Today's 'Classical Gassing' is based on Jon Ceander Mitchell's Program Notes. Click here to read the full manuscript.
This episode dives into the minds of three composers who each, in their own way, redefined what “home” and “heritage” sound like in music. From the experimental soundscapes of Charles Ives, to the late-life renaissance of Richard Strauss, to Antonín Dvořák’s search for the “American voice” in his New World Symphony—we explore how these works continue to resonate across time and continents.
Featuring:
Charles Ives — The Unanswered Question
Richard Strauss — Concerto for Oboe and Small Orchestra
Antonín Dvořák — Symphony No. 9 in E minor, “From the New World”
American iconoclast Charles Ives poses “The Perennial Question of Existence” in a haunting musical dialogue between trumpet, woodwinds, and strings. Written in 1908 and revised decades later, this piece layers sound and silence in a way that feels startlingly modern—each instrument group existing in its own universe. Ives described the strings as “The Silence of the Druids—who Know, See, and Hear Nothing,” a poetic glimpse into his philosophical approach to sound.
By the 1940s, Richard Strauss—once Europe’s most celebrated composer—had weathered two world wars and a fraught relationship with Nazi Germany. Yet in the twilight of his life, he produced a miraculous late burst of creativity, including his luminous Concerto for Oboe and Small Orchestra (1945).
The concerto’s creation was sparked by an encounter with an American GI and oboist, John de Lancie, who asked Strauss if he’d ever considered writing for the instrument. The result: a graceful, tender, and introspective work, born out of the ashes of war and the unlikely spark of human connection.
When Antonín Dvořák came to New York in 1892, he urged American composers to draw from the spirituals and Native American melodies he heard around him. His own Symphony No. 9, however, drew not on existing tunes but on original themes that evoked their character. The result was music both familiar and foreign—rooted in longing, distance, and discovery.
Critics of the day debated fiercely: was this truly American music, or simply Dvořák’s Bohemian spirit wearing new clothes? Whatever the answer, its melodies have since become woven into the fabric of American sound—especially the second movement’s “Largo,” later adapted into the song “Goin’ Home.”
This concert program—and today’s conversation—invite us to ask what defines national identity in music. Is it birthplace, language, style, or emotion? From Ives’ cosmic riddle, to Strauss’s late reflection, to Dvořák’s hopeful bridge between worlds, each piece answers differently.
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🎙️ Classical Gassing — “From the New World: Ives, Strauss & Dvořák”🌀 Segment 1: The Unanswered Question🎶 Segment 2: Strauss’s Indian Summer🌎 Segment 3: Dvořák’s “New World”💬 Closing Thoughts