Could this decade have been any longer? Do you long for escape? Then jump on your homemade helium balloon and join the Capitol Steps as they ring in 2010 by roasting 2009 with their annual awards ceremony!
Commentator and Vermont Law School Professor Cheryl Hanna has been following the efforts of one Vermont family to ensure that next year our roads will be a safer place for us all.
Community activists in Rutland got a big boost this month when they learned
that their proposal to rehabilitate a large downtown alley will receive nearly one
million dollars in federal funding.
We celebrate the coming new year with favorite New Releases including Gerald Clayton’s Two-Shade; Jessica Williams’ The Art Of The Piano and my favorite of 2009, Allen Toussaint’s The Bright Misissippi. Happy New Year!
As a filmmaker and Marlboro College professor, commentator Jay Craven is usually pretty busy, but he was glad to find time over the holidays to spend with his sons – and to reflect on the complex worlds young men inhabit.
When it comes to water
shortages in the U.S. the Northeast probably isn’t the first place that jumps
to mind. But there are water
wars brewing the region.
Chef Jean-Yves Vendeville is
a baking instructor at the New England Culinary Institute. He says the fruitcake enjoys a more revered
status in Europe and Canada, than in the United States.
VPR’s Steve Zind talks with Rutland Herald business reporter
Bruce Edwards about a new rebate program designed to spur sales of energy
efficient appliances.
We’ll listen to a new recording of the Messa da Requiem by Verdi. Antonio Pappano conducts the Orchestra and Chorus of the St. Cecilia National Academy.
The apparent influence of Protestant theologian Reinhold Niebuhr on the policies of President Obama gives commentator Bill Mares a chance to reflect on the impact Niebuhr had on his own family and thinking.
Antibiotics and vaccines are being offered to
about 80 people as New Hampshire
authorities continue to investigate the nation’s first known case of
gastrointestinal anthrax.
We celebrate the tenor saxophonist Joe Lovano’s birthday with his 2008 release Symphonica, his work with the John Pattituci Trio and his tribute to John Coltrane as part of The Steve Kuhn Trio’s 2009 ECM release. We also sample from the 1959 Charles Mingus’ Mingus Ah Um album.
Now that all the presents have been opened, commentator Deborah Doyle-Schechtman reminds us that it’s time for one of our "less popular" holiday traditions.
VPR’s Steve Zind talks with Dr. Paul Martin, Director of the University of Vermont’s Canadian Studies Program and Jeffrey Ayres and Chair of the Political Science Department from St. Michaels College about top Canadian news stories of 2009.
While traveling recently, two incidents got commentator and Vermont Humanities Council executive director Peter Gilbert thinking about the advantages and disadvantages of new versus old – and about all the baggage we carry with us.
A non-profit located in Vermont has been honored for its work making a difference in
some two dozen countries around the world. The Shelburne-based Population Media Center recently received a Peter F. Drucker Award granted to
social organizations that demonstrate innovation and positive change in
peoples’ lives.
As 2009 ends,
charitable organizations across Vermont are hoping that donors will take a last chance to be
generous-and perhaps get a tax break or two. But a new report
puts the state near the bottom in the nation when it comes to the number of
dollars donated per capita. And yet, the tough economy is also showing a
surprising silver lining.
Vermont transportation officials should learn within the next
few months whether they will receive a $73 million federal grant that could
help expand passenger rail service from Rutland to Burlington.
Antonio Pappano conducts the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra in music of Ligeti, Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2 with Leif Ove Andsnes, and the Symphony No. 2 of Sibelius.
We begin with Cocktails For Two, written by Sam Coslow who was born December 28, 1902 and move through pianist & composer Earl Hines’ work with Louis Armstrong in 1928 to his great solo and trio recording done in the 60’s & 70’s. Pianist Michel Petrucciani, also born on this date, gives us a virtuoso reading of Billy Strayhorn’s Take The A Train.
Lieutenant
Governor Brian Dubie says if he’s elected governor, he’d like to see greater
use of school choice. And
Dubie says families should be permitted to use public tax money to pay for an
education at a religious school.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm visits The
Harvest Café at Fletcher Allen Health Care in Burlington. Tha café is making an effort to connect
the food people eat in the hospital with their personal health and environmental sustainability.
Our series of interviews with gubernatorial candidates continues with Republican Brian Dubie. Also, the state’s largest hospital shows off its commitment to eating healthy in the cafeteria.
When she recently volunteered to find a frightend dog on the run, commentator Mary McCallum was reminded that the spirit of community is still strong in Vermont.
In 2004 VPR news spoke with Chris Day, a
Vermont Army National Guardsman leaving for active duty in Kuwait. Five years later, Day – who teaches history at Brattleboro Area Middle School – is about to deploy
again, this time to Afghanistan.
This week Joel Najman’s My Place program celebrates the life in music of Bob Keane with an hour of his most famous and significant recordings.
Keane is best known for discovering an 18-year old Ritchie Valens in 1958.
A Season’s Griot celebrates Kwanzaa with traditional African-American songs and stories for and about children. Hosted by Madafo Lloyd Wilson, this hour-long program presents original works of poetry, music and prose.
Richard Strauss’s riveting one-act opera Elektra is heard live from the stage of the Metropolitan Opera in New York City, with Susan Bullock, Deborah Voigt, and Felicity Palmer.
Governor
Jim Douglas says he plans to identify property tax reform as one of his top
priorities for the 2010 session. As
part of that effort, Douglas says he’ll ask lawmakers to make some key changes to
the way the state finances education.
We celebrate the end of Christmas Day with some holiday sounds from Vince Guaraldi and Carla Bley and some new releases from the great Chicago Tenor Sax player Von Freeman and from trumpeters Enrica Rava & Dominick Farinacci.
Handel’s classic, "The Messiah" is given a fresh new performance this evening starting at 8 with the Pittsburgh’s Symphony Orchestra and Mendelssohn Choir.
For many
Vermonters, cutting their own Christmas tree is a yearly tradition. At Dave Russell’s
Christmas Tree Farm in Starksboro, families get chauffeured to the fields in a
wagon drawn by team of draft horses.
For Christmas Day, we have the Midnight Mass by Marc-Antoine Charpentier; the Ceremony of Carols of Benjamin Britten, Tchaikovsky’s complete Nutcracker ballet, and generous selections from L’Enfance du Christ by Berlioz.
We hear a lot of
stories about Christmas, but some are special enough that they stick with us
from one year to another. VPR’s Susan Keese first told us about Russ Tarbell of
Pawlet two years ago, as he went on a special Christmas tree mission on Mount Tabor
Fond memories of exhuberant holidays at her grandparents’ house, inspired commentator Judy Livingston and her family some years ago, to undertake a grand holiday project of their own.
A 72-year-old Vermont woman whose wheelchair was stolen from her daughter’s car at a Massachusetts mall is appealing to common decency during the holiday season for the thief to return her lifeline.
Gun rights activists are
putting their voices behind an effort to overturn a rule banning guns and other
weapons inside New Hampshire’s Statehouse and two nearby buildings.
Vermont State Police investigators say they’ve given up – for now – a search for the remains of a 78-year-old Westford grandmother believed buried in woods behind an elementary school.
Researchers are studying rivers and ponds across the Northeast for traces of pharmaceuticals not just from dumping, but from human waste. As part of collaboration with northeast public radio stations Nancy Cohen from WNPR reports.
We celebrate the holiday season with such classics as: The Chipmunk Song (Hot Club Of Detroit), Gingerbread Boy (Dexter Gordon), Winter Wonderland (Chet Baker), Silent Night (Carla Cook) and many more.
Blanche Moyse, founder of the Brattleboro Music Center and New England Bach Festival, turned 100 in September. We’ll celebrate her centennial and the season with her 1987 New England Bach Festival performance of Bach’s Christmas Oratorio.
Researchers are studying rivers
and ponds across the Northeast for traces of pharmaceuticals — not
just from dumping, but from human waste. This has raised concerns about whether they’re getting into drinking
water.
Longtime State Representative Rick
Hube of South
Londonderry
died unexpectedly Monday while visiting his sister in Florida.
Hube, who was 62, was known as a fiscal
conservative and social liberal.
A 24-foot cross near a chapel in Lyndonville was illuminated last year at this time. This year, though, it’s nearly invisible after
sundown. That’s because the
chapel’s owners have run afoul of Vermont’s Act 250 commission,
which considers the cross "out of character" with its rural residential
neighborhood.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with mystery writer Louise Penny about her new novel The Brutal Telling, and the fictional village on the Vermont-Quebec border where it takes place.
We talk to Nancy Schulz, Executive
Director of the Vermont Bicycle and Pedestrian Coalition about winter bike
commuting and Louise Penny, mystery
writer and author of the bestselling novel The
Brutal Telling.
VPR’s Susan Keese spoke recently with a bereavement specialist in Bennington, who offered some strategies for coping with a festive season in a time of sadness.
Claudio Monteverdi aspired to be in charge of music for St. Mark’s Basilica in Venice. To that end, he published in Venice in 1610 his Vespers of the Blessed Virgin, consciously trying to "out-Venice" the Venetian composers, known for their elaborate style. The gambit worked; he got the job.
We’ll listen to Psalms from the 1610 Vespers, recorded in St. Mark’s.
Music from a tradition and time that reminds us Christ was born in a place with palm – not evergreen – trees. It’s a "Mediterranean Christmas" this morning, along with the Winter Hymn from Danish composer Per Norgård, and Korngold’s whimsical Der Schneeman ("The Snowman") incidental music.
There
are few sounds that capture the holiday season as beautifully or as emotionally
as bells. The
Bells of Joy Handbell choir has been performing holiday concerts in Rutland for 26 years. Thirteen
women play 60 bells and assorted chimes and drums.
We sample some of the new releases and revisit old favorites in Holiday Jazz. From Carla Bley’s brassy new collection of carols to Ray Charles’ The Spirit Of Christmas and the classic A Charlie Brown Christmas with music from pianist Vince Guarldi.
Cold weather and the poor economy have swelled the ranks of people needing
emergency housing, and homeless shelters are
filled to capacity this winter. But
there is also some good news. Federal stimulus money is helping some of the
homeless find housing.
The
owners of Vermont Yankee say they might shut the plant down in 2012, if
Vermont doesn’t approve of a new spin-off corporation that
would own the reactor.
We learn about modern homesteading and talk to people who are trying to make the lifestyle work. Also, we’ll talk with a Vermonter who won the New Yorker’s cartoon caption contest.
Mozart vowed that if Constanze became his wife, he would compose a major Mass in thanks. She did marry him and he kept his word, at least partly. His Great Mass in C minor was left unfinished, but what we have is magnificent. We’ll listen to Paul McCreesh and his Gabrieli Consort and Players.
There’s always a demand for
the services provided by these non-profit organizations but given the recent
crippling economic recession it’s no surprise that more and more people are
turning to food banks to keep their families from suffering malnutrition, or
worse.
A Brattleboro church that serves as
an overnight homeless shelter has voted to sell its Tiffany stained glass
window to keep its operations going. The decision has attracted offers, and plenty of
attention.
Burlington-based Gardener’s Supply Company has been sold to its employees. The owner of the 26-year-old garden products retailer started selling shares of the company to its employees in 1987. The company says it could have been sold to outside buyers, but employee ownership reaffirms the company’s commitment to Vermont and its 250 full-time and 100 seasonal employees. The company is privately owned and so doesn’t release sales figures. Owner and founder Will Raap says the founding mission of the company was to spread the joys of gardening.
We celebrate the birthdays of Hank Crawford, longtime alto sax player with Ray Charles, Bob Brookmeyer, a double threat on valve trombone and piano and the late pianist John Hicks.
Starting at 8pm, it’s "Northern Lights" – Cheryl Willoughby’s annual
singing, dancing celebration of the winter solstice. At 9pm Joe Goetz’s "Christmas
Classics" visits several Scandinavian countries for a quiet,
snow-covered hour of choral music.
Commentator Timothy McQuiston is neither hedging nor speculating when he says that this Christmas may be merrier for the economy than anticipated several months ago.
The Comcast cable company and a Chittenden County public access TV station have settled their
differences and signed a new five-year contract. Comcast
is still negotiating with other local access organizations over costs and
financial issues.
Conductor Michael Tilson Thomas is 65 today. We’ll hear him leading the San Francisco Symphony, of which he is Music Director, in Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 4, which resonates with the season: sleigh bells at the beginning and a child’s vision of heavenly delights as a finale.
Commentator Bill Schubart explores the difference between "health care" and "caring for people", as a veteran nurse tends to elderly ladies at a small-town hospital during the holidays.
The first hurdle for
reforming health care was cleared in the senate today, with lawmakers gathering
for procedural voting in the nation’s Capitol at one in the morning. Vermont’s senior Senator Patrick Leahy pushed for a $250 million
increase Medicaid funds for Vermont. He joined VPR’s Mitch Wertlieb this morning to talk about the vote.
Every
year, hundreds of people gather in Rutland for an unusual holiday party at the Paramount
Theater. There
are presents, refreshments and lots of good cheer. The only catch? You have to give blood.
Police say they are still investigating a
train-car crash that killed an elderly couple in Randolph, Vt., but they say crossing lights and bells were working
at the time of the collision.
We check in with Rep. Peter Welch about Congress’ work so far this term. You can send your questions to vermontedition@vpr.net. Also, we visit the town of Brunswick, Vermont.
VPR’s Robert Resnik (1PM) and VPR Classical’s Cheryl Willoughby (9pm) share music to reflect on the past year and light the way to the next one. At 10pm, the Paul Winter Solstice Celebration from New York City.
With the Christmas season here, Joel Najman’s My Place program looks back to the seminal rhythm & blues of more than a half-century ago for an hour of some of the most compelling and entertaining music recorded for this special time of year. It’s a "Rhythm & Blues Holiday" this week on My Place.
Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., said Saturday that Vermont Medicaid payments will increase by $250 million for six years in the health reform plan under consideration by the U.S. Senate.
AT&T announced this week its intention to bring the 3G, or Third Generation, mobile broadband network to more than two dozen towns in Vermont by the end of this month.
VPR’s music hosts Walter Parker, George Thomas, Cheryl Willoughby, and Joe Goetz suggest some of their favorite music (and more) as gift ideas for the Holiday Season.
VPR’s music hosts Walter Parker, George Thomas, Cheryl Willoughby, and Joe Goetz suggest some of their favorite music (and more) as gift ideas for the Holiday Season.
We sample Blues & Jazz versions of Holiday standards, including John Coltrane’s Greensleeves, Santa Claus Is Coming To Town by pianist Hilton Ruiz and a wonderful waltz At The Christmas Ball featuring the soprano sax of Jim Galloway. Happy Holidaze!
At 8, conductor Leonard Slatkin and the composer’s son Kurt celebrate the life and memorable musical legacy of Leroy Anderson. Then at 9, we celebrate 30 years of the Dale Warland Singers.
The holiday season is full of people honoring different things. Commentator Rich Nadworny wishes there were more ways to connect the different holidays.
While world leaders in Copenhagen have been grappling
with global issues of sustainability – a high school students in Rutland
have been doing their part to make this holiday season more "green."
We’ll hear several settings of the text "O Magnum Mysterium," a motet by Bach, Bernstein’s Chichester Psalms, Sibelius’ Second Symphony, and Robert Schumann’s spectacular Piano Concerto.
Senate President and gubernatorial candidate Peter Shumlin discusses new developments in the re-licensing of Vermont Yankee and other issues that will face the state’s next governor.
President Barack Obama’s recent speeches at West Point and in Oslo have left liberals griping and conservatives gloating. This morning commentator and former ABC News diplomatic correspondent Barrie Dunsmore offers his interpretation of the president’s message.
Top
legislators say the focus of the 2010 session will be on jobs, the economy and
on producing a balanced budget. The
Democratic leaders of the House and the Senate say now is not the time to raise
taxes or expand social programs. And they vowed to keep an open mind as the
Vermont Yankee nuclear plant seeks approval to operate for another 20 years.
The
Ticonderoga Ferry remains closed this morning due to ice forming on southern Lake Champlain. The
ferry shut down service yesterday afternoon. The company says they worked
through the night to get the ferry running again, and they hope to re-open
soon.
Vermont State Police say a 78-year-old woman
with Alzheimer’s disease who was reported missing in 2006 was killed by her
daughter, who then burned her body in the backyard and had her son – the
victim’s grandson – dispose of it.
The owner of
the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant is expected to reveal a long awaited
deal on what it would charge the state’s utilities for power if it’s operating license
is renewed.
We hear several selections from the gifted but eccentric New Orleans pianist & vocalist, James Booker. Classically trained and soaked in blues, R&B and jazz, James Booker has a unique swing with elements of the Caribbean in the mix.
Tchaikovsky’s "Nutcracker" and suites by Rimsky-Korsakov and Mikhail Ippolitov-Ivanov this afternoon, as well as holiday music by Finzi, Holst, Tallis, and Rutter.
We’ll listen to the "Undine" Sonata for Flute and Piano by Carl Reinecke from Karen Kevra’s new CD; and the Piano Concerto No. 3 by Prokofiev from Evgeny Kissin’s new (third) recording of it.
The day gets off to a ringing start in music by Frenchmen Marin Marais, and Nicholas Lebegue. The traditional Ukrainian Carol of the Bells also makes an appearance, and for something a little different – it’s a new recording of Stephen Jaffe’s Cut Time, written in 2004.
Among the thousands of people attending the United
Nations Convention on Climate Change, which draws to a close this week, are
several Vermonters. One is Marlboro College student Andrew
Tanabe.
Governor
Jim Douglas says his administration will brush aside legislative opposition and
allow all terrain vehicles to use state land. The
administration’s plan could face a legal challenge.
When the legislature returns in January,
education funding will be one of the many budget issues lawmakers will be
dealing with. Administration officials
and the teachers’ union are clashing over proposed restructuring and financing.
An
amendment introduced by Bernie Sanders brought the U-S Senate to a grinding
halt yesterday Wednesday. Senator
Sanders proposed a single-payer health insurance plan.
An advisory committee has recommended a
last-minute design as the replacement for the closed Lake Champlain Bridge,
set to be demolished in the coming weeks.
The Vermont Supreme Court is getting set to
hear a long-running case over whether the owners of a dog that was fatally shot
should be able to collect damages in a lawsuit for loss of companionship and
emotional distress.
New Hampshire’s two members of the U.S. House of Representatives
are on opposite sides of legislation steering unused Wall Street bailout money
to job creation programs.
We sample some of the best songs of lyricist Andy Razaf on the anniversary of his birth in 1895. He worked with many artists in the 1920’s & 1930’s, but made his reputation collaborating with Fats Waller on songs like Honeysuckle Rose & Ain’t Misbehavin’
Commentator Peter Gilbert offers some advice – to students who are or will be studying vocabulary words in anticipation of taking the SATs – and to everyone who likes words.
Senator
Bernie Sanders proposed a single-payer health insurance plan today. Republicans
used it as an opportunity to slow down the larger debate on the health care
overhaul bill.
A number of local musicians have come together to
raise awareness about health care reform. Sales of a new CD, which is called "Care For All",
will benefit the Healthcare Is A Human Right Campaign of the Vermont Worker’s Center.
We’ll hear plenty of "seroius" holiday music today from Puccini, Bach, and Conrad Susa, but to balance it out we’ll hear a selection of popular arrangements performed by the Cincinnati Pops.
We talk to Martha Allen, the newly elected president of the
VT-NEA, about the teachers’ perspective on school funding and budget
cuts. Also, Vermont Law School delegates in Copenhagen report back on the climate change conference. And, how to make igloos.
We’ll celebrate Beethoven’s birthday with his Mass in C, Op. 86. Overshadowed somewhat by the grand Missa Solemnis, the Mass in C is a more intimate work in which Beethoven paid particularly close attention to the text. We also have a new recording of Beethoven’s Violin Concerto from Renaud Capucon.
It’s the season of childhood wonders. This morning we’ll hear the main themes from the animated features The Snowman, and A Peanuts Christmas – along with Debussy’s Children’s Corner Suite, and Robert Schumann’s Kinderszenen (Scenes from Childhood).
Commentator Bill Mares recently toured an ancient site that dates back to Roman times – and he found himself thinking some surprisingly modern thoughts.
The
state Transportation Agency is changing the design of the Circumferential Highway in an effort to win approval from federal agencies. Officials
have re-designed the roadway to avoid destroying some wetlands. The change came
after the Environmental Protection Agency opposed the original plan for a
limited access highway.
With the memory of New Hampshire’s December 2008 ice storm still fresh, legislators
will consider a bill that would allow the state to send residents automated
phone messages about similar emergencies.
A legislative panel’s interim report on New Hampshire’s school construction aid program is recommending
that lawmakers suspend aid for new applicants, but not before June 30.
We hear Holiday music including the new Hot Club Of San Francisco and Betty Carter’s version of Let It Snow. Also jazz birthdays abound with trombonist Curtis Fuller, pianists Barry Harris & Eddie Palmieri and Charles Mingus’s favorite drummer, Dannie Richmond.
We talk with Julie Moore of the state’s Clean and Clear Program about the new draft plan to cleanup Lake Champlain. Also, Senator Bernie Sanders’ impact on Washington, and we read from your letters.
The Canadian Brass performs this week in Burlington and Lebanon. We’ll listen to their collaboration with the Elmer Iseler Singers in an amusing take on The 12 Days of Christmas.
We’ll welcome the morning with variations on the traditional chorale melody, Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern ("How brightly shines the morning star"), and Christmas Bells, a recent composition performed by the New York Latvian Concert Choir.
Commentator Edith Hunter has been thinking about the many changes in Vermont’s dairy industry over the last three decades – and one troubling consistency.
Vermont dairy farmers are waiting to find out if they’ll face
fines or enforcement action after a federal immigration crackdown was launched
last month. Meanwhile,
Vermont Senator Patrick Leahy wants to change federal labor rules to allow
farmers to employ migrant workers.
State Rep. Peg Flory is moving to the state
Senate. Gov. Jim Douglas on Monday appointed the
Pittsford lawmaker to succeed state Sen. Hull Maynard, who retired last month.
A judge has cleared the way for New Hampshire
to subpoena records from the Local Government Center in its investigation into
whether the center is using health insurance contributions for other purposes.
We begin with the holiday sound of Duke Ellington’s Nutcracker Suite and then celebrate the bithdays of trumpeter/vocalist Clark Terry, the brilliant pianist Phineas Newborn, the tenor sax of Budd Johnson and Cecil Payne the bop king of baritone sax.
Yannick Nézet-Séguin, conductor
Anna Caterina Antonacci, soprano
BEETHOVEN: Symphony No. 1
BERLIOZ: La mort de Cléopâtre
BERLIOZ: Symphonie fantastique
MOZART: "Voi che sapete" from Le nozze di Figaro -Frederica von Stade,
Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra, Edo de Waart, conductor (Philips 420
084)
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with two Fletcher Allen surgeons about how they interpret slowing cancer rate data and about the work they’re doing in Vermont to battle the disease.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with the co-author of a new scientific papaer that says the emergence of certain infectious diseases seems to be driven by globalization and ecological disruption.
We look at cancer rates and deaths in Vermont, and talk about new recommendations for screenings and treatments. Also, a look at how a lack of biodiversity could affect human disease.
Vaughan Williams’ study of the 16th-century music of William Byrd and Thomas Tallis inspired his Mass in G minor, written in the 1920’s. We’ll listen to it this morning, along with more from the new CD of Vermont flutist Karen Kevra.
A new recording from Mainstreet Brass starts the morning off with a few carols, and then Leonard Bernstein shares the story of a little boy and a LARGE Wolf – in Prokofiev’s classic, "Peter and the Wolf".
Commentator and Vermont Law School professor Cheryl Hanna recently spent some time with state leaders exploring ethical decision-making and learned quite a bit.
A startup company that plans
to produce yogurt in Brattleboro has won approval from the town’s Development Review
Board. Commonwealth Yogurt is
expected to bring jobs – and a new milk market – to the area.
Six designs for a replacement of the closed Crown
Point Bridge were unveiled at a series of public meetings in Ticonderoga this
weekend. The bridge was closed in October due to concerns over safety.
Money for the
Burlington airport, affordable housing projects and a drug task force in
Vermont and 6-million-dollars for the cleanup of Lake Champlain have been
included in spending bills passed by Congress.
Money for the
Burlington airport, affordable housing projects and a drug task force in
Vermont and $6 million for the cleanup of Lake Champlain have been
included in spending bills passed by Congress.
A legislative
panel’s interim report on New Hampshire’s school construction aid program is due Tuesday but don’t look for a
recommendation to suspend state aid anytime soon.
New York
Governor David Paterson is ordering 10 percent of state aid payments to schools
and local governments be delayed because the state is $1 billion short
of its obligations due to be paid Tuesday.
VPR Classical is pleased to be your home for the Metropolitan Opera, and the new season starts this weekend! Listen Saturday afternoon at 12:30 as the Met presents Puccini’s Il trittico (The Triptych), featuring New Hampshire native Patricia Racette in the leading role for all three operas.
We welcome in the Hanukkah with Don Byron’s clarinet on Oi Tata and Kenny Ellis’ Swingin’ Dreidel. Several versions of a seasonal favorite, the Rodgers-Hammerstein My Favorite Things help celebrate McCoy Tyner’s birthday.
Employees in the state office of Economic
Opportunity will face disciplinary action after an investigation revealed a
conflict of interest in a training contract.
Democratic gubernatorial candidate Deb Markowitz
says she supports a new state energy plan that would close down the Vermont
Yankee nuclear power plant in 2012.
We’ll hear music for the Jewish holiday after the sun goes down this evening, and before that, Rachmaninoff’s bold Trio Elegiaque in D Minor performed by the Borodin Trio.
Service
workers at North
Adams Regional Hospital say they won’t strike this weekend, after union and
hospital officials reached an agreement last night.
Plans
are moving forward for the demolition of the Crown Point Bridge. Vermont
and New York transportation officials say they’ve selected an
explosives contractor from Idaho
for a controlled demolition.
Our series of interviews with candidates in the Democratic primary for governor continues with Secretary of State Deb Markowitz. Also, a recap and analysis of this week’s top news stories.
The Jewish "festival of light" – Hanukkah – begins tonight at sundown. This morning’s mix features highlights from Handel’s Hanukkah story, Judas Maccabeus, along with Prokofiev’s idiomatic Overture on Hebrew Themes and a guitar concerto from a Jewish composer who left fascist Italy for a new life in the US, in 1939.
The
farmers who make electricity from cow waste will soon get a temporary boost in
their rates. The
state Public Service Board has responded to complaints from farmers and
lawmakers – and has agreed to double the payment under the "Cow Power" program.
The New York Department of Transportation
will show people five possible designs for a new bridge across Lake Champlain that will link Crown Point, New York and West Addison, Vermont.
A group of Vermont Yankee opponents who want
the state to block its re-licensing are planning a novel approach – walking 122
miles from Brattleboro to Montpelier to buttonhole legislators at the Statehouse.
Leaders from several New Hampshire nonprofit
organizations are getting together to discuss how they might benefit from the
nearly $6 billion national service bill President Barack Obama signed in
April.
We begin with some swingin’ Hanukkah, dip into Christmas with The Airmen Of Note and hear a number of tenor sax players, including Von Freeman, Booker Ervin, Joe Lovano and, by request, Lester Young.
Commentator Deborah Luskin remembers the water conservation slogan to "Save Water, Shower with a Friend", and has come up with a similar suggestion for saving money on heat.
We’ll celebrate the birthday of composer Olivier Messiaen this afternoon with his "Oiseaux Exotiques" (Exotic Birds). Also, Spanish holiday music and Mendelsshon’s Italian Symphony.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Jeff Spees, the Director of UVM’s Stem Cell
Core facility to learn more about UVM’s research on adult and umbilical cord stem cells
Around
4,600 Vermonters are still without power after high winds and a winter
storm hit the state yesterday. And for some, it may be Friday morning before
they come back online.
We learn about the work UVM researchers are doing with adult stem cells, and we find out how revamped federal guidelines are affecting research nationwide. Also, we listen to the late poet Grace Paley read a Christmas story.
This morning we’ll hear Mozart’s sacred concert aria, Regina Coeli ("Queen of Heaven"); Korngold’s Marchenbilder ("Fairytale pictures"); and Renée Fleming/Susan Graham singing the "evening prayer" from Humperdinck’s Hansel und Gretel.
Economist and commentator Art Woolf sees some good economic news on the horizon, but that won’t be enough to solve Vermont’s continuing property tax problem.
When people begin looking for
their family roots, the paper trail inevitably leads to a dead end. Harvard Professor Henry Louis
Gates, Jr. has pioneered a method of
genealogical research that incorporates DNA research.
Ever since
the state announced that the Crown Point Bridge would have to come down, people have wondered what the new bridge will
look like. They’ll get their first glimpse at potential designs Saturday.
Governor David Paterson says New York has run out of cash and he’s directing budget
officials to reduce aid payments to schools, local governments and non-profit
service providers until things improve.
Join George Thomas for live jazz with Vermont musicians Ellen Powell on bass, Thomas Cleary on piano and Steve Wienert on drums. They’ll improvise on a mixture of standards and originals and we’ll chat on the state of jazz in Vermont.
Manchester teacher Brian Gawlik was a media specialist who made a difference in both the classroom and the community. Commentary Mary Barrosse Schwartz has this remembrance.
The death of several inmates in state custody has
prompted the Department of Corrections to change its policy for treating
prisoners who are undergoing withdrawal from drug addiction.
An energy expert from Efficiency Vermont answers your questions on how to improve your home’s heating efficiency. Also, why less trash is actually a problem for some municipalities.
Counterpoint, Vermont’s professional vocal ensemble led by Robert DeCormier, visits the VPR Performance Studio to give a preview of their upcoming Solstice Celebration Concerts.
Waltz master Emile Waldteufel was born on this day, and his best-known work also happens to be a perfect match for this time of the year. We’ll hear his Skater’s Waltz, along with Les Patineurs, the skating sequence from the ballet by Giacomo Meyerbeer.
The Vermont National Guard’s 2nd in
command will be among the 1500 guard soldiers headed to Afghanistan in the New Year.
Brigadier General Jonathan Farnham will be leading a new organization
monitoring the training of Afghan security forces.
