Hailing from a small Texas ranch, Radie Britain (1899-1994) settled in the Hollywood Hills where a cosmic calling helped her become one of the most successful female composers of her generation. Anticipating the Deep Listening work of fellow Texas native Pauline Oliveros, Radie lectured about the role of meditation in the composer's creative process. And, like Sun Ra, she sought to portray the cosmos in symphonic form. Among the many accolades of her successful career, Radie's incantatory "Prison" (1936) was one of the first original compositions by a female composer ever performed at the White House. But with no commercial recordings, no living relatives, and few championing her work today, she has been largely forgotten in the 21st century. This audio portrait produced by Matt Marble for the California Festival shines long overdue light on this prolific, pioneering composer.

Cal Fest Media

Radie Britain: The Cosmic Cowgirl of the Hollywood Hills - by Matt Marble

We go back to the beginning and the Symphony Club's first concert in 1912. Fleisher Discoveries features Romance (1881) by Johan Severin Svendson (1840-1911), Petite suite (1892) by Ole Olsen (1850-1927) and the Violin Concerto No. 1 in G minor, op. 26 (1866) by Max Bruch (1838-1920).

Fleisher Discoveries - July 2024: The Symphony Club's First Concert

Karen Arnheim (b. 1970)
*Bestiary (2005-2009) (selections)
    I. Phoenix; III. Idyll; IV. Griffin; VIII. Parade
*Symphony of Seasons (2000) (selections)
     I. Autumn: Anthem and 7 variations
*Eye of the Phoebus (selections)
     I.Prelude; II. Passacaglia; III. Badinerie	
*Little Nemo in Slumberland 		
     I. Fanfare (Dreams of Little Nemo	
     II. The Clock Strikes Nine/King Morpheus/Morpheus’ Message/Little 
     III. Nemo/Flip
     IV. The Princess
     V. Doctor Pill
     VI. Nemo’s Adventure
     VII. The Clock Strikes Eleven
     VIII. Farewell Little Nemo

Fleisher Discoveries - March 2025: Karen Amrhein

World premiere recordings of "They Dance in the Wind" by Kevin Arthur Jr., "Cloud Sprawl" by Courtney Evans, and Couplet for Strings" by Joshua Foy.

Fleisher Discoveries - April 2025: Kaleidoscope Initiative

Jacqueline Nova Sondag (1935-1975)
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Acerca de Creación de la tierra, Jacqueline Nova explicó:

“Esta obra, realizada en 1972, se basa en una investigación sobre la voz humana hecha en el Laboratorio de Acústica y Electroacústica de la Facultad de Arquitectura de la Universidad de Buenos Aires. La composición se trabajó sobre un texto original indígena Tunebo (grupo perteneciente a la región del Sarare, en el norte del departamento de Boyacá, Colombia). La obra está íntegramente basada en la voz, más exactamente en algunos de los cantos originales de los indios Tunebos a la creación de la tierra. En la obra, no hay un solo elemento extraño a la voz del indígena, así, los ‘continuos’, los elementos rítmicos, los timbres diferentes que se oyen en la obra, son de origen estrictamente vocal, pero transformados electrónicamente con un procedimiento que hace ininteligible la voz, o poco inteligible, logrando así su transformación total para la realización de la obra. Está dividida en siete secciones que contienen elementos de tipo continuo y elementos de tipo discontinuo que se combinan entre sí a través del total. La voz se reconoce por momentos y en la sección intermedia luego de una cita de la voz en creciente intensidad, aparece un Coral grabado a seis voces (tomado y elaborado con los mismos cantos) y luego la insistencia de un ritmo insinuado al comienzo, para terminar la obra con la aparición de la voz en forma inteligible”.

Creacion de la tierra (Jacqueline Nova Sondag)

"This symphony was written with an outraged spirit. It is not intended to be beautiful in the sentimental sense. It is a protest against intolerance, prejudice, pretense, and sham. A protest against would-be humanitarians who talk much and do nothing. A protest against the world civilization which starves millions in peacetime and destroys these same millions in wartime." - John Becker

Fleisher Discoveries - January 2021: John J. Becker (AIMF)

Fleisher Discoveries is a monthly podcast hosted by Special Collections Curator of Music Dr. Gary Galván and dedicated to playing some of the remarkable treasures housed in the Fleisher Collection of Orchestral Music.

Fleisher Discoveries - March 2025: Karen Amrhein

Fleisher Collection Discoveries

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