Symphonies

Concert halls and music venues around the world have been shuttered due to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, but before closing its doors, the Philadelphia Orchestra gave one last performance on March 12 — to an empty concert hall. Conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin describes the experience of playing in a vacant hall and hearing silence at the end of each piece. And we listen to a 2019 interview with Yannick.

Composer John Corigliano, Composer-in residence with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. His composition "Symphony No. 1" is Corigliano's personal statement about the AIDS crisis. The first three movements of the Symphony are dedicated to three of his lifelong musician-friends who died of AIDS. Corigliano was inspired to write the composition after seeing the AIDS memorial quilt. (Corigliano: Symphony No. 1, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Daniel Barenboim -- on the Erato Label, #2292-45601-2).