Rutland is mourning the loss of a life-long resident and
prominent attorney known for her great sense of humor. Joan
Wing died in a car accident yesterday morning on Route 7 in Ferrisburgh. She was 61.
There’s
a contract dispute at a western Massachusetts hospital that also serves parts of southern Vermont. Unionized
service workers at North Adams Regional Hospital have voted to strike if they don’t have a contract agreement
by Saturday.
New York’s Senate and
Assembly say they are making a priority of tightening ethics rules, as
a review of rules now in place shows they’re too weak to prevent
lawmakers from using state employees, time and resources on private
ventures.
The federal government says
it distributed nearly $80 million in disaster relief funds to four New
England states following a devastating ice storm a year ago.
We celebrate the birthday of Jimmy Smith, master of the Hammond B3 organ, an instrument he helped popularize during the 50’s & 60’s. As I continue to make my way through Robin D.G. Kelly’s new biography of Thelonious Monk we hear his music featuring the tenor saxes of Johnny Griffin, Coleman Hawkins & John Coltrane.
There’s
a good chance that the date of Vermont’s 2010 primary election is going to be moved up by
several weeks so that the state will be in compliance with new federal
regulations for overseas ballots.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Brigadier
General Jonathan Farnham, who will be
heading up the newly created Afghan
National Security Forces Development Assistance Bureau about his new post.
Today, a new recording featuring the Bethlehem Bach Choir of Bach’s Cantata #191 "Gloria in Excelsis Deo." Also, seasonal works by Louis-Claude Daquin and Dietrich Buxtehude, and chamber music by Tchaikovsky and Arthur Foote.
We talk about the perennial problem of drunk and buzzed driving in
Vermont, and then we check in with Brigadier General Jonathan Farnham
about his new job leading the Afghan
National Security Forces Development Assistance Bureau.
The Norwegian carol Jeg Synger Juelekvad ("I Sing a Christmas Song") is an another take on the same melody we recognize as the traditional carols, In Dulci Jubilo, and Good Christian Men, Rejoice! We’ll hear it, along with Francis Poulenc’s song cycle Un Soir de Neige ("A Snowy Evening") and Richard Harvey’s melodic Concerto Antico, based on Renaissance dance tunes.
Commentator and independent voter, Bill Schubart, recalls the Republican Party’s deep roots in Vermont and pines for a new shelter for homeless Republicans:
A federal jury found former New York Senate
leader Joseph Bruno guilty on two counts of corruption and not guilty on five
others after a landmark trial that exposed Albany’s practice of influence peddling by lawmakers.
Plymouth State University students saved the university more than
9,000 in two months during the school’s third annual "Do It
In the Dark" competition.
The Federal Aviation Administration has given
preliminary approval to expand the runway at the Rutland-Southern Vermont Regional Airport in North Clarendon.
The Peace Corps says Vermont and Maine were among the nation’s top volunteer-producing
states per capita in 2009. Vermont is ranked number 1 on a per-capita basis with 60
Peace Corps volunteers.
Holiday music slides in with favorite pianist Dave McKenna’s solo version of Let It Snow and the Eddie Higgins Trio rendition of Winter Wonderland. New releases include Howard Levy, Robert Glasper and Jared Gold.
Will Vermont Yankee have enough money to dismantle and clean up its site when
the plant shuts down? That’s
one of the big questions facing lawmakers and regulators as they consider
whether the plant should operate for another 20 years.
We’ll hear Mendelssohn’s "Variations Serieuses" this afternoon, as well as the playful and downright funny Concerto for Two Pianos by Francis Poulenc, which parodies everything and everybody from Mozart to Balinese Gamelan.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Attorney General Bill Sorrell about the results of a new report from his office on the fundraising practices some non-profits use to solicit donations.
VPr’s Jane Lindholm talks with Vermont’s Education and Finance Commissioners about their ideas for
changing school funding, in light of a declining state budget.
We hear from Education Commissioner Armando Vilaseca and Finance Commissioner James Reardon about their school budget cutting suggestions, and how they would change the school funding system. Also, a new report looks at how charities fundraise.
Bach composed a set of canonic variations for organ on the chorale ‘Vom Himmel hoch’ (From Heaven on High). Stravinsky made an arrangement for orchestra and chorus, which we’ll listen to this morning.
For being a time of the year when so little is growing outside, the airwaves are filled with berries, trees, and flowers in many seasonal carols. This morning it’s the Waltz of the Flowers from Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker, and Little Tree – a musical setting of the ee cummings poem of the same name.
When
a wealthy Northeast Kingdom man died two years ago, he left almost two miles of property
along Lake Memphremagog to the government. But there’s a catch: the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
hasn’t yet accepted the gift.
300
Vermont National Guard soldiers left for training in Indiana over the weekend. For
them and the twelve hundred army guard members who’ll follow, it’s the final
training stop before they deploy to Afghanistan early next year.
One of the great luxuries in life is to have
something custom-made for you, and the lucky Minnesota Orchestra just
got a hand-tailored piece delivered to them from the phenomenal Finnish
composer Kalevi Aho. His "Minea" starts this Minneapolis concert, and
the Orchestra sends its audience home whistling familiar tunes from
Strauss’ Der Rosenkavalier.
This week Joel Najman’s My Place program features another baker’s dozen of doowop group harmony recordings ranging from the mid-1950’s into the pre-Beatles 1960’s. Included are several old favorites as well as many obscure hard-to-find hidden gems of this genre.
Numbers are all around us, but are they really there? For those of us who are bad at math, this Saturday at 4 Radio Lab ponders if we could live in a world without numbers.
We explore the role of blues in jazz including Charles Mingus’ Better Git It In Your Soul and his bluesy version of Jitterbug Waltz, and blues from Aretha Franklin, Stanley Turrentine, Jimmy Yancey, Ornette Coleman, Sonny Rollins and Sarah Vaughan.
Commentator Jay Craven thinks that a much discussed event taking place this weekend in Lake Placid may actually be more about the present – and the future – than the past.
Tax
Commissioner Richard Westman says Vermont’s reliance on the statewide property tax to help fund
education isn’t sustainable, and he wants lawmakers to address the issue before
it becomes a major crisis.
We’ll hear the Takacs Quartet’s new recording of the Schumann Third Quartet. This recording made WNYC’s Top Ten New Music of 2009, even though it doesn’t really count as "new music." Also today, Christmas motets by Poulenc and Edouard Lalo’s "Symphonie Espagnole."
VPR’s Bob Kinzel talks with Commissioner Richard Westman and Paul Cillo, executive director of the Public Assets Institute about rising property taxes.
It’s likely the state-wide property tax rate will go up for the first time since 1997. Tax commissioner
Richard Westman discusses the reasons for the increase and his concerns for
the future.
Liber is a vocal quartet specializing in medieval and early Renaissance music. Liber will preview their Lane Series concert of old and new seasonal music live from the VPR Performance Studio at 11 a.m.
Claude Debussy’s 24 Preludes are richly inventive, imaginative works with descriptive titles to match: there are fairies, and blowing leaves, dancers and engulfed cathedrals…and footsteps in the snow. We’ll hear that wintry Prelude this morning, along with the Bella Voce Women’s Chorus in advance of this weekend’s concerts.
President Barack Obama’s latest Afghanistan strategy has certainly provoked much reaction. But, as commentator and veteran ABC News diplomatic correspondent Barrie Dunsmore tells us this morning, not much of it has been positive.
The Vermont Arts Council’s Art of
Action project is headed to the Burlington
International Airport
this month for an exhibition. The airport is one of the first
places visited by refuge when they immigrate to this country, and so it’s a
fitting place for an event this Friday night.
A
Vermont hydroelectric developer
hopes to generate power from federally owned flood control dams in Townshend
and Jamaica. Backers
say the project would benefit the towns involved and enhance the reliability
of the region’s power distribution system.
The New York
Senate vote knocking down same sex marriage is one of the few times in Albany when the outcome of a vote wasn’t known before the
measure went to the floor.
We explore different piano trios, new and old, including trios lead by Vince Guaraldi, Jeff Hamilton, Vijay Iyer, Bill Mays, James Weidman and more. Several "Best Of The Year" releases include Allen Toussaint’s The Bright Mississippi" and vocalist Melody Gardot.
Vanhal: Concerto for Double Bass in D
Stanislau Anishchanka, double bass
Munich
Chamber Orchestra
Daniel Giglberger, conductor
R. Strauss: Wie schon ist doch die Musik, from Die
Schweigsame Frau
Wilhelm Schwinghammer, bass
Munich
Radio Orchestra
John Fiore, conductor
Schubert (arr. Kurt Gillmann): Erlkonig
Falko Honisch, baritone
Munich
Radio Orchestra
John Fiore, conductor
Mozart: Violin Concerto No. 5 in A, K. 219
Kei Shirai, violin
Munich
Chamber Orchestra
Daniel Giglberger, conductor
Ravel: Introduction and Allegro
Ruriko Yamamiya, harp
Magalie Mosnier, flute
Olivier Patey, clarinet
Daniel Giglberger, violin
Max Peter Meis, violin
Kelvin Hawthorne, viola
Kristin von der Goltz, cello
Louis Spohr: Variations on ‘Je suis encore dans mon
printemps’
Anneleen Lennaerts, harp
Bizet: Je dis que rien ne m’epouvante, from Carmen
Anita Watson, soprano
Bavarian Radio Symphony
Lawrence Renes, conductor
Delibes: Bell
Song, Lakme
Hye Jung Lee, soprano
Munich
Radio Orchestra
John Fiore, conductor
Gounod: Jewel Aria, from Faust
Sunyoung Seo, soprano
Munich
Radio Orchestra
John Fiore, conductor
As the UN prepares for the global climate summit in Copenhagen next week, the world’s major economic powers are positioning themselves to win in the new climate economy. Marketplace Presents: The Climate Race looks at the economic implications of climate change.
The star of many a festive table throughout the holidays is the Turkey, inspiring commentator Ted Levin to do a little reading-up on the truth about turkeys.
An unusual coalition of very conservative and very liberal groups is backing
Senator Bernies Sanders effort to block the confirmation of
Federal Reserve Board chairman Ben Bernanke to a second term in office.
Johannes Brahms took a while to write his first symphony, and the added maturity paid off. His Symphony #1 picks up right where Beethoven left off, paying homage to Beethoven while at the same time cementing Brahms’ reputation as the new German symphonic master.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm takes a closer look at the Christmas tree industry with the head of the New Hampshire-Vermont Christmas Tree Association, Bob White.
Christmas tree growing is big business in our region. We look into how it’s grown, where our trees end up, and how to choose the perfect fir. Also, a look at different perspectives to the Hanukkah story, and where to catch performances of Handel’s Messiah.
Cellist Matt Haimovitz is 39 today. He’s become known for taking classical music into unconventional venues, such as pubs and nightclubs. We’ll hear him play Bach’s First Suite for Solo Cello.
A few ethereally gorgeous selections from the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir’s Orthodox Christmas recording, A New Joy – and Howard Shelly’s new recording of the Schumann Piano Concerto.
This weekend scholars, social workers, and activists are gathering in Montreal for a three-day international conference about violence against women. Here’s commentator and Vermont Humanities Council executive director Peter Gilbert to tell you why.
VPR’s Peter Biello talks with the founder of the PHAT program, which has doubled ski helmet use in adults and increased it 60% in children about its expansion.
Vermont state Auditor Tom Salmon says he will plead guilty to
driving under the influence of alcohol after being cited for DUI on Nov 13 in
Montpelier.
Lawmakers
and state utility regulators are asking tough questions about a plan to spin
off Vermont Yankee into a new company. They
want to know if the new corporation is taking on too much debt. And they’re
asking whether the company will have enough money to make major repairs and dismantle
the nuclear plant after it’s shut down.
Central Vermont Public Service Corporation
and the state say they’ve tentatively settled a complaint over the utility’s
staffing levels. They’ve reached an agreement that calls on the company to
eliminate 17 jobs within five years.
A car crash that took the lives of unborn
twins last summer has prompted a Vermont lawmaker to introduce a bill that would boost
penalties for crimes that harm pregnant women.
Some crewmen who
were aboard the U.S.-flagged cargo ship Maersk Alabama when it was attacked by pirates last April now say
ship captain Richard Phillips had ignored repeated warnings to keep his
freighter at least 600 miles off the African coast.
The Vermont
Health commissioner says the swine flu outbreak appears to be waning in the
state. But Dr. Wendy
Davis says the incidence of H1N1 swine flu is still widespread and there are
still many people at high risk of complications who have not been vaccinated.
New Hampshire
Congressman Paul Hodes has introduced a bill to end the bank bailout fund known
as TARP, saying the funds should go toward paying down the national debt,
instead.
The Senate’s
decision yesterday comes after months of delays and arm twisting by lawmakers who
were sympathetic to the bill but came from conservative districts. It follows a
recent referendum in Maine that struck down a gay marriage law before it could
take effect.
We celebrate the birthday of pianist Wynton Kelly and hear his key sound in Miles Davis’ Kind Of Blue along with late 50’s-early 60’s work with Hank Mobley, John Coltrane, Cannonball Adderley and Dinah Washington.
All Thanksgiving week VPR Commentators shared their stories in
the spirit of StoryCorps’ National Day of Listening. Listen to their stories and take time to record the personal stories that enrich your own life.
All
3 members of Vermont’s Congressional delegation say they have serious
reservations about President Obama’s plan to send 30,000 additional troops to Afghanistan.
French composer Albert Roussel was a bit of a hybrid…a bit o’ Debussy and Ravel, a splash of Prokofiev, and even some Haydn and Mozart thrown in. We’ll hear one of his earliest and most Impressionist works this afternoon, the Symphony #1 subtitled "The Poem of the Forest." Also today, big piano works of Grieg and Beethoven, and a mass for Christmas by Palestrina.
Chris Rimmer, Director
of Vermont Center for Ecostudies talks with VPR’s Jane Lindholm about
the first appearance of a Eurasion Collared-Dove in Vermont.
We’ll honor a listener request for Benjamin Britten’s Ceremony of Carols, in a recording by harpist Grace Cloutier and friends. Grace will perform with the Bella Voce Women’s Chorus of Vermont this weekend.
Nothing emblemizes Spain like Cervantes’ idealistic protagonist, Don Quixote. We’ll hear Telemann’s Don Quichotte suite this morning, along with the famous Gypsy Song from Bizet’s Carmen, and a selection of traditional Spanish Renaissance dances played by the Madrid-based Atrium Musicae.
Vermont’s congressional delegation is reacting to President
Barack Obama’s address on Afghanistan with concern about the cost of an additional
deployment of 30,000 troops.
A
study by two Dartmouth College professors has concluded that many ski areas
exaggerate snow totals. The
study compares snowfall reports from ski areas with the totals recorded by
nearby government weather stations.
Rutland
County Republicans have nominated Pittsford Representative Peg Flory to
fill the county senate seat left vacant by retiring senator Hull Maynard.
New York’s Legislature is scheduled to pass its $2.8 billion
deficit reduction plan, even as Gov. David Paterson said far more painful cuts
will be necessary.
Legislative
leaders want to use one million dollars in federal stimulus money to help Addison County businesses hurt by the closure of the Crown Point Bridge.
Speaking
on the Senate floor, Leahy said he’s disappointed that the administration has
decided not to join an international treaty to ban the use of land mines.
Xian Zhang, cond. Haydn: Symphony #95 in C Minor
Martinu: Piano Concerto #4 Incantation; Garrick Ohlsson, piano
Sibelius: Symphony #1 in E Minor
9:32 pm:
Herbert: Cello Concerto No.1 in D, Op.8; Lynn Harrell,
cello; Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields; Neville Marriner; London 417672
We share some jazz classics, including the tenor sax of Sonny Rollins on Impulse!, the Clifford Brown-Max Roach Quintet on Jordu and new releases including the trio lead by pianist/composer Gerald Clayton and Howard Levy’s harmonica & piano work.
VPR broadcast live President Obama’s address to the nation on Tuesday December 1 at 8. He announced his plan for the future of American forces in Afghanistan.
Gordan Nikolic, cond. Britten: Young Apollo
Mozart: Piano Conceto #12 in A Major; Dejan Lazic, piano
Mozart: Serenade #6 in D major Serenata Notturna
Honegger: Symphony #2
The recent National Day of Listening reminded commentator Judy Livingston of the story her father used to tell about how he came to be presented with a magnificent Samurai sword.
Washington County senator Phil Scott says he’ll be seeking the
Republican nomination for the office – a decision that means that there will be
a contested GOP primary.
We’ll hear Bach’s Magnificat, featured on the holiday program of the North Country Chorus later this week. We’ll also travel to Scotland with a German composer and hear a beautiful work by a different German composer who spent several years as a POW in America during World War II.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with a Dartmouth College economics professor and the president of the VT Ski Areas Assoc. about research showing some ski areas inflate snow reports.
Join our history discussion about the legacy of abolitionist John Brown and Harper’s Ferry. Also, do ski areas inflate their snow reports? And we read from some of your letters.
We’ll listen to selections from Part 1 of Handel’s Messiah. Local performances and sing-alongs get under way this coming weekend. (See VPR Messiah Watch.)
Starting today, many
New Hampshire drivers will be able to renew their licenses online. Officials say
they hope this will cut the number of people heading to the DMV.
To some 19th century abolitionist John
Brown was a folk hero. To others he was a violent terrorist. To this day Brown is considered one of the
more controversial figures of the 1800s. Tomorrow, December 2nd, marks the 150th
anniversary of Brown’s execution following his failed raid at Harper’s Ferry Virginia.
A Vermont legislative committee that reviews rules issued by
the executive agencies of state government will consider whether to allow
all-terrain vehicles on state-owned land.
Dunne was a House member for
4 terms in the 1990s, and a state senator from 2002 to 2006. He also worked for a time as the head of ‘Americorps
VISTA’ in Washington, D.C., and he now works in community relations for the
internet search engine Google.
The state of Vermont is spending more than it should on education. That’s
the conclusion reached by The Ethan Allen Institute in a report released
yesterday.
Candidates for Sheriff in at least two Southern Vermont counties will be
running for office in absentia next year. When the votes are cast, Windham County Sheriff
Keith Clark and Bennington police officer John
Behan will be stationed in Afghanistan.
Republican
state Senator Randy Brock says he’ll run for re-election to his seat from Franklin County. That
means Brock won’t run for lieutenant governor.
In the latest
episode of Albany’s failure to address a worsening state deficit, Governor
David Paterson says negotiations with the Legislature are over and its quote "last,
best offer" falls far short of what’s needed.
VPR broadcast live President Obama’s address to the nation on Tuesday December 1 at 8. He announced his plan for the future of American forces in Afghanistan.
We celebrate the birthday of Duke Ellington’s alter-ego, pianist Billy Strayhorn, hearing songs done by Duke’s Orchestra, duets with Strayhorn & Ellington and vocalists including Lena Horne, Ella Fitzgerald and Johnny Hartman.
Last Friday, people around the country participated in the second annual National Day of Listening. And that reminded commentator Rich Nadworny of a story about his grandfather’s obsession with baseball.
Brian Dunkiel is donating his time to represent the small Pacific island nation of Palau at the United Nations convention. The country is
threatened by rising sea levels caused by climate change.
We hear the piano suite "The Seasons" by Tchaikovsky, performed by Mikhail Pletnev, along with Chopin’s Third Sonata and seasonal music by Jennifer Higdon.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with lake scientest Mary Watzin, director of the Rubenstein Ecosystem Science Laboratory at UVM, about the life cycle and impact of zebra mussels on the lake environment.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Matt Dunne about why he wants to be governor, the top issues he wants to raise in the 2010 campaign, and how he’ll navigate a field of five Democratic candidates for the nomination.
Democrat Matt Dunne discusses his campaign for governor as part of our series of interviews with the six candidates in the race. And scientist Mary Watzin of UVM explains the ecological impact of zebra mussels on Lake Champain.
Charles-Valentin Alkan was a somewhat reclusive nineteenth-century French piano virituoso and composer. We’ll listen to some of his Preludes this morning, as well as Brahms’ Symphony No. 3, which the Vermont Symphony will perform on Saturday.
Last Friday, many people around the country participated in the second annual National Day of Listening – an event that reminded commentator Mike Martin of a story often told by his wife’s family in France.
A Brattleboro group is looking into building a wood chip plant that would heat most of the buildings in the town’s business district – and generate electricity.
The second part
of Vermont’s archery season for deer begins Saturday, and state
wildlife officials say hunters are seeing more big, older bucks thanks to
antler restrictions begun four years ago.
A legislative
committee that reviews rules issued by the executive agencies of state
government appears poised to object to one that would allow all-terrain
vehicles on state-owned land.
We tend to think of
farm fields as bucolic, natural landscapes. But farms increasingly rely on
plastic to store hay and silage, to build temporary greenhouses and to pot
plants.
New York Governor
David Paterson is now taking $1.6 billion worth of temporary,
emergency measures to cover the state’s December bills. That’s while he’s
continuing to try to get the Legislature to agree with $1.4 billion more to address a deficit.
Vermont’s
two largest unions say they’re concerned they haven’t been asked to take a more
active role in talks about proposed changes to pension plans.
Federal Reserve
Chairman Ben Bernanke is expected to face tough questioning during a
reappointment hearing this week, and Vermont independent Bernie Sanders says he won’t support
another term for the Fed chief.
Northern
New England’s ski industry
is viewing the upcoming season with optimism, saying the amount of snow nature
sends is a much bigger factor in determining how well the ski areas fare.
Leonard Slatkin has made a career out of finding
treasures of repertoire that few others are playing but which everyone
would profit by hearing. His partner here is the fabulous Hilary Hahn,
who’ll play Glazunov’s powerful Violin Concerto.
When lightning strikes twice, is it fate or just random chance? Today at 4, Radio Lab examines randomness and our faulty, human misunderstandings of it.
We hear from a 4CD set of vintage Frank Sinatra dueting with pianist Skitch Henderson, a "Chase" battle of the tenor saxes Fred Anderson & Kidd Jordan and a classic blues by T-Bone Walker.
As people around the country take part today in the second annual National Day of Listening, commentator Bill Mares tells a story his father told him about a gamble that paid off handsomely.
We talk with author Archer Mayor about his long running detective series set in Vermont. Then, we hear from master baker and memoirist Gesine Bullock-Prado, and we discover PoJazz!
In the spirit of the National Day of Listening, commentator Annie Lawrence Guyon recalls a story often told during her family’s Thanksgiving holidays – about the welcome they were given when they came to this country.
VPR celebrates Thanksgiving with programs that help you prepare dinner, relax with traditional music, and reflect on the meaning of the holiday. And by the way – VPR is grateful to our listeners for your support throughout the year!
Here’s our traditional Thanksgiving Day Jazz Feast with songs about Chasin’ The Bird; Carvin’ The Bird; Pass The Gravy, Sweet Potato, Frim Fran Sauce and lots more examples of Home Cookin.’ Happy Thanksgiving!
For
the second year, a group of Northeast Kingdom volunteers made sure that
Thanksgiving dinners for dozens of people ended with a helping of pie. They
were baked in the kitchen of Sterling College in Craftsbury Common.
As many people around the country participate in the National Day of Listening, commentator Mary McCallum has a family story in which the phrase "carving the turkey" takes on an entirely new meaning.
For this Thanksgiving morning, music of gratitude by Eric Whitacre (I Thank You God For This Most Amazing Day), J.S. Bach (Cantata #192: Now Thank We All Our God), and Mendelssohn’s mighty Symphony #2 – the "Hymn of Praise" symphony. Happy Thanksgiving from all of us here at VPR!
Commentator Bill Schubart grew up in Morrisville and has written about Lamoille County. He remembers a story, often repeated in his childhood, about the time when elephants grazed in Wolcott.
Hospitals throw out
millions of dollars worth of unused medical supplies every year, for a number
of reasons, such as because they’re outdated. Non-profit groups are
collecting the supplies and shipping them to developing countries. But tons of
items still wind up in landfills.
We celebrate three birthdays tonight including one of the most melodic alto sax players who’s ever lived, Paul Desmond. Two stride pianists of the first order including Willie "The Lion" Smith and Dick Wellstood.
If you’re a localvore and want to find some Vermont-grown berries, you don’t have many choices, even though it’s a native Vermont fruit. Bob Lesnikoski runs the Vermont Cranberry Company with his wife, Betsy in Fletcher. VPR’s Sarah Ashworth paid them a visit.
Kansas City native Virgil Thomas spent most of 2 decades living in Paris. While there, he said he wanted to write music "that was always, in one way or another, about Kansas City. I wanted Paris to know Kansas City, to understand the way we like to think and feel on the banks of the Kaw and the Missouri." A major work from this period is his Symphony on a Hymn Tune (1928), which we’ll listen to this morning.
As part of the National Day of Listening, commentator Deborah Doyle-Schechtman has the story of a Thanksgiving family tradition everybody loved to hate.
Thanksgiving is
traditionally the start of the season for many ski resorts. This year, thanks
to a mild fall, some resorts are wondering if they’ll be open for holiday
visitors. Stowe, Sugarbush and Okemo Mountain Resort had planned to open last
weekend but have pushed back the date because warm weather has hindered
snowmaking.
Organizers of
Operation Holiday Homecoming say they’ve raised enough money to bring Vermont
National Guard Troops home for the holidays before they deploy to Afghanistan.
The
Douglas administration has launched an investigation of the
state’s weatherization program’s finances. The
program is designed to help low-income people save money on fuel by making
their homes more energy efficient. Two
employees have been suspended with pay while the investigation is under way.
Governor
Jim Douglas says federal legislation to overhaul the nation’s health care
system could hurt states like Vermont that have already launched reform efforts.
The director of
the Windham Orchestra has been placed on unpaid leave after being cited on
charges of child pornography and trying to lure a minor by electronic means.
Doctors at Vermont’s largest hospital are questioning a recommendation
from a federal task force that breast cancer screening for women in their 40s
be scaled back
Neeme Jarvi, cond. Beethoven: Creatures of Prometheus: Overture
Mozart: Symphony #38 in D major "Prague"
Zemlinsky: Lyric Symphony; Thomas Hampson, baritone, Hillevi Matrinpelto, soprano
9:31 pm:
Scriabin: Piano Concerto in F sharp minor, Op.20; Anatol
Lugorski, piano; Chicago Symphony Orchestra; Pierre Boulez; DG 459647
We celebrate the birthdays of the great Boston baritone sax player Serge Chaloff and Teddy Wilson, pianist with Billie Holiday, Lester Young and many others. New releases include the Chicago tenor sax player Von Freeman’s Vonski Speaks.
A
major fire badly damaged a building in downtown St. Albans early this morning and closed much of the downtown. There
were no injuries. Investigators spent the morning and afternoon sifting through
rubble to determine the cause.
As part of the second annual National Day of Listening, commentator Deborah Luskin tells a favorite family story involving a Thanksgiving challenge and an outhouse.
We’ll hear Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov’s "Capriccio Espagnol" and Boccherini’s "Fandango" Guitar Quintet this afternoon, as well as chamber music by Schubert.
VPR’s Bob Kinzel talks with political analyst Eric Davis of Middlebury College about why there’s so more interest in the open governor’s seat with nearly a year to go before Election Day.
VPR’s Steve Zind talks with Professor Hany Farid, an expert in the of digital forensics, about how he determined a famous photo of Lee Harvey Oswald is real.
Political analyst Eric Davis looks at the crowded field of gubernatorial candidates for 2010. And VPR’s Steve Zind talks with a digital forensics expert about the authenticity of a famous historic photo.
David Diamond wrote his Symphony No. 1 during a summer the 26-year-old spent at the Yaddo Artist Colony near Saratoga. We’ll listen to it this morning, along with some rags by Scott Joplin.
As part of the National Day of Listening, commentator Castle Freeman has a favorite story from his own family that features a daring escape and a surprising souvenir.
Dairy
farmers and their immigrant workers are worried about a new federal enforcement
effort launched last week. The
government is investigating whether farmers have hired undocumented workers. Up
to two- thousand Mexicans work on Vermont dairy farms. And the crackdown could result in some
workers being deported.
We begin with that 1930’s vocal super group, The Mills Brothers, on their own and with guest artists Louis Armstrong, Cab Calloway & the Don Redman Orchestra. New Releases include a 2002 recording of the great Chicago Tenor player Von Freeman, otherwise known as Vonski.
When was the last time you experienced 45 minutes
of sheer bliss? Cellists love Dvorak’s Cello Concerto, and many of them
consider its gorgeous melodies and lush harmonies as comprising the
closest thing they’ll ever get to three-quarters-of-an-hour of musical
ecstasy.
As part of the National Day of Listening, commentator David Moats shares the oral history from his family in which a great aunt may – or may not – have been hit by lighting.
Capital gains revenues are down in Vermont. Officials believe a dramatic drop in the state’s second home market is a factor.
And they don’t think the market is going to rebound anytime soon.
We’ll hear Ralph Vaughan Williams’ Symphony No. 7, the "Sinfonia Antartica" this afternoon, as well as Tchaikovsky’s "Little Russian" Symphony No. 2. "Little Russia" was a name once given (and perhaps still is, among certain people) to Ukraine.
VPR’s Steve Zind talks with the CEO of the Vermont Foodbank and the Executive Director of the Vermont Campaign to End Childhood Hunger about hunger in Vermont.
Susan Clark says there are few things that highlight the differences between traditional Vermont values and modern sensibilities more provocatively than the sight of a deer carcass on a pick-up. But she finds some lessons that span the divide.
A new USDA report shows the highest hunger levels in the U.S. since 1995. In Vermont, 12% of households struggle with hunger. We look into why the issue of hunger continues to worsen. Also, Vermont’s state forests celebrate 100 years!
Incidental music by Schubert for Rosamunde, by Bizet for L’Arlesienne, and by Grieg for Peer Gynt; plus Manuel de Falla’s ballet, El Amor Brujo (Love, the Magician).
The infamous gunslinger "Billy the Kid" was born on this day in New York, we’ll hear his story told in the ballet music by Aaron Copland – and, highlights from Manuel De Falla’s ballet, The Three-Cornered Hat which premiered on this day in 1919.
