Is modern classical music ugly? Why bother with contemporary music at all? Jens and Joe take the example of Aribert Reimann, fearsomely modern on his own, and discuss the merits (and lack thereof) of tackling his re-scoring of Mendelssohn Songs for String Quartet…

In this episode of Classical Discoveries, Jens and Joe tackle Bohuslav Martinů. Specifically, they look at the six (minimally strange) symphonies of this (endlessly fascinating) composer, which he wrote in the U.S. for the great American symphony orchestras.

Easter is coming – and it coincides this year with “C.P.Eppreciation Day!”

When you hear ‘Engelbert Humperdinck’, you’ll invariably either think of the King of Romance’s hit ballad “Release Me” (in which case you’ve got the wrong Humperdinck, as far as we are concerned)…

In this episode, Jens & Joe tackle Franz Schreker, the missing link between Schoenberg and Zemlinsky – and a composer of wildly Freudian fairy-tale operas that were all the rage between the wars.

If you wanted to dance with somebody, in 19th century Vienna, Johann Strauss was your best bet to provide the soundtrack.

Once upon a time, there was a tiny little man in Vienna, who composed the grandest operas.