Intervals: Recent Episodes
RTÉ lyric fm
Intervals and features from RTÉ lyric Live: National Symphony Orchestra, broadcast on RTÉ lyric fm each Friday at 7pm.
In our interval this evening, explore the world of the lyric jingle with colleagues from across RTÉ lyric fm
Finghin Collins announces the winners of the 2025 Dublin international Piano Competition
Finghin Collins Artistic Director of Dublin International Piano Competition 2025 chats with Paul Herriott
Yukine Kuroki, winner of the 2022 Dublin International Piano Competition sent us an audio diary of her experience.
Ahead of the world premiere of his Piano Concerto at New Music Dublin Paul Herriott chats with composer Ed Bennett
Ahead of her performance at New Music Dublin Paul chats with clarinetest Carol McGonnell
In our interval this evening, explore the world of the lyric jingle with colleagues from across RTÉ lyric fm.
Paul Herriott talks to WFO principal conductor FRANCESCO CILLUFFO, Italian Soprano LAVINIA BINI who sings the role of Rosaura and Irish Baritone RORY MUSGRAVE who sings Dottore Graziano in tonight's production of Le Maschere by Mascagni from Wexford Festival Opera
The landscape of contemporary classical music is rich with diverse voices that draw inspiration from a countless myriad of sources. Among these voices are Philip Glass and John Luther Adams, two composers who have made profound contributions to the genre of art music over the last decades.
Vlad explores Alma Mahler's life through the medium of her music, exploring how her compositions reflected the different waypoints of her personal and artistic journey. (c) Getty Images
Vlad Smishkewych takes a peek into the personal and professional intertwinings of the Mozart and Weber families. (c) Getty Images
How much do we know about the origins of the piano quintet? This easy combination—take a string quartet, add piano, and voila!—is one that tok until the late Classical period to develop. Vlad Smishkewych explores the world of the The Curious Piano Quintet
Vlad Smishkewych explores whether there are special “ingredients” you can add to Western Art Music to make it sound Non-Western, without falling into the tokenism trap.
Vlad Smishkewych explores the ins, outs, ups, and downs of Beethoven’s uniquely captivating late string quartets.
In our interval this evening, explore the world of the lyric jingle with colleagues from across RTÉ lyric fm.
RTÉ lyric fm presenter Aedin Gormley chats to Hugh Tinney about his approach to New Music.
Shostakovich composed 15 string quartets during his career but in tonight's RTÉ lyric Live Interval Sandy Burnett examines the one that's played more often than all of the others put together.
Do we need heroes in music? In tonight's RTÉ lyric Live Interval, David Vivian Russell wonders where better to find heroes than in music...
When the subject of female composers of classical music comes up, it's often said that there aren't very many to choose from... but, in reality, history just didn't get round to telling us about them.
Sandy Burnett takes a look at four intriguing examples of what we now consider great classical hits to see how they went down in their own time.
Vlad Smishkewych talks about how and why people have considered certain voices beautiful across the ages in Western art music, drawing a few important ideas from other traditions along the way.
Michael Lee catches up with Sharon Carty about her new release ‘Stanford: Cushendall, Irish Song Cycles’ helping to mark the Stanford Centenary.
Michael Lee travels back in time to 1862 where a young 'Charlie' Stanford is already beginning to get noticed in Dublin as a bit of a prodigy.
Looking back over the past 250 years, Sandy Burnett believes that it was Mozart who put the piano concerto genre on its feet, starting with his Piano Concerto No. 9 'Jeunehomme'.
When we think of Edward Elgar, who never received a composition lesson in his life, it is his large scale works that come to mind. However, Michael Lee believes that Elgar's smaller compositions shed a view into a more private side of his music-making.
Michael Lee observes that while changes in the work of other composers are obvious over time, Fauré's career follows a more insular pattern.
Sandy Burnett takes a snapshot look at the world of Russian art critic Sergei Diaghilev and composer Igor Stravinsky.
"Art and music, images and phrases, brush strokes and notes," adduces Sandy Burnett, "on the face of it, the two forms are quite separate things..." The influences of visual artists and musical composers upon each other are explored in tonight's RTÉ lyric Live Interval.