The recent discovery of an insect that destroys hemlock trees is causing some alarm in southern Vermont. Now, researchers are hoping to halt the spread of the hemlock woolly adelgid by introducing an adelgid-eating beetle.
Turning off lights, turning down the heat and
buying with an eye toward energy efficiency is saving New York more than $3.1 million so far this fiscal year.
One of the biggest
environmental conundrums today is what to do with all of our trash: how to use
less, recycle more, and get rid of it without burdening the ecosystem. But there are some people who actually covet old trash
– in particular, glass that’s ended up in the sea.
This week Joel Najman’s My Place program traces the little known history of Times Square Records and its enigmatic proprietor Irving "Slim" Rose, as well as featuring records purchased by Joel at the shop nearly a half-century ago.
Organisms change, and the result is evolution. This Saturday at 4, Radio Lab tells stories of adaptation that may have you thinking differently about war, violence, and human nature.
We celebrate the birthday of Coleman Hawkins, the man credited with making the saxophone the great jazz instrument we know today. We hear the astounding range of his art, from his classic 1939 recording of Body And Soul which changed the jazz landscape, to collaborations with Duke Ellington, Thelonious Monk, Sonny Rollins and John Coltrane.
Vermont dairy farmers have been swept up in a national
enforcement effort aimed at companies that employ illegal immigrant workers. Senator Patrick Leahy says
he wants to find out if the farms are being unfairly targeted.
Democratic gubernatorial candidate Doug Racine says his approach to balancing the budget was taken by former
Republican governor Dick Snelling in the early 1990s.
VPR’s Bob Kinzel talks with Chittenden Senator Doug Racine about his positions on health care reform, the future of Vermont Yankee and his plans to stimulate the Vermont economy.
As part of our continuing series of candidate interviews, Chittenden Senator Doug Racine discusses his positions on health care reform, the future of Vermont Yankee and his plans to stimulate the Vermont economy.
UVM Theatre puts on its final performances this
weekend of "You Can’t Take it With You" by George Kaufman and Moss Hart. The play was written in
the 1930’s but its themes are just a relevant in today’s economic downturn.
Sarah Carleton directed the play, she speaks with VPR’s Peter Biello.
Advocates of train travel
who successfully fought a plan to cut service to Rutland last year are
gearing up to promote rail travel to – and for – Vermont.
According to polls out this week, public support for President Obama’s foreign policies has slipped significantly in recent months. This morning commentator Barrie Dunsmore examines what’s gone wrong for a president who began with such enormous public good will, both at home and abroad.
Back in 2000, a sold out crowd celebrated the grand
re-opening of Rutland’s Paramount Theatre.
It’s been a hub of live entertainment ever since, but starting this
weekend, the Paramount stage will also play host to the movies.
The
five Democratic candidates for governor faced off for the first time last night
in a forum that focused on environmental themes. The
candidates mostly agreed on the issues. But they tried to differentiate
themselves on the details of the issues, their experience and their approach to
governing.
A federal agency
says 136 people died in New
England from work-related
injuries last year. That’s 27 fewer than in the previous year and the lowest
number since it began compiling the statistics in 1992.
Conservative Party candidate
Doug Hoffman is writing to supporters saying he lost New York’s 23rd
House race because of scheming, and he’s asking for financial support
in case he decides to lodge a legal challenge.
Two of Vermont’s
most famous residents and one of its former governors have joined groups
opposed to the Vermont Yankee nuclear power
plant in announcing a push for Town Meeting Day votes on whether the plant
should keep operating past 2012.
Pierre Boulez, cond. Carter: Reflexions
Stranivsky: Symphony in Three Movements
Mahler: Symphony #7
9:57 pm:
Stravinsky: Ave Maria; The Tallis Scholars;
Peter Phillips; Gimell 2
Pianist and keyboardist Kenny Werner’s birthday gives us an opportunity to hear the progression of his recordings from fairly straight-ahead solo piano on standards to his recent more experimental compositions and ensembles.
TENSIONS: MUSIC AT THE POWER PLANT IN HEIMBACH
SOLOISTS: Andrea Lieberknecht, flute; Tatyana Masurenko, viola; Jana Boušková, harp
Claude Debussy (1862-1918)
Sonata in F Major for Flute, Viola and Harp, L. 137
SOLOISTS: Shai Wosner, piano; Steven Osborne, piano
Franz Schubert (1797-1828)
Rondo in A Major for Piano, Four Hands, D. 951
SOLOISTS: Christian Tetzlaff, violin; Florien Donderer, violin; Isabelle Von Keulen, viola; Rachel Roberts, viola; Quirine Viersen, cello; Gustav Rivinius, cello
Antonin DvoÅ™ák (1841-1904)
String Sextet in A Major, Op. 48
Performed on June 25, 2009 in the Power Plant in Heimbach
Recorded by Deutschlandfunk, Cologne (DLF)
SOLOISTS: Lars Vogt, piano; Veronika Eberle, violin
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Sonata in A Major for Piano and Violin, K. 526
SOLOISTS: Quirine Viersen, cello; Steven Osborne, piano
Astor Piazzolla (1921-1992)
Le Grand Tango for Cello and Piano
SOLOISTS: Isabelle van Keulen, violin; Elisabeth Kufferath, violin; Rachel Roberts, viola; Florian Donderer, viola; Quirine Viersen, cello; Tanja Tetzlaff, cello
Mark-Anthony Turnage (1960-)
Returning for String Sextet
Performed on June 26, 2009 in the Power Plant in Heimbach
Recorded by Deutschlandfunk, Cologne (DLF)
Federal immigration officials are investigating whether Vermont dairy farmers are employing illegal foreign workers. Many
Vermont dairy farms hire Mexican farmworkers to help with
milking and other chores.
Senator Bernie Sanders, who is one of two independent members of the Senate, is telling the Democrats
that he might vote against their health care reform bill if steps aren’t taken to strengthen the
legislation.
We’ll hear Robert Schumann’s "Faschingsschwank aus Wien" and Ravel’s "Miroirs" today. Also, Renaissance music by Johann Hermann Schein and Respighi’s modern twist on music from the same era.
We look at the unique challenges of going blind later in life. Also, we talk with Gabrielle Meunier whose son got sick from peanut butter crackers one year ago and her efforts to improve food safety.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with members of the Vermont Association for the Blind and Visually Impaired about the struggles faced by the non-seeing community.
From Latvia’s Georg Pelecis, pianist Alexei Lubimov performs the lilting Concertino Bianco – and the second hour is filled with romance and fairytales in music by Josef Suk, Leo Delibes, and from the Early Music Consort’s recording, "The Courtly Art of the Trouveres".
Commentator Bill Mares, a former high school history teacher, recently visited the Balkans and reflects on the history of the region – as he once taught it.
At the end of this year, H.P. Hood will stop buying milk from organic dairy farms The decision comes at a time when demand for organic milk is down, and will affect dozens of farms in Vermont, Maine, New York and New Hampshire.
New Hampshire has sold $150 million in bonds to pay for
improvements to its turnpike system that include allowing drivers to go through
some tolls without slowing down.
Gov. David Paterson and legislative leaders
say they have agreed to landmark reforms of public authorities after years of
failed attempts to force greater accountability on the entities involved in
some of New York’s biggest scandals.
Part two of our celebration of the 100th anniversary of Johnny Mercer’s birthday gives us versions of his lyrics & songs by Frank Sinatra, Billie Holiday, Charlie Parker and a vocal duet with Nat King Cole & Johnny Mercer. We finish the evening with jazz by a younger generation, represented by 19 year old alto sax player Hailey Niswanger and 20-something vocalist/composer Melody Gardot.
Fresh from a Goddard College residency, commentator Andrea Learned is all fired up about Vermont as a leader in socially responsible business and educated consuming.
Senator
Patrick Leahy is defending a decision by the Obama Administration to bring five
alleged terrorists to the U.S. for trial in the federal court system.
This afternoon we’ll hear Respighi’s brilliant "Church Windows," depicting the stained glass windows of Italian cathedrals. We’ll also hear Beethoven’s "Moonlight" sonata and a tone poem by Arnold Bax.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Joanne Bourbeau from the Humane Society and Steven Fesmire from Green Mountain College about the issue of animal cruelty.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Brian Lindner, one of the founding members of the Waterbury Backcountry Rescue Team about the logistics, risks, and expenses of wilderness rescue.
We discuss animal cruelty from legal and philosophical perspectives, and then we talk to to Brian Lindner, team leader of the Waterbury Backcountry Rescue Team.
Beethoven’s little bagatelle Fur Elise gets the morning underway, followed by William Walton’s Five Bagatelles for Guitar and Orchestra and Frederick Delius’ Two Aquarelles.
Tucked in between foliage and holiday sparkle, November seems to be a pretty drab month, but commentator Madeleine Kunin says November does have its moments.
An exclusive ski development that’s been on hold
since 2007 will open this winter for limited skiing. The Haystack Club in Wilmington will open a handful of
trails to attract prospective buyers to its proposed gated condominium resort.
Ten towns in southwestern Vermont hope to boost their purchasing power for things like
diesel fuel, road salt and heating oil with a new municipal collaborative.
State Senate Conference Leader John Sampson
says a closed-door leaders meeting hasn’t resulted in a deal to address New York’s $3.2 billion deficit, only a commitment to keep
talking for perhaps several more days.
The Vermont
Health Department says more than 700 licensed emergency medical technicians
across the state are eligible to administer the H1N1 flu vaccine.
First, we celebrate the Centenary of the birth of lyricist & vocalist Johnny Mercer and the birthday of jazz and world music trombonist Roswell Rudd. Then former VPR Jazz Host Bill Barton guest DJ’s for the 2nd hour.
There
are now 5 Democratic candidates seeking the Party’s 2010 gubernatorial
nomination. One political analyst says the winning candidate will likely be the one
who can best identify and mobilize voters.
VPR’s Jane Lidholm talks with author Peg Streep about her book Mean Mothers, which explores the influence mothers have and how daughters of distant or cruel mothers can overcome the legacy of hurt.
Andrew Stewart, publisher at Green Mountain Digital, talks with VPR’s Jane Lindolm about his company’s iPhones and iPod touch apps created in conjunction with the Audubon Society.
We talk with author Peg Streep about the influence mothers have over daughters. Also, a Vermont company has created iPhone applications from Audubon Guides.
The Bella Voce Women’s Chorus offers Gwynneth Walker’s Gifts From The Sea, and the rich listening abounds in the Treasure Waltz from Johann Strauss Jr.’s Gypsy Baron, and Marguerite’s treasure chest of jewels in her aria, "Ah! Je ris…" from Gounod’s Faust.
Former NBC correspondent Robert Hager reported on the war in Vietnam, and he remembers conditions that he says are too close to the current situation in Afghanistan… for comfort.
Construction could begin this week on a new
ferry crossing between Vermont
and New York that would take the place of the now-closed Crown Point Bridge.
The Vermont State Police say a police officer
from Dover fell asleep while on duty at the wheel of his cruiser
and caused a two-vehicle accident. Two
people were injured.
A conservative Republican radio host, blogger
and self-described citizen journalist is apologizing for calling New Hampshire’s Democratic Party chairman derogatory names –
comments his party and a leading gay activist are condemning.
The Vermont Department of Fish and Wildlife
is closing a fishing access beneath the Lake Champlain Bridge in West
Addison because of safety
threats from the now-closed bridge.
Vermont’s attorney general says the state will receive
$45,000 as part of a $3 million multistate settlement with Vonage Holdings
Corp., an Internet-based telephone company.
Former NPR reporter Sarah Chayes has been living and working in Afghanistan for almost a decade. A dynamic speaker, Chayes makes Afghanistan’s political problems easy to understand. She recently spoke at Dartmouth College about corruption in Afghanistan’s government.
One of Canada’s greatest exports, vocalist and pianist Diana Krall, turns 45 today. We hear some of her early recordings and from one of her piano heros, Nat King Cole, as part of the Lester Young Trio.
As the field of candidates widens in anticipation of next year’s gubernatorial election, commentator Bill Schubart wonders who among them will risk their election by talking plainly to Vermonters about the challenges ahead of us.
The Douglas Administration wants local school officials to hold the line on
next year’s budgets.
The
administration also plans to go to the Legislature with proposals to trim
spending on education.
Two of the most popular Romantic symphonies were written within 2 years of each other: Saint-Saens’ Symphony #3 (known as the "Organ" Symphony) in 1886 and Tchaikovsky’s 5th Symphony in 1888. We’ll hear them both today.
Sarah Chayes speaks with VPR’s Jane Lindholm about her experiences in Afghanistan and her work with a cooperative that makes skin care products from local crops.
We’ll talk with former NPR reporter Sarah Chayes about her work in Afghanistan. Also, we hear from State Auditor Tom Salmon about his recent DUI arrest.
Spanish poet and dramatist Garcia Lorca is remembered this morning with choral setting of his poem "With a Lily in Your Hand". Four Anonymous devotional Cantigas de Santa Maria extend our stay in Spain, along with Ravel’s snappy Alborada del Gracioso.
This is International Restorative Justice Week, and this year’s theme is "Communities Responding to Human Needs." Commentator Deborah Luskin sees a connection between local food and local justice.
As of this fall, all
states in the Northeast are regulating open burning – not only to prevent
wildfires, but to keep toxic smoke from polluting the region’s air.
State
Auditor Tom Salmon says his recent drunken driving charge will not affect his
future political plans. Salmon
says he admitted to police that he had had a few drinks before he was cited for
driving under the influence.
The Ticonderoga Ferry across Lake Champlain will provide service through December, weather
permitting, under an agreement reached with Vermont and New York transportation officials.
Another sign of the changing seasons, the
Vermont Transportation Agency says Route 108 through Smugglers Notch from Stowe
to Jeffersonville is closed for the winter.
Of an estimated 160 million Americans who travel
for leisure, a survey shows that one in six have included a cooking class or a
food-and-wine tour on a recent trip. Industry officials say Vermont is well positioned to become
a leader in the growing market for culinary tourism.
Everyone has a piece of desert-island music. For
conductor Paavo Järvi, it’s Mahler’s 10th Symphony. While some critics
might disagree with him, Järvi tells us why he loves this masterpiece.
This week Joel Najman’s My Place program presents an hour of pop songs that mention U.S. cities in the title and lyrics, a musical journey that travels from coast to coast.
Some creature, unbeknownst to you, living deep inside you has the ability to control your behavior. It may sound scary, but it’s more common than you think. Radio Lab uncovers the world of good and bad parasites.
In a program of birds and animals, we hear The Lark Ascending by Ralph Vaughan Williams, The Carnival of the Animals by Camille Saint-Saens, and The Birds of Ottorino Respighi.
We finish right before midnight with the Sonny Rollins/Thelonious Monk classic "Friday The 13th" We fill several requests for John Coltrane and the Dafnis Prieto Sextet.
As the holiday season gets underway and the end of the year approaches, commentator Olin Robison is thinking about the old saying that – ’tis better to give than to receive.
Senate
President Peter Shumlin says he’ll vote against a license extension for
the Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Plant, because owners of the facility haven’t
reached a rate agreement with Vermont utilities.
Every day should start with a few laughs. This morning we’ll hear from a brand new
recording that offers contemporary
musical settings of poetry by Billy Collins!
New York Governor David Paterson is resorting to even more secretive, one-on-one negotiations with legislative leaders to reach agreements on politically treacherous cuts to school aid and health care.
Two Burlington city council members want to offer a public apology to veterans offended by comments made during a Veterans Day ceremony by the representative of Mayor Bob Kiss.
We celebrate the birthday of trumpeter Buck Clayton with some classic sides with Count Basie & Lester Young. Also jazz with world vocals from David Murray and Miguel Zenon.
A "Bach Festival in Leipzig", tonight’s program from the Deutsche Welle Festival Concert Series. CONDUCTOR: Ludger Rémy
CHORUS: Himlische Cantorey
ORCHESTRA: Les Amis de Philippe
[Performed on June 20, 2009 in the Old City hall, Leipzig]
Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (1714-1788)
– Cantata, Nun danket alle Gott (Now Thank We All Our God), H805 (Wq 241)
– Cantata, Herr, lehr uns tun (Lord, Teach Us to Do), H 817
——
SOLOIST: Patrick van Goethem, countertenor
ORCHESTRA: Il Gardellino
[Performed on June 21, 2009 in the Old City Hall, Leipzig]
Wilhelm Friedemann Bach (1710-1784)
– Concerto in D Major, BR WFB C15
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
– Vergnügte Ruh, beliebte Seelenlust (Contented Rest, Beloved Soul’s Desire), BWV 170
Johann Christian Bach (1735-1782)
– Quintet in F Major, Op. 11, No. 3
Vermont is widely admired for its natural beauty and vigorous cultural identity, but commentator Tom Slayton reflects that those same qualities are also vulnerable.
For
the first time in nearly two years, state revenues have stabilized. That means
lawmakers won’t need to make major budget cuts when they return to the
Statehouse in January.
Bill Haugland spent 29 years as the evening
news anchor at CFCF, Montreal’s largest English-language television station. Now three years into his
retirement, Haugland has written his first book, a crime drama called "Mobile
9."
Longtime organic farmer Richard Wiswall has written The Organic Farmer’s Business Handbook to help farmers better manage finances and make a profit. Also, the American Friends Service Committee has long been an active part of the peace movement, but now their Montpelier office is closing.
The Legislature and Gov. David Paterson have agreed to close a loophole affecting criminals convicted a second time for murder or child sexual assault.
A report prepared for the New York Department
of Transportation says the cost of replacing a now-closed bridge over
Lake Champlain will cost $67 million and take 22 months to build.
The families of Vermonters killed in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are planning a memorial that will be built at the Vermont Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Randolph.
Bondholders who are owed more than $550 million by FairPoint Communications Inc. have withdrawn a motion asking a bankruptcy judge to appoint an examiner to investigate factors leading to FairPoint’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy last month.
News industry analysts say New Hampshire’s decision to guarantee a line of credit for the Eagle Times newspaper is a first, but probably won’t be the last example of government help for newspapers struggling with an unprecedented decline in their advertising revenue.
Well, sometimes it happens. We celebrated Hoagy Carmichael’s birthday tonight only to find out it really falls on November 22, not the 11. Still we got to hear some classic songs including, Skylark, Stardust, The Nearness Of You and others.
With the gardening season all but over, commentator Charlie Nardozzi has been contemplating the plight of the localvore in winter – and devising some strategies.
UVM professor of political science says its much more difficult for a president to rank among the nation’s top chief executives. Plus, a live performance by Vermont banjo virtuoso Gordon Stone with drummer Pape.
After an effort to force a vote in New York’s Senate to legalize same-sex marriage appeared all but lost in an extraordinary session, Gov. David Paterson is placing the bill on agendas for special sessions on Monday and Tuesday.
New Hampshire Congressman Paul Hodes is asking the United States Postal Service to present a plan to fully reimburse postal workers for wages they lost as a result of managers manipulating their electronic timecards.
The southern Vermont town of Wilmington held its Veterans Day observance a day early. Students from the region’s Twin Valley High School took the lead in organizing the event.
Margo Callaghan, managing editor of the Shelburne News, talks with VPR’s Mitch Wertlieb about a proposed 270-unit housing developemnt in Shelburne that is getting a lot of scrutiny.
Scientists say thick mats of zebra mussels in Lake Champlain can increase corrosion of things in the water near them. They say it’s possible that the tiny invasive species might have played a role in the structural damage of the Champlain Bridge.
We celebrate the birthdays of drummer Andrew Cyrille and pianist/composer Paul Bley. Local concerts include music by Christopher & David Bakriges, Jason Lindner and Edward Simon.
We’ll hear Beethoven’s 8th Symphony, a work that is often overshadowed by its siblings 7 and 9, and the Piano Sonata #31, performed by Stephen Bishop Kovacevich.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with James Sturm, the co-founder of the Center for Cartoon Studies in White River Junction about the new testimonial graphic novel and the renaissance in cartooning.
There’s a new addition to the list of Vermont-made products: sticks. That’s right those little pieces of wood we throw to our dogs are being packaged and sold far and wide.
We talk with James Sturm, co-founder of the Center for Cartoon Studies about
graphic novels. Then we hear from
Rutland Herald reporter Bruce Edwards about struggling movie theaters. And, selling genuine Vermont sticks to city-dwelling dog lovers around the country!
The Vermont attorney general’s office has issued $10,000 in civil penalties against a landlord who was accused of filing a false lead paint compliance report about a property in Lyndonville.
Advocates for same-sex marriage are hitting New York’s state capital hard, trying to sway the few votes needed for final legislative approval of the bill in a special session Tuesday.
The Vermont Yankee nuclear plant’s decommissioning fund lost money in October, after several months of recovering from last year’s big stock market declines.
We’ll start with the lively Dufay Collective, in a collection of Medieval and Renaissance Dances…and end the 9am hour with the 1925 Concertino by Leos Janacek. Five centuries of fun on this morning’s show.
Vermont’s attorney general is investigating a police officer-involved shooting in Rutland in which an officer exchanged fire with a man who fled a traffic stop.
The Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center is telling its employees living in domestic partnerships that they will need to get married or obtain a civil union or lose their benefits.
With election season just underway, Vermont Law School professor Cheryl Hanna would like to see more women declare their candidacy for statewide office. So she’s offering some practical advice.
Pianist Edward Simon brings a trio to the Vermont Jazz Center, Brattleboro this coming Saturday, November 14 and we hear two selections from his 2006 release "Unicity" A selection of New Releases fill out the show.
Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg is just as often found
these days playing folk and flamenco as she is the great classics for
violin. With Piazzolla’s Four Seasons it’s a little bit of both. Smokey
music from Argentine tango parlors which takes an absolute virtuoso’s
hand to pull off.
We’ll hear George Butterworth’s songs from "A Shropshire Lad," and the powerful 5th Symphony by Vaughan Williams this afternoon. We’ll also hear from English Baroque composer Charles Avison and a piano sonata by Irishman John Field.
VPR’s Steve Zind talks with Zoya, author of the book Zoya’s Story: An Afghan Woman’s Struggle for Freedom, about working with the Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan.
A federal appeals court says an Essex Junction
man was appropriately sentenced to eleven years in prison for defrauding
investors in his marble business.
A legislative commission appointed to look at how Vermont’s courts run, says it’s found at least $1 million in savings, and ways to be more efficient. Also, we hear from an Afghan woman who is working to protect women’s rights.
Chief Justice Paul Reiber and attorney Eileen Blackwood talk with VPR’s Jane Lindholm about making Vermont’s court system more efficient and effective for
Vermonters.
Transportation officals are working through the permit process to get a ferry service going near the Crown Point Bridge.
But as VPR’s Nina Keck reports, answers can’t come soon enough for many
on either side.
The Burlington City Council is due to vote on whether to release legal documents between attorneys working for the city about a $17 million loan to Burlington Telecom.
U.S. Senator Charles Schumer is calling for a crackdown on what he says are phony pills, gloves, inhalers, masks, shampoos and even air fresheners sold on the Internet as remedies for swine flu.
The Vermont Department of Fish and Wildlife is going to extend by a year its long-term study of the health of the trout population in one of the state’s most famous fishing rivers.
A U.S. Bankruptcy Court judge has scheduled a Nov. 18 hearing on a motion to appoint an examiner to investigate factors leading to FairPoint Communications Inc.’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy last month.
The lawyer for a Vermont slaughterhouse that was ordered shut down for allegedly mistreating baby calves says the person who secretly filmed footage that led to the closure provoked a plant worker to mistreat the animals.
The Dartmouth College Board of Trustees is asking the administration to cut $50 million a year from the college budget in each of the next two fiscal years.
Ovide Lamontagne, a conservative activist and 1996 Republican gubernatorial nominee, says he will run for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by New Hampshire Sen. Judd Gregg.
"Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,…" – that’s the opening line from Robert Frost’s The Road Not Taken, and we’ll hear a choral setting of that work this morning as sung by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir.
Twenty years ago today, the Berlin Wall was breached by thousands of East Germans. Commentator Paul Richardson remembers where he was when it happened – and what he was eating.
This week Joel Najman’s My Place program investigates the original given names of a number of 1950’s era songstresses whom we know from their hit records under their well-known professional stage names in a program titled "A Rose By Any Other Name Sounds As Sweet".
Inevitably, everything dies: humans, civilizations, even the universe. Radio Lab stares down the very moment of passing and then speculates on what may lie beyond.
Verdi’s underappreciated opera, I vespri siciliani, is performed by Martina Arroyo and Placido Domingo in a 1974 recording with James Levine conducting.
We sample some of the many song lyrics written by Gus Kahn on his birthday, including "I’ll Never Be The Same" and "Makin’ Whopee." We also celebrate the birthday of trumpeter Arturo Sandoval.
Daniele Gatti, cond. Mendelssohn: Symphony #4 in A major "Italian"
Prokofiev: Piano Concerto #4 for the Left Hand; Dmitri Alexeev, piano
Beethoven:Symphony #3 in Eb Major "Eroica"
9:57 pm:
Brahms: Hungarian Dance #10 in F; Leipzig
Gewandhaus Orchestra; Kurt Masur; Philips 411426
Democratic gubernatorial candidate Susan
Bartlett says there is no compelling reason for the Legislature to extend the
license of the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant.
Steve Delaney’s career in
broadcast journalism stretches back 50 years. Now, he’s written his first work of fiction, called
"Kevin-The Last Invisible Vermonter."
We talk with Lamoille State Senator Susan Bartlett. She’s one of four democratic candidates who have declared they’ll run for the state’s top office. Also, VPR’s Ross Sneyd on developintg stories in the region, and a look back at the voices in this week’s news.
Swedish composer Wilhelm Stenhammar was inspired to write his Serenade while spending the spring of 1907 in Florence, Italy. He wrote to a friend, ‘I’d like to compose the kind of beautiful poetry about the South of which only a Northerner is capable.’
Flu is sweeping through schools and businesses early this year. As VPR’s Ross Sneyd reports, some have been forced to close and others are dusting off their contingency plans
A panel considering the governor’s recommendation to consolidate the University of Vermont and Vermont State Colleges is recommending against merging the two institutions.
Gov. David Paterson is calling the Legislature back to Albany for a special session to cut the budget and possibly vote on legalizing same-sex marriage.
A prosecutor says state Sen. Edward Flanagan will not face charges over allegations he engaged in inappropriate sexual conduct at a Burlington health club.
Monday, November 9th, marks the 20th Anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall and the effective end of the Cold War. As ABC’s top foreign correspondent, commentator Barrie Dunsmore was in Berlin that night. This morning he reflects on some of the people who made that historic event possible.
Baroque masterworks by Handel and Purcell, a new Schumann Piano Quintet recording, and mezzo-soprano Magdalena Kozena’s album "Songs My Mother Taught Me" will be heard for the first time on VPR Classical this afternoon.
Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra, cond. by Kristjan Jarvi
Bernstein: Overture to Candide
Udo Zimmermann: Songs of an Island; Jan Vogler, cello
Carter: Cello Concerto; jan Vogler, cello
Rachmaninoff: Symphonic Dances, op. 45
This evening, we’ll hear Autumn Gardens, a 1999 work by Einojuhani Rautavaara that juxtaposes the beauty and the desolation of the autumn season. We’ll also listen to two pieces by Samuel Barber that were premiered on this date in 1938 and the majestic Violin Sonata by Cesar Franck.
Pianist Di Wu, a finalist at the most recent Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, visits the VPR Performance Studio for a live performance on VPR Classical.
A judge has ordered that a lien be placed on a
portion of the investments of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Burlington to cover
a $2.2 million jury award to a former altar boy.
New York’s Independence Party is courting the one-time
Republican candidate in the 23rd Congressional District as she completes her
state Assembly term.
A key Vermont lawmaker
says he thinks there’s still a possibility the Legislature will vote this
coming session on whether to extend the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant’s license.
New Hampshire’s two senators are hailing Senate passage of a bill that would extend unemployment insurance benefits to workers in every state who are in danger of seeing their benefits run out in the coming weeks.
Burlington resident and avid internet user Rich Nadworney has been following the Burlington Telecom issue and is hopeful something good may emerge from the controversy.
We celebrate the birthday of stride pianist Ralph Sutton and feature some recent favorites including the duet album with trumpeter Mark Isham and Australian vocalist Kate Ceberano.
program name: "From the Danube to the Rhine"
Bramwell Tovey, cond. Strauss, Jr: The Gypsy Baron Overture
Liszt: Piano Concerto #2 in A Major; Simone Dinnerstein, piano
Ravel: Bolero
Brahms: Hungarian Dances #4 and #10
R. Strauss: Suite from Der Rosenkavalier
Brahms: Hungarian March #5
9:38 pm:
Haydn: Symphony No.77 in B flat; Orpheus Chamber Orchestra;
DG 415365
In the new world of eBooks, Kindles, and big- box price wars driving small book stores out of business, commentator Bill Schubart remembers one of Vermont’s great booksellers.
Transportation officials say they’re still looking for sites for a temporary
bridge and a wintertime ferry to serve commuters who used to drive over the Champlain Bridge.
Pianist Joel Fan is a member of Yo-Yo Ma’s Silk Road Ensemble. We’ll hear him play Schumann’s Piano Sonata No. 2, in advance of his performance in St. Johnsbury on Saturday.
This week, in honor of national Alzheimer’s Awareness Month, the Vermont Veterans Home in Bennington invited an Alzheimer’s expert to talk about what works – and what doesn’t – to reduce the risk of the disease.
House Speaker Terie Norelli says New Hampshire’s legislative branch won’t need to lay off or furlough any workers to comply with a mandate to save money.
Legislative leaders say it will be "very difficult" to vote next year on whether Vermont Yankee’s license should be extended after the nuclear plant’s owners failed to meet a Nov. 1 deadline set by the Legislature to reach an agreement with the state’s utility companies.
As the cold season returns to the Northeast,
residents, utilities and emergency managers say they’re better prepared, thanks
to lessons from the December 2008 ice storm.
Santiago de Murcia gives us a lively selection of "Canarios" – dances
with origins in the Canary Islands – and the birdsongs continue with
Schmelzer’s "Imitation Cuckoo" sonata, and the Cantus Arcticus Concerto for birds by Einojuhani Rautavaara.
