Monday, December 27, 2021

WQXR's 2021 Classical Countdown

Hey, it's free music on the radio. That counts, right? (Full disclosure, I donate a modest amount each year to WQXR.) OK, the rules are a little weird. Listeners vote for their five favorite compositions. The station counts them down to midnight on Dec. 31. Sort of.

The countdown started at 9am today (12/27) and will go (I think?) to midnight; it will then pick up again at 9am (12/28); lather, rinse, repeat.
They (usually) play entire works, except for operas (selections from Porgy and Bess, selections from La Bohème). Also, they played six Chopin Nocturnes as #101: Chopin: Nocturnes. <<--- see what they did there?
Anyhoo, two of my five choices have already made the list – Ralph Vaughan Williams: Serenade to Music (#107), and Tchaikovsky: Serenade for Strings (#100).
Oh, did I mention that they change the number of pieces for the countdown from year to year? Sometimes it's been 96 (when their signal was 96.3 on the FM dial), or 105 (when their signal (and it's current)) is 105.9. Why it's 125 this year, I have no clue.
Don't ask about the G&S brouhaha. (Unless you really want to know.)
Two more of my five will probably make the cut; one probably never will. ConcertMeister

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