Bill McGlaughlin
About Exploring Music
Weekdays at 9pm
Bill McGlaughlin guides listeners through a new musical theme each week, devoting five nights to a single topic. McGlaughlin’s in-depth knowledge of and deep passion for classical music gives the series his customary enthusiasm, imagination, and spontaneity. He is a Peabody Award-winning broadcaster, conductor, and composer.
Program Schedule
School Days
Week of September 8, 2025
Celebrating the excitement of a new school year, we dedicate a week to children's songs, young composers and performers. We will hear compositions from Felix Mendelssohn and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, as well as travel down the Mississippi with Huckleberry Finn and composer Ferde Grofé. Additionally, we will feature Muzio Clementi's Sonatina No. 1 in C Major, Op. 36, Edward Elgar's "Dream Children" and "The Wand of Youth" Suite No. 1, Op. 1.
MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 8
Traditional: School Days (excerpt)
Pete Fountain & The Kings of Dixieland
The Kings of Dixieland
Crownstar Records
1:22
Mozart, Wolfgang: 3 Kontretänze: KV 15h & KV 15x
Academy of St. Martin in the Fields Chamber Ensemble
Rarities & Surprises
Phil 422 545-2
2:55; 2:12
Mozart, Wolfgang: Symphony No. 1 in E-flat Major, KV 16
Academy of St. Martin in the Fields/Marriner
Mozart: The Symphonies, Vol.1
Phil 4757321
11:03
Bernstein, Leonard: "Elegy for Mippy II"
Joseph Alessi, trombone
Joseph Alessi Plays Bernstein
Cala 508
1:58
Bernstein, Leonard: Peter Pan
“Who am I?”
Roberta Alexander, soprano; Tan Crone, piano
Leonard Bernstein: Songs
Etcetera 1037
2:11
Bernstein, Leonard: "Waltz for Mippy III"
Warren Deck, tuba; Christopher Lamb, piano
Joseph Alessi Plays Bernstein
Cala 508
1:51
Ravel, Maurice: Mother Goose Suite
Pittsburg Symphony Orchestra/Andre Previn
Ravel, Saint-Saens
Phil 400016
27:59
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 9
Schumann, Robert: Kinderszenen, Op. 15
Rudolf Firkusny, piano
Davidsbündler Tänze / Symphonic Etudes / Kinderszenen
EMI 66068
2:00; 16:41
Ives, Charles: Violin Sonata No. 4
"Children’s Day at the Camp Meeting"
Anne Akiko Meyers, violin; Andre-Michel Schub, piano
The American Album
RCA 68114
9:43
Elgar, Edward: The Wand of Youth Suite No. 1, Op. 1a
Ulster Orchestra/Bryden Thomson
Wand of Youth Suites
Chandos 8318
20:30
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 10
Elgar, Edward: Dream Children, Op. 43
Halle Orchestra/ Mark Elder
The Music Makers
Halle 7509
6:52
Mendelssohn, Felix: Octet, Op. 20
II Andante
Guarneri & Orion Quartets
Mendelssohn: String Quartet No.3; Octet
Arab 6714
4:31
Mendelssohn, Felix: Octet, Op. 20
IV. Presto
Guarneri & Orion Quartets
Mendelssohn: String Quartet No.3; Octet
Arab 6714
6:06
Greenberg, Jay: Quintet for Strings
II. Scherzando E Animato
Julliard String Quartet; Adkins, viola
Symphony #5 / Quintet For Strings
Sony 681804
5:11
Greenberg, Jay: Symphony No. 5, II. & IV.
London Symphony Orchestra/Jose Serebrier
Symphony #5 / Quintet For Strings
Sony 681804
12:35
Mendelssohn, Felix: A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Overture
Chicago Symphony Orchestra/James Levine
Mendelssohn, Schubert/ Levine
DG 415 137-4
11:44
Mendelssohn, Felix: A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Scherzo (excerpt)
Chicago Symphony Orchestra/James Levine
Mendelssohn, Schubert/ Levine
DG 415 137-4
3:12
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 11
de Falla, arr. Kreisler: La Vida Breve: Danse Espagnole
Yehudi Menuhin, violin; Arthur Balsam, piano
Danse Espagnole (“La Vida Breve”) / Minstrels / Flight of The Bumblebee
Biddulph 46
3:18
Bach, Johannes: Concerto for Two Violins in D minor, BWV 1043
Paris Symphony Orchestra/Monteux; Enesco & Menuhin, violin
Violin Concerto In D Major, Symphony No.1 In C Minor
EMI 67101
15:25
Chopin, Frederic: Waltz in A minor, Op 32, No. 2
Alicia de Larrocha, piano
Songs Without Words, Variations Sérieuses, Barcarolle, Polonaise-Fantaisie
RCA Victor Red Seal 68959 2
6:38
Berman, Boris: Mazurka
Boris Berman, piano
PROKOFIEV: Piano Music (Complete), Vol. 6
Chandos 9069
1:26
Clementi, Muzio: Sonatina No. 1 in C Major, Op. 36
Chun-Young June, piano
Clementi: Keyboard Sonatinas Opp. 36 & 38
Centaur 2439
3:53
Paganini, Niccolo: Theme from “Witches Dance”
David Nadien, violin
Suzuki Violin School Vol 2
Suzuki Instructional CD
0:36; 0:39
Paganini, Niccolo: Caprice in G minor, Op. 1 No. 6
Michael Rabin, violin
The Early Years
Sony 60894
3:06
Paganini, Niccolo: Violin Concerto No. 1 in D Major, III.