Commentator and Vermont Humanities Council executive director Peter Gilbert has noticed that around the world people are finding things – amazing stuff – but why this spate of wonderful discoveries should be happening now, he doesn’t know.
A legislative committee had tough questions for
the state’s top environmental official over a proposal that would allow
all-terrain vehicles to cross state land.
Dvorak’s 5th Symphony is probably the latest of his "early" symphonies, and reflects a lot of the musiscal maturity that is contained in his later works. We’ll hear it today, as well as Beethoven’s Piano Concerto #1.
Howard Dean has emerged as a leading spokesperson in encouraging Congress to pass a comprehensive health care reform bill. He discusses the latest Democratic plan in Washington and the fight that the legislation faces in the coming weeks.
Officials are turning to the research arm of Landmark College in Putney to help retain community college students who may be falling through the cracks.
Vice President Joe Biden spoke at a rally Monday to support Democratic congressional candidate Bill Owens, who is facing third-party Conservative Party candidate Doug Hoffman in the special House election today .
The House Republican leader says he regrets that he and other members of his party spent time and money supporting the GOP nominee in a special House election in upstate New York.
As the days get shorter, commentator Vic Henningsen has been thinking about things he hasn’t finished – and wondering why he’s so concerned about them.
A Vermont slaughterhouse ordered closed Friday for alleged inhumane treatment of baby calves had its operating license suspended at least twice earlier this year for similar conduct.
Roman Kofman, conducting, featuring the women of the Netherlands Radio Choir, directed by Grete Pedersen.
Dvorak: The Golden Spinning Wheel
Schumann: 8 Partsongs for Women’s Chorus
Bartok: Three Village Scenes
Kodaly: Symphony in C
We celebrate birthdays of the Chicago vocalist Kurt Elling, alto saxophonist Phil Woods, pianist Frank Kimbrough & enjoy several takes on the Full Beaver Moon.
Chopin will have 200 candles on his birthday cake
next March, and the music world is going to celebrate. Daniel Barenboim
is a Chopin-lover of the highest order, and he gets the party started a
bit early with both of Chopin’s gorgeous Concertos.
Recently, commentator Bill Mares revisted Jack Kerouac’s classic work, ON THE ROAD. Today, he ventures an assessment of the famous Beat poet and novelist.
The Humane Society of the United States accuses a federal inspector of condoning alleged
animal abuse at a Grand Isle slaughterhouse that was shut down last week.
Pam Blair’s two sons are in the Vermont National Guard and both left last week on a deployment that will take them to Afghanistan. VPR’s Steve Zind spoke with her last week about what she’s feeling as her sons prepared to leave.
We talk to Jon Erickson, co-editor of the new book "The Great
Experiment in Conservation: Voices from the Adirondack
Park," about the successes and
failures of this region just across the water.
We talk with Jon Erickson, UVM professor and co-editor of the book "The
Great Experiment in Conservation: voices from the Adirondack Park."
Then we talk to Pam Blair, whose two sons have just deployed to
Afghanistan.
Today’s music will include Mozart’s "Dissonant" String Quartet; Rodrigo’s Concierto-Serenata for Harp and Orchestra; and Scriabin’s "Divine Poem" Symphony.
A New Hampshire lawmaker wants the state to acknowledge the role slaves played in its development by creating a monument on or near the capitol’s grounds.
Joel Najman presents an hour of pop songs dealing with witches, ghosts, ghouls, zombies and other creatures of the dark as well as several of Halloween’s most famous novelty songs.
Radio Lab dives into one of the most controversial moments in broadcasting history – Orson Welles’ 1938 radio play about Martians invading New Jersey. And we ask: Why did it fool people? Could it happen again?
The proprietor of the Adams Farm in Wilmington says bad weather and
the bad economy are among the factors forcing her to close a popular Southern Vermont attraction.
We scare ourselves silly with spooky, trite & profound jazz Halloween music gathered together, carved up and lit by a candle. The classic Blues For Dracula with Philly Joe Jones makes an appearence.
Put down your torch and pitchfork
and join the Capitol Steps for Politics Takes a Holiday. Enjoy this listener favorite as they
musically skewer everything left, right and wrong with the country
today!
Congressman
Peter Welch says he supports a new health care reform bill that was unveiled by
House Democratic leaders this week. But he
isn’t sure the bill will garner enough Democratic support to win approval.
When it
comes to Halloween parades – Rutland hosts one of the biggest. This Saturday, thousands of people, many in
costume – will line the streets to celebrate the city’s 50th annual
Halloween Parade.
We anticipate Halloween with some favorites associated with the holiday: Bach’s Toccata and Fugue in D minor; Dukas’ Sorcerer’s Apprentice, Richard Strauss’ Til Eulenspiegel’s Merry Pranks; plus Gustav Mahler’s Seventh Symphony, sometimes called the "Song of the Night."
Reporter Steve Zind talks with VPR’s Mitch Wertlieb about the hundreds of members of the Vermont National Guard that today, begin their journey to deployment in Afghanistan
Franklin County prosecutor Jim Hughes says he won’t file criminal charges in the case of a 23-year-old woman who died in prison because she wasn’t given her heart medication.
Vermont’s congressional delegation says the state’s Air National Guard base is a finalist to become one of the first operational bases for the next generation fighter plane, the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter.
The driver of a Green Mountain Transit bus that plowed into a line of traffic on Interstate 89 last May says he’s not guilty of negligent operation of a motor vehicle.
Officials say the federal stimulus program created about 400 fewer jobs in Vermont than once thought because the calculations used to count the jobs were changed.
FairPoint Communications says it expects to seek $30 million in concessions from unions as part of its Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing, and that has workers and retirees worried.
From his part in the Four Brothers version of Woody Herman’s band to his duets with guitarist Joe Pass, we sample & celebrate Zoot Sims’ tenor sax. We also hear his wonderful work with the unique violinist Joe Venuti.
The Knights, conducted by Eric Jacobsen.
Dawn Upshaw, soprano
Charles Ives
(1874-1954)
The Unanswered
Question
Osvaldo Golijov
(1960-)
Night of the Flying
Horses
Franz Schubert
(1797-1828) / Osvaldo Golijov
She Was Here
Richard Rogers
(1902-1979)
He Was Too Good to Me
from Simple Simon
Leonard Bernstein
(1918-1990)
Somewhere from West Side Story
Stephen Sondheim
(1930-)
There Won’t be
Trumpets from Anyone Can Whistle
What More Do I Need
from Saturday Night
Johann Sebastian Bach
(1685-1750) / Steven Beck
Chorale, O Haupt voll
Blut und Wunden from St. Matthew
Passion, BWV 224 (Adapted for Orchestra)
Ludwig van Beethoven
(1770-1827)
Symphony No. 7 in A Minor, Op. 92
Jimi Hendrix
(1942-1970)
Machine Gun
Dmitry Shostakovich
(1906-1975)
Waltz
No. 1
from the Jazz Suite No.
When his own small town lost its general store recently, commentator Geoff Shields found himself thinking about what service a town needs most to survive.
A
number of Norwich University’s Corps of Cadets belong to the Vermont
National Guard – and they’re preparing to deploy to Afghanistan. For
some, part of that preparation has included taking a class to help them better
deal with the changes they’re about to experience.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm joins a group of biologists at the Greely Mine in Stockbridge to place healthy bats from Wisconsin in a cave to see if they contract white nose syndrome.
In his Symphony No. 2, Danish composer Carl Nielsen depicts the four temperaments, or humours, which the ancients believed make up the human personality. 1) Choleric: impetuous, excitable, irascible. 2) Phlegmatic: diffident, reserved, quiet. 3) Melancholic: sad, plaintive. 4) Sanguine: cheerful, optimistic.
All three members of Vermont’s Congressional delegation are encouraging their colleagues to include a strong public option plan in the health care reform bill. Now an "opt out" option has entered the discussion.
Vermont’s lone congressman says Goldman Sachs should repay taxpayers the $12.9 billion it received through American International Group before it awards bonuses to employees this year.
The state of Vermont is trying to shut down a Milton junkyard The Vermont Attorney General’s Office filed paperwork Tuesday seeking a court order to get ABC Metals Recycling to stop accepting material.
I’ll talk with the Ying Quartet this morning in advance of their Fri. night (10/30) performance at the Hop. And, we’ll remember the Met Opera debut of the great Maria Callas, on this day in 1956.
The man leading Vermont National Guard troops into Afghanistan says they could face hazardous duty in the war-ravaged nation, which is experiencing an uptick in U.S. casualties.
We celebrate the birthday of Andy Bey, who with his piano and vocals, often at a whisper, takes jazz standards and quietly re-works them into short story gems. Classic Art Blakey begins each hour.
Alan Gilbert, cond. Beethoven: Egmont Overture
Mozart: Symphony #41 in C Major "Jupiter"
Beethoven: Symphony #7 in A Major
Mendelssohn: Octet: Scherzo (arr. for orchestra)
9:21 pm:
Delius: Florida
Suite; Orchestra of Welsh National Opera; Sir Charles Mackerras; Decca 460290
A legislative consultant says Vermont Yankee failed to disclose that some of
its underground pipes have leaked radioactive material into the Connecticut River.
Vermont health officials haven’t released any details about the person who
died, other than to say it was an adult with a serious underlying condition.
We’ll hear the Piano Concerto by Xaver Scharwenka, and a tone poem by Arnold Bax. Also, Shostakovich attempts jazz, and symphonies by Haydn and Brahms.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Vermont Agency of Transportation Secretary David Dill and New York State Department of Transportation Acting Commissioner Stanley Gee about the state’s response to the Crown Point Bridge closing.
VPR’s Jane LIndholm takes a drive with Barbara Brody, who recently won the nation’s highest award for excellence in driver and traffic safety education.
Composer, conductor, educator Howard Hanson was born on the 28th of October in 1896. We’ll listen to 2 works he wrote for his wife, a Serenade and a Pastorale.
Police at opposite ends of Vermont are searching for suspects who robbed two Chittenden Banks within a few minutes of each other almost 200 miles apart.
Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco offers a Spanish version of the traditional Italian tarantella, we’ll hear a listener request for Cecilia Bartoli singing Bellini, and dance along to Borodin, Glazunov, and Mozart.
Vocalist Dee Dee Bridgewater comes to town November 1st at the Flynn in Burlington and we sample of her work. New releases included the Roy Hargrove Big Band and Brian Lynch’s Afro Cuban Jazz Orchestra.
What surprised commentator Deborah Luskin about the H1N1 virus was not how sick it made her, but how fast it spread. Here’s her tail about surviving swine flu.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with the executive directors of the Vermont League of Cities and Towns and Vermotn Civil Liberties Union about secrecy in government.
We talk about government transparency in light of the Burlington and Montpelier financial controversies; discuss the Medical Reserve Corps with Tig Tillinghast; and answer your questions and emails in our recurring mailbag segment.
VPR’s Mitch Wertlieb talks with former Chairman of the Vermont Public Service Board, Michael Dworkin about FairPoint Communications’ bankruptcy filing.
A Barre electronics manufacturer is poised to begin construction on a 52,000-square-foot manufacturing facility, which is expected to create 150 new jobs.
Vermont Transportation Agency officials are planning a public meeting for Tuesday to discuss alternatives for people who can no longer use the Lake Champlain Bridge to reach Crown Point, N.Y.
The Federal Aviation Administration says the pilot of a small plane was killed when his aircraft hit a mountain near Bennington close to the border of New York state.
Governor John Lynch says New Hampshire will work to protect consumers in FairPoint Communications’ effort to reorganize now that it has filed for bankruptcy protection.
Jan Willem de Vriend, cond. Handel: Music for the Royal Fireworks
Haydn: Cello Concerto in D Major; Gregor Horsch, cello
Mozart: Idomeneo Overture
Schubert: Symphony #5 in Bb Major
We enjoy the range of jazz by celebrating the birthdays of bandleader & alto saxophonist Charlie Barnet, Warne Marsh’s tenor sax, Eddie Henderson’s trumpet and the greatest singer of gospel – Mahalia Jackson.
The region’s dominant landline phone company has filed for bankruptcy. FairPoint
Communications says customers will not be affected by its plans to restructure
debt.
Swine flu vaccination clinics have begun at Vermont schools. But
there’s not enough vaccine to go around, and the virus already has struck in a
lot of places.
The new head of the state’s Child Care and Child Development Division talks with VPR’s Jane Lindholm about working to remove obstacles for quality child care in Vermont
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with author Ron Schick about his book that looks at the photographs that were used as inspiration for Norman Rockwell’s paintings.
New Hampshire lawmakers are mulling whether to override Gov. John Lynch’s veto of bills meant to speed up the legal process for divorcing couples and to ease the backlog of jury trials by letting retired judges hear them.
Thanks to your support we were able to end the autumn membership drive
successfully around 8:30 this morning. THANK YOU! We’ll celebrate with
a morning of rhapsodies by George Gershwin, Dvorak, Liszt, Vaughan
Williams, and Stanford to serenade the new day.
Telecommunications services provider FairPoint Communications Inc. said Monday it has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection after agreeing on a deal with key lenders that will help lower its debt by $1.7 billion.
Emergency crews from throughout Vermont will resume searching early Monday for a plane that reportedly crashed in the woods near Bennington after finding no sign of the aircraft overnight.
Senator Bernie Sanders is gathering with public safety officials from around Vermont to talk about a big boost in federal funding for first responders.
Two Vermont Senate committees will take up the question of whether there was an adequate review of the geology surrounding the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant when it was allowed to store radioactive waste in dry casks on plant property.
Vermont ski areas say they will be using fewer workers from abroad this winter because of strong local demand for jobs and new visa policies that make foreign hiring less attractive for the resorts.
Lawmakers will vote Wednesday whether to override Gov. John Lynch’s veto of a bill that would make New Hampshire the 14th state to legalize marijuana use by severely ill people.
Bradford dairy farmer James Wilson produced his globes in the early 1800s. Today, only a few are in existence, including one at the Bradford Historical Society.
This week Joel Najman’s My Place program features a collection of female vocals from the early to mid 1960’s. Included are familiar hits as well as several interesting should-have-been hits and obscuriities.
This weekend marks an international day of action designed to raise awareness
on climate change. On
the eve of the event, one of the country’s leading environmental activists came
to Vermont with a message of both hope and warning.
Walter Parker and Joe Goetz have a special morning of music planned, including the premiere of many new recordings from the VPR music library. Then at Noon, it’s an encore of the exciting annual "American Musical Sampler" program on Saturday Afternoon at the Opera with Peter Fox Smith!
Governor Jim Douglas has finalized a deal that will help bring several hundred
new jobs to the Northeast Kingdom. Douglas made the announcement from Seoul,
South Korea, on the first stop on a multi-nation tour of the Far East.
The closing of the Crown Point Bridge connecting Vermont and New York has affected hundreds of regular commuters, business
owners, and visitors. It has also put a spotlight on the span’s historic
origins.
We look at ways seniors can stay active and healthy through nutrition, exercise, travel, and adventure. Also, Burlington Free Press reporter Terri Hallenbeck fills us in on troubles at Burlington Telecom.
Music and musicians to be heard in the area this weekend, including violinist Soovin Kim, Schubert’s Unfinished Symphony, Arensky’s Piano Trio No. 1, and the Bella Voce Women’s Chorus; plus Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture.
A Burlington middle school and a former race track in Pownal could soon be generating solar electricity under a new state energy program picked by lottery.
Sen. Patrick Leahy is hailing U.S. Senate passage of legislation broadening federal hate-crimes law to cover crimes based on gender, sexual orientation and disability.
Heading into the weekend with memorable music by Mozart, Rossini, Gershwin, and Grieg. Is there something you’re forgetting? We’re here to offer a gentle reminder that VPR Classical is a service we all help create ans support, through membership dollars. Please support the service by clicking on "Support VPR" above. Thank you!
The White House decision to do battle with FOX News is seen by many liberals in the media as justified – but bad politics. This morning veteran ABC News diplomatic correspondent and VPR commentator Barrie Dunsmore examines the issue.
Saddled by crippling debt, FairPoint Communications Inc. is asking its union employees in northern New England for pay cuts and other concessions as it seeks to avert filing for bankruptcy.
The union representing most of New Hampshire’s state workers is suing to regain the right for senior laid-off workers to "bump" junior colleagues out of their jobs.
This week, we hear the Chicago Symphony under the direction of some of its past conductors, from Frederick Stock and Fritz Reiner to Sir Georg Solti and Daniel Barenboim. The music is by Wagner, Copland, Beethoven, and Richard Strauss.
Two
large groups have joined together to protect Vermont’s public pension system from significant changes. But
AARP-Vermont and the state’s Teachers Association say some changes to the current system are needed.
Last month,
the makers of the "Monster" energy drink told the brewers of "Vermonster" beer
that the beer’s label was a copyright violation. But with a
small-versus-large story, the Morrisville brewer fought back with an army
of social media networkers.
The Agency of Natural Resources now says it wants to create a pilot program for up to three trails on state property. Environmentalists say the proposal still goes too far, and could lead to a surge in illegal riding.
Empty desks are showing up at schools, colleges and workplaces around the state as people come down with the swine flu. But, as VPR’s Ross Sneyd reports, shipments of a vaccine to help slow the spread have been slow to arrive.
Producers of Vermont’s "specialty crops" – including fruits, vegetables and maple products – could be in line for more than $200,000 in grants made available through last year’s federal Farm Bill.
The Basin Harbor Club is planning to start a pedestrian ferry that will shuttle passengers between Vermont and New York while the Lake Champlain Bridge is out of service.
Vermont utility regulators are doing something unusual. The Public Service Board is holding a lottery to see which solar and biomass power developers get to sell their power at above-market prices.
The governors of Vermont, Maine and New Hampshire say they want assurances from FairPoint Communications that any debt restructuring by the company doesn’t further erode customer service.
VPR’s Mitch Wertlieb talks with comedian Paula Poundstone who returns to her New England roots this weekend with shows in Burlington, Vermont and Lebanon, New Hampshire.
Music by Vaughan Williams, Gabrieli and Mozart to get the morning off to a lively start. Why lively? Because we’ve got some work to do to make sure VPR Classical is secure and supported enough to continue growing into the future. Your ‘simple gift’ will add to those of others and keep VPR Classical strong and growing. Please make your pledge by clicking on "Support VPR" above, and thanks if you already have!
We celebrate the birthdays of Don Byas(tenor sax), Dizzy Gillespie(trumpet) and pianist Fred Hersch. Don Byas played in several of Dizzy’s groups before leaving for Europe in the 1940’s. Fred Hersch is one of the most recorded artists over the last 20 years.
A
Morrisville Vermont brewer is breathing a sigh of relief today. Rock Art
Brewery, which makes the popular ‘Vermonster’ beer, has apparently won its
battle with Hansen Natural Corporation, maker of Monster Energy Drinks.
Senate
President Peter Shumlin says the owner of Vermont Yankee, the Entergy
Corporation, is taking actions that make it less likely the Legislature will
vote to extend the plant’s license beyond 2012.
We’ll hear Soovin Kim’s recording of a Faure sonata with pianist Jeremy Denk in anticipation of his appearance with the VSO this weekend, and hear the Schumann symphony that rounds out the Saturday evening program.
We take a look at what all of Vermont’s top per capita rankings mean. Also, the Vermont Symphony Orchestra celebrates 75 years, and a town postcard from Bradford.
This Sunday a new professional orchestra makes its debut at the Claremont Opera House: The Connecticut River Valley Orchestra, directed by Max Culpepper will play Beethoven’s Egmont Overture, Schubert’s Unfinished Symphony, Grieg’s Peer Gynt Suite No. 1, and several selections featuring tuba virtuoso Oystein Baadsvik. We’ll listen to the Grieg this morning.
The ‘suite’ sounds of Respghi, Schnittke, and Philadelphia’s Renaissance Wind Band, Piffaro serenade the morning. Perfect music to encourage you to support VPR Classical, your 24-hour source for great music! Click on "Support VPR" above. Thanks.
Commentator Willem Lange recently spent some time observing migrating hawks and other raptors, and he’s gotten a lot out of it – including a stiff neck from looking up.
Alan Gilbert, cond
Lindberg: EXPO
Ives: Symphony #2
Ives: The Unanswered Question
Beethoven: Piano Concerto #4 in G Major; Emanuel Ax, piano
9:44 pm: Copland: Concerto for Piano and Orchestra; Garrick Ohlsson, piano; San Francisco Symphony; Michael Tilson Thomas; RCA 68541
Jelly Roll Morton declared himself the inventor of jazz. We listen to some of his 1938 Library Of Congress recordings as well as his Red Hot Peppers band releases.
Like most of us, commentator Bill Mares doesn’t have a solution for the Afghanistan quagmire. Indeed, with the help of two long-time observers on the situation, he has more questions.
Vermont says the closing of the Crown Point Bridge is now a federal highway emergency. The Agency of
Transportation says that should help streamline permitting to repair or replace
the bridge – and to get the money for the work.
By
promoting a federal investor-visa program, Governor Jim Douglas hopes to encourage
wealthy foreigners to make large investments in Vermont companies.
Krystian Zimerman plays Rachmaninoff’s 2nd Piano Concerto. We’ll also hear Barcarolles by Chopin and Offenbach, and a bright and early string quartet by Haydn.
We talk with members of the Blue Ribbon Tax Structure Commission about Vermont’s tax system, and their work to determine whether or not the system is fair. And, we visit with Cuban artist Aluan Arguelles.
Senator Bernie Sanders and the Vermont Library Association say they’re disappointed with some revisions to the Patriot Act that have been supported by Senator Patrick Leahy.
Vermont’s Roman Catholic bishop is holding special masses across the state for National Guard soldiers getting ready to head to Afghanistan and their families.
Vermont’s Roman Catholic bishop is holding special masses across the state for National Guard soldiers getting ready to head to Afghanistan and their families.
Vermont Transportation Secretary David Dill is planning to meet with reporters to discuss the closing of the Crown Point Bridge that crosses Lake Champlain between Vermont and New York.
Supporters of legalized marijuana use are praising a Justice Department memo that tells federal prosecutors not to go after people who are using or distributing marijuana in compliance with state medical marijuana laws.
Thank you for supporting VPR and allowing us to build our music library! If you’re not yet a contributing listener, please help us continue to bringing this service to the region by clicking on "Support VPR" up above.
We share an opening set of Money Songs, including Romance Without Finance and Pennies From Heaven and celebrate the birthday of Eddie Daniels, a master of clarinet & tenor sax.
Rachmaninoff: isle of the Dead
Tchaikovsky: Violin Concerto in D Major; Hilary Hahn, violin
Saint-Saens: Symphony #3 "Organ"
Sevarud: "Minnesota" Symphony #8, first movement
The Douglas Administration has made some changes
in top technology positions as it re-focuses its efforts to bring broadband and
cell phone service to all corners of the state.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with author Marc Boglioli and former Burlington Free Press Outdoors editor Matt Crawford about the tradition of hunting in Vermont.
We explore the traditions and culture of
hunting-how it reflects our rural heritage, how it influences environmental conservation, and
how our attitudes have changed. Also, we hear ideas on how to improve child care.
Late in his life, Claude Debussy began composing what he planned to be six sonatas for diverse instruments, in the manner of Bach’s six Brandenburg Concerti for diverse instruments. Unfortunately, he only finished three sonatas. We’ll listen to the Sonata for Flute, Viola, and Harp.
The Museum of Modern Art in New York City is calling a Vermont man’s donation of more than $10 million the largest unexpected gift of its kind in its history.
With the U.S. dollar hitting a 14-month low against the Canadian dollar, businesses along Vermont’s border are wondering if the changing currency values could help stimulate their economy.
Middlebury College used to heat its buildings with oil, then switched to wood chips. Now, it’s planting a sustainable and relatively cheap fuel source – willow shrubs – that could help cut demand on the state’s forests.
The head of the Vermont National Guard and the Rutland Fire Chief have been appointed to the regional council of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
Police say a New Jersey trucker is facing state drug charges after federal agents found 371 pounds of marijuana in his truck at the Highgate Springs port of entry.
Vivaldi’s music foreshadows the oncoming season – please do you part to support VPR today, and enjoy the service as a contributing listener when winter comes!
Commentator and Vermont Law school professor Cheryl Hanna was at the United States Supreme Court recently to hear arguments and she can’t believe how much the Court has changed.
The first edition of All the Traditions was broadcast on October 16, 1996, and and so today I am especially thankful, happy that the show is still on the air, and please to have introduced so much new music to so many listeners!
This week Joel Najman’s My Place program looks back at some of the memorable doowop style recordings from years ago and also focuses on the recordings of legendary bass singer Ronnie Bright
When Lilly Ledbetter learned her male coworkers were paid more for
doing equal work, she filed a complaint and began a wage discrimination
debate that landed in the Supreme Court. Ledbetter appeared at Vermont Technical College
with Senator Patrick Leahy on Saturday, October 17th.
This Saturday will be filled with the sounds of dance music, new additions to our music library, and an afternoon of opera favorites and new discoveries. Join Walter Parker, Joe Goetz, Peter Fox Smith and Cheryl Willoughby for a special day of music!
Over the past few months, I’ve been featuring new recordings and new additions to the VPR Classical music library on Friday afternoons. This morning we’ll listen to some of the best of those recordings, and maybe even throw in a few brand new ones.
Television news anchor Marselis Parsons retires this week from WCAX-TV. He discusses the changes in jurnalism over his 42 years on the air. Also, Sen. Patrick Leahy talks with VPR’s Bob Kinzel about the role of anti-trust laws in the health insurance industry.
Our music will include 3 Characteristic Pieces for Piano by Amy Beach, the Tragic Overture of Johannes Brahms, and the Poetic Waltzes for Guitar of Enrique Granados.
Officials in Montpelier have been swept up in controversy since it was disclosed that the city overpaid a contractor thousands of dollars. Now a criminal investigation into possible larceny and other misdeeds has opened.
The New Hampshire Department of Safety has ordered law enforcement agencies to stop running background checks before returning confiscated firearms to their owners, saying it’s a misuse of the system.
A new commission promoting economic development in northern border regions of New York, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine has won $1.5 million in federal funding.
Vermont’s public service commissioner says Burlington broke the law when it used city money to set up a telecommunications service. But Mayor Bob Kiss says the city has done nothing illegal in setting up Burlington Telecom.
Representatives from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, local dairy cooperatives and the Vermont Agency of Agriculture are meeting to discuss the current plight facing dairy farmers.
New Hampshire Rep. Paul Hodes wants rules aimed at protecting people from sudden hikes in interest rates on credit cards to take effect ahead of schedule.
What do we do with the money that comes in during a pledge drive? It’s turned right back around into providing you with the best programming we can offer. Please take a moment to click on "Support VPR" above and do your part for the service we all rely upon!
We hear jazz selected to inspire you to call and make a pledge of financial support to you public radio station, VPR. Make a pledge now at VPR.net And thanks.
All-Sibelius program:
The Swan of Tuonela
Lemminkainen in Tuonela
Violin Concerto in D Minor; Lisa Batiashvili, violin
Rakastaava for Strings
Symphony #5 in Eb Major
9:57 pm: Schubert: Der Jngling an der Quelle, D.300; Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, baritone; Gerald Moore, piano; EMI 69503
Federal economic stimulus spending has created or retained almost 2,000
jobs in Vermont.
That’s
according to a report released today by Tom Evslin, who is Vermont’s chief recovery officer.
Captain Richard Phillips of Underhill says he
hasn’t been to sea since his dramatic rescue from Somali pirates in April, but he plans to return to his
ship next year. In the meantime he’s
been busy with opportunities that arose as a result of his celebrity
status.
This
weekend, former governor Madeleine Kunin will be receiving the Eleanor
Roosevelt Val-Kill Medal. The award is given every year to those who’ve lived by values that were heralded by
the former first lady – among them, social justice, and racial and gender
equality.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Captain Richard Phillips and fellow Merchant Marine Michael Willard, about Phillips ordeal with pirates off the coast of Somalia.
Dartmouth student Keisha Luce went to Vietnam earlier this year to find victims of Agent Orange – the defoliant used by the U.S. military during the Vietnam War. Her plan was to document their stories and create sculptures capturing the deformities believed to be caused by exposure to Agent
Managers of the multi-state lottery games Powerball and Mega Millions are asking states to participate in both games, rather than just one. As
VPR’s Ross Sneyd reports, the Vermont Lottery Commission will take up the
question next week.
Senator Bernie Sanders is hailing President Barack Obama’s call for Congress to approve $250 payments to more than 50 million seniors to make up for no increase in Social Security next year.
A Killington lawyer who caused a traffic accident and then lied about it to police – saying his wife was the one behind the wheel – is going to prison.
New England scored well in the most recent round of math testing for school-aged students taking the National Assessment of Educational Progress tests.
New Hampshire has been chosen as one of two states to receive a Justice Department grant because it’s victim witness office has been recognized as a model homicide services program.
The state of Vermont has reached settlements with two consumer debt companies accused of doing business without a license and failing to comply with the state’s Consumer Fraud Act.
A contractor’s failure to return what city of Montpelier officials say was an accidental overpayment of $462,000 was referred today for possible criminal prosecution.
Music for the transitional time of the year. Is it time for you to make the transition from listener to supporting listener? Please help pay for this classical music service, click on "Support VPR" above. Thanks so much!
Tonight is the night of one of the most venerable Washington events at which politicians and others crack jokes at the expense of their opponents – and themselves. Here’s commentator and executive director of the Vermont Humanities Council Peter Gilbert with the details.
I love membership drives where listeners do their part in supporting VPR and it’s commitment to air Jazz Monday through Friday. Take a moment to call 1-800-639-6391 or go to VPR.net and make a pledge of financial support.
And thanks.
Our Membership Drive kicks off with new jazz, young jazz vocalists and piano jazz from every direction, all made possible by your support. Please call 1-800-639-6391 or pledge online at VPR.net to show your support for jazz and all the programing you enjoy on VPR. And thanks.
Paintings of Lake Champlain by some of Vermont’s leading artists are now hanging at the Vermont State House. The show’s title is "Champlain’s Lake Rediscovered," and, after seeing it, commentator Tom Slayton has these thoughts.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with the director of the Food & Environment Program at the Union of Concerned Scientists about human health and the the use of antibiotics in animals.
