classical

Beethoven - Allegro con brio: First movement from Sonata in C major, Op.53 ('Waldstein')

Rachmaninoff - Moment Musical in B-Flat Minor, Op.16, No.1

The final dance explodes like a quantum rodeo. Danza del gaucho matrero — the outlaw gaucho’s stomp — is pure chaos harnessed into rhythm. One moment it’s pounding chords like fists on a tavern table, the next it’s darting sideways in harmonic ambush, as if the piano itself were trying to buck you off.

From the quantum point of view, this is what happens when a cowboy particle refuses to be pinned down. Energy spikes everywhere at once — wild, unruly, impossible to predict — until finally it slams into coherence with a grin that says, “Catch me if you can.” Each cluster chord feels like the sound of probability fields colliding, each silence like the void reloading its slingshot.

This gaucho isn’t just a rogue — he’s the embodiment of raw, uncollapsed potential. By the end, you’re not sure whether you’ve heard a dance, a duel, or a dimensional jailbreak. One thing’s certain: the universe itself just kicked up dust, and it smells suspiciously of whiskey and cosmic rebellion.

Alberto Ginastera Danzas Argentinas, Op. 2 - III. Danza del gaucho matrero

Chopin’s Waltz in A-flat major, Op. 42, is no ordinary dance—it’s a waltz supreme, a dance-poem where elegance collides with daring invention. On the surface, it dazzles with Parisian brilliance: swirling gowns, aristocratic pairs, a ballroom sparkling with wit and coquetry. But under the magnifying glass, it reveals Chopin’s genius for bending time itself. The left hand beats the familiar three of the waltz, while the right hand insists on two—duple against triple, particle against wave—creating an auditory illusion as if couples were gliding past each other in different dimensions.

Like a jeweler turning a diamond in shifting light, each return to this piece reveals new colors. Its interwoven themes play like refracted beams in a prism: amusement, drama, intimacy, and that unforgettable sostenuto melody blooming at the heart of the work, a melody Schumann said deserved to be danced only by countesses. Even Chopin’s humor flickers through—the sudden break in the reprise feels less like a mistake than sly stagecraft, as if a dancer had tripped, only for the music to whirl back into an ecstatic frenzy.

From a quantum lens, Op. 42 is superposition in sound: both gallop and glide, both order and abandon. Chopin carried fragments of it for years—echoes of youthful sketches, of tone-portraits of his beloved Maria, of earlier Valses Brillantes—before collapsing them into this final, mature form. The result is music that feels inevitable yet forever unstable, a ballroom spun inside a collider. It is Chopin the improviser and Chopin the architect fused into one: creating a waltz that is not just danced in time, but dances with time itself.

Frédéric Chopin Waltz in A-flat major, Op.42

What happens when music feels like it has no beginning and no end—when it hovers in the air as if time itself has slowed? Chopin’s Nocturne in E-flat major is one of those works. At first, you may hear a single voice: solitary, long-breathed, contemplative. But listen again. Almost immediately a second voice begins to move alongside the first, like two distinct currents in the same river. They weave together—sometimes shadowing each other, sometimes breaking apart—yet always resonating in unity.

This is more than melody. It’s a kind of living conversation: the upper voices entwine like two beings whispering secrets, while the left hand provides not just support but a vast landscape of energy, pulsing with its own hidden lines. The interplay creates coherence, a kind of resonance field where the brain recognizes polyphony and structure, but the heart absorbs longing, tenderness, and release.

Notice how the music swells and subsides like breath. The slow 12/8 rhythm acts almost like a meditation cycle, expanding awareness until you stop counting and simply feel the undulation. Forte dissolves into piano, emotion grows and abates, and you may find yourself carried beyond the notes—into the space between them.

By the time the coda arrives, harmony itself begins to stretch boundaries. Chopin moves from keys that should never touch, yet somehow they glow together—like distant particles suddenly entangled. It is daring, and it leaves behind not closure but suspension, as though the music is still vibrating long after the last sound fades.

Let this nocturne be more than background. Let it tune you. The brain finds pattern, the heart feels truth, and the body remembers what it means to resonate with beauty. In this music, thought and energy align, and the listener becomes part of the duet.

Frédéric Chopin Nocturne in E-flat Major, Op. 55 No. 2

In celebration of 20 years of Design Matters, Debbie Millman revisits one of the show’s most endearing traditions—the very first question. For years, she’s opened each conversation with a playful, deeply researched inquiry: something personal, unexpected, and revealing. In this special anniversary episode, listeners will hear some of Debbie’s favorite first questions and the illuminating answers they inspired.

Surprising First Questions

Neil deGrasse Tyson—world-renowned astrophysicist, Emmy-nominated host, science communicator, and author—is one of the most influential voices in modern science. In this live conversation, recorded at On Air Presents, he joins Debbie Millman to explore the role of science education and why defending science has never been more vital.

Neil deGrasse Tyson at On Air Presents

In honor of 20 years of Design Matters, Debbie Millman revisits unforgettable moments from her conversations with iconic musicians Kaki King, David Lee Roth, Lucy Wainwright Roche, Michael Stipe, and the Indigo Girls. Through their stories and songs, this special episode reflects on the meaning of a creative life and the artists who have shaped the sound of our time.

20th Anniversary celebration with iconic musicians Kaki King, David Lee Roth, Lucy Wainwright Roche, Michael Stipe, and the Indigo Girls

20th Anniversary celebration with podcast hosts Krista Tippett, Ira Glass, Hrishikesh Hirway, Kara Swisher, and Jad Abumrad

To celebrate 20 years of Design Matters, Debbie Millman revisits standout moments from past conversations with illustrators Brian Rea, Maira Kalman, Barry Blitt, Edel Rodriguez, and Christoph Niemann. These excerpts explore how ideas drive style, how collaboration and constraint shape the work, and how a single image can speak fast and stay with you.

20th Anniversary Celebration with visionary illustrators Brian Rea, Maira Kalman, Barry Blitt, Edel Rodriguez, and Christoph Niemann

To mark 20 years of Design Matters, Debbie Millman revisits standout moments with Julia Turshen, Christina Tosi, Gabrielle Hamilton, Fanny Singer, and Will Guidara—voices who reimagined how we cook, write, and welcome. From recipe testing as poetry to tinkering with desserts, from building a neighborhood bistro to building a culture of “unreasonable hospitality,” these excerpts show how design shapes flavor, service, and the shared joy of a good meal.

20th Anniversary celebration with culinary creatives Julia Turshen, Christina Tosi, Gabrielle Hamilton, Fanny Singer, and Will Guidara

I was just practicing tonight and felt like recording one of the pieces.  Beethoven's Sonata No. 14 in C# minor Op. 27 No. 2, or otherwise known as 'Quasi una fantasia' or the 'Moonlight Sonata'.  I recorded this on a Steinway D and mastered it in my mastering studio www.alpinemastering.com  

Hope you all enjoy. 

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Beethoven - Allegro con brio: First movement from Sonata in C major, Op.53 ('Waldstein')

Tham Horng Kent

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