From the Archives is a curated tour of the world’s greatest composers, conductors and performers, captured in distinctive and memorable audio recordings.
Building on a lifetime of collecting recordings, host Frank Byrne shares the best performances he knows, each with a special element that sets it apart. A lifelong student of classical music, Byrne’s love of collecting classical music is only eclipsed by his joy in sharing it with friends.
Thanks to the wealth of recorded classical music available today, we have the opportunity to explore and consider performances that the average listener may never have heard. Listening together on From the Archives, we will gain insights to those great musicians who truly bring this music to life. Please join us.
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Czech composer Josef Suk, whose summers were always a time for composition, crafted a remarkable and substantial work inspired by summer. -
Lord Byron’s dramatic poem "Manfred" inspired Peter Tchaikovsky to write a sweeping symphonic work based on what Byron called a “metaphysical drama.” The result is a massive tone poem that evokes all the emotions that the printed word could only imply. -
Franz Liszt was a piano superstar and a remarkable composer. His over 700 works included many demanding showpieces for his own international piano recitals. We’ll hear three of his very best. -
We have an all-American program for Independence Day including music by Roy Harris, Katherine Ward and Samuel Bates. Plus, no celebration would be complete without marches by John Philip Sousa. -
Kurt Weill is best remembered for his score to Bertolt Brecht’s “Threepenny Opera” which is featured this week, along with his remarkable Symphony No. 2. We’ll hear two sides of this incredibly creative and gifted composer. -
Giuseppe Verdi is one of the greatest opera composers of all time. But urged on by Parisian audiences, he also composed incredible ballet music to include in some of his operas. We’ll hear music from three of his best ballet scores. -
Many compositions originally composed for piano have been transformed into works for full orchestra. We’ll hear two splendid examples, both by Russian composers, including an unexpected setting of Mussorgsky’s “Pictures at an Exhibition.” -
String quartets have been an integral part of the classical repertoire for centuries and were a staple of home music making. Listen to two late-19th century quartets that build on that tradition and incorporate new, original ideas with impressive results. -
Music has always been able to transport us to another place. In the 19th and early 20th century when travel was difficult, people became fascinated with exotic locations via literature, and composers were inspired to write about them and give their musical impressions of these faraway lands. -
For centuries composers have been inspired by birds – their songs and their grace. This week we have masterful examples by Haydn, Saint-Saëns, Respighi, and Rossini, each of whom represent birds in their own unique way.