The editors of college newspapers discuss why the tradition of the
campus paper still matters. Also, the use of antibiotics on animals and how that affects the food system.
We’ll celebrate the 81st birthday of pianist Gary Graffman with his classic 1964 recording of Rachmaninoff’s Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, with Leonard Bernstein and the New York Philharmonic.
Legislative leaders from around northern New England say they may be asked to step in if the region’s dominant telephone company fails. So they plan to gather in New Hampshire next month to plot out a joint strategy.
Vermont’s mental health commissioner says the state psychiatric hospital is nearly full and regional hospitals are operating at 80% capacity as officials try to come up expansion plans.
People seeking to stop New York agencies from recognizing same-sex marriages performed outside the state say the practice amounts to a policy decision that requires approval by lawmakers.
Farmers from North Dakota and Vermont and four others trying to plant hemp seeds at the headquarters of the Drug Enforcement Agency have been arrested.
The city of Montpelier’s disclosure of a $462,000 accounting error that dates to 2004 has officials in Vermont’s capital city scrambling – and residents demanding to know why it wasn’t made public sooner.
Legislators in Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont have announced a meeting next month to discuss the northern New England telecommunications network operated by FairPoint Communications.
Gov. John Lynch says 250 workers will lose their jobs and another 60 will be demoted now that New Hampshire’s largest state employee union has rejected a contract that included 19 furlough days.
We celebrate the 50th anniversary of Dave Brubeck’s Time Out and the centennary of the birth (10.13.1909) of pianist Art Tatum. We encourage your support of VPR with your pledge of financial support at vpr.net.
As
Congress considers the pros and cons of creating a new public health care plan,
some advocates in Vermont want state lawmakers to adopt a similar model here.
Christina Asquith recounts the two years she spent in Baghdad reporting on the Iraq war in a new book, "Sisters In War." As conditions for
journalists deteriorated, Asquith hid with an Iraqi family, and was given a
close-up look at how the war affected their lives.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talk with Tal Birdsey about his new book, A Room for Learning: The Making of a School in Vermont, which chronicles a private middle school’s first year.
For school districts that don’t have their own high school, families
choose which school their kids attend. But as school boards look for
ways to save money, limiting school choice might be an answer.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Vermont’s education commissioner, former Rutland superintendent and a member of the organization Vermonters for Better Education about the economics of operating schools.
We’ll listen to Mozart’s Oboe Concerto played by Randall Wolfgang with his colleagues of the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra. Wolfgang will play music of Poulenc and Honegger at this Saturday’s Capital City Concert in Montpelier.
As hundreds of Vermont National Guard soldiers begin mobilizing for deployment to Afghanistan, Vermonters will be called on to support the family members who will be left behind.
New York’s top court is set to hear arguments against providing government benefits to same sex couples married in Canada or other jurisdictions where such marriages are legal.
New Hampshire health officials say in response to an increase in mental health problems among servicemen and women, the state is hosting a training session for 175 participants.
New Hampshire’s Stonyfield Farm yogurt company has won a national award for its efforts to cut carbon dioxide emissions and fuel consumption in its freight operations.
We belatedly celebrate the birthday (10.10.1917) of Thelonious Monk, the greatest jazz composer after Duke Ellington. His bands included two of the best tenor sax players, John Coltrane & Charlie Rouse.
The energetic young conductor Gustavo Dudamel makes his debut as the Los Angeles Philharmonic’s new maestro, In Concert @8 on Monday evening, October 12th. Don’t miss one of the most anticipated classical events of the season!
Even though the price of heating oil is much
lower than a year ago, state officials say the demand for Vermont’s low income heating assistance program is growing.
UVM Professor Saleem Ali says our urge to buy material goods may actually benefit society and propel us toward new discoveries and technologies. Also, we talk with Valley News reporter John Gregg.
Music for Columbus Day from the Waverley Consort’s album "1492: Music from the Age of Discovery." We’ll also celebrate the birthday of Ralph Vaughan Williams with his Symphony No. 5.
The town of Marlboro is closing in on the purchase of 600 acres on either side of Vermont Route 9 to preserve the former Hogback Ski Area and its famous "hundred-mile view," which has attracted tourists for almost a century.
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont says it’s voluntarily covering the cost of swine flu vaccinations in hopes of getting the shots for as many people as possible.
A former Middlebury College student who got hurt after falling from the Vermont college’s rock-climbing wall has sued the school, saying it took inadequate safety precautions.
Last night’s cool air gave us the first widespread hard frost of the season. Spirit-warming classics for the cold start to the day, including the Empire Brass’ recording The Glory of Venice, and Morten Lauridsen’s gorgeous setting of the traditional text, O Magnum Mysterium – O, great mystery.
Along with most of the rest of the world, commentator Jay Parini had a complex series of reactions when he heard that President Obama was to receive the Nobel Prize for Peace.
Upcoming local concerts by John Sebastian, Mark Savoy, and Kevin Burke, to name a few, and a fond farewell to Argentinian diva Mercedes Sosa, who passed on last week.
Crest Records was one of the small independent record companies that proliferated during the early days of the Rock & Roll explosion, successfully competing with the much larger major companies that dominated the music industry during previous decades. Founded in Los Angeles in 1955, Crest Records released a total of 115 45rpm singles before it closed its doors in 1962. This week Joel Najman’s My Place program samples 15 of those releases, among them the earliest solo recordings by Rock legend Eddie Cochran.
Women have traditionally gotten short
shrift in American history books. But
two Rutland area women are trying to change that with a unique
new exhibit highlighting the living history of Jewish women in Vermont.
We celebrate the birthdays of trumpeter Harry "Sweets" Edison, pianist Abdullah Ibrahim and multi-indtrumentalist Yusef Lateef along with the late trumpeter Lester Bowie.
UVM
president Dan Fogel is urging Congress to exempt VSAC, the Vermont Student
Assistance Corporation, from proposed legislation that’s designed to reform
student loan programs throughout the country.
Senator Patrick Leahy says awarding the Nobel Peace Prize to President Obama is a clear signal that the world
community sees the President’s leadership on foreign affairs as a positive step
in helping to resolve difficult international issues.
VPR’s Bob Kinzel talks with UVM President Dan Fogel about how the university has dealt with financial concerns, and whether Vermont students are being priced out of higher education opportunities at UVM.
UVM President Dan Fogel discusses how the university has dealt with recent financial concerns and the proposed 6-percent increase in next year’s tuition.
When writing a concerto to celebrate his 50th anniversary as a performer, Saint-Saens found inspiration in Egypt, where he sometimes spent part of the winter. His "Egyptian" Concerto incorporates sounds he heard on the Nile, from a boatman’s love song to crickets and frogs. We’ll hear it played by pianist Stephen Hough.
According to a new report, there were 17 substantiated cases of harassment at the Vermont Transportation Agency over the past three years. And about a third of the cases involved deliberate harassment of women by male employees.
The Appalachian Trail runs 2,175 miles – from Georgia to Maine. Hiking it can take a lifetime, but this Saturday the Dartmouth Outing Club hopes to cover the trail in a single day.
The Vermont Department of Public Service has reached an agreement with the owners of the Vermont Yankee on its proposal to spin off the nuclear power plant to a new company called Enexus.
Jules Massenet offers a fanciful vision of Hungary in his Orchestral Suite #2, "ScenesHongroises", and Franz Schubert gives us his Overture "In the Italian Style".
President Barack Obama is struggling with the most important national security decision of his presidency so far- whether to send more American troops to Afghanistan. This morning, veteran ABC News diplomatic correspondent and VPR commentator Barrie Dunsmore looks at Obama’s quandary.
A contractor for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security must pay $1.4 million in back wages to 237 workers following an investigation of employee misclassification by the federal Department of Labor.
Senate Democrats have reached a deal to extend unemployment insurance benefits to workers in every state who are in danger of seeing their benefits run dry in the coming weeks.
New Hampshire health care providers have begun administering the swine flu vaccine, though some are still waiting for shipments they expected earlier this week.
Bartok: Excerpts from Bluebeard’s Castle
Bruckner: Symphony #2 in C Minor
Beethoven: Symphony #5 in C Minor
9:57 pm:
William Schuman: Mail Order Madrigals: Attention, ladies!;
The Joyful Company of Singers; Peter Broadbent; ASV 939
We talk with Ben Jaffe from the Preservation Hall Jazz Band. The band is playing at Burlington’s Flynn Center on Friday, October 9th in support of the Vermont Foodbank.
Gautier Capucon, cello; Gabriela Montero, piano
Prokofiev: Sonata in C Major, Op. 119
Mendelssohn: Sonata #2 in D Major, Op. 58
Rachmaninoff: Sonata in G Minor, Op. 19
Rachmaninoff: Vocalise Op. 34/14
Rachmaninoff: Variation #18 from Paganini Rhapsody
Montero: Improvisation on a theme from Beethoven’s First Piano Concerto
VPR’s Steve Zind talks with Larry Doane, who commands Bravo Troop, first of the 172nd Cavalry of the Vermont National Guard and who will be deployed to Afghanistan in the coming months.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Trevor Lashua of the Vermont League of Cities and Towns and Johnathan Croft of the Agency of Transportation about ancient roads in Vermont..
Towns across the state are finding that the process of identifying which old roads are public thoroughfares and which are not can be complex and sometimes contentious.
For his Oboe Concerto, inspired by the memory of his father, composer Eric Ewazen borrowed a line from Richard Feagler, who described the souls of our departed loved ones as "moving, though they can’t feel the current, down a river of time."
A group of river enthusiasts is trying to draw people closer to a river in an unusual way. As part of a collaboration with Northeast public radio stations, WFCR’s Jill Kaufman reports on a Connecticut River song-writing contest.
Same-sex couples can now apply for marriage licenses in New Hampshire – though the unions can’t be performed until Jan. 1 when the state’s law legalizing the unions takes effect.
The University of Vermont is undergoing a process designed to make the school stand out academically at a time when colleges and universities are becoming more price competitive.
Three northern New England colleges are among 26 receiving the highest score from a nonprofit group that rated schools on their sustainability efforts.
Not so long ago, many people thought that "tax reform" meant taxes would go down. Commentator Judy Livingston has been thinking about why things haven’t quite worked out that way.
The University of Vermont and its maintenance workers have reached an impasse in contract talks. Both
sides say the biggest difference between them is how much salaries would go up
in a new three-year contract.
Two of the most famous musical figures of the past half century share a birthday: Swiss conductor Charles Dutoit and cellist Yo Yo Ma. We’ll hear from both of them throughout the afternoon.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with the Director of the Veterans Education and Training State Approving Agency about the implications of the Post 9-11 GI Bill for Vermont vets.
Ever wish you could take a better photograph? Not sure how to capture the best light? Or how to find inspiration? We answer all of your photography questions! Also, an update on the GI Bill.
Cellist Yo-Yo Ma is 54 today. We’ll listen to him in a Cello Sonata by Beethoven. Conductor Charles Dutoit is 73 today. We’ll hear him in a Symphony by Rachmaninoff.
Health officials say they expect plenty of flu vaccine will be available for the upcoming season, but they concede that some deliveries have been delayed.
Gov. Jim Douglas has appointed David Fenster to be Addison County state’s attorney, replacing the longtime prosecutor John Quinn, who retired last month.
A legislative committee has approved rules opening the door a bit for people with sex crime convictions who want to be left off Vermont’s newly expanded Internet sex offender registry.
It’s uncertain if Vermont Yankee will meet a Nov. 1 deadline to offer future power contract to the state’s utilities, setting up the prospect that the Legislature won’t vote on the relicensing of the nuclear power plant this session.
Eric Whitacre is one of the most prominent voices on today’s choral music scene, writing scores of original settings for verse of all kinds including contemporary poetry and sacred texts. For autumn, his setting of the Latin text Lux Aurumque – "Light of Gold" in this morning’s music.
Jaap van Zweden, cond. Tchiakovsky: Orchestral Suite #4 "Mozartiana"
Rachmaninoff: Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini; Enrico Pace, piano
Ravel: Mother Goose
The head of Vermont’s largest electric utility said political leaders
need to get involved in negotiations over the future of the Vermont Yankee
nuclear plant.
Little-known: Szymanowski’s Symphony #4. Well-known: Mussorgsky’s "Pictures at an Exhibition" as orchestrated by Ravel. And plenty of other music, too.
Congress will pay dairy farmers one time emergency aid payments of between $5,000 and $25,000 to help offset low milk prices. But many wonder if it will be enough? Also, a Vermont author looks into the history of female astronauts.
During the First World War, English composer Ralph Vaughan Williams drove an ambulance in France. At the end of the day, if the War was quiet, he drove his ambulance to a spot where he watched the sun set over the landscape. During these moments, his Pastoral Symphony began to take shape. We’ll listen to it this morning.
Burlington Electric officials say a power failure that left about 5,000 customers without electricity was caused by a ground wire coming into contact with a live wire.
Energy and the future of the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant will top the agenda when the state’s leading manufacturers’ group holds its annual meeting in Montpelier.
We preview two concerts coming up this week, The Preservation Hall Jazz Band at Flynn Center in Burlington this Friday & The Helio Alves Trio in Brattleboro on Saturday night. A quiet sampler of New Releases follows.
With all the news of struggles in this bad economy, commentator Andrea Learned sees a silver lining in the power consumers now have to force the issue of corporate social responsibility.
We’ll hear music by Bach and his three most musical sons, symphonies of Haydn and Rimsky-Korsakov, and piano music by Ravel performed pianist/skin care specialist Angela Jia Kim.
The debate over the 787 billion dollar federal stimulus package pits those who see it as an ineffective and ultimately damaging effort to revive the economy against those who argue only government had the resources to do what was necessary to avert disaster. Justin Wolfers is associate professor of business and public policy at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. Jeffrey Miron is director of undergraduate studies at Harvard University. The two are in town for a University of Vermont debate on the federal stimulus. They spoke with VPR’s Jane Lindholm about the debate.
A trio of progeny of great musicians will be at Bennington College Tuesday evening. Pianist Peter Serkin (son of pianist Rudolf Serkin) joins with the teenaged sisters Madalyn and Cicely Parnas (granddaughters of cellist Leslie Parnas). We’ll listen to Peter play a Mozart Piano Concerto and the sisters Parnas play Duets by Gliere this morning.
This past weekend in Washington a different kind of debate about the role of guard members in the Afghan war was held, and Lincoln representative Mike Fisher was there.
Vermont has launched a new effort to promote development of renewable energy by requiring utilities to pay fixed rates for solar, wind, biomass and other renewable resources.
A family whose dairy farm is on Vermont’s border with Canada is hoping it can work out an alternative to the federal government’s plan to take 10 acres of their land for an expanded border station.
The New Hampshire Fish and Game Department says the 2009 deer hunt outlook calls for a 5 to 10 percent increase over the nearly 11,000 deer killed statewide last year.
Vermont Humanities Council Executive Director and VPR Commentator Peter Gilbert recently went back and read a classic book that remains as thought-provoking today as it was when it was published 45 years ago.
The state of Vermont is considering buying a 1923 Lincoln believed to have been used by Calvin "Silent Cal" Coolidge, the native son who became president.
For over 45 years folk singer Mary Travers was a member of Peter, Paul and Mary. She passed away on September 16th, and this week Joel Najman’s My Place celebrates Travers’ lifetime of music and social activism.
Breweries from all over Vermont, New
England and as far away as California will be in Killington on Saturday for the
ski resort’s 14th annual "Brewfest."
Tenor Saxophones are featured tonight including Sonny Rollins, John Coltrane, Hank Mobley & Johnny Griffin plus several Charlie Christian/Benny Goodman songs recorded 70 years ago on October 2nd 1939.
At this time of year, when most of us are just beginning to think about winter, many gardeners – including commentator Henry Homeyer – are already thinking about spring.
Schubert’s song, "Death and the Maiden," and his string quartet that contains a set of variations on the song; Vincent d’Indy’s Symphony on a French Mountain Air, and a pastoral choral setting by Dvorak.
Composer Arthur Bliss came across a book of heraldry, which ascribed certain associations to particular colors. It inspired him to write his Colour Symphony in 1922. The four movements are Purple (amethysts, pageantry, royalty, death); Red (rubies, wine, revelry, furnaces, courage, magic); Blue (sapphires, deep water, skies, loyalty, melancholy); and Green (emeralds, hope, youth, joy, spring, victory).
Each year during the first week in October, the American Library Association sponsors Banned Book Week, along with a coalition of book sellers and publishers.
Eleven high school students in Bow, N.H., including the district superintendent’s son, are being disciplined after apparently violating a conduct code banning drinking, drugs and smoking.
Vermont doctor Charles Houston, who was part of two expeditions to the world’s second-highest peak and studied how the body responds in low-oxygen situations, has died at age 96.
VPR’s Mitch Wertlieb speaks with Vermont poet and festival committee member Wyn Cooper about some of the events and highlights for literature lovers of all ages taking place at the Brattleboro Literary Festival this weekend.
The "Art of Action," an art show that looks at the future of Vermont is now showing in Brattleboro and will travel throughout Vermont in the coming year. Commentator Tom Slayton saw the show recently and has these comments.
Jaap van Zweden, cond. Wagenaar: Cyrano de Bergerac
Liszt: Piano Concerto #2 in A; Jean-Yves Thibaudet, piano
Bruckner: Symphony #5 in Bb Major
9:57 pm:
Beethoven: The Ruins of Athens:
Turkish March; St. Louis Symphony
Orchestra; Leonard Slatkin; RCA 7716
Health care reform, climate change and the prospect of sending more troops to Afghanistan are some of the key issues being debated in Washington. Senator Patrick Leahy discusses these topics and many other issues currently facing Congress.
Dave Holland’s birthday brings in a wealth of friends including Miles Davis, Herbie Hancock, Roy Haynes and more, in addition to Dave Holland’s own ensembles.
SOLOISTS: Anna Korondy,
soprano; Jörg Waschinski, countertenor; Jörg Gottschick, bass
ENSEMBLE: Ensemble Arcadia
George Frideric Handel (1685-1759)
Nel Dolce Tempo, Cantata for Soprano and
Basso Continuo, HWV 135a
Dalla Guerra amorosa, Cantata for
Soprano and Basso Continuo, HWV 102b
Dalla Guerra amorosa, Cantata for Bass
and Basso Continuo, HWV 102a
Quando sperasti, or core, Cantata for
Soprano and Basso Continuo, HWV 153
Nell’ africane selve, Cantata for Bass
and Basso Continuo, HWV 136a
Se tu non lasci amore, Chamber Trio No. 1 for Two Sopranos, Bass and Basso Continuo,
HWV 201a
Performed on June 6, 2009 in the Francke
Foundation, Halle
Recorded by Central German Radio, Halle (MDR)
"Life Stories" is a new collection of original works by Russian writers published
in the U.S. by Russian Information Services, which is based in Montpelier. All proceeds from the book will benefit Russian hospice care.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Dr. Cy Jordan and Helen Riehle from the Vermont Program for Quality in Health Care, who put out an annual report on medical care in the state.
Brian Dubie discusses his decision to run for governor. And, we talk with the authors of an annual report that looks at the overall quality of medical care in the state.
A Burlington group that advocates for workers is holding a series of forums around the state to persuade lawmakers that they should adopt a single-payer health care plan.
Residents in one Vermont neighborhood are so angry about a number of trees destroyed by vandals that they are offering a reward for information that leads to an arrest.
October’s here, bringing out the hunters in music by Mehul and von Weber – and a burnished bouquet of autumn-blooming flowers by Scottish composer James Oswald. We’ll also hear from 2006 National poet laureate Donald Hall, reading his poem "Kicking the Leaves".
New Hampshire’s health and human services commissioner says unless adjustments are made, Medicaid and state welfare assistance spending will have to be cut because of rising caseloads.
We celebrate the birthday of Oscar Pettiford (bass & cello) and Fall with songs of apples & what we do with them: apple cider and Scrapple From The Apple. Plus Charles Mingus on piano instead of us usual bass.
At the same time that Champlain was exploring further north, Henry Hudson was sailing through what would become New York City. Commentator Ted Levin has been trying to imagine what it looked like back then.
Despite
months of complaints about poor service, the region’s major phone company
declared today that there is no evidence to justify the state’s
legal action.
We’ll celebrate the birthdays of violinist David Oistrakh and Irish composer Charles V. Stanford. Oistrakh collaborates with George Szell and Mstislav Rostropovich in Brahms’ Double Concerto, and we’ll hear choral music and a little-known concerto by Stanford.
Vermonter Peter Galbraith is being recalled from his diplomatic post in Kabul after a disagreement over how to address disputed election results in that country. Galbraith served as second-in-command of the United Nations mission in Afghanistan.
Since the founding of Orvis, the state has been home to a long tradition of companies that cater to outdoor activities. We look into how the industry has grown and changed. Also, a talk with children’s book author Kate Messner.
When Felix Mendelssohn’s beloved older sister Fanny died suddenly in the spring of 1847, he was distraught. They had been close since childhood. Felix could not compose for months. When he did resume, with his own health failing, he wrote one of his most anguished and personal works, the String Quartet in F minor. We’ll listen to this last complete work of Mendelssohn played by the Emerson Quartet, who will include it on their program at Middlebury College Friday.
Vermont is on track to have much of the state covered with high speed Internet by the end of next year. But the agency charged with overseeing the telecommunications work says it may be more difficult to blanket the entire state with cell phone service.
New York State will get its first doses of swine flu vaccine next week, with many reserved for health care workers, some of whom oppose the mandatory inoculations.
Green Mountain Power Corp. could end up paying most of the municipal taxes in northern Vermont town of Lowell, if it’s allowed to build a proposed wind power project.
A lawyer for a former altar boy says the Roman Catholic Diocese of Burlington disregarded the welfare of children when it hired a priest with a history of child molestation allegations.
The Greek myth of Herucles includes the story of the hero in exile: dressed in women’s clothes, and forced to spin yarn for the Lydian Queen Omphale. We’ll hear that story spun in music by Camille Saint-Saens – and, the spinning chorus from Wagner’s Flying Dutchman.
Marcus Stenz, cond. Serly: Rhapsody for Viola and Orchestra; Lawrence Power, viola
Bartok: Viola COnceto; Lawrence Power, viola
Ketting: Trajecten (commissioned work)
Kodaly; Suite from Harry Janos
Governor
Jim Douglas is leading the opposition to a congressional plan that would
require states to help pay for expanding the Medicaid program. Douglas says the plan is an unfunded mandate that will impose unfair financial
burdens on many states.
Allen Gilbert, executive director of the Vermont ACLU, speaks with VPR’s Neal Charnoff about Banned Books Week and a special event Wednesday evening called "An Evening Without".
We’ll celebrate the birthday of one of the best opera conductors in
recent memory, Richard Bonynge, and hear concerti for horn and cello by Mozart and Haydn.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with naturalist and self described bird diva Bridget Butler about fall bird migrations and find out which ones of our feathered friends will keep us company throughout the winter months.
As the Vermont National Guard prepares for a large deployment of soldiers to Afghanistan, staff psychologists and the family readiness program are working to ensure that both soldiers and family members are mentally prepared for war.
"Bird Diva" Bridget Butler talks all things ornithological on Vermont Edition’s fall bird show. Also, winter weather predictions from the Old Farmer’s Almanac.
Like Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring, with which it is contemporary, Debussy’s ballet Khamma involves a female who dances herself to death. Set in ancient Egypt, it’s a colorful but rarely-performed piece that we’ll listen to this morning.
Governor Jim Douglas will be in North Clarendon Tuesday to celebrate the grand opening of Vermont’s first wood pellet plant. As VPR’s Nina Keck reports, the new company is especially welcome in Rutland County
New Hampshire Gov. John Lynch and state economic development officials are meeting with Claremont area business leaders to discuss how government can work with them better.
Vermont state officials are gearing up for a forum on flu preparations Tuesday in Rutland, and have added Barre to the list of locations where similar events will be held.
Author David Hess, professor at the Rensselaer Department of Science and Technology is speaking tonight at Marlboro College on a few topics but also wide ranging themes.
Conductor Richard Bonynge has a birthday today (9/29/1930), and it’s the anniversary of the premiere of Bizet’s opera, The Pearl-Fishers. We’ll hear the famous duet "au fond du temple saint" this morning in celebration.
New Releases including the SFJazz Collective with Joe Lovano, solo piano blues from Jessica Williams and a tribute to Aretha Franklin called Project A.
Listen to Paul Roberts, author of "The End of Food," at 8 Monday evening. Roberts spoke at UVM as part of the George D Aiken Lecture Series last week. Hear his dicussion about the shortcomings of our food system and what you can do to make it more sustainable.
Commentator Deborah Luskin used to manage a medical practice that went out of business – because they could no longer afford health insurance for their employees.
We’ll celebrate the birthday of the great horn virtuoso Giovanni Punto, hear an autumnal symphony by Brahms, and celebrate the life of pianist Alicia de Larrocha, who passed away on Friday.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Vermont National Guard psychologist Jon Coffin and Major Randy Gates, Family Program director for the Vermont National Guard, about mentally preparing for war.
The psychological preparation for soldiers and their families is
getting special attention as Vermonters face a large deployment to
Afghanistan. And a nutrition program for low-income moms sees important changes.
Beloved Spanish pianist Alicia de Larrocha died late Friday at age 86. We’ll remember her with a full program of her recordings, from Bach’s Chaconne to Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 20 to Schumann’s Carnaval; with plenty of her countrymen Granados, Falla, and Albeniz.
Traditionally at the end of fasting during Yom Kippur, Jewish families started work on a hand-built structure used to celebrate the next holiday, Sukkot. For the Bennington Jewish community, the tradition is taking on new meaning.
Remembering Catalonian pianist Alicia de Larrocha today with music of Andalusia, and then we’ll travel right across the sea for Camille Saint-Saens’ music from Algiers.
Commentator Art Woolf thinks that individual Americans have learned some important lessons from the recession but the public sector hasn’t gotten the message.
Officials with Burlington’s municipal telephone, cable and Internet service say they expect it will be late Tuesday or Wednesday when they file an expansion plan with the Vermont Public Service Board.
A manufacturer of rubber protective gear is getting $243,000 from the state of Vermont to set up a facility in Milton that will provide 30 jobs within the next two years.
Peregrine falcons in New Hampshire had their best breeding season in half a century this year – even though one pair of birds deserted the state for Maine.
More forays into wonderful new music that has arrived here at the station in the past few weeks, and a special dedication to folk icon Mary Travers, who passed away last week.
Joel Najman remembers Earl Palmer, a year after the drummer’s death in September of 2008. In a professional career as a studio musician that extended over six decades, Earl Palmer played on countless recording sessions and became the most recorded drummer in the history of the music industry.
It’s always a treat to follow Marian McPartland’s Piano Jazz, esp. when she has a guest like Roy Eldridge. We begin our show with examples of Roy’s trumpet work with Billie Holiday and Charles Mingus and move on to birthday celebrations of the tenor saxophonists Sam Rivers & Bill Pierce.
For many weeks President Barak Obama has focused his attention on health care reform. However as commentator Barrie Dunsmore notes, this week the problems of the world have captured the president’s attention and they are even harder to fix than health care.
Vermont has been able to avoid the nasty tone of political
debates that’s heard in many other parts of the country – at least, that’s the
opinion of several political observers.
Schumann’s Kreisleriana is not based on the real composer Fritz Kreisler, but on an imaginary Kreisler from a novel by E.T.A. Hoffman. This Kreisler is a gifted but fledgling composer who is ultimately a failure. We’ll hear a new recording by pianist Vassily Primakov, who should be much, much more famous than he actually is. Great stuff, don’t miss it!
Congressman
Peter Welch is backing legislation that he says will help protect thousands of
elderly Vermonters from a significant increase in Medicare premiums.
Peter Nixon, president of FairPoint Communications, says that while customers will see a dramatic
improvement in service and billing by the end of the year, the
company still may have to file for bankruptcy.
Has the country completely lost its ability to have a civil political discussion? Dartmouth Professor Linda Fowler and St. Michael’s College Professor Bill Grover offer their thoughts on the subject.
The Senate opened anti-trust hearings in the dairy industry, Bernie
Sanders called for a new Afghanistan exit strategy, the Douglas
Administration made plans to cut 300 state jobs, Brian Dubie and now
Matt Dunne considered entering the gubernatorial race and Dartmouth
College installed a new president. These were some of the voices in the
news this week.
Has the country completely lost its ability to have a civil political discussion? Dartmouth Professor Linda Fowler and St. Michael’s College Professor Bill Grover offer their thoughts on the subject.
Time for an autumn roadtrip! We’ll do some leaf-peeping along the way as we make musical stops in Brazil, Hungary, Spain, and take a side-trip through the Gypsy-inspired stylings of Brahms and Pablo de Sarasate.
During the war, 120,000 men, women and children were interned by the U.S. government, essentially for looking like the enemy. After the war they were free to go. But where? Many had lost everything. So the challenge was where and how to return home – how to
once again "belong".
Passenger service in and out of Rutland’s airport is the highest it’s been in 20 years. But a lack of airfield
improvements is preventing even more growth.
From the 2009 Dvorak Festival, Sir Mark Elder, cond. In Nature’s Realm, Op. 91
Romance in F Minor, Op. 11; Rachel Barton Pine, violin
Song to the Moon from Rusalka; Patricia Racette, soprano
Cello Conceto in B Minor, Op. 104; Alisa Weilerstein, cello
Symphony #8 in G Major
9:57 pm:
Handel: Hornpipe; Academy
of Ancient Music; Christopher
Hogwood; L’oiseau-lyre 436132
Birthdays of trumpeter Fats Navarro and vibes & marimba player Jay Hoggard surround new releases from Mark Isham & Kate Ceberano, David Binney and his quartet.
Cincinnati Pops conductor Erich Kunzel died on September 1st, leaving behind a simple wish: he wanted to be remembered by having his recordings played around the country. The Spectacular Legacy of Erich Kunzel honors that wish, and offers remembrances from many of Kunzel’s friends and colleagues.
Former
state senator Matt Dunne says he’s considering entering the Gubernatorial race
because he says Vermont has an opportunity to adopt an innovative agenda.
Reporter John Dillon talks with VPR’s Jane Lindholm about the politics of the impasse in the negotiations to cut personnel
costs failed between the Douglas administration and the
state employees union.
