Hammered!

Produced by WQXR. Airs weekdays at 10 am on Q2 Music

  • When The Piano Isn't Enough ...

    Late in his life, the famed Italian pianist and composer Ferruccio Busoni felt so straightjacketed by the tonal system that he said one of the only viable method of escape was the inv... Oct 8, 2012

    When The Piano Isn't Enough ...
  • Composing With The Nature Of Sound

    Gerard Grisey, one of the godfathers of the spectral school, had an almost tactile relationship to sound, saying "I start more with the physical aspect of things, the physical aspect ... Oct 1, 2012

    Composing With The Nature Of Sound
  • Solid Gould

    Glenn Gould would have been 80 years old on Tuesday. To celebrate we've programmed an entire hour's worth of solid Gould, and, the rest of the week, profile four other titans of the contemporary piano world.

    Sep 24, 2012

    Solid Gould
  • Celebrating Cage and Debussy

    Two of arguably the most influential composers of the twentieth century turned super old this year: John Cage (100 this month) and Claude Debussy (150 last August). This week on Hamme... Sep 17, 2012

    Celebrating Cage and Debussy
  • One Track Mind

    This week on Hammered! we hear five consecutive cases of works that require an extended temporal space to achieve a more slowly evolving mode of expression. Otherwise put: works that ... Sep 10, 2012

    One Track Mind
  • Palpably Organic: Keyboard Glass

    Let’s face it — the piano is organic to Philip Glass. His palpable patterns ring and echo with nostalgia and exuberance. He connects directly to our emotions with those gentle triadic... Sep 3, 2012

    Palpably Organic: Keyboard Glass
  • Post-Minimalism For A Post-Celebration

    The champagne may be flat but we're still riding the celebratory wave of birthday boy Philip Glass's 75th by exploring the fertile genre of post-minimalism that he helped inspire. Tun... Aug 27, 2012

    Post-Minimalism For A Post-Celebration
  • Group Dynamics

    This week on Hammered! we explore the mountains of chamber music that includes piano(s), or, otherwise put, music for piano+. Hear music from Thomas Ades, Ezequiel Vinao, Benjamin Broening and many more.

    Aug 20, 2012

    Group Dynamics
  • Family Trees

    Did you know that Stephen Sondheim was a pupil of Milton Babbitt? Or that Cage studied with Schoenberg? This week we tease out the often unexpected musical relationships between some ... Aug 13, 2012

    Family Trees
  • Returning To The Source

    This week on Hammered! we hear Schoenberg's five incomparable piano works alongside the music of composers he may – or may not – have impacted.

    Aug 6, 2012

    Returning To The Source