KCME Summer Programs

Sundays at 3:00 p.m. • June 17 - Aug 26

A Romantic Master Rediscovered:
Zygmunt Stojowski

This is a portrait of the composer who was admired by Brahms, Tchaikovsky, Paderewski, Enescu, Heifetz and many more leading musicians of his day for his colorful, romantic and sometimes exotic music – now being revived in international recordings and performances after a century of neglect.

For this two hour documentary, the WFMT Radio Network has captured the memories of Zygmunt Stojowski’s two remaining sons, Alfred and Henry, who, with Stojowski’s biographer Joseph Herter, the acclaimed young Polish conductor Lukasz Borowicz, the distinguished pianist Jonathan Plowright, and the distinguished Professor of the Arts at Roosevelt University's Chicago College of Performing Arts Henry Fogel, reveal the composer’s prestigious life-story and unfold the creative imagination and musical inventiveness of his symphonic, choral, concerto, and solo instrumental and vocal output.

Previously Aired Summer Programs

Lynn Harrell: Songs My Father Taught Me

Through a combination of narration and performance, cellist Lynn Harrell tells the story of his musical life and journey of self-discovery apropos of his father, legendary opera singer Mack Harrell.  He describes growing up in a musical family, losing both his parents when he was a teenager, diving into the world of the performing arts before he was twenty, and in time, finding and claiming his own voice as a musician.

At times he incorporates recordings of his father singing, sometimes accompanying them.  Throughout the program he also demonstrates his conviction that the cello is a singing instrument by performing a variety of vocal works on the cello with piano accompaniment.  His deeply personal story yields a compelling, bittersweet, and uplifting experience.

Legendary Performers: Dame Joan Sutherland—La Stupenda

Legendary Dame Joan Sutherland is recalled by two of the world’s most highly distinguished singers, Marilyn Horne and Thomas Hampson.  The feature includes interviews with Dame Joan, her husband conductor Richard Bonynge, and others.

“La Stupenda” – it was in the notoriously opera-critical country of Italy that Joan Sutherland was christened “The Stunning One” after her debut in Venice in 1960.  The previous year, after her “Mad Scene” in Lucia di Lammermoor at the Royal Opera House Covent Garden, the applause lasted an extraordinary 20 minutes. 

Two of the world’s most distinguished singers, Marilyn Horne, who knew Dame Joan well and sang alongside her many times, and Thomas Hampson present their assessments of her achievements and their personal recollections of her both on and off the stage.  Co-hosting the two hour program, Ms. Horne and Mr. Hampson will also introduce archive-recordings of Dame Joan in conversation about her life and career.

Russian Accents:
Rachmaninoff, Stravinsky and the Piano

The WFMT Radio Network welcomes you to a one-of-a kind radio documentary showcasing the piano music of Sergei Rachmaninoff and Igor Stravinsky. Featuring commentary by Alexander Toradze, Valery Gergiev, Joseph Horowitz and Stravinsky himself, exploring the life and music of two master Russian composers both of whom were also important pianists – and both of whom emigrated to the United States.

The program includes piano recordings by Rachmaninoff and Stravinsky. The repertoire ranges from such favorite works as Rachmaninoff’s Third Piano Concerto and Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring (in a two-piano version by the composer), to such rarities as Rachmaninoff’s First Piano Sonata and Stravinsky’s Concerto for Two Solo Pianos.