Amid meetings at the UN in New York this week, US envoy to the United Nations mission in Afghanistan Peter Galbraith joins VPR’s Jane Lindholm to discuss Afghan politics and the role of the international community in creating stability there.
Diplomat Peter Galbraith joins us to discuss the accusations of fraud in Afghanistan’s elections. The Vermonter serves as a deputy chief for the united Nations in Kabul. Also, an examination of politics and budgets numbers in the layoff of state workers that is set to begin. And trip into farm fields with the Vermont FoodBank’s gleaning program.
We’ll listen to the world premier recording of the Bold Island Suite by Howard Hanson, inspired by the coast of Maine. It’s conducted by Erich Kunzel, who lived on the Maine coast. Kunzel died earlier this month and will be the subject of a special at 8 this evening on VPR Classical.
Thousands spent World War II in "camps," held by their own government, being forcibly held in an internment camp run by the military, complete with guard towers and barbed wire fences.
A spokeswoman for FairPoint Communications says the company has been told its stock could be removed from the New York Stock Exchange because it has sold for less than $1 for 30 days.
We celebrate the birthdays of boogie-woogie pianist Albert Ammons; composer, band leader, arranger and tenor saxophonist Frank Foster; pianist Les McCann and John Coltrane.
We celebrate the 100th birthday of Blanche Moyse, among the founders of the Marlboro Music Festival, and the founder of the Brattleboro Music Center and the New England Bach Festival. We’ll hear the Gloria from Bach’s Mass in B minor, from the 2000 NEBF, and excerpts from Bach’s St. Matthew Passion, from the 1984 NEBF.
Vermont Fish and Wildlife
biologists continue to see dramatic losses in bat numbers. Biologists say they have
seen a near complete devastation of the bat population at the Elizabeth Mine in
Strafford.
VPR’s all-day celebration of Blanche Moyse’s 100th birthday continues with a complete performance of Bach’s Christmas Oratorio from the 1987 New England Bach Festival.
VPR will carry President Obama’s address to the United Nations as he
lays out his view of international cooperation in the 21st century.
NPR’s Neal Conan and Mara Liasson anchor this live coverage.
As America went to war, thousands at home headed for a worrisome future in the custody of the U.S. government. And that’s where we pick up our series, Vermont Reads, as the U.S. Army was ill prepared to provide transport, food and shelter to 120,000 men, women and children.
The Morristown select board is looking for candidates to fill the seat held by the chairman who resigned last week after being charged with molesting two children.
Blanche Moyse is the founder of the Brattleboro Music Center, and founder/longtime director of the New England Bach Festival. We will honor her centennial birthday today by featuring her music every hour.
September 23 marks the 100th birthday of Blanche Honegger Moyse, one of the founders of the Marlboro Music Festival, and founder of the Brattleboro Music Center. VPR Classical
celebrates her incalculable musical legacy with special programming
throughout the day.
A day after negotiations broke down between the state workers’ union and the administration, the governor’s staff on Tuesday started delving into which jobs would be cut.
New York Gov. David Paterson and legislative leaders are meeting to address a $2.1 billion deficit that Paterson says is getting worse, just five months after the state budget was adopted.
New Hampshire Gov. John Lynch continues to plan for laying off hundreds of state workers if the union representing most employees fails to approve a furlough plan.
VPR will carry President Obama’s address to the United Nations as he
lays out his view of international cooperation in the 21st century.
NPR’s Neal Conan and Mara Liasson anchor this live coverage.
Autumn in Jazz, Pt. 2 includes versions of autumnal songs by Cannonball Adderley, Bill Evans, Mary Stallings, Sarah Vaughan, and the classic Johnny Hartman and John Coltrane version of Autumn Serenade.
The commander of American forces in Afghanistan recently delivered his assessment of the current situation to the Obama administration. As the President considers this report and a shift in strategy, commentator Larry Doane is thinking about what the best way forward might be.
The Rutland City Recreation Department and the Boys and Girls Club of Rutland County say they can offer more services for less money if they collaborate and build a new joint headquarters and sports complex.
The event on the college green in
Hanover was steeped in tradition. The
ceremony was also groundbreaking because Jim Yong Kim is the first Asian-American to
lead an Ivy League college.
We celebrate the life and music of musician and chorale
conductor Blanche Moyse. She founded the Brattleboro
Music Center and the New England Bach Festival, and this year she celebrates her 100th birthday.
We talk with Don Vickers, the President of the Vermont Student Assistance Corporation about how the agency could be forced to scale back. Also, chef Emeril Lagasse visits the region, and we celebrate the music and life of Blanche Moyse.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with VSAC President Don Vickers and Chronicle of Higher Education reporter Becky Supiano about how federal legislation could impact the agency.
We’ll anticipate the Autumn Equinox at 5:18 this afternoon with music by Vivaldi, Glazunov, Tchaikovsky, and Brahms; plus we’ll honor a listener’s request for Rachmaninoff’s Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini.
The Autumnal Equinox occurs this evening at 5:18pm, making today the first day of fall! We’ll celebrate the new season with a ripe harvest of autumn-inspired classics.
Japanese
attacks on Pearl Harbor meant a world at war for most Americans in 1941. But
for Japanese-Americans, it also meant a world upended, a world that
would never be the same for them or their families.
Michael Tilson Thomas, cond. Brahms: Symphony #4 in E Minor
Brahms: Piano Concerto #2 in Bb Major; Leif Ove Andsnes, piano
9:40 pm: Brahms: Haydn Variations, Columbia Symphony Orchestra, Bruno Walter, Sony 42022
Blessed with an angel’s voice, the American
soprano Dawn Upshaw is the perfect pick to sing Mahler’s Fourth
Symphony — in which the last movement paints an angel’s view of heaven.
Commentator, filmmaker, and Marlboro professor Jay Craven is looking forward to a new touring production of one of the world’s most acclaimed but enigmatic plays.
Scientists have confirmed that a non-native plant, called variable-leaved watermilfoil, is growing in the southern end of Missisquoi Bay, in Lake Champlain.
Senator
Bernie Sanders says he plans to play a very active role in the coming weeks to
make the proposed health care reform bill as comprehensive as possible.
Bartok’s haunting Music for Strings, Percussion, and Celesta featured this afternoon, along with a symphony By Schumann, and American romantic piano concerto, and chamber music by Spohr.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with the Vermont State Curator, David Schutz, about efforts to preserve deteriorating outdoor sculptures at Vermont interstate rest areas.
We talk with author Ann McKinstry Micou about the many novels set within the Green Mountain state, and what their themes and settings reveal about Vermont. Also, a look at deteriorating art at our rest stops, and we read from our mailbag.
The head of the Justice Department’s anti-trust division says she’ll investigate whether dairy farmers are being unfairly squeezed by giant milk processors.
The redevelopment of a largely vacant industrial property in Springfield is getting a $750,000 boost courtesy of a grant from the Vermont Community Development Program.
Hikers interested in taking on New Hampshire’s Pemigewasset Wilderness Area are advised to do some planning on their route, now that a 180-foot suspension bridge is coming down.
Leaders for the union representing most state workers in New Hampshire are voting whether to send a tentative contract agreement to its members for a vote.
In this special series, scholars and surviving Japanese family members who were interned in camps during World War II discuss the internment experience.
Mark Stoler is emeritus professor of history at the University of Vermont and he puts into perspective the internment of as many as 120,000 Japanese nationals and Japanese-Americans.
We note the anniversary (9.18.1970) of the death of guitarist & composer Jimi Hendrix with Gil Evans and his Orchestra. Listener requests and new releases.
Vermont
Supreme Court Justice Paul Reiber says the state’s judicial system needs to be
restructured to ensure that Vermonters receive timely access to Vermont’s legal system.
VPR’s Bob Kinzel is joined by Supreme Court Chief Justice Paul Reiber, Associate Justice John Dooley and Senator Vincent Illuzzi to dicuss reorganizing Vermont’s court system.
The Vermont Supreme Court wants to reorganize the court system in the
state. It’s a move that could save money and make the judiciary more
efficient, but not everyone agrees that it would be a positive change.
In 1928 the American committee observing the centennial of Schubert’s death held a contest for the best new symphony ‘in the spirit of Schubert.’ Although it didn’t win, the Symphony No. 3 of Franz Schmidt was judged best entry from Austria (Schubert’s home). We’ll listen to it this morning.
Bennington’s Southwestern Vermont Medical Center will be allowed to raise its rates five percent in the coming fiscal year. State officials say the approval is a sign the hospital is turning its finances around.
FairPoint Communications faces a deadline Thursday for responding to a state of Vermont complaint questioning whether it should be allowed to keep operating in the state.
The mayor of the city of Barre, Vt., is recommending that officials not fight for an ordinance that regulates where sex offenders can live, nearly two weeks after a judge struck it down.
Vermont’s state general fund revenues are slightly above their targets for the first two months of the fiscal year, but the state’s top budget officer says it’s not time to celebrate.
New Hampshire and the
union representing state workers are close to a tentative agreement for the
second time, which would avert laying off hundreds of employees.
Louis Armstrong is attributed with the zinger, "All music’s folk music – I never heard a horse sing a song!" Featuring classical "folk" music from all corners of the globe this morning.
Tomorrow is the 250th anniversary of the Battle of Quebec. Commentator and Executive Director of the Vermont Humanities Council Peter Gilbert reflects on that compelling story, and on two historic heroes in his own life.
Xuian Zhang, cond. Respighi: Three Botticelli Pictures
Ravel: Le Tombeau de Couperin
Britten: Variations on a Theme of Franke Bridge
Faure: Dolly Suite
Williams: Memoirs of a Geisha; John Williams, cond, Yo Yo Ma, cello
9:57 pm:
Shostakovich: Ballet Suite No.1: Galop; Royal Scottish
National Orchestra; Neeme Järvi; Chandos 7000
More new recordings and releases today, including Verdi’s Requiem, and piano recordings featuring pianos from the time of the composers in question. And a new Haydn recording that is sure to please.
There’s a back and forth this time of year with warm days and cool nights. We mix classic autumn songs with yet another version of Summertime. The young violinist Jonathan Russell duets with Bucky Pizzarelli ahead of his Vermont shows.
FairPoint Communications says it has improved customer service in recent
months. But the company says it still needs more time to completely resolve its
problems.
Charles Griffes was unique among his contemporaries in America at the turn of the 20th century in that his music closely resembled that of the French impressionist composers. We’ll hear examples today, on his 125th birthday, including solo piano music and songs.
More and more schools in Vermont are trying to get kids to grow some of the healthy vegetables that end up on their lunch trays. VPR’s Charlotte Albright tagged along with a group of kids who call themselves "sprouts," in Glover.
We check in with Matt Cota, head of the
Vermont Fuel Dealers Association about trends in oil prices and how
customers are approaching this winter. Also, Jane Lindholm talks with mayor
Thomas Lauzon about how he envisions the city’s future.And Glover schoolkids help get veggies into their lunchroom.
Mozart left his Requiem unfinished at his death. It is still most often heard in the version completed by his pupil Franz Xaver Sussmayr. On the 206th anniversary of Sussmayr’s death we’ll listen to Mozart’s Requiem, as completed by Sussmayr.
Vermont Governor Jim Douglas, Chair of the National Governors
Association, addressed the National Press Club about
the role of states in national health club reform.
The town of Dorset, and the Manchester region, are mourning the loss of one of their most prominent citizens. Jay Hathaway, Executive Director and the Manchester in the Mountains Regional Chamber of Commerce, died unexpectedly last Saturday.
A Vermont group has asked the Obama administration to end logging and road building in undeveloped areas of the White Mountain National Forest and other federal woodlands to protect the public lands.
New England’s governors have endorsed a plan calling for up to a third of the region’s electric power to come from wind by 2030, with a big new network of high-voltage transmission lines to move the energy from source to market.
Gov. John Lynch says pink slips will go out to as many as 750 New Hampshire workers by Oct. 8 if there is no agreement on a new contract with the union representing most state workers.
In observation of Constitution Day, Vermont Law School Professor and commentator Cheryl Hanna offers a preview of the upcoming Supreme Court term and some developments we can expect to see over the coming year.
Today is the birthday of the great musical pedagogue Nadia Boulanger. Her list of influencial student musicians is staggeringly long, and we’ll hear works by some of them this afternoon: Leonard Bernstein, Aaron Copland, David Diamond, and more.
We look into how sustainability and a strong sense of scale and place are influencing Vermont’s architecture. Also, Rutland Herald reporter Bruce Edwards on Department of Defense contracts in the state.
Congressman Peter Welch has voted to reprimand one of his Republican colleagues who shouted "you lie" at President Obama during a joint session of Congress last week.
At 11 Walter speaks with Montpelier flutist Karen Kevra about the upcoming 10th anniversary season of her Capital City Concerts, which begins Saturday with Musica Camerata Montreal.
U.S. Sen. Patrick Leahy is going to hold a meeting of the Senate Judiciary Committee in St. Albans this weekend to examine the state of competition in the dairy industry in the Northeast.
Vermont regulators have set new rates for small-scale hyrdo, wind or solar projects as part of a new program to stimulate the development of green resources.
New Hampshire’s largest employee union and the state return to the bargaining table Wednesday to try again to negotiate a contract and avoid at least 750 workers being laid off.
Vermont fire officials say heat from a crematorium’s vent pipe ignited a fire that damaged a funeral home and gutted an upstairs apartment where newlyweds were living.
Operators of the state’s electric transmission grid say Vermont is well positioned to take advantage of massive energy projects beyond its borders. But the Vermont Electric Power Company says new transmission lines may be needed.
New music composed for guitarist David Russell, and a favorite from Corelli whose captivating melody inspired other composers like Rachmaninoff, and Mexico’s Manuel Ponce.
Barber: Adagio for Strings; Leonard Bernstein, cond. Barber: Violin Concerto; Isaac Stern, violin
Mahler: Das Lied von der Erde; Mildred Miller, Ernst Hafliger
7 pm:
Bernstein: Divertimento: Blues; Vienna
Philharmonic; Leonard Bernstein; DG 457691
We celebrate the birthday of alto saxphonist Cannonball Adderley who worked with Bill Evans, Nancy Wilson and some of Miles Davis’ most famous recordings including Kind Of Blue.
Commentator Jay Parini has been thinking about the outbreak by Congressman Joe Wilson during the president’s address last week to a joint session of Congress.
Congressman
Peter Welch says the time has come to repeal the federal Defense of Marriage
Act – a law that defines marriage as a union between a man and a woman.
On Tuesday, the Supreme Court justices heard a case that involved whether
Entergy Vermont Yankee should be allowed to release warmer water into the Connecticut River.
There’s a debate about future development around Exit 4 in Randolph. VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with the editor of the Herald of Randolph about the issue.
Commissioner Dr. Wendy Davis talks with VPR’s Jane Lindholm about what we know about the 2009 H1N1, what plans are being made and what precautions we should be taking.
The Douglas
Administration and the Vermont State Employees Association are no closer to an
agreement over how to reduce labor costs in the current fiscal year by $7.4
million.
Vermont’s Health Care Reform Commission is getting ready to assess some of the key components of ‘Catamount Health Care’ – that’s the program that provides coverage to uninsured Vermonters.
Bruno Walter was one of the great conductors of the 20th century. Born in Germany on the 15th of September 1876, he settled in southern California in 1939. We’ll listen to him conduct Beethoven’s Pastoral Symphony.
The USDA is making disaster loans available for farmers in all of New Hampshire’s 10 counties because of crop losses and plant disease caused by excessive rain since June.
Three New England states
are urging consumers to chip in and help save the region’s dairy farms, which
are struggling with record-low prices being paid for their milk.
Whether writing for voice or instruments, Bellini’s lyrical singing style shines through. We’ll hear from his tender arietta "Vaga luna, che inargenti" and his Oboe Concerto this morning.
Followers of popular music had a bit of a surprise recently, when Britain’s Top 20 album chart featured an old familiar name. Commentator Vic Henningsen explains.
We begin with duets including Ella Fitzgerald & Paul Smith; Zoot Sims & Joe Pass; Jim Hall & Ron Carter; Django Reinhart & Stephane Grappeli and Louis Armstrong & Earl Hines. New releases follow.
No clear theme today…but we’ll hear a nonet by Louis Spohr and works by Charles Avison, and Charles Gounod. We’ll hear concerti by Rachmaninoff and one of Bach’s sons. We’ll hear 20th century motets based on Gregorian themes. And we’ll hear Preludes and other things by Leonard Bernstein and Cesar Franck.
This summer, a team of Vermonters has been playing a 10-game schedule of box lacrosse. VPR’s Ric Cengeri took in a game in Essex during the Vermont Voyageurs’ final weekend of action.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with an instructor with the National Alliance on Mental Illness in Vermont on challenges of living with someone who has a serious mental illness.
We talk about the challenges of being a parent, sibling, spouse, or child of someone who has a mental illness. Also, a visit with Champlain College’s president, and a trip to a Box Lacrosse game.
There are a growing number of proposals to build wood-burning biomass power plants in the Northeast. Some environmentalists say wood can be a renewable, low-carbon fuel. But others aren’t convinced.
When a rash of break-ins and burglaries hit earlier this year, lots of people in Woodstock, Vt., figured it was probably just Charles "Punky" Haynes, stealing to keep body and soul together.
Whether you know her as Olympia (in music by Offenbach) or Coppelia (in
the Delibes ballet), she’s more or less the same character, from the
writings of ETA Hoffmann. This morning we’ll hear music from both
treatments of the story of the life-sized mechanical doll.
Political pundits often speculate about what a sitting politician’s legacy will be. Posterity, of course, will be the ultimate judge. But commentator Timothy McQuiston thinks he knows already what posterity will say about Jim Douglas.
This Sunday evening at 5 join VPR Classical in wishing a big happy 10th birthday to From the Top,
NPR’s showcase of young musicians. The program has spent the last
decade introducing us to some of the very best rising talent from
around the nation – and, right here in Vermont!
Upcoming concerts by Tom Rush and Debashish Bhattacharya, a current Grammy nominee who plays Hindustani slide guitar, a mini-festival of Northern New York State musicians, and of course lots of music from Vermont!
A profile of the music of Jerry Leiber & Mike Stoller continues with a look at their songwriting and production work with the Drifters from 1956 to 1963. Leiber & Stollers’ lush, string-laden production numbers with the Drifters were called by some "little symphonies for the kids", and include some of the most enduring hits of the pre-Beatles 1960’s.
According to commentator Ron Krupp, a number of innovative projects are underway around the state that are designed to strengthen our local food supply.
The anniversary of the terrorist attacks on New York and Washington was observed this morning at the Vermont Air National
Guard base in South Burlington.
VPR’s Bob Kinzel talks with the Liaison to the governor’s Highway Safety Patrol and the Montpelier Chief of Police about the issue of distracted drivers.
Layoffs of more state workers appeared imminent, the National Guard’s mission in Afghanistan remained unclear and FairPoint faced regulators’ questions. These were some of the voices in the news this week:
Attorneys for New York Gov. David Paterson and Senate Republican leader Dean Skelos will square off before the state’s highest court over whether Paterson’s appointment of a lieutenant governor is unconstitutional.
The town of Bennington, Vt., is planning to release nearly 90 white doves as part of its Sept. 11 memorial service, joining in the release of more than 4,000 nationwide.
A concert in Brattleboro Friday by world music saxophonist Paul Winter will benefit a microloan program for New England farmers. The loans are a project of Brattleboro’s Strolling of the Heifers organization.
FairPoint Communications has been granted a one-week extension for filing a formal response to the state of Vermont’s call for an investigation into whether it has the financial viability and expertise to keep operating in the state.
Pregnant women, young children with medical conditions and health care providers who have direct contact with patients will be the first people vaccinated against swine flu in New Hampshire.
We recently picked up a 3 CD set of Dvorak’s complete choral music and Moravian duets. It’s wonderful, and includes the delightful song cycle In Nature’s Realm (unrelated to the concert piece of the same name.)
President Barack Obama’s health care speech Wednesday night was received favorably by a majority of those who watched it. But, as commentator Barrie Dunsmore points out this morning, while Republicans remain solidly opposed – it’s the Democrats that he needed most to impress.
Rameau: Suite from Nais
Bach: Cantata #35 Geist und Seele wird verwirret
Bach: Orchestral Suite #1
Handel: Music for the Royal Fireworks
9:55 pm:
Mendelssohn: Octet, Op.20: Scherzo; London
Symphony Orchestra; Claudio Abbado; DG 415353
This week’s edition of VPR Classical Debuts features new piano additions to the library. Grieg, Rachmaninoff, Beethoven, Debussy, and more this afternoon!
We begin by dancing with Louis Armstrong and a new Mosaic box set of his Decca recordings and the wonderful collaboration between the dancing feet of Fred Astaire & the piano of Oscar Peterson. New releases follow.
The visit of a high school classmate has inspired commentator Bill Mares to reflect on how we can often see our own streets and lives more clearly through the eyes of others.
The Douglas administration says it can lay off more state workers
without legislative approval. And
the administration says it may be forced to cut an additional 200 jobs, unless
it can win more concessions from the state employees union.
An award-winning Canadian play about
searching for love in Montreal is being produced south of the border. "Strawberries in January" offers Vermont theater-goers a new cultural perspective on romance.
English conductor Christopher Hogwood turns 68 today. Best known for his interpretations of Baroque and early Classical music, he has also become known for conducting neo-classical works by composers like Hindemith, Martinu, and Stravinsky. This afternoon we’ll hear Hogwood performing Bach and Stravinsky’s "Pulcinella."
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with FairPoint Communications president, a New Hampshire consumer advocate and Vermont’s public Service Commissioner about FairPoint’s status.
We’ll talk with a regulator, a consumer advocate and FairPoint in the wake of the unprecedented joint hearing over the company’s service and financial problems.
Leaders of New Hampshire’s largest employee union are meeting to discuss whether to keep negotiating over the latest contract proposal, end talks or send the proposed agreement to union members with the recommendation they vote it down.
At a hearing in Derry, New Hampshire on Wednesday, FairPoint officials met with regulators from New Hampshire, Maine and Vermont. Officials from the beleaguered company said they are making progress responding to customer complaints.
With a tip of his hat to Labor Day – just past – and the academic year – just beginning – commentator Vic Henningsen has an "American Dream" story about a poor but honest youth who rises to fame and fortune on his own merits – and the consequences of his achievements.
Stravinsky: Symphones of Winds
Prokofiev: Sinfonie-Concertante in E Minor for Cello and Orchestra, Op. 125; Truls Mork, cello
Beethoven: String Quartet #14 in C# Minor, Op. 131; Arr. Dmitri Mitropoulos
9:54 pm:
RezniÄek: Donna Diana Overture; New
York Philharmonic; Zubin Mehta; Sony 63053
We celebrate drummer Elvin Jones’ birthday, not with his most famous recordings as part of John Coltrane’s Quartet, but as a sideman to Wayne Shorter, Earl Hines, Grant Green, Helen Merrill and many more.
President Barak Obama addresses a joint session of Congress on the nation’s efforts at health care reform. Melissa Block hosts this special coverage from NPR.
Members of Vermont’s congressional delegation are looking forward to
President Obama’s speech tonight about health care. And
they’ve also got some advice for him.
A judge has thrown out a Barre City ordinance limiting where sex offenders can live. That
decision now will be used as legal ammunition in a similar case in Rutland.
Grieg’s E Minor sonata played by Leif Ove Andsnes, and Chopin’s stormy "Funeral March" sonata palyed by Helene Grimaud. We’ll also hear Delius’s "In a Summer Garden," and a short orchestral poem by Puccini depicting flowers you might find in an autumnal garden.
Charlie Nardozzi of the National Gardening Association joins VPR’s Jane
Lindholm to wrap up our summer series of gardening advice with tips on putting
your garden to bed and preparing for next spring.
Horticulturalist, Charlie Nardozzi, from the National Gardening Association joined VPR’s Jane Lindholm throughout the summer on Vermont Edition to talk gardening tips.
The constitution of the Vermont Republic was written in 1777 and 232
years later, that document remains largely intact. We dig into the
history, lore and legacy of this living document. Also, gardener Charlie Nardozzi answers your last questons of the gardening season.
Three Vermont maple sugar producers will tap trees next spring on public land. The state has approved licenses for sugaring sites on state forests in Groton, Stowe, and Mount Holly.
An archaeological team from Vermont’s Lake Champlain Maritime Museum is expected to begin work Wednesday on a project at the Hudson River site of what was once Britain’s largest fortification in North America.
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has postponed indefinitely a ruling on an appeal filed by a group opposed to the relicensing of Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant.
New York becomes the first state in the nation requiring voting materials to be translated into Russian under a bill being signed by the governor today.
Regulators from Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont, unhappy about numerous customer service, order-fulfillment and other problems with FairPoint Communications Inc. are getting together to ask company officials questions.
A day after it tries to explain its recent service-quality, financial and other troubles to regulators in three states, FairPoint Communications faces what may be an even tougher task.
VPR’s Susan Keese reports on an exhibit at Hildene that focuses at the 16th president’s second inaugural address, that organizers say has a lot to teach us today.
Willi Boskovsky conducts a classic version of the Johann Strauss, Jr. Tales from the Vienna Woods, and we’ll hear a suite of dances from John Blow’s masque, Venus and Adonis.
Tchaikovsky: Nutcracker highlights
Saint-Saens: Carnival of the Animals
Prokofiev: Peter and the Wolf
Britten: Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra
9:50 pm:
J. Strauss II: An der schönen, blauen Donau; NBC Symphony
Orchestra; Arturo Toscanini; RCA 60308
Horticulturalist, Charlie Nardozzi, from the National Gardening Association joined VPR’s Jane Lindholm throughout the summer on Vermont Edition to talk gardening tips.
President Barak Obama addresses a joint session of Congress on the nation’s efforts at health care reform. Melissa Block hosts this special coverage from NPR.
Bernard Labadie, cond. Haydn: Te Deum forthe Empress Maria Therese
Haydn: Symphony #100 in G major "Military"
Haydn: Mass "In Time of War" in C major
9:25 pm:
Beethoven: Symphony No.2 in D, Op.36; Vienna
Philharmonic; Claudio Abbado; DG 423590
Vermont National Guard Adjutant General Michael
Dubie says that while the Guard’s upcoming mission in Afghanistan may be changing, it’s too soon to know for sure what
that entails.
Today is the birthday of one of the great musical ambassadors ever to set foot in this country, Antonin Dvorak. We’ll hear his three concert overtures Opp. 91-93 (In Nature’s Realm, Carnival, and Othello), and his Cello Concerto.
Vermont National Guard troops will face a different, possibly more dangerous mission in Afghanistan. We learn more specifics about their mission, and how it fits within the larger U.S. strategy. Also, an update on FairPoint’s continuing problems, and using wasps to find a destructive beetle.
Anton Dvorak’s birthday was September 8, 1841. We’ll hear his iconic Symphony #9 "From the New World", and a choral setting of the ‘Going Home / Largo’ melody from that symphony.
The arguments over health care in Washington remind former legislator and commentator Judy Livingston, of the debates Vermont has had on the issue over the years.
It’s about time as we get into fall and into Jazz. From the collaboration between Miles Davis alumni and Indian musicians on It’s About That Time to David "Fathead" Newman’s version of As Time Goes By, it’s all about racing the clock and relaxing.
Conductor Ivan Fischer’s secret with an orchestra
is to get his musicians to "play," as in, rediscover the childlike joy
of making music with friends. The results are stunning, especially with
the orchestra that Fischer founded himself.
In reflecting on the legacy of Ted Kennedy, commentator Olin Robison has been reminded that true bi-partisan cooperation in Washington takes serious commitment.
This weekend, the Brattleboro Retreat marks its 175th anniversary. Throughout its history, the Retreat has remained
progressive in its treatment of people who need psychiatric care.
Relax and listen to some fine music for the holiday, including working music by Strauss, Strauss (the other one), and Coates, and concerti and symphonies by Tchaikovsky, Mozart, and Beethoven.
Psychologist Polly Young-Eisendrath says today’s
children are being raised to think every one of them is a
winner with the potential to be great, and that’s actually
causing more harm than good. Also, singer-songrwriter Lisa Piccirrillo plays tracks from her debut album, Momentum.
From gardeners and barbers to construction and railroad workers –
classical music’s filled with portraits of the workers of our world. In
honor of workers everywhere, the Labor Day Special is called "Nice Work
(If You Can Get
It)".
This Labor Day, commentator Kurt Staudter, a longtime union member, is thinking about how unions are re-inventing themselves and what part they may play in Health Care Reform.
Some worker’s songs for Labor Day weekend, Van Morrison’s 64th birthday, a preview of Chants de Vielles, a wild music festival in the farmland of French Canada coming this weekend, and much much more!
Our profile of the music of Jerry Leiber & Mike Stoller continues with a look at their work with the Robins and the Coasters from 1950-1963. The Coasters, known as "The Clown Princes of Rock & Roll" were the first vocal group inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame.
A show of new releases both inside & melodic and outside & challenging. Two of my favorite solo pianists Jessica Williams and the late John Hicks share their gifts.
Commentator Geoff Shields has been listening to the health care debate and observes that it seeks to address two separate – and possibly incompatible – goals.
A state investigation found no evidence that the
state’s prison in Springfield discriminated against members of the National Guard
who were working there.
Congressman Peter Welch
says he thinks the Obama administration is engaging in "nation building"
policies in Afghanistan, and that that’s the wrong approach
to take.
Senator Patrick Leahy continued his push for the Truth Commission, a
petition called for Brian Dubie to run for governor, a new transmission
line was approved for Hydro-Quebec, the state found no discrimination
of National Guard members working at a correctional facility and
same-sex marriages became legal in Vermont. These were some of the
voices in the news this week.
Congressman Peter Welch discusses the future of health care reform, whether he’ll vote in favor of a bill that doesn’t include a public plan and his opinion on a plan to send additional troops to Afghanistan.
We’ll listen to two colorful ballets today: Manuel de Falla’s richly Spanish El Amor Brujo ("Love, the Magician") and Darius Milhaud’s jazzy telling of African creation stories, La Creation du Monde ("The Creation of the World’); plus the Symphony No. 3 of Bruckner.
