playlist

[PLAYLIST] Valentines & Violins: Classical Music Celebrating Love

By Connie Kim

A heartfelt classical playlist inspired by all forms of love! From composers’ dedications to their loved ones to pieces reminiscent of cherished moments, each selection captures beautiful emotions in even more beautiful music.

  1. “Songs of Travel: IV. Youth and Love” (Ralph Vaughan Williams) – Songs of Holman: The Centered Passion
  2. “Miscellanea, Op.16: IV. Nocturne in B-Flat Major” (Ignacy Jan Paderweski) – Night Music
  3. “Romance of Hsiao and Ch’in” (Yi Chen) – Digital Mist
  4. “Píseň lásky” (Josef Suk) – Tomáš Mach & Hiroko Matsumoto Play Dalibor C. Vačkář
  5. “Africa: Land of Romance” (William Grant Still) – Still: Afro-American Symphony
  6. “La bonne chanson, Op. 61: L’hiver a cessé” (Gabriel Faure) – Illuminations
  7. “Liebermann: A Poet To His Beloved” (Lowell Liebermann) – Libermann: Five Pieces From Album of the Young
  8. “Concert champêtre, FP 49: II. Andante” (Francis Poulenc )- Poulenc: Concerto pour deux piano et orchestre, Concert Champêtre & Suite Francais
  9. “Canticle I, Op. 40: My Beloved is Mine” (Benjamin Britten) – Britten: Canticles Nos. 1-5 / The Heart of the Matter (English Song, Vol 9)
  10. “Nessun dorma!” (Luciano Pavarotti) – Spirito Italiano
  11.  “Serenade for Orchestra” (William Grant Still) – Still: Orchestral Works
  12. “II. Andante amoroso” (Alban Berg) – Lyric Suite
  13. “What Lips My Lips Have Kissed” (Margaret Bonds) – Phenomenal Women
  14. “Piano Trio: 1. Pale Yellow” (Jennifer Higdon) – Higdon: Piano Trio
  15.  “La corbeille des fleurs, Valse, Op. 9” (Teresa Carreño) – Clara Rodriguez Plays the Music of Teresa Carreño




Playlist: Sinister Scores for Halloween

by Connie Kim

It’s Halloween season! Perfect for a party or an eerie evening of trick-or-treating, our selection of spooky scores from iconic horror films and television will give you the chills.

  1. “Cabrini Green” (Philip Glass, Michael Reisman, The Western Wind) – The Music of Candyman (Soundtrack from the Motion Picture)
  2. “Main Title” (John Williams) – Jaws (Music from the Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
  3. “Polymorphia” (Krzysztof Penderecki) – The Exorcist (Original Motion Picture)
  4. “Main Title” (Wendy Carlos, Rachel Elkind)- The Shining (Original Motion Pictures Soundtrack)
  5. “Flight”(Bernard Herrmann) – Psycho (The Complete Original Motion Picture Score)
  6. “Dance” (Max Lilja) – The Exorcist (Original Radio Play Soundtrack)
  7. “The Car Lot” (Bernard Herrmann) – Psycho (The Complete Original Motion Picture Score)
  8. “The Shark Approaches” (John Williams) – Jaws (The Collector’s Edition Soundtrack)
  9. “The Shadow”(Bernard Herrmann) – Psycho (The Complete Original Motion Picture Score)
  10. “We’re Not the Only Ones Watching” (David Julyan) – The Cabin in the Woods (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
  11. “Night of Terror” (Clint Mansell) – Black Swan (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
  12.  “The Cabin in the Woods” (David Julyan) – The Cabin in the Woods (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
  13. The Haunting of Hill House (The Newton Brothers) – The Haunting of Hill House (Music from Netflix Horror Series)
  14. The History of Hill House (Westminster Philharmonic Orchestra) – The Haunting (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
  15. “Headless Wizard” (Christopher Young) – Hellbound: Hellraiser II (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
  16. “Gassed” (Bobby Krlic) – MidSommar (Original Motion Picture Score)
  17. “Femme Fatale” (Michael Abels) – Us (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
  18. “Go Tomorrow” (The Newton Brothers) – The Haunting of Hill House (Music from Netflix Horror Series)
  19. Toccata and Fugue in D Minor (Johann Sebastian Bach, William McVicker) – Great Organ Classics
  20. “Finale” (Michael Abels) – Us (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
  21. “Sikiliza Kwa Wahenga” (Michael Abels) – Get Out (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
  22. “Children of the Corn” (Marco Beltrami) – A Quiet Place (Original Soundtrack Album – edited)
  23. “WTF is That” (Michael Abels)- Nope (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
  24. “Caleb is Lost” (Mark Korven) – The Witch (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
  25. “Filthy Dog”(Mark Korven) – The Lighthouse (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
  26. “All Together Now” (Marco Beltrami) – A Quiet Place (Original Soundtrack Album)
  27. “Suspiria”(Goblin) – Suspiria (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)

Sinister Scores Playlist



[Playlist] Cozy Classical: Your Fireside Favorites All Winter Long

When there’s a chill in the air that just won’t let go, there’s nothing better than coming home to the warmth and dancing light of a freshly prepared fireplace – except, perhaps, having the perfect classical playlist to go with it. Grab your favorite slippers, settle in, and enjoy our playlist of cozy classical picks for the winter season. 