In tonight's RTÉ lyric Live Interval, Sandy Burnett considers the efforts of George Gershwin, Scott Joplin, Duke Ellington, Mary Lou Williams and Leonard Bernstein to introduce the African-American experience to opera and sacred music in early 20th century America.
If there's one composer whose music sums up the sophistication and seriousness of the late 19th Century, opines Sandy Burnett, it has to be Johannes Brahms.
In this week's RTÉ lyric Live Interval, Sandy Burnett looks at the concept of the musical prodigy.
This time on the RTÉ lyric Live Interval, Sandy Burnett looks at Beethoven’s time in Vienna.
RTÉ lyric fm presenter Vlad Smishkewych goes back to the days of Mozart, Bach and Vivaldi to catch a glimpse of the early history of the violin.
RTÉ lyric fm presenter Vlad Smishkewych looks at just how the concept of the encore evolved.
RTÉ lyric Live presenter Paul Herriott had the chance to catch up with soloist Barry Douglas to chat about his career and the role Tchaikovsky played in it.
Broadcaster Sandy Burnett looks at one of the great works - Berlioz's Symphonie Fantastique.
Vlad Smishkewych unravels the world of meaning inferred by the musical term 'Chamber Music', exploring it's very origins.
Following a performance of Schumann's Violin Sonata No.1 in A minor Op.105 by Alina Ibragimova and Cédric Tiberghien, Bernard Clarke delves into the life of Robert Schumann.
Following Mairéad Hicky and Jeremie Moreau's duet of Grazyna Bacewicz's Sonata de Camera at the West Cork Chamber Music Festival 2023, musicologist Michael Lee looks at the work of the female polish composer and violinist.
Michael Murphy looks at the activity of the choral directors in Limerick and nationally, getting a sense of the immense work they do behind the scenes.
Irish composer Karen Power delves into the world of her bold new commission - a work inspired by a research trip to the South Pole.
Broadcaster Tom Crann shares his appreciation for the 1984 biographical picture, Amadeus.
Paul Herriott caught up with Danielle de Niese before rehearsals to chat about her work and time spent in Ireland this year.
Michael Grant delves into the personal and professional life of famed French composer, Joseph Maurice Ravel.
Musicologist Michael Lee investigates the musical legacy of the multi-talented French poet Jean Cocteau.
Musicologist Michael Lee examines Beethoven's Seventh Symphony and it’s undisclosed Irish Connection.
Musicologist Michael Lee explores the origins of a flourishing dance culture in 19th century Vienna.
What is the Neo-Classical Style, and where did it come from? Musicologist Michael Lee peruses these very questions.
Carmina Burana by Carl Orff might be the only work that he’s famous for but there’s a lot more to the composer than meets the eye. Sandy Burnett sheds some light on this German composer who lived through some of the most turbulent times in Germany’s history, and who found himself making some controversial choices along the way.
Paul catches up with conductor Francesco Cilluffo and some of the cast of tonight's opera
David Vivian Russell talks about the history violin concerto and its place in musical repertoire.
Vlad Smishkewych looks at the violin and how it became the symbol of orchestral classical music.
Conductor Victoria Zhadko recently come to Ireland from Ukraine she talks to Paul about her life and that journey.
Pianist Anna Fedorova discusses Chopin's Piano Concerto No.2 and the special affinity she has for the music or Chopin.
International renowned Ukrainian composer Valentin Silvestrov talks about his music and his move to Berlin from Ukraine.
We delved through the archives for this week's interval: Mícheál Ó Súilleabháin talks about growing up, his formative music experiences, the people how took the lead in shaping thought and perspectives on Irish music, the creation of a space for Irish traditional music in UCC and UL and the transformation of traditions and cultures in music.
From the archives, Bernard Clarke chats with John Kinsella on the occasion of his 80th birthday when they discussed his output, inspiration and some of his compositions at the time.
Composer Philip Hammond reflects on the special relationship between Johannes Brahms and Clara Schumann.
John Kelly is joined by musical journalist and author Norman Lebrecht as they ponder, why Mahler?
Sandy Burnett looks back to a time when Antonin Dvorak and Johannes Brahms actually crossed paths.
An interview from the archives in which Ellen Cranitch chatted with Liam O'Flynn, Tim Severin and Shaun Davey about the Brendan Voyage
In tonight's concert interval, David Vivian Russell surveys the life and work of Richard Wagner.