The Spartans, Castleton State College’s brand
new football team, will kick off their first ever season on Saturday with a
game against Anna Maria College of Massachusetts.
The L.A. Guitar Quartet plays their own arrangement of Copland’s Simple Gifts, and we’ll hear Sinfinias/Symphonies by Wilhelm Friedemann Bach and Mozart.
The Adirondack Mountains in upstate New York is one of the largest wilderness areas in the country. Recently, commentator Tom Slayton and a group of friends found out what happens when someone gets hurt, miles from roads, shelter, and medical care.
Daniel Barenboim, cond. Wagner: Prelude to Parsifal
Benjamin: Dance Figures
Beethoven: Violin Concerto in D major; robert Chen, violin
Bartok: Piano Concerto #3; Misuko Uchida, piano
9:53 pm:
Paul Alan Levi: Bye, Bye Toots: Bye, Bye Toots;
Counterpoint; Robert De Cormier; Albany
1088
Shostakovich 5, Ravel songs, and pianist Stephen Hough’s latest recording are among the musical selections we’ll hear for the first time on VPR Classical this afternoon.
We sample some of the newest & freshest from the jazz world, including sounds from Terence Blanchard, Bill Easley, Robert Glasper and the late John Hicks.
A state investigation found no evidence
that officials at the state’s prison in Springfield discriminated against members of the National Guard
who were working there.
Vermont troops going to Afghanistan later this year may face a different, possibly more
dangerous mission. The Pentagon is now re-assessing how to use the
1,500 members of the Guard.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Dr. Rob Simpson president and CEO of the Brattleboro Retreat, to learn why the organization
has expanded its addiction and recovery programs to focus on niche segments of
our population.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talk with the Executive Director of the Vermont State Dental Society, Peter Taylor, and St. Johnsbury dentist, David McLean, about how to address a potential shortage of dentists in Vermont.
We examine why there’s a shortage of dentists in
our region, and how that impacts our ability to get regular dental care. Also, Brattleboro Retreat expands its services.
Gustav Mahler famously said, "A Symphony should embrace the world." He never came closer to doing that than in his Symphony No. 3, which we’ll listen to beginning a bit past noon today.
Scientists have determined that some of the
thousands of plants in Vermont are more rare than previously believed. And they’ve
discovered that a few have even disappeared.
Franz Welser-Most, cond. Stravinsky: "Dumbarton Oaks" Concerto
Beethoven: Symphony #1 in C Major, Op. 21
Dutilleux: Symphony #2 "Le Double"
Ravel: Bolero
pm:
Mozart: Le nozze di Figaro: Overture; Tafelmusik; Bruno
Weil; Sony 46695
VPR’s Robert Resnik reflects on the death of Willie Beaudoin, who was the last in his generation of family members who helped keep the tradition of French Canadian music alive in Vermont.
Peter Stephenson, security expert and chair of the Norwich University computing program speaks with VPR’s Jane Lindholm about why credit security breaches keep happening, and what you can do to keep your information safe.
We talk with security expert and Norwich University professor Peter Stephenson about why credit security breaches keep happening, and how you can keep your information safe. Also, Valley News reporter John Gregg fills us in on a tax petition in Claremont. And, we remember musician Willie Beaudoin.
We’ll remember Erich Kunzel, longtime conductor of the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra (and Dartmouth alumnus), who died Tuesday at age 74. We’ll begin each hour with something of his.
New Hampshire Republican legislators want Gov.
John Lynch to work with them on budget changes should the state lose its claim
to $110 million in a medical malpractice fund.
An 18-year-old Rutland man once charged in connection with the theft of a laptop computer that contained unreleased images of the late Anna Nicole Smith is pleading not guilty to a charge he robbed a city convenience store.
Agriculture officials from 23 countries are touring farms and food businesses in New Hampshire and Vermont this week in a visit designed to boost trade.
We’re all abuzz this morning with the sounds of late summer; Frank Bridge’s little song The Bee and Robert Schumann’s Papillons ("butterflies") highlight the show.
Warnings that the war in Afghanistan is intesifying have been heard from several knowledgeable sources in recent days. And commentator Bill Seamans hopes the message is being heard.
One of my early jazz heroes, french hornist Willie Ruff, ends the program from his "Strayhorn" album recorded with his long-time piano partner Dwike Mitchell. New releases with McCoy Tyner, James Carter/John Medeski and more.
This week marks two important anniversaries – one well known and one that teacher, historian and commentator Vic Henningsen says ought to be known better.
Montpelier High
School
students had an answer when faced with a handful of protesters from
out-of-state who opposed same-sex marriage.
They
raised money for a lesbian and gay legal defense fund.
Several
same-sex couples exchanged vows at midnight, just as the new law went into effect. Many others are planning weddings in the
weeks and months to come.
Senator
Patrick Leahy says he would like Congress to establish a "truth commission" this
fall, to investigate allegations of illegal interrogation techniques against
suspected terrorists by the Bush Administration.
Erich Kunzel, longtime conductor of the Cincinnati Pops, died today at the age of 74. We’ll hear from his last recording, featuring young musicians from NPR’s "From the Top."
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with the new head of the Vermont State Colleges about the price and value of higher education, and the role schools have in shaping Vermont’s future.
Senator Bernie Sanders has introduced a bill that would require stricter oversight of the Federal Reserve. Sanders talks with VPR’s Jane Lindholm about why he thinks that is necessary, and we hear from a Tuck Business School professor who has some reservations.
The new chancellor of the Vermont State Colleges, Tim Donovan, explains the cost and value of public higher education. Also, Senator Bernie Sanders proposes stricter oversight for the Federal Reserve.
L’Amfiparnaso, written by Orazio Vecchi in 1597, is a madrigal comedy. It tells a comic tale of romance through the medium of the Italian madrigal. An important precursor of the first operas, which were written within a decade, it’s a robust and vital entertainment. We’ll listen to it at 1pm today.
FairPoint Communications is denying allegations that it faked its readiness to take over the major phone networks serving New Hampshire, Vermont and Maine.
One of the first same-sex couples in the state to officially tie the knot did so at the stroke of midnight, and VPR’s Sarah Ashworth was there, and shares their story.
Near the end of his life, Richard Strauss wrote his poignant song September as part of the Four Last Songs cycle. We’ll hear that this morning along with other ‘september songs’ from Mendelssohn and Tchaikosky.
Today begins a new era for marriage equality in Vermont – inspiring commentator Deborah Luskin to reflect on the institution of marriage as both personal and universal.
Bernard Labadie, cond. Gluck: Suite from Orpheus and Eurydice
Mozart: Clarinet Concerto in A Major, K. 622; Carey Bell, clarinet
Ravel: Pavane for a Dead Princess
Bizet: Symphony in C Major
9:38 pm:
Mozart: Flute Concerto No.2 in D, K.314; James Galway,
flute; Academy of St. Martin in the Fields; Sir Neville Marriner; RCA 68256
Music from New Orleans before & after the 2005 hurricanes Katrina& Rita. James Booker to Louis Armstrong, the Dirty Dozen Brass Band, Treme Brass Band and Dr. John.
London Symphony Orchestra
Bernard Haitink, conductor
Mahler: Symphony No. 9
9:35
Saint-Saens: Carnival of the Animals
London
Symphony Orchestra, Skitch Henderson, conductor
Julius Katchen, piano;
Gary Graffman, piano; Kenneth Heath, cello
London 425 505
It might seem as if commentator Bill Schubart has finally lost it – turning against the very media of which he has so long been a part. But he says he’s only trying to better understand their singular implications and highest and best use.
Time is running out for the state employees union and the Douglas
Administration to reach an agreement over a plan to cut labor costs by roughly $7.5 million in
this year’s budget.
John Dumville, administrator of state historic sites speaks with VPR’s Jane Lindholm about the new visitor’s center at the Coolidge Homestead in Plymouth Notch.
Jane Lindholm talks with a UVM nutritionist about American consumption of large amounts of sugar, and why culture has become so obsessed with nutritional
studies, and quick fixes.
UVM nutritionist Rachel Johnson talks with us about new guidelines that limit the number of added sugars we should consume. Also, a look at plans to expand the Calvin Coolidge Historical site, and we read from the mailbag.
Violinist Itzhak Perlman turns 64 today. We’ll hear him play Samuel Barber’s Violin Concerto with the Boston Symphony. Also today, guitarist Jason Vieaux plays Bach, pianist Alicia De Larrocha plays Mozart, and Sir Georg Solti conducts Bartok.
The economic downturn has meant that many high school and college students faced a tight job market this season. But as VPR’s Lynne McCrea reports, federal stimulus money provided some young Vermonters with better-than-ever work opportunities.
Some Vermont municipalities are encouraged by the latest quarterly receipts from their one percent local option sales taxes. But analysts say the numbers overall continue to be weak, and any local optimism may be premature.
Lt. Gov. Brian Dubie is expected to decide in a couple of weeks whether to run for governor in 2010 following incumbent Republic Gov. Jim Douglas’ announcement that he will not seek re-election.
Fado singers, a wonderful new release of classic Woody Guthrie tracks, a preview of next weekend’s New World Festival in Randolph, and a special dedication to the memory of Willie Beaudoin, one of Burlington’s great traditional Franco-American musicians.
We continue exploring the lives and work of Jerry Lieber and Mike Stoller. Their names became associated with many of the biggest and most memorable radio hits of the 1950’s recorded by Elvis Presley, the Coasters, The Drifters, and many others.
Governor Jim Douglas says Lieutenant Governor
Brian Dubie would be the most qualified Republican to run for governor in 2010
if Dubie decides to become a candidate.
In addition to Governor Douglas’ announcement to not seek re-election, a Vermont soldier died in Iraq, a whistleblower called into question Fairpoint’s readiness to take over from Verizon. These were some of the voices in the news this week.
Ignat Solzhenitsyn’s return to Vermont concludes with this evening’s concert of the Lake Champlain Chamber Music Festival. We’ll listen to more from his new album of Brahms’ piano music.
Governor Jim Douglas’ decision not to seek re-election means that Republicans will need to find a gubernatorial candidate. And the decision is also likely to encourage more Democrats to run for governor.
A newspaper analysis shows New Hampshire car dealers are to receive over $23 million in rebates under the Cash for Clunkers program, the highest per capita benefit of any state.
Vermont Gov. Jim Douglas says he won’t run for re-election. Douglas, a four-term Republican who has bucked Vermont’s political tide for years, says he won’t seek another two-year term in 2010 but has no plans to seek any other office.
A transgendered South Burlington High School senior is asking the Vermont Human Rights Commission to back an effort to require the state’s middle and high schools to offer genderless bathrooms.
The Vermont Secretary of State’s office says the Rite Aid Corporation has agreed to pay an $80,000 administrative penalty for violating practice standards after it bought the Brooks pharmacy chain.
Paganini’s famous 24th Caprice for Solo Violin has captured the imagination of composers like Rachmaninoff, Brahms…and Poland’s Witold Lutoslawski. We’ll hear the original Caprice, and then Lutoslawski’s imaginative variations on that melody.
The health care reform debate has dominated the news this month. But in commentator Barrie Dunsmore’s opinion, Americans remain more confused and uncertain than ever – and this is a bad omen for more than health care.
Elgar: Enigma Variations
Tippett: Suite in D, A Suite for the Birthday of Prince Charles
Britten: Serenade for Tenor, Horn, and Strings; Robert Tear, tenor, Dale Clevenger, horn
Mendelssohn: Sympphony #3 "Scottish"
9:57 pm:
Delius: Young Venevil; Ian Partridge, tenor; Jennifer
Partridge, piano; Etcetera 1063
With 16 months left in his fourth term as governor, Jim Douglas has announced that he will not seek re-election in 2010. He discusses his surprise decision, what the future holds and how this will affect the next governor’s race.
The Centennial of the birth of Lester Young, jazz master of clarinet and tenor sax, gives us a chance to hear him with Count Basie, Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald, Teddy Wilson and more.
Governor Jim Douglas’ decision not to seek
re-election means that Republicans will need to find a gubernatorial candidate.
And the decision is also likely to encourage more Democrats to run for governor.
David Shifrin plays Aaron Copland’s Clarinet Concerto, and we’ll also hear a concerto that the Vermont Symphony Orchestra will play this fall…a hint: Soovin Kim will be the soloist….
Governor Jim Douglas is making an unexpected announcement this
morning about his political future in Vermont: he’s not running for
re-election in 2010.
Listen to Vermont Edition at noon as we discuss the implications for the governor’s race.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Political Analyst Eric Davis and Republican Senator Kevin Mullin about Governor Douglas’ announcement that he won’t seek re-election in 2010.
The English-born Rebecca Clarke referred to herself as "violist and composer." During the early 20th-century she played chamber music in London with the greatest musicians of the time. She later came to America where she was a regular performer at the concerts of Elizabeth Sprague Coolidge in Pittsfield, MA, in the 1920’s. It was for those Pittsfield concerts that she wrote her Viola Sonata, which we’ll listen to this morning.
Advocates say the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant can be replaced with cheaper alternatives, primarily renewables and conservation. But the utility industry questions some of the conclusions, especially about the cost.
A southern New Hampshire community will be the host of a joint hearing next month at which regulators are expected to question FairPoint executives about the troubled communication company’s problems.
The Vermont Department of Motor Vehicles is warning about bogus Web sites that try to get credit card numbers from people seeking to register their vehicles or renew their drivers’ licenses.
You’d never guess it was written by a Frenchman, Jules Massenet’s ballet Le Cid snaps and crackles with castanets, traditional Spanish dance rhythms, and catchy melodies.
Commentator and executive director of the Vermont Humanities Council Peter Gilbert tells us about the 150th anniversary of an historic event in which he’s always had a special interest.
Franz Welser-Most, cond. Beethoven: Diabelli Variations; arr. Uri Caine
Bernstein: Suite from West Side Story
Piston: The Incredible Flutist; Joshua Smith, flute
9:55 pm:
Mozart: Rondo in D, K.514; Lowell Greer, natural horn;
Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra; Nicholas McGegan; Harmonia Mundi 907012
VPR and NPR coverage of the death of Senator Ted Kennedy, including personal comments from Vermont Senator Patrick Leahy, an NPR Timeline of Kennedy’s life and career, and more reactions from around the region and the country.
VPR and NPR coverage of the death of Senator Ted Kennedy, including personal comments from Vermont Senator Patrick Leahy, an NPR Timeline of Kennedy’s life and career, and more reactions from around the region and the country.
Vermont tenor sax player Larry McCrorey R.I.P. and birthday celebrations of blues singer Jimmy Rushing and composer, tenor & soprano sax player Branford Marsalis.
As a member of the steering committee of the Vermont Women’s History Project – created by Vermont’s Commission on Women – commentator Cyndy Bittinger is thinking about important milestones in women’s history.
A
lot of Vermonters have been sharing their thoughts today about the death of
Senator Edward Kennedy. Senator Patrick
Leahy remembers Kennedy as a close friend, a tireless worker, and a gifted
legislator.
We
have remembrances from Vermonters who knew Senator Kennedy…former Governor Phil Hoff, former House Speaker
Tim O’Connor, Congressman Peter Welch and Senator Bernie Sanders.
Marion Leonard never retired from a lifetime of pacifism and activism. And she never hesitated to express her strongly held liberal views. She died this month at the age of 100. VPR’s
Steve Zind has this remembrance.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with a lawyer, Justice of the Peace and an expert in modern wedding etiquette about the practical impact of the same-sex marriage law.
Sen. Patrick Leahy remembers Sen. Ted Kennedy. Also, what are the practical changes from civil unions to marriage? We’ll
look at the implications for couples considering marriage — from legal
and tax questions, to social mores of modern weddings. And a remembrance of Rochester resident Marion Leonard.
VPR’s Mitch Wertlieb talks with Peter Canellos, Boston Globe Washington Bureau Chief and editor of the book: "Last Lion-the Fall and
Rise of Ted Kennedy" about Edward Kennedy’s life in this archived interview.
A group of lawmakers is exploring protecting teens who send sexually explicit photos by cell phone — commonly called ‘sexting’– from being charged under New Hampshire’s child pornography laws.
All summer, we’ve been celebrating the quadricentennial of Samuel de Champlain’s arrival. But teacher, historian, and commentator Vic Henningsen is reminded that Champlain wasn’t the only European to arrive that summer.
A
2004 graduate of St. Johnsbury Academy, Joey Fortin, was killed in Iraq on Sunday. He was a second lieutenant field artillery
officer with the U.S. Army.
There
are signs that the cost of the state’s Catamount Health Care program could go
up dramatically next year because MVP Health Care has filed a 31% rate increase
for its share of the program.
Today is the birthday of Leonard Bernstein. We’ll hear his Divertimento, his raucous recording of Rhapsody in Blue (as pianist AND conductor), and his collaboration with the Vienna Philharmonic for the Symphony #2 of Jean Sibelius.
John Quinn is stepping down after nearly three decades as the Addison
County State’s
Attorney. He speaks with VPR’s Jane Lindholm about how the job has changed over
the years, and the high-profile cases he’s handled.
A car accident in Bennington earlier this month resulted in the death of unborn twins, and serious injuries to the mother. Now a group that wants to toughen legal protections for the unborn, is pushing for a state law criminalizing ‘fetal homicide.’
Jim Boni is the project manager for the NY Department of Transportation. He spoke with VPR’s Mitch Wertlieb about the future of the Lake Champlain Bridge.
The Vermont Commission on Women and the Department of Health are offering free assistance to firms as they comply with a new state law accommodating breast-feeding mothers in the workplace.
Ralph Vaughan Williams, a folksong collector, wrote many of the melodies he found into his lyrical English Folksong Suite – we’ll hear that along with a tribute to Leonard Bernstein on the anniversary of his birth.
After hearing some recent remarks by Vice-President Joe Biden, commentator Bill Mares is wondering if a split in the administration is developing over our policies toward Russia.
New Releases and New-To-Our-Library titles, including the Complete Riverside & Contemporary Recordings of Sonny Rollins and a new Roberta Gambarini and a new release by James Moody.
Alan Buribajev, cond. Weber: Oberon Overture
Mozart: Clarinet Concerto; Martin Frost, clarinet
Schoeck: Die Sommernacht
Mendelssohn: Suite from "A Midsummer Night’s Dream"
For those who want to grow more of their own fruits, vegetables, and herbs, but don’t have room to garden where they live, community gardening is a life saver. And Commentator Charlie Nardozzi is here to celebrate community gardeners… during National Community Garden Week.
An
anonymous whistleblower has told regulators that FairPoint Communications and a contractor
fabricated tests last winter to make it look like the company was ready to take
over Verizon’s land-line telephone business.
Governor Jim Douglas says the Pentagon is working on a plan that would allow military
officials to run their own disaster response operations, independent of those
set up by governors. Douglas says the proposal will lead to chaos in the field.
According
to a new report, unemployment in Vermont dropped faster than in any other state in the country
last month. But state officials believe the good news is going to be short
lived and doesn’t represent a turnaround for the state economy.
Dvorak’s "Dumky" Trio, which will be heard this Wednesday evening as part of the first concert of the Lake Champlain Chamber Music Festival. We’ll also hear a rare concerto for bass tuba by Ralph Vaughan Williams, and a classic recording of Rudolf Serkin playing Beethoven.
This summer an exhibit at the Vermont Folklife Center in Middlebury recalls Helen and Scott Nearing and their homesteading experience in Vermont which they described in the book, "Living the Good Life".
New nursing graduates no longer have their pick of jobs, because older nurses are putting off retirement. But is it only temporary? Plus, a look back at the legacy and Vermont life of homesteaders Scott and Helen Nearing.
Summer is the busiest season for weddings in Vermont, among locals and out-of-state couples alike.
But some who make their living on these celebrations have found that weddings have changed in the middle of a recession.
When the Claremont Eagle Times and its fleet of weeklies shut down suddenly last month, readers wondered where their local news would come from. Now they actually have choices, as news groups from around the Northeast compete to fill the void created by the Eagle Times’ bankruptcy.
At 1pm, Walter will speak with violinist Soovin Kim, Artistic Director of the new Lake Champlain Chamber Music Festival, and pianist Ignat Solzhenitzyn, a Festival participant.
So many countries, so little time! Join Robert Resnik as he takes us on a musical visit to Afghanistan, Brazil, Algeria, Canada, Australia, Italy, and of course, all around Vermont!
Two of the rock & roll era’s most successful songwriters and record producers have been Jerry Lieber and Mike Stoller, whose life work was honored in 1995’s enormously successful Broadway review, "Smokey Joe’s Cafe." Joel Najman presents the first part of a series exploring the music of Leiber and Stoller.
The American Musical Sampler program returns with an afternoon of Broadway show music. We’ll feature classic favorites, little known gems and new recordings including Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Allegro.
We celebrate Count Basie’s Birthday (8.21.1904) sharing early recordings with Lester Young, collaborations with vocalists Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan, Joe Williams, Frank Sinatra and more. Blues with Big Joe Turner featuring the spare piano of late Basie.
State leaders agreed to a plan to cut the state budget even more, in light of the economic forecast, while debate continued over funding for state pensions. These wer some of the voices in this week’s news.
Former Governor Howard Dean speaks with VPR’s Bob Kinzel about why it’s not in the Democrats’ interest to compromise on a public option as part of the national health care bill with Republicans.
Cambridge physician Dr. Deb Richter and former Human Services Secretary
Con Hogan talk about their new book, "Gridlock: The Unhealthy Politics
of Health Care in Vermont." Also, former Governor Howard Dean says Democrats shouldn’t compromise on a public option; he talks with Bob Kinzel about national health care proposals.
New Hampshire’s new Gaming Study Commission will meet September 1st to start reviewing the options for expanded gaming in the state, the potential to generate revenue and the effect on the quality of life.
New Hampshire Sen. Judd Gregg says government would be a predator, not a competitor, if the overhaul of the nation’s health care system includes a public option.
A staple of fair season won’t be seen when the Caledonia County Fair begins its five-day run next week. Fair organizers say they’ve canceled any pig exhibits this year because of concerns related to the swine flu outbreak.
John Adams’ wacky Lollapalooza, Martinu’s kitchen drama La Revue de Cuisine, and a selection of Renaissance dances played by the Dufay Collective highlight today’s show.
Pichas Zuckerman, cond. Haydn: Symphony #60 in C major "Il Distratto"
Haydn: Violin Concerto in G Major; Pinchas Zuckerman, violin
Bach: Concerto in F, BWV 1060
Haydn: Symphony #98 in Bb Major
Schubert: Symphony #3 in D major
9:57 pm:
Beethoven: The Ruins of Athens:
Turkish March; St. Louis Symphony
Orchestra; Leonard Slatkin; RCA 7716
Guitarist Jimmy Raney’s birthday finds him in the company of Stan Getz, Sonny Clarke and Mahalia Jackson. John Coltrane compositions turn up in Steve Kuhn’s new ECM release "mostly Coltrane" and Jessica Williams’ solo piano take on Trane’s "Lonnie’s Lament"
August 30th is the 119th Anniversary of a bill that forever changed the face of education in this country. Commentator Deborah Doyle-Schechtman reflects on The Morrill Act of 1890, the events that led up to the democratization of higher learning it supported, and the Vermonter behind it all.
According
to State Treasurer Jeb Spaulding, Vermont’s pension and health care programs for state
employees and teachers are facing a billion dollar funding gap.
Pianist Ignat Solzhenitsyn certainly had a famous father, and now he’s making a name for himself as a first-rate concert pianist. Today we’ll hear him playing Brahms.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with filmmaker Liz Canner about her new documentary Orgasm, Inc. which explores the pharmaceutical industry’s attempt to create a female sexual dysfunction in order to market a drug that can cure it.
Peter Galbraith of Townshend, Vermont,
is the United Nation’s second-in-command in Afghanistan.
He talks with VPR’s Jane Lindholm by phone from Kabul
to discuss how voting has gone in today’s presidential election there.
UN diplomat Peter Galbraith joins us from Afghanistan to share his impressions of the today’s presidential elections there. We talk with members of the non-profit Federation of Vermont Lakes and Ponds about their work to protect the state’s small waterways. And, a Vermont filmmaker releases a documentary on the so-called ‘female Viagra.’
Among the many pieces Schubert left unfinished at his early death was a symphony in E. He completed only the first portion of the first movement; but he wrote the leading melody line for the entire symphony. Brian Newbould filled in the rest. Judge for yourself whether it sounds like Schubert.
Construction has started on a new long-awaited state crime lab that officials say will be needed to handle a big increase in the number of DNA samples the state will gather under Vermont’s new sex offender law.
The decommissioning fund for Vermont Yankee is showing signs of improvement. Entergy Nuclear says the fund’s shortfall has shrunk to 58-million-dollars.
Another
"sales-tax holiday" will be held this weekend and state officials say they hope
it will provide a boost to the economy. As
VPR’s Ross Sneyd reports, storekeepers and consumers are both bracing for a
busy day of shopping.
Traffic
experts have a few questions for you if you drive the Lake Champlain-Crown
Point Bridge. So
they’ll be out with clipboards in hand this weekend, interviewing drivers.
Senator Patrick Leahy was in Bennington yesterday to celebrate a pair of defense department
contracts that will mean new jobs locally and better protection for allied troops
in Afghanistan.
Franz Welser-Most, cond. Mozart: Symphony #35 in d, K 385
Ades: Chamber Symphony
Mendelssohn: Violin Concerto in E Minor, Op. 64; William Preucil, violin
Respighi: Church Windows
9:54 pm:
Holst: The Planets: Mercury, the Winged Messenger; Berlin
Philharmonic; Dir Colin Davis; Philips 422403
We celebrate Jimmy Rowles’ birthday with some of the jazz legends he accompanied on piano. Billie Holiday, Ben Webster, Stan Getz, Benny Goodman, Lee Konitz and many more join the party. And then there’s his voice.
Vermont has it’s share of hawks – and now eagles – but commentator Ted Levin has been watching the return of another large, soaring bird to our summer skies.
A shakeout in the airline industry continues to affect flights out of Vermont’s largest airport. US
Airways flights between Burlington International and LaGuardia Airport in New York are likely to stop next year.
The
Douglas Administration and the State Employee’s Union have started their
negotiations over a plan to reduce labor costs in the current fiscal year by
almost $7.5 million.
Schubert’s Fantasy for Violin and Piano contains passages that Liszt would laud and would make Paganini proud. We’ll hear it this afternoon, as well as concerti for both instruments as individuals by Prokofiev and Beethoven.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with a cheesemaker and the co-director of the Vermont Institute for Artisan Cheese about artisan cheese production in Vermont
While recovering from a serious bout of illness, the 79-year-old Richard Strauss composed a delightful Sonatina for 16 winds, which he titled "From an Invalid’s Workshop." We’ll listen to it this morning, as well as a Symphony for Strings by American William Schuman from the same year: 1943.
Up
until the late 1800s, Vermont was known as the "bread basket" of the region. But in the early 20th century,
grain growing began to taper off, as production became cheaper and markets
opened up in the Midwest. Now
some farmers are working to bring back grains like oats, barley and wheat on
farms in Vermont.
The union
representing part-time faculty at the University of Vermont has ratified a new
three-year contract that includes a 2 percent salary increase for each of the
three years.
Kurt Masur, cond. Britten: War Requiem; Samuel Wong, Carol Vaness, Jerry Hadley, Thomas Hampson, Westminster Choir, American Boychoir
9:57 pm:
Traditional (arr. Britten): Come you not from Newcastle?;
Carolyn Watkinson, contralto; Tan Crone, piano; Etcetera 1046
Commentator Andrea Learned has been thinking about the paths people and organizations take toward more sustainable practices, and she reminds us to engage with the journey.
Former Governor Howard Dean and Governor Jim Douglas have very different opinions about the importance of including a public
plan option in any health care reform bill that emerges from Congress.
Author Bob Wilson traveled the state to uncover and research the stories collected in his book Vermont Curiosities but he found one of them right in his own backyard. He speaks with VPR’s Jane Lindholm about his book.
More farmers are growing wheat, oats, barley and other grains in Vermont. Also, Burlington Free Press reporter Candace Page on the migration of Bicknell’s Thrushes. And, the author of a book on Vermont "curiosities" shares his favorites.
At 11 Walter speaks with conductor Alondra de la Parra, founder of the Philharmonic Orchestra of the Americas, which performs at Stowe’s Music Festival of the Americas, August 20-22.
Francois Couperin’s music has been praised for its clarity of line and structure. Maurice Ravel and Richard Strauss both appreciated his music, each creating their own tributes. We’ll hear from Couperin and from these tributes this morning.
While most of us can take a vacation from our structured and demanding lives, commentator Mary McCallum works with a special population that has found another more unusual way to get away from the stresses of their daily routine.
Earlier
this summer, the state Health Department warned swimmers to stay out of parts
of Lake Champlain because of algae blooms. The blooms have since been broken up, but persistent water pollution may be
affecting property values.
The
University of Vermont and two private companies have developed a new device that they say
might boost maple sap production as much as 90 percent. The
small plastic spouts will allow sugarmakers to tap their trees earlier and keep
the sap flowing longer into the season.
A New Hampshire woman has died after becoming sick with swine flu. The state’s
Department of Health and Human Services says the 22-year-old woman from Hillsborough County had other health problems that may have contributed
to her death.
We celebrate pianist Bill Evans’ birthday (8.16.1929) & the 50th anniversary of the release of Kind Of Blue, the best selling jazz album. Remember buying albums?
Senator
Bernie Sanders wants to dramatically increase funding for community health
centers across the county. His plan is being strongly supported by the Obama Administration and is included in the Senate’s overall health care reform bill.
Call me crazy, but the key of E Minor always seemed to be a "cool" key for me. So, on a hot day, we’ll hear the Symphony #4 by Brahms with the Vienna Philharmonic and Leonard Bernstein. Although, I’m sure Lenny was sweating profusely during the recording session….
Rutland Herald business reporter Bruce Edwards joins VPR’s
Steve Zind to discuss the Vermont Economic Development Authority loan program for dairy farmers.
How
the Canadian health care system works, what people north of the border want to change about access to and delivery of health care. Also, VEDA makes loans available to dairy farmers in distress.