Midori Goto, violin
Violin Concerto No.1 / Sérénade Mélancolique / Valse Scherzo
Phil 420943
6:54
Mahler, Gustav: Symphony No. 3, V.
Chicago Symphony Orchestra/Haitink; DeYoung, mezzo soprano
Symphony No. 3
CSO 901701
4:17
Paganini, Niccolo: Caprice in G minor, Op. 1 No. 6
Michael Rabin, violin
The Early Years
Sony 60894
1:25
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 12
Clementi, Muzio: Sonatina No. 4 in F Major, Op. 36
Chun-Young June, piano
Clementi: Keyboard Sonatinas Opp. 36 & 38
Centaur 2439
7:21
Chopin, Frederic: Op. 10 No. 3, Op. 25 No. 5, Op. 10 No. 12 & Op. 25 No. 1
Maurizio Pollini, piano
Etudes
DG 413794
11:19
Bartók, Bela: Transylvanian Dance for Two Violins
Muzsikás and Márta Sebestyén, violins
The Bartók Album
Hannibal Records HNCD 1439
1:46
Bartók, Bela: Mikrokosmos, Bk. I (excerpts)
Jeno Jandó, piano
Bartók: Piano Music Volume 5
Naxos 8557821
2:20
Dohnányi, Ernst von: Variations on a Nursery Song, Op. 25
Royal Phil/ Sir Adrian Boult; Ernst von Dohnányi, piano
The Piano Concertos / Klavierkonzerte / Totentanz /
Wanderer Fantasy / Malédiction / Hungarian Fantasy
Decca 458361
23:00
Grofé, Frede: Mississippi Suite
"Huckleberry Finn"
Eastman-Rochester Orchestra/ Howard Hanson
Grand Canyon Suite / Mississippi Suite / Cello Concerto No. 2
Mercury 434355
2:31
Caucasian Sketches: From the Black Sea to the Caspian Sea
Week of September 15, 2025
On a clear day, when you stand on top of Mount Elbrus in the Caucasus Mountains, you can see from the Black Sea to the Caspian Sea, and it’s this area that is the center of Bill’s musical exploration. This week’s journey starts in Armenia and Azerbaijan, continues through Georgia and Ukraine, and ends on the western banks of the Black Sea. Baroque composers to musicians of the present day, each telling a musical story of the people between Eastern Europe and Western Asia. Our composers include Giya Kancheli, Aram Khachaturian, and Richard Yardumian.
Franz Schubert and The Friends He Never Got to Meet, Part 1
Week of September 22, 2025
Bill and many other musicians have spent time studying the intimate worlds of great composers, trying to better understand their musical voice. After years of study, they find themselves “knowing” these composers and consider them friends. Bill was born 120 years too late to have met Franz Schubert, but he still thinks of him as a close friend. Schubert died in 1828 at just 31. He left us with music that expresses tremendous love and friendship. On this week’s program, Bill shares performances from Earl Wild, Imogen Cooper, Marian Anderson, and members of the Vienna Philharmonic to communicate their intimate connections with Schubert through his songs, piano music, chamber music, and orchestral works.
Franz Schubert and The Friends He Never Got to Meet, Part 2
Week of September 29, 2025
Surely a great many of us have been moved by the deep music of the Austrian composer Franz Schubert, who created a massive catalog of works despite living only a tragically short 31 years. Bill got to thinking about all the composers who would have been friends with Schubert but were born just a few years too late. In this set of shows, we continue with listening to the works of Frédéric Chopin, Robert Schumann, and Franz Liszt. We offer you performances of Arthur Rubinstein alone, Charles Rosin and Richard Goode accompanied by orchestras, plus Yo-Yo Ma, Evgeny Kissin, the Juilliard Quartet with Leonard Bernstein (at the piano!), Dawn Upshaw, George Szell, Emanuel Ax, and even Van Cliburn.
Support Our Radio Station
Help keep Classical 89 alive by making a charitable donation today!