  1. “Snowberry” (Yukiko Nishimura) – Music for String Orchestra, Vol. 3 (Excelcia Chamber Orchestra)
  2. Winterreise, D. 911: No. 5 Der Lindenbaum (Franz Schubert) – Schubert: Winterreise
  3. “Northern Lights” (Karen Tanaka) – Crystalline: Piano Music by Karen Tanaka
  4. Hungarian Dance No. 11 in D Minor (Johannes Brahms) – Brahms: 21 Hungarian Dances
  5. “Your Hands in Mine” (Florence Price) – Florence Price Piano Discoveries
  6. 3 Winter Poems: No. 3. Serenade, “Snow Showers” (William Alwyn) – Alwyn: Chamber Music and Songs
  7. “Walking in the Air” (Excerpt “Lifecycle,” Op. 310) (Howard Blake) – Walking in the Air: The Music of Howard Blake
  8. “Winter Moon” (Margaret Bonds) – Margaret Bonds: The Ballad of the Brown King & Selected Songs
  9. “Elegy for the Arctic” (Ludovico Einaudi) – Ludivico Einaudi: Elegy for the Arctic
  10. Sonata for Solo Harp: II. Lento (Germaine Tailleferre) – V – Chamber Music for Harp
  11. “Song of the Birds” (Pablo Casals) – Sol Gabetta: Prayer
  12. Pièce, Op. 189 (Mel Bonis) – Compositrices: À l’aube du XXe siècle
  13. Lux aeterna: III. O nata lux (Morten Lauridsen) – Light Eternal: The Choral Music of Morten Lauridsen
  14. “Nocturne” (Lili Boulanger) – Janine Jansen: Beau Soir

You can listen to these selections on our Cozy Classical playlist on Spotify.



Music for the 50th Anniversary of the Moon Landing

When it comes to heavenly bodies, none has provided more musical inspiration than the moon. The most frequently celebrated element of the earth’s satellite is its light, an aspect captured by composers as diverse as Beethoven and Debussy.

Numerous selections evoke the calm of night, while others imagine fanciful travel to the moon, and the wonders that await there. The phases of the moon stir the musical imagination in some of these works, as do the places from where we see it.

Most striking about this list is the number of romantic songs, from opera arias and choruses, to lieder and vintage Americana. We’re pleased to offer this contemplative sampling to observe the anniversary of the adventurous lunar landing fifty years ago.

  1. Beethoven – “Moonlight” Sonata
  2. Daniel Elder – “Ballade to the Moon”
  3. Elgar – In Moonlight
  4. R. Strauss – Moonlight Music from “Capriccio”
  5. Otto Nicolai – Moon Chorus from “The Merry Wives of Windsor”
  6. Debussy – Claire de lune
  7. Stella Sung – Dance of the White Lotus under the Silver Moon
  8. Lu Wencheng – Autumn Moon on a Calm Lake
  9. Dvorak – “Song to the Moon,” from “Rusalka”
  10. Frank Bridge – “Moonlight,” from “The Sea”
  11. Offenbach – Overture from “Voyage to the Moon”
  12. Haydn – “What a Delightful World,” from “The World on the Moon”
  13. John Williams – “Over the Moon,” from “E.T.”
  14. Schubert – “An den Mond” (“To the Moon”)
  15. Joe Burke/Benny Davis – “Carolina Moon”
  16. Mili Balakirev – “The Crescent Moon”
  17. Richard Rodgers (arr. André Previn) – “Blue Moon”
  18. Eric Whitacre – “Goodnight Moon”
  19. J. Strauss, Jr. – “From Earth to Moon: Blue Danube Waltz,” from “2001: A Space Odyssey”
  20. Brahms – “The Moon Veils Its Face”
  21. William Walton – “Moonlight,” from “As You Like It”
  22. Nico Muhly – “Moondrunk,” from “Three Moon Songs”
  23. Alexandre Desplat – “New Moon,” from “The Twilight Trilogy”

10 Songs to Add to Your Summer Workout Playlist

By Casey Margerum

Summer is here, and it’s time to get outside and get moving! In partnership with OrthoCarolina, WDAV is ready to be your workout buddy. Our new playlist is bursting with energetic, upbeat, playful pieces that are sure to get your blood flowing!

