It's Week 6 of The Works! Start with episode 6 of the Listening to the Works podcast, including a review of the pieces from Week 5 and a discussion of musical texture.

Here's the Spotify playlist for the coming week.

Here are the works on the list for Week 6:

Giacomo Puccini
Tosca - score; synopsis and libretto with translation
recommended recording: Maria Callas as Tosca at La Scala, conducted by de Sabata
recommended video: Hildegard Behrens as Tosca at the Met, conducted by Sinopoli

Franz Joseph Haydn
Symphonies 6 (Le Matin), 7 (Le Midi), and 8 (Le Soir)
(recommended recording: Northern Chamber Orchestra/Ward; Hanover Band/Goodman)

Mily Balakirev
Islamey for solo piano (and version orchestrated by Casella)
(recommended recordings: Boris Berezovsky; Simon Barere; Philadelphia Orchestra/Ormandy)

Dmitry Shostakovich
Sonata for Violin and Piano
(recommended recordings: Oleg Kagan; Rostislav Dubinsky)

Fats Domino
Selected early recordings

Little Richard
Selected early recordings

Bonus listening selection: Tamara by Balakirev

Week 5 of The Works begins with episode 5 of Listening to the Works, on your favorite podcast platform. We talk about how film music fits into the project and the difference between recordings of piano music and programming for actual recitals and concerts.

Here's the Spotify playlist for the coming week.

Here are the works on the list for Week 5:

Aaron Copland
Fanfare for the Common Man
(recommended recordings: Boston Pops/Williams; US Air Force Band; London Symphony/Copland; Philadelphia Orchestra/Ormandy)
Symphony No. 3
(recommended recordings: New York Philharmonic/Bernstein; Philharmonia Orchestra/Copland)

Leos Janacek
Glagolitic Mass
(recommended recordings: Czech Philharmonic/Mackerras; London Symphony/Tilson Thomas)

Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina
Stanzas to the Blessed Virgin (consists of 8 madrigals)
1. Vergine bella (score; text)
2. Vergine saggia (score; text)
3. Vergine pura (score; text)
4. Vergine santa (score; text)
5. Vergine sola al mondo (score; text)
6. Vergine chiara (score; text)
7. Vergine quante lagrime (score; text)
8. Vergine tale è terra (score; text)
(recommended recordings: Hilliard Ensemble; Akademia)

Original Dixieland Jazz Band
Selected early recordings

New Orleans Rhythm Kings
Selected early recordings

Week 4 of The Works! Here's the new podcast episode, in which I review last week's pieces, talk about listening to music in other languages, and preview the works coming up this week.

Here is the Spotify playlist containing the recordings for Week 4.

Here are the works on this week's list, including some links to the scores (and other relevant information) where available:

Paragon Ragtime Orchestra
Album: On the Boardwalk (read the liner notes here)

Eubie Blake
I wanted to listen to his appearance on Marian McPartland's Piano Jazz, but I don't have access to it. If you do, listen to it this week! Here's information about the album, and here's one piece from it.

Dmitri Shostakovich
Music (Op. 116) from the film Hamlet (not to be confused with the incidental music he wrote for the play)
Watch the film or listen to the recording of the suite (Op. 116a) conducted by Yablonsky (alternate recording conducted by Sinaisky)

Gustav Mahler
Symphony No. 2
This symphony includes vocal parts. The texts and translations can be found here.
Recommended recording: Philharmonia Orchestra conducted by Klemperer (alternates: City of Birmingham Symphony/Rattle; New York Philharmonic/Bernstein; NYPO/Walter)

J. S. Bach
15 Two-Part Inventions
15 Three-Part Sinfonias (or Inventions)
Recommended recording on piano: Angela Hewitt (alternates: Glenn Gould; Andras Schiff) and on harpsichord: Ton Koopman

Week 3 of The Works begins with the new podcast episode, in which I review last week's pieces, share a little bit about my experience with opera as a non-opera-buff, and preview the works coming up this week.

Here is the Spotify playlist containing the recordings for Week 3.

Here are pieces on this week's list, including some links to the scores where available:

Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina
Missa Papae Marcelli
Missa Inviolata - this video is the only performance I could find.

Franz Liszt
Transcendental Études

Aaron Copland
Dance Symphony
Short Symphony

Giuseppe Verdi
Rigoletto - here is the libretto with an English translation, and here is a synopsis of the opera.