by state of residence: Preben Antonsen, age17 (CA); Yuri Boguinia, age 17 (CO); Eleanor Bragg, age 12 (MA); Graham Cohen, age 10 (AZ); Dmitri Gaskin age 13 (CA); Peng-Peng Gong, age 16 (NY); Jay Greenberg, age 17 (NY); Yeeren I. Low, age 12 (PA); Nicholas Mariscal, age 16 (AZ); Hilary Purrington, age 18 (MA); Murray Skolnick, age 13 (MA); Allegra Gabriella Smith, age 17 (CA); and Conrad Tao, age 14 (NY).

The following composers received Honorable Mention: Abbie Betinis of St. Paul, MN (Stevens Point, WI); Lisa Coons of Philadelphia, PA (Macon, MO); Daniel Thomas Davis of Brooklyn, NY (Waxhaw, NC); Osnat Netzer of Cambridge, MA (Israel); Spencer Topel of Hanover, NH (Denver, CO); and Jie Wang of New York, NY (Shanghai, China).

In the youngest category, the following composers received Honorable Mention: Gabrielle Haigh, age 16 (OH); and Jeremiah Klarman, age 16 (MA).

The ASCAP composer/judges were: Samuel Adler, Eve Beglarian, Steven Burke,
Daniel Felsenfeld, Charles Fussell, Michael Gordon and Melinda Wagner.

Maestro Chosei Komatsu

Texas Public Radio will speak with all the candidates for the San Antonio Symphony Music Director Search and have them on Classical Spotlight. You'll get a chance to learn more about the maestros - don't forget to attend the symphony and fill out the questionaire as well!

This week we talk with Chosei Komatsu. James Baker asked about the program, music and working in Latin countries.

A Life Well Lived

What can you say about a man that while young and vital went to a matchmaker when it came time for him to marry? And when three choices were given, he dropped them in a hat and drew....the wrong one.

Gabriel Faure had other things to worry about in his life, like music. His works are so well thought out and crafted he is called the French Brahms. This weekend, the third installment on the life of Gabriel Faure on the Piano, Sunday afternoon at 5 on KPAC / KTXI.

host Randy Anderson

No foolin' -- Free music!

And now, a special April Fool's Day post for you...

The online music store iTunes this week is offering one of the most famous classical compositions of the 20th century as its free Discovery Download. What is it?

John Cage's 4'33", written in 1952, for any instrument or combination of instruments. In case you're not familiar with it, that's the "silent" piece that instructs the performer to remain tacet (silent) for the duration of the work.

A funny guy, that John Cage. But seriously, Cage believed music and sound to be all around us, so there's really no such thing as a "silent" piece of music. If you were to go to a concert hall and see the work performed live, there would certainly be the hum of an air conditioner present, perhaps some coughs, rustling of paper, or movement throuhgout the hall.

Here's a link to a video of an orchestra performing 4'33": http://www.ubu.com/film/cage_433.html

Go ahead, crank it up!

--Nathan Cone