Jog through Italy with Mendelssohn and jump rope in the English countryside with Vaughan Williams. Race John Adams’ fast machine, row to the golden gates with Curiale, or dance to a summer thunderstorm with Johann Strauss, Jr. No matter your exercise style, you’ll find something on this playlist to energize your workout!

  1. Joseph Curiale: Gates of Gold (I. “Arrival: A View from the Sea”)
  2. John Adams: “Short Ride in a Fast Machine”
  3. Felix Mendelssohn: Symphony No. 4, “Italian” (I. “Allegro Vivace”)
  4. Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony No. 9 (II. Larghetto)
  5. W.A. Mozart: Symphony No. 23
  6. Dimitri Kabalevsky: “Overture to Colas Breugnon
  7. Antonin Dvorak: Five Bagatelles (No. 5, “Poco Allegro”)
  8. J.S. Bach: Brandenburg Concerto No. 3 in G Major (III. “Allegro”)
  9. Ralph Vaughan Williams: “English Folk Song Suite”
  10. Johann Strauss, Jr.: “Thunder and Lightning Polka”

Ready to run? Read OrhthoCarolina’s tips for training for your next race.

WDAV’s Endless Summer of Classical Music Playlist

Classical music is ideal for enhancing the summertime state of mind. Many of the compositions in our Endless Summer of Classical Music playlist capture the gentle, lazy, dreamy nature of the season.

Others celebrate the sights, sounds and sensations of being out of doors at this special time of year. Ubiquitous summer thunderstorms featured in works by Vivaldi and Haydn, while other selections idealize the special character of summer nights.

Perhaps most evocatively, summer memories are stirred by works such as Barber’s “Knoxville: Summer of 1915,” as well as themes from some memorable film scores. Whether encountering this music on WDAV, or listening to this playlist, we hope you’ll be refreshed and inspired by the selection and the season.

  1. Mendelssohn: Scherzo from “A Midsummer Night’s Dream”
  2. Grieg: Lyric Piece No. 2, Op. 71 “Summer Evening”
  3. Delius: “Summer Night on the River”
  4. Vivaldi: “Summer” Violin Concerto from “The Four Seasons”
  5. Alfven: Swedish Rhapsody No. 1 “Midsummer Vigil”
  6. Samuel Barber: “Knoxville: Summer of 1915”
  7. Mark O’Connor: “Summer” Concerto from “The American Seasons”
  8. Copland: “Midsummer Nocturne”
  9. Michel Legrand: Theme from “The Summer of ‘42”
  10. Edward MacDowell: “Summer Idyll”
  11. Emile Waldteufel: “Summer Evening” Waltz
  12. Frank Bridge: “Summer”
  13. Gershwin: “Summertime” from “Porgy and Bess”
  14. Robert Muczynski: “Serenade for Summer”
  15. Dmitri Tiomkin: “The Green Leaves of Summer” from “The Alamo”
  16. Prokofiev: “A Summer Day”
  17. Arnold Bax: “Summer Music”
  18. Arthur Honegger: “Summer Pastorale”
  19. Samuel Barber: “Summer Music”
  20. Leroy Anderson: “Summer Skies”
  21. Max Steiner: Theme from “A Summer Place”
  22. Astor Piazzolla: “Verano Porteño” (“Buenos Aires Summer”) from “Four Seasons in Buenos Aires”
  23. Berlioz: Villanelle from “Le nuit d’ete” (“Summer Nights”)
  24. Tchaikovsky: “June: Barcarolle” from “The Seasons”
  25. Haydn: “Summer” from “The Seasons” Oratorio

Be sure to listen for these selections throughout the summer on WDAV or find our playlist on Spotify.

Caliente/F.M.

Yesterday, I was 26 years old again, just for about 20 miles on U.S. 190 back to I-40. You can flat haul ass on that road, and I did, just for a little, in my 1967 Mercury Comet Caliente ragtop. I won’t tell you just how fast because my mom is reading, so I’ll say on the other end of the spectrum that I am typically staying under 70 this trip. What made me 26 again is a compilation cassette tape that I made for my 1989 voyage to L.A., up the coast to Seattle, then back across the top of the country.
Caliente.FM-thumb-300x225.jpg
Photo in my driveway courtesy of Jennifer Foster, WDAV announcer producer and dear, funny, special, outlier friend, the day of my departure, 13 days and 2,200 miles ago.

(more…)