KBACH's First Take

KBACH Classical 89.5FM
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The classical recording industry produces an annual trove of new releases. For listeners who want more than a cover photo or review to help inform their choices, KBACH's Michael Keelan and Greg Kostraba talk with the recordings' musicians and related experts about select new albums.

Episodes

  1. JAN 30

    French Baroque cello from Phoenix-area native Michelle Kesler

    Cellist Michelle Kesler is from Gilbert and attended ASU; she is now associate professor of cello at Brigham Young University. She and cellist Miranda Wilson have recorded six sonatas by French musician Michel Corrette, important for his descriptions of performance and teaching through most of the 18th century. KBACH's Michael Keelan talked with Kesler about the process of recording the album and why Corrette was significant to the cello. Details: https://www.msrclassics.com/catalog/ms1832/

  2. JAN 27

    Goldmark's Queen of Sheba for orchestra

    Conductor Kevin Sherwin has arranged excerpts of Karl Goldmark's 1875 grand opera Die Königin von Saba (The Queen of Sheba) for his ensemble The American Romantics. KBACH's Michael Keelan talked with Sherwin about the opera's significance, the process of arranging it, and stylistic considerations in performing music from the era based on the evidence of early recordings. Details: https://americanromantics.org/

  3. JAN 8

    New York's Stunning Sonnenberg Gardens Inspire Recent ATLYS Quartet Album

    The Chicago-based ATLYS Quartet recently released a recording of the Sonnenberg Suite by Ari Fisher, music inspired by the Sonnenberg Gardens in upstate New York. Greg Kostraba chatted with two of the quartet's members, violinist Jinty McTavish and cellist Genevieve Tabby, about the release, the genesis of the ensemble, and their innovative process of remote recording. https://atlysmusic.com/product-category/cds/

    16 min

  4. 12/23/2025

    Alla Schumann

    Pianist Nathalia Milstein looks at the relationship between two of the most popular Romantic era composers, Tchaikovsky and Schumann, on her new solo recording. She plays Schumann's daunting Fantasie, Op.17 and Tchaikovsky's eclectic Six Pieces, Op.19, alongside her own transcription of a Schumann chorus. Michael Keelan talked with her about the album, Alla Schumann. Details: https://www.mirare.fr/en/albums/alla-schumann/

    12 min

  5. 12/03/2025

    Rarities of composer Samuel Coleridge-Taylor

    2025 marks the 150th anniversary of the birth of Samuel Coleridge-Taylor, an Afro-British composer and conductor celebrated in the early twentieth century. Conductor Charles Peebles talked with KBACH's Michael Keelan about this album with the Ulster Orchestra featuring some of Coleridge-Taylor's virtually forgotten works which show the wide range of cultural references the composer adopted. Details: https://somm-recordings.com/recording/samuel-coleridge-taylor-orchestral-works/

    12 min

  6. 11/25/2025

    Michael G. Ronstadt continues his family's musical legacy with new classical cello album

    Cellist and Arizona native Michael G. Ronstadt, a member of the multi-generational Ronstadt musical dynasty, shows off his classical chops on a new release of works for cello by the lifelong Ohioan Rick Sowash. Greg Kostraba talked with Ronstadt about the new release, his career, and how he was influenced by his Aunt Linda. https://kickshawrecords.com/product/rsp-15-ronstadt-plays-sowash-vol-1/

    15 min

  7. 11/17/2025

    La Scala's headliner Elsa Dreisig with Mozart

    Soprano Elsa Dreisig is featured in Mozart's Idomeneo under the baton of Simon Rattle in a new complete recording made from concert performances in Munich, the city of the opera's premiere. Michael Keelan talked with her during her run as Mozart's Fiordiligi at Milan's La Scala, discussing her choices and approach for Mozart's dramatic roles. Details: https://www.brso.de/en/cd-dvd/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart-idomeneo/ https://www.teatroallascala.org/en/season/2024-2025/opera/cosi-fan-tutte.html

    13 min

  8. 11/04/2025

    Concertos Spanning 300 Years

    Violinist Chloe Hanslip reintroduces two American violin concertos of the 1940s by Robert Russell Bennett and Vernon Duke. Both composers were better known for their work in popular music fields such as Broadway and songwriting. The album's conductor, Andrew Litton, leads the Phoenix Symphony in a separate program November 7-9. https://www.chandos.net/products/catalogue/CHSA%205371 Harpist Xavier de Maistre records Handel's iconic concerto for his instrument with a modern conductorless ensemble.  https://www.sonyclassical.de/alben/releases-details/handel Michael Keelan talked with both soloists about the process of choosing and recording the concertos.

    15 min
  • 8 Episodes

About

The classical recording industry produces an annual trove of new releases. For listeners who want more than a cover photo or review to help inform their choices, KBACH's Michael Keelan and Greg Kostraba talk with the recordings' musicians and related experts about select new albums.

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