Playlist: WFMT Listeners’ First Favorites
We all came to love classical music in different ways. Here are some of the musical first loves of our WFMT listeners, in their own words.
Don't Miss a Beat
Chicago Immigrant Orchestra Revival Celebrates Cross-Cultural Collaboration
This weekend, the ensemble celebrates five years with an album reaching across cultural barriers.
Christoph von Dohnányi dies at age 95
“Christoph von Dohnányi was a superb conductor and Music Director, respected the world over,” said President and CEO of the Cleveland Orchestra André Gremillet in an online statement.
New Releases Sept. 9: Contemplative Collections
New commissions share the bill with larger collections of works, including a box set celebrating Andreas Scholl and a collection of various Finnish composers.
Chicago Master Singers Announces 2025-26 Season
Celebrating 46 years as an ensemble, Chicago Master Singers returns for a new four-program season this fall.
Yanguan Sets Guinness World Record for “Most People Drumming Together to Greet the Tide”
On the morning of August 26, at the Tide-Watching Resort Park in Yanguan Ancient City, a large number of participants gathered to play African drums as they welcomed the surging Qiantang River tide.
New Releases Sept. 2: Ancient Letters and Songs
A through line of native roots weaves through many of this week's releases, from African instruments in Latin America, to works inspired by 1,700 year-old letters from the Silk Road. Plus, the long-awaited debut concerto by Abel Selaocoe.
New Releases Aug. 26: Beethoven for Three, Shostakovich Symphonies
The fourth installment in the beloved Beethoven for Three series by Leonidas Kavakos, Yo-Yo Ma, and Emanuel Ax, with a glimpse into the rarely heard works of Beethoven's contemporary Helene Liebmann. Plus, Joyce DiDonato as Dido, early student works by Shostakovich, and a composer who Paul Hindemith described as “the last giant of music."
Slushies and Sonatas: Chicago’s Newest Classical Venue Arrives
ACM enters a new era with the 10th anniversary of the Thirsty Ears Music Festival, and a brand-new music venue where a 7-Eleven once stood.
Cultural Crossovers: Different Musical Traditions Reimagine Classical
From lieder in Hindi to a concerto for oud and piano, check out some of the many ways western classical music has been reimagined!
New Releases Aug. 19: Dissident Duos, Dawn, London
Duo FAE pays tribute to three boldly nonconformist women composers, pianist Jaeden Izik-Dzurko mines lesser-known Spanish keyboard repertoire, and the latest from American composer Joel Puckett.