In the final episode of the series, singer Elizabeth Hilliard revisits many of the women who have appeared on the show: hearing their experiences as artists, their hopes for the future fifty years from now, and what they feel needs to change to make that vision happen.
In this episode, singer Elizabeth Hilliard is with artists Úna Monaghan, Éna Brennan and Karen Power who each have built their own paths into music.
This episode explores how we can all contribute to creating a more equitable society, and how the artists, through their work, are including themes like disability and climate activism to create awareness in the world around them.
Singer Elizabeth Hilliard is investigating how class, background and access to music education impacts on who gets to compose and create. She talks with artists Jennifer Walshe, Bernadette Comac, Claire Fitch, Ann Cleare, Gráinne Mulvey and Natalia Beylis, about their life experiences.
Singer Elizabeth Hilliard explores a migratory life with composers Evangelia Rigaki, Caterina Schembri and Ann Cleare. She hears how they each developed as composers after moving away from their homelands, and how this opened up opportunities for them, both here in Ireland and abroad.
Elizabeth Hilliard meets with composers and sound artists, Tiffany Qiu, Susan Geaney and Claire Fitch and hears about their role models, how they work within a community of composers and what it means to them to create.
Singer Elizabeth Hilliard meets with composers and sound artists, Rhona Clarke, Una Lee and Jennifer Walshe and finds out how they found the imposed solitary life that we all experienced in the pandemic. Music heard in this episode includes Clarke's Piano Trio No 3, Lee's Nocturne for Voices One & Two and Walshe's Becher.
Paul Herriott caught up with the cast and creative team behind the Wexford Festival Opera 2021 production of Le Songe d'une Nuit d'Éte by Ambroise Thomas. Including Sebastien Gueze (Shakespeare), Hasmik Torosyan (Elizabeth 1), conductor Guillaume Tourniaire and festival Artistic Director Rosetta Cucchi and Executive Director Randall Shannon.
In a new podcast series, singer Elizabeth Hilliard meets twenty women: composers and sound artists connected to the island of Ireland. In this first episode composers and sound artists, Jane O'Leary, Natalia Beylis and Jenn Kirby discuss what place and belonging means to them.
In tonight's concert interval, Sandy Burnett surveys the output of Tchaikovsky ranging from his Nutcracker Ballet to a work much loved by audiences, his 1812 Overture which was hated by the composer himself.
Michael Lee looks at Beethoven's fifth Symphony and how the first four notes are probably the most enviable and most recognised branding motif ever. Discover how the opening notes of the symphony even got used in morse code and in a classic disco hit...
At the Forget Me Nots dementia friendly choir, new connections are made, songs are sung, and for many, despite the fear and isolation brought by dementia, there is something to look forward to again.
The laughter and hugs at Limerick Gospel Choir are as much a part of the weekly rehearsals as the energetic singing and dancing. The members have found a sense of home, through singing together!
The Garda Ladies Choir is open to members of An Garda Síochána, as well as their family and friends. Taking a break from work, to focus on the joy of singing, can bring confidence, stress relief, and a renewed sense of self.
Aspiro is a choir for children and teenagers in Carlow. At its heart is a belief that everyone can sing, and everyone can sing well, if they are given the opportunity and encouragement to do so.
The Move4Parkinson's Voices of Hope Choir focuses on the joy and release of singing for those with Parkinson’s, and their families and friends. It is a way to connect, finding hope and support, when it seemed there was none.
The Bravehearts Choir, based in Cork City, is open to anyone whose life has been touched by cancer. The members sing for comfort, for escapism, and sometimes just for the beauty of singing itself.
The ‘Serendipity Chorus in Bray has a membership of over 50 women. Every week, they leave behind the stresses of a busy day, to sing and dance together in Barbershop style!
This is a rugby choir that has become team in itself; the members support one another through the highs and lows of life, bonded by friendship and a shared devotion-both to choral music, and to Munster Rugby!
'Sing!' is a celebration of the power of community, and making music together. In the first episode we meet Gloria - Dublin’s Lesbian & Gay Choir - who began in 1995, only 2 years after the decriminalisation of homosexuality in Ireland.