Classical Conversations

On Saturday, November 3, 2018 at 8 PM at the Stranahan Theater, protégé of Ray Charles and former lead singer of Tower of Power, Ellis Hall joins the Toledo Symphony Orchestra to perform Motown favorites like Heard It Through the Grapevine and Ray Charles greatest hits, including Hit the Road Jack, and Georgia On My Mind. The "Ambassador of Soul" joins Brad Cresswell and the TSO's Merwin Siu by phone for a conversation about his life, career, and what we can expect when he brings it to the Stranahan.

Violinist Hilary Hahn made a big splash with her first recording at age 17: an album of the first three sonatas and partitas by J.S. Bach – some of the most difficult solo works for the instrument. Now, some twenty years later, she revisits Bach and offers a new recording which completes the set. Hilary joins us for a preview and discussion of her work.

Genre-defying artist and composer Harold Budd joins us in the studio to preview his weekend of performances and appearances at the Toledo Museum of Art and Bowling Green State University. Also on the panel: the TMA's Manager of Programs Scott Boberg, and Kurt Doles, director of BGSU's MidAmerican Center for Contemporary Music. Please note: due to copyright, musical excerpts have been truncated. Photo of Harold Budd by Terrence Budd.

Welsh pianist Llŷr Williams joins us to preview his 12-CD box set Beethoven Unbound. Recorded live during his three-year Beethoven cycle of concerts at London's Wigmore Hall, the collection contains remarkable performances of the complete piano sonatas and other works – including the 32 Variations in C minor, Eroica Variations, Opus 126 Bagatelles and the Diabelli Variations (a total of almost 14 hours of music).

Formed at The Juilliard School in 2008, the Tesla Quartet quickly established itself as one of the most promising young ensembles in New York. Some ten years later, they've not only gained international recognition, but they've released their debut album (on Orchid Classics). The group's four members: Ross Snyder and Michelle Lie (violins), Edwin Kaplan (viola), and Serafim Smigelskiy (cello) join us for a preview of that recording, entitled Haydn, Ravel, Stravinsky.

Toledo Symphony President Zak Vassar, Toledo Ballet Artistic Director Lisa Meyer-Lang, and Toledo Symphony Music Director Alain Trudel join us for a discussion about their newly announced umbrella organization: The Toledo Alliance for the Performing Arts (TAPA).

Duo Noire (classical guitarists Thomas Flippin and Christopher Mallett) offer a preview of their debut album, Night Triptych – which contains works by living women composers written just for them.

Conductor Donald Nally joins us for a conversation about his choral group The Crossing, and their recent project Zealot Canticles – which pairs the provocative writings of Nigerian Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka with the explosive music of American composer Lansing McLoskey.

The young and vibrant Neave Trio – violinist Anna Williams, cellist Mikhail Veselov, and pianist Eri Nakamura – preview their new album "French Moments" from Chandos Records. The disc contains masterful performances of trios by Albert Roussel, Claude Debussy, and Gabriel Fauré – each remarkable in its own way.

Cellist Inbal Segev and pianist Juho Pohjonen join us for a preview of their new album from Avie Records, which includes three chamber music masterpieces: the cello sonatas of Chopin and Grieg, plus Schumann's Fantasy Pieces, Op. 73.