Ten miles out in the Atlantic Ocean, where downeast Maine meets the Bay of Fundy, there’s a tiny island with a host of unusual seabirds. Recently, Tom Slayton went in search of both the island and the birds.
Vermont is one of only two states in the nation that doesn’t
have any banks that took bailout money from the federal government. The other
is Montana. One reason is because Vermont banks are so small.
Former
Democratic Party Chairman Howard Dean is arguing that there can be no
meaningful overhaul of the health care system without a public option for
coverage.
Senator
Bernie Sanders faced tough questions this weekend during two town meetings on health
care reform. Lawmakers have been
holding similar town meetings across the country and many have turned into
shouting matches with angry protestors.
VPR’s Nina Keck attended Sanders’ first meeting in Rutland and filed this report.
A campaign to provide disadvantaged Vermont
schoolchildren with backpacks and school supplies wraps up this week, with a
trunk worth being delivered to families in Burlington.
Robert Resnik pays tribute to the great folk musician Mike Seeger, who died last week at the age of 75. We’ll also hear new releases, live performances, and a special set for Bennington Battle Day.
The first hour tonight is given over to the Centennial of the birth of Stuff Smith, jazz violinist extraordinaire. We hear him playing with Ella Fitzgerald and Dizzy Gillespie.
Nick Marro covered the Woodstock Music and Arts Festival and says in many ways the music, as good as some of it was, was secondary to the social consciousness raised by a diverse group of people from all parts of the country.
An afternoon featuring new additions to the VPR Classical library, thanks to your generous support! Both new releases and older recordings will be heard today.
VPR’s Bob Kinzel speaks with Middlebury College professor emeritus Eric Davis about his thoughts on the Progressive Party’s decision to create "a priority issues test" for Democratic gubernatorial candidates.
VPR’s Bob Kinzel talks with Anthony Pollina, a former Progressive gubernatorial candidate, about the party’s litmus test for labor issues, health care and Vermont Yankee policy.
The weather dried out this week, but concerns continue this summer for dairy farmers, and for the laid off workers at an Ethan Allen manufacturing plant. Listen back to some of the voices in the news this week.
Vermont’s Progressive Party says it would support a Democratic
candidate for governor in 2010 if the candidate passes a litmus test on three issues. Bob Kinzel talks with Anthony Pollina about Democrats and Progressives getting behind one candidate. Also, political analysis with Eric Davis of Middlebury.
This weekend marks the fortieth anniversary of the Woodstock music festival. Commentator Debbie Bookchin was only 13 years old when she attended, but the hopes and aspirations of that time still resonate with her today.
It’s been 40 years since the 3-day weekend of peace, love and music on Max Yasgur’s farm in Bethel New York. Vermonters look back at the Woodstock Music and Arts Festival.
Today
we’re marking the fortieth anniversary of that historic summertime event with the
stories from people who were there. One Vermonter who got to Woodstock is today the Attorney
General of the state.
Burlington International Airport is getting $2.4 million in federal
stimulus money. The U.S. Department of Transportation announced the funding
yesterday.
Pierre Boulez, cond. Stravinsky: Four Studies for Orchestra
Szymanowski: Violin COncerto #1; Frank Peter Zimmerman, violin
Stravinsky: Pulcinella (complete ballet)
Varese: Ionisation
Varese: Ameriques
9:56 pm:
Ives: The Circus Band March; Milwaukee
Symphony Orchestra; Lukas Foss; Pro Arte 3102
We celebrate the birthdays of pianists Mulgrew Miller and George Shearing and trumpeter Benny Bailey and sadly note the passing of guitarist & innventor Les Paul and drummer Rashied Ali.
The
goal of the federal stimulus grant, which could amount to more than $50 million, is to find ways
to boost student achievement levels, measure teacher effectiveness and expand
technology learning opportunities in the schools.
Consumers in all three states in northern New England have had problems with their telephone service since FairPoint took
over from Verizon this year. So
utilities regulators may hold an unusual joint hearing to explore what’s
gone wrong.
We’ll hear some of the music from Handel’s "Alexander’s Feast" this afternoon, along with the fourth symphony of Arthur Honegger, nicknamed "The Delights of Basel."
One Vermonter is doing her part to preserve a rare donkey from France on her farm in Hartland – and thanks in part to her efforts, its making a comeback. VPR’s Steve Zind paid a visit to the Hamilton Rare Breeds Foundation.
We’ll catch up with environmentalist and author Bill McKibben, just back from an international tour to promote his latest grassroots initiative on global climate change awareness.
We’ll listen to Samuel Barber’s nostalgic and evocative Knoxville: Summer of 1915, sung by soprano Kathleen Battle on her 61st birthday; plus the complete Suite Espanola of Isaac Albeniz, played by Alicia De Larrocha.
The
company that built the containers used to hold high-level nuclear waste at
Vermont Yankee failed to conduct a required test to insure the casks are safe.
Franz Welser-Most, cond. Mozart: Symphony #25 in G Minor, K. 183
R. Strauss: Burlseke in D Minor, Op. 3; Emmanuel Ax, piano
Szymanowski: Symphony #4 for Piano and Orchestra; Emmanuel Ax, piano
Dvorak: Slavonic Dances, Op. 46
9:55 pm:
Bernstein: Divertimento: March “The BSO Forever”; Vienna
Philharmonic; Leonard Bernstein; DG 457691
We cover some blues in jazz, from the birthday of the "Poet Of The Blues" Percy Mayfield to Ray Charles who recorded several of his tunes and Jessica Williams’ bluesy solo piano.
Some sex offenders living in Vermont will not be listed on an "expanded Internet registry"
because of an inadvertent mistake by the Legislature. The
mistake was discovered when two of the offenders sued the state over the new
registry requirements.
Senator Bernie Sanders says some of the critics of the health care reform bill who are disrupting town
hall meetings across the country are acting in an "undemocratic manner" as part
of a right wing effort to spread lies about the legislation.
Murray Perahia plays Beethoven’s Emperor concerto. We’ll also hear Brahms’ Haydn Variations and chamber music by Dvorak that will be heard in Manchester tomorrow evening.
This weekend, teams of six runners will compete in the annual "100 on
100" relay race, from Stowe to Okemo. Race organizer Scott O’Neil talks
with VPR’s Jane Lindholm about the lure of long distance running and
team camaraderie.
Members of Congress have been getting earfuls of loud opinions from their constituents as they hold "town hall meetings" on health care. But commentator Susan Clark takes issue with people who are co-opting that phrase.
The state is teeming with opportunities for disabled Vermonters to stay
active. But just how accessible is the
state on a day-to-day basis? Also, runners gear up for the 100 on 100 race this weekend, and a commentary on misusing the term "town meeting."
Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition, NOT in Ravel’s familiar orchestration, but one made by pianist-conductor Vladimir Ashkenazy. His aim was to stay closer to Mussorgsky’s piano original and to reflect Mussorgsky’s own style of orchestration.
An upstate New York preservation group has received special recognition
from the White House for its efforts to protect historic shipwrecks in Lake George.
Plummeting land values
means there are new opportunities for conserving open space in the East. Forests and farms are sitting on the market and prices are dropping. But state officials are struggling to find money for conservation projects.
One
of northern Vermont’s highest-profile music festivals is $400,000 in debt and struggling to survive. The
Vermont Mozart Festival says its ticket sales have been hurt by the economy
and especially by the rain.
The Vermont
state parks are going solar. Governor Jim
Douglas is expected to announce a plan to install solar hot water systems at
bathrooms and bathhouses at state park campgrounds around Vermont today.
Vermont
State Auditor Tom Salmon says he’s still got a lot of ideas for how the Douglas administration and the Legislature can resolve budget problems.
The U.S.
Department of Agriculture is urging people across the Northeast to be on the
lookout for the Asian longhorned beetle, a nonnative pest that threatens maple
trees and other species of hardwood.
A
second veteran state’s attorney in Vermont is taking advantage of the state’s early retirement
incentive program. Addison prosecutor John Quinn says he’ll step down at the end of the month
after 24 years.
Mary Lou Williams and her Nite Life suite on solo piano & Lester Young’s Trio with Nat King Cole and Buddy Rich recorded right after the tenor saxophonist was released from the Army.
Mozart’s final string quartet is featured on the Craftsbury Chamber Players programs tomorrow night and Thursday night. We’ll hear it this afternoon, along with Haydn’s final symphony.
Cooking at camp can be a challenge, whether it’s over a campfire or on a rudimentary stove. But commentator Marialisa Calta considers it all just part of the adventure.
States are facing tough decisions about where to invest their shrinking
budgets. In most cases protecting open space is not at the top of the list. But the downturn in the economy has also meant, in some places, a drop
in land values, and that’s creating new opportunities to preserve
land and curb development.
Vermont regulators have given FairPoint Communications a
month to make its case for continued operation despite continued service
quality issues. The
hearing on Monday was FairPoint’s first chance to respond to a legal challenge that
could result in the phone company losing its license to operate in Vermont.
The chairman of
the Vermont State Board of Education is stepping down. Tom James, a
retired IBM executive, has served a six-year term on the board and will attend
his final monthly meeting on September 15th.
Vermont’s largest electric utility has won regulatory
approval to expand or investigate new renewable energy projects. Central Vermont Public Service says the improvements and the studies
will cost $350,000.
The governors
from New Hampshire, New York, Vermont and Maine are seeking $30 million from the federal government
for the Northern Border Regional Commission.
Civil liability
claims have been settled against the tour company that arranged the fall
foliage tour that ended with 20 passengers dying when their boat overturned on
an Adirondack lake in 2005.
The lawyer for suspended Vergennes police Chief
Michael Lowe entered a not guilty plea on his behalf today to a charge of
driving under the influence of drugs.
We sample jazz piano styles, solo and trios from the New Orleans sound of Professor Longhair, the stride of Dave McKenna’s left hand and the mellow boogie of Chicago’s Jimmy Yancey.
Commentator David Budbill has been thinking about the new sustainable agriculture movement and how it reflects his own arrival in the southwest corner of the Northeast Kingdom.
According to a new report, around 10 percent of
all motor vehicle crashes in Vermont are caused by distracted drivers. They account for
about three-thousand crashes a year.
On August weekends a team of volunteers from the
Burlington non-profit group, Local Motion, operates a 3-minute
"bike ferry" across the Colchester-South Hero causeway.
The Green Mountain Club has published a new book specifically designed for walking trails around the state. We hear from the book’s editor, Mary Lou Recor.
We talk with Woody Tasch, who’s working to direct more investments toward local, sustainable agriculture programs. Also, we take a walk in the woods with the editor of a new Walking Trails guidebook.
Woody Tasch
is the author of the book Inquiries into
the Nature of Slow Money Investing as if Food, Farms, and Fertility Mattered and he’s
in Vermont to speak
at the Vermont Fresh Network’s annual forum.
It’s a "romantic" Monday, with the Sonata Romantica for guitar by Mexican composer Manuel Ponce and the big "Romantic" Symphony No. 4 of Anton Bruckner.
For commentator, filmmaker, and Marlboro College teacher Jay Craven, the recent announcement of changes at Montpelier’s Savoy Theater has a special resonance.
By the end of August, about 250 workers at the Ethan Allen Furniture factory in Beecher Falls will be out of work. In this economy, and in this remote corner at the juncture of Vermont, New Hampshire, and Canada, the prospects for re-employment are especially slim.
It’s fair season in Vermont.
The annual celebration of farming is also a place where agriculture companies
meet with their customers-dairy farmers. And in this time of low milk
prices, many grain companies, equipment dealers and agricultural service businesses
also have to change the way they do business.
New Hampshire Governor
John Lynch plans to sign a bill Monday requiring larger companies to give 60
days notice to their workers and to New Hampshire of mass layoffs or plant closings.
A former
federal agriculture official in Vermont has a new job at the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Jim Monahan has
been named the deputy administrator of commodity operations at the USDA.
Put the hottest conductor in the world at the
moment with the ensemble recently acclaimed as the greatest orchestra
in the world, and what do you get? Don’t miss this!
How can it be 40 years since that hot and muddy and music-filled weekend in Ellenville, NY?
Another very hot and crowded free concert with the Jefferson Airplane and Santana in New York’s Central Park the weekend before convinced my friends and I to skip Woodstock, but I was lucky enough to see many of the headliners during that wild summer of 1969…This show also includes a specal dedication to folk icon Sandy Paton, who passed on at the end of July at the age of 80. He was the founder of Folk-Legacy Records, and, along with his lifetime partner Caroline Paton, is responsible for introducing many of us to Gordon Bok, Archie Fisher, and Cindy Kallet (among many many others).Add to that a preview of the Piper’s Gathering bagpipe festival in Killington this weekend and the Tuvan throat singers Alash visiting Burlington next week, and a wild show is guaranteed!
This week Joel Najman’s My Place program presents hit songs recorded by a dozen female vocalists of the 1960’s singing songs that lean toward the "sentimental" side. Featured are many familiar favorites plus several obscurities that haven’t been heard on the radio in many years.
The annual jazz festival in Newport, R.I. is celebrating its 55th year
this weekend. NPR Music, with partners WBGO and WGBH, will present live coverage and recording archives of George Wein’s CareFusion Jazz Festival 55.
We celebrate the birthday of the blind Rahsaan Roland Kirk who often played three horns at once with a little help from duct tape and circular breathing. Newport Jazz Festival is this weekend and we listen to recordings done live at the Festival.
The Vergennes police chief faces embezzlement
and other charges. Chief Michael Lowe already had been accused last month of
driving under the influence of drugs.
The Senate has confirmed Vermont’s next U.S. Attorney and
U.S. Marshal. The Senate voted today to confirm the
nominations of Tristram Coffin as the top federal prosecutor in the state, and
David Demag as the U.S. Marshal.
Yet another preview of concerts coming up this weekend. Several music festivals are wrapping up, including the Yellow Barn Festival, Vermont Mozart Festival, Killington Music Festival, and the North Country Chamber Players’ White Mountain Music Festival. We’ll hear works by Ravel, Haydn, Francaix, and Beethoven that can be heard at these festivals over the weekend.
Congressman Peter Welch is a member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee. The panel recently gave its approval to a new health care reform plan. We talk with the Congressman about the reasons why he voted for it.
A chorus of Peasants (from Borodin’s opera, Prince Igor) and Biber’s sonata,
"Peasants’ church-going" get the morning started at 8. In the next hour,
it’s Renaissance village dances and a suite of ‘Village’ vignettes by
Georges Enesco.
Farmers are looking for different crops
to grow and new ways to improve the soil while protecting the environment. Some
of these innovations were on display in Alburgh this week, as researchers and
farmers got together to check out results from recent field trials.
Officials at Burlington’s Good News Garage say they were worried that the
Cash for Clunkers program might hurt their business of fixing up donated cars
and providing them to needy families.
Republican New
Hampshire Senator Judd Gregg voted against extending the "Clash for
Clunkers" plan, saying it’s a "wreck" for future generations of
taxpayers who will be forced to pay the bill for today’s new car purchases.
Vermont Gov. Jim
Douglas and his Tennessee counterpart Phil Bredesen will be meeting Friday in
South Burlington to talk about information technology in health care.
More than 1,500
organic farmers and gardeners are expected in Massachusetts this weekend for the 35th Northeast Organic Farming
Association conference.
The U.S House
has approved the creation of a regional commission and $3 million to help with
economic development in northern Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine and New York.
Esa-Pekka Salonen, cond. Gustavo Dudamel, cond. Bartok: Music for Strings, Percussion, and Celesta
Part: Symphony #4
Debussy: La Mer
Castellanos: Santa Cruz de pacairigua: Suite Sinfonica
9:57 pm:
Mozart: Contredanse in B flat, K.603, No.2; Salzburg
Mozarteum Orchestra; Hans Graf; LaserLight 15887
(Host)
Pollution from underground petroleum storage tanks continues to be a problem
around Vermont. The
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency awarded $1 million to Vermont’s Environmental Conservation Department to deal with the issue.
New releases we’ll hear today include an organ concerto by Handel performed by Richard Egarr, a piano sonata by Haydn played by Marc-Andre Hamelin, and cellist Peter Wispelwey playing Prokofiev’s Sinfonia Concertante in a live recording from Rotterdam.
We talk with Vermont author Woden Teachout about her new book, Capture the Flag: A Political History of American Patriotism. Also, Sen. Illuzzi proposes electing Public Service Board members, and we visit Burlington’s Ethan Allen Tower.
Years after Krzysztof Penderecki wrote his Threnody for the Victims of Hiroshima, he said "Let the Threnody express my firm belief that the sacrifice of Hiroshima will never be forgotten and lost." This morning we’ll hear the powerful Threnody, and remember Aug. 6th, 1945.
With all the talk of bipartisanship and transparency in government these days, one might think that they’re relatively new ideas, but commentator Deborah Doyle-Schechtman believes that it’s one of Vermont’s own who first gave true meaning to those concepts more than 100 years ago.
The
demand for organic milk and dairy products has grown by double digits each year
since 2005 – until this year. Now the shrinking economy has pushed consumer demand for pricey organic
products down and that’s left some organic farms in trouble.
The
Vermont Milk Commission has asked dairy processors to help farmers struggling
with low milk prices. But
there were no clear solutions that emerged from this week’s meeting. And the
main player in the market – Texas-based Dean Foods – didn’t show up.
Vermont
arts organizations have been awarded over $600,000 in stimulus
money. The 42 grants will be used to preserve jobs in the non-profit art sector
that might be threatened by the economic downturn.
Franz Welser-Most, cond. Botti: Translucense
Rachmaninoff: Piano Concerto #1; Leif Ove Andsnes, piano
Bartok: Concerto for Orchestra
9:55 pm:
Wilder: Air for oboe; Humbert Lucarelli, oboe; Manhattan
Chamber Orchestra; Richard Auldon Clark; Newport
85570
Stanley Drucker, clarinet
Debussy: Premiere Rhapsody
Nielsen: Clarinet Concerto
Bolcom: Clarinet Concerto
9:57 pm:
Grieg: Peer Gynt: Dance of the Mountain King’s Daughter; San
Francisco Symphony; Edo de Waart; Philips 411038
Farmers
could earn an extra $1.50 for every hundred pounds of milk they produce
under a plan offered by Senator Bernie Sanders. The
Senate added the provision this week to an agriculture appropriations bill.
The
breakwater at the mouth of Plattsburgh Harbor on Lake
Champlain will be rebuilt
this fall using money from the federal stimulus package. The
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers says it’s awarded a $1.9 million contract for the work.
Recent national economic news has raised hopes that the recession is
moderating and better days are ahead, but there’s still plenty to be
concerned about
When
a Vermont state senator was accused last week of improper
behavior in a public place, a complicated conversation began about the
intersection of politics and disabilities.
An agriculture bill that passed the U.S. Senate
yesterday included an amendment by Senator Bernie Sanders to lift milk price
supports by an estimated $1.50 per hundredweight.
State regulators may levy fines against Vermont Yankee
for its failure to monitor radiation that comes from its high-level nuclear
waste. The company was required to report the temperature and
radiation from storage containers that hold spent nuclear fuel. State officials
say they’re concerned about the apparent violation.
Vermont has received about $100 million in federal
stimulus money so far. Much of it has
been used to pay for Medicaid benefits. Tom
Evslin heads the Vermont Office of Economic Stimulus and Recovery.
The price of home heating
oil in Vermont is substantially lower now than it was at this time
last year. The Vermont Public
Service Department says the average price of a gallon of oil was $2.34 last month.
After years of celebrating trumpeter Louis Armstrong’s birthday on July 4, 1900 (a little too perfect, no?) it turns out his real birthday was August 4, 1901. It seems worthwhile celebrating both dates whenever possible considering Louis is still the best known jazz artistin the world.
Commentator Bill Schubart was recently struck by news reports that UVM Extension has set up a hotline for struggling farmers and shares his thoughts on the current state of the Vermont dairy industry.
When Norwegian pianist Leif Ove Andsnes made his Russian debut, he chose to play Rachmaninoff’s Third Piano Concerto. That’s bold! And it was very successful. Today we’ll hear a recording of that work that Andsnes made with his "hometown band," so to speak, the Oslo Philharmonic, with conductor Paavo Berglund.
We check in with Tom Evslin, who heads the Office of Economic
Stimulus and Recovery, for an update on the impact of federal economic
stimulus money coming into Vermont.
Transportation
officials from around New
England have visions of a high-speed
rail network, but on Monday they got a dose of reality. The
Obama administration has eight billion dollars for trains – and demands for 13
times more money from 40 different states.
An influential legislator
says he’ll introduce a bill in the next legislative session calling for
the Vermont Public Service Board to be elected rather than appointed,
as the utility regulation panel is now.
Firefighters
from the Green and White Mountain National Forests and the Vermont Department of Forests, Parks and
Recreation are headed to Alaska
to fight wildfires there.
British surprises from the UK’s Sir Roger
Norrington. Vaughan Williams’ Double Piano Concerto — hiding in the
shadows for over 60 years — and William Walton’s Symphony No. 1, the
striking product of a broken heart.
Jazz: It’s summertime and the rain has stopped, for the momen. We sample some seasonal songs, enjoy the alto sax magic of Phil Woods, by request, and check out the new Laurence Hobgood piano CD with features the bass Of Charlie Haden.
Commentator John McClaughry thinks that current plans for reforming our national health care system are likely to have quite a few unintended – and undesirable – consequences.
Canadian pianist Jean-Francois Latour is quickly establishing himself as one of the country’s best young musicians. Latour’s performance highlights one of his specialties, music by Frederic Chopin.
A new book by Vermont author, Tom Zoellner, sets out to explain what uranium is, and how it’s influenced world events. Plus we hear from Burlington Free Press reporter Candace Page.
Vermont author Tom Zoellner has written a new book, Uranium: War, Energy, and the Rock that Reshaped the World. We learn more about the element and its influence.
"What Do You Do With A Drunken Sailor" – a good question, which will be asked by two different musical groups. We’ll also hear the Glinka Russian Sailor’s Dance, and Mendelssohn’s concert overture, Calm Sea and Prosperous Voyage.
The economic downturn that began in the fall deepened into a
recession that some compare to the Great Depression. As
VPR reported in a series in February, jobs were being cut, incomes were falling
and the recession was Hitting Home. So
now, six months later, what’s changed?
Ever since Michelle Obama dug her trowel into
the White House Lawn this spring, community gardens have been springing up
everywhere. But they don’t always make everyone happy. Some residents of a Bennington neighborhood are
protesting a community garden on their street.
Senator
Bernie Sanders says more needs to be done to help Vermont’s dairy farmers recover from the economic crisis that
they face. The
U.S. Department of Agriculture announced last week that it was increasing its
support price for cheese and powder milk.
The peak of summer concert time: Music that will be featured at the Long Trail Festival, the Whole Hog BarBQ and Music Festival, the Valley Stage Festival, The Northeast Kingdom Music Festival, countless "music on the green" concerts all over the area, and a wealth of new arrivals to our music library too!
In
July of 1909, the Tenth Cavalry arrived at Fort Ethan Allen in Colchester. The regiment was made up of 750 African American men, known as
"Buffalo Soldiers." The
regiment’s name is thought to have been created by Native Americans, who said
there were physical similarities between the troops on horseback and a herd of
buffalo.
This Week Joel Najman’s My Place program presents a mixed bag of "Top 40" and "Botton 40" hits from the early days of Rock&Roll. Some of the most cherished and enduring recordings from the rock era’s formative years did not rank high on the national popularity charts when they were first released decades ago. On this week’s program, Joel Najman mixes a generous sample of these "Bottom 40" hits along with some favorite chart-toppers from the 1950’s and 1960’s.
American-Israeli relations are going through rough times over Israeli settlements in Arab territory and Iran’s nuclear program. Today, commentator Barrie Dunsmore, veteran ABC News diplomatic and foreign correspondent, gives us an update.
In the final part of our series "History Under the Waves" we learn about the dramatic end of the sailing canal boat General Butler on a cold December night at the Burlington Breakwater in 1876.
This week VPR looks at what sent five ships to the bottom of Lake Champlain and into the history books in the series History Under the Waves. Next Up: The General Butler and its dramatic end on a cold December night in 1876 at the Burlington Breakwater. Listen Friday during All Things Considered.
Dvorak in Marlboro, Haydn in Putney, Gershwin in Stowe, and de Falla in Killington…there is a huge amount of music to be heard this weekend at summer festivals across the state, and we’ll get a preview this afternoon.
The
federal government threw a life line to dairy farmers across the country this
morning. The
U.S. Department of Agriculture announced it would increase the support price it
pays when buying cheese and powdered milk.
One hundred years ago, the Tenth Cavalry, a regiment made up of 750 African-American men known as Buffalo Soldiers arrived in Vermont. We talk with scholars and descendants about their legacy. Also, we check in on the week’s news and listen back to your letters.
Rosamunde, Helmina von Chezy’s play about a Princess raised by
sailors and a Prince living among shepherds, disappeared from the stage
after 2 performances and is believed to be lost. It would be
forgotten, as well, had not Franz Schubert written such wonderful music
for it.
Sultana Scheherazade saves her life by weaving elaborate tales of bravery, treachery, and love in music by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov. We’ll hear the musical setting of the classical Persian stories from 1,001 Arabian Nights.
An event coming up this weekend will commemorate a little-known episode in Vermont history that – according to commentator Tom Slayton – tested racial tolerance in the Green Mountains.
Since
the 1960s composer Steve Reich has helped define modern music and he’s influenced a generation
of jazz and classical musicians. For
much of that time Reich has been coming to Vermont during the summer.
Throughout
the centuries, philosophers from Plato to Thomas Jefferson have written about
the quest for happiness. Now,
a pair of University of Vermont scientists say they’ve come up with what they
think is the best way to measure what makes us joyful or sad.
Albeniz: Interlude and Dance from La Vida Breve
Falla: The Three-Cornered Hat
Falla: Nights in the Gardens of Spain
Franck: Symphony in D Minor
9:57 pm:
Shostakovich: Ballet Suite No.1: Dance; Moscow
Chamber Orchestra; Constantine Orbelian; Delos 3257
State
government faces another year of declining revenues and almost-certain budget
cuts. So the Legislature is looking for 30 million dollars
in efficiencies throughout government.
Today in our series "History Under the Waves" we learn about The Champlain II, a boat that had two carrers before meeting its fate on the side of Split Rock Mountain in 1875.
Today we’ll be hearing from a new release on Albany records featuring pianist Pola Baytelman. We’ll hear two selections by Heitor Villa-Lobos and several works by Chilean composer Pedro Humberto Allende.
Despite loyal patrons, and even members who have paid membership dues to keep it afloat, the owners of the Savoy Theater in downtown Montpelier have decided to put it on the market.
VPR’s Jane Likndholm talks with a farm manager, an independent organic inspector and a certification administrator about how organic standards are determined
Vermont is in the top ten in the country when it comes to the number of certified organic farms and businesses. We’ll look at what it takes to become an organic producer or processor and the issues surrounding the federal certification standards.
During Beethoven’s lifetime, his Septet became so popular that he began to resent the attention it drew away from his other works. We’ll listen to it this morning. Also today, Debussy’s Children’s Corner Suite played by Grant Johannesen, who was born July 30, 1921.
Revealing the intimate side of Parisian pianist and composer Cecile Chaminade this morning – several of her songs are sung by mezzo-soprano Anne Sofie Von Otter.
Commentator Willem Lange recently returned to the Adirondacks, where he lived as a young man – fifty years ago. He says that quite a few things have changed.
Author Brad Kessler recounts
a life with four-legged friends in his new book, "Goat Song". Kessler tells of his experiences learning to become a goat
herder and cheese maker, and reflects on what it’s like to live with the
animals who directly feed you.
An adjustment by the town of Stratton in response to
declining second home values has set the town on a collision course with the state
department of taxes. How the issue plays out could make a difference
of more than two million dollars in the state’s education property tax fund.
Governor
Jim Douglas says he’s come to the conclusion that health care is key to
economic development. Douglas is chairman of the National Governors Association and has made health
care his top priority for the year.
Congressman Peter Welch
and a bipartisan group of congressmen have re-invigorated a dairy farm caucus. The goal is to provide immediate relief for farmers,
and to work on long-term reform of the milk pricing system.
In the third part of our series, "History Under the Waves", the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum’s Art Cohn describes the tragic fate of the schooner, Sarah Ellen in 1860.
Felix Mendelssohn’s D Minor piano Trio Op. 49 will be performed by Monica Ohuchi, Mary Rowell, and Frances Rowell as part of the Craftsbury Chamber Players’ program this week in Burlington and Hardwick…and Beethoven’s "Archduke" Trio will be performed in Killington this Saturday as part of the Killington Music Festival. We’ll hear both of those works this afternoon performed by the Kalichstein-Laredo-Robinson trio.
Governor Douglas talks with VPR’s Jane Lindholm about how the roles of states and federal government intersect, and how governors want to influence the debate around overhauling health care.
Since the 1960s composer Steve Reich has helped define modern music and he’s influenced a generation of jazz and classical musicians. He says his time in Vermont has have provided him with an opportunity to create some of his best work. He speaks with VPR’s Steve Zind about his music.
As the new chair of the National Governors Association, Gov. Jim Douglas says health care is a top priority for states. We talk with Gov. Douglas about the federal efforts to overhaul health care policy, and how state governments are affected. Also, composer Steve Reich explains how Vermont inspires his music.
Going nocturnal with Vivaldi’s evocative La Notte ("The Night") Violin Concerto, a Notturno by Haydn, and highlights from Mendelssohn’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream.
For
the first time in 30 years, a new strategic plan for managing fish populations
in Lake Champlain has been adopted. Biologists have tried to figure out how to protect
all 88 species of fish that call the lake home.
When commentator Deborah Luskin left New York City for the wilds of northern New England, she thought she’d be giving up live opera. She’s been delighted to discover that she was wrong.
All this week in our series "History Under the Waves" VPR is looking at five historic wrecks that lie at the bottom of Lake Champlain. Today, we look at the Phoenix. Built in 1815, it was the second commercial steamboat launched on Lake Champlain.
Vermont child psychologist and author Robert Belenky joins VPR’s Jane
Lindholm to discuss his personal involvement and study of successful
child rearing in Russia, Haiti and New England.
Vermont child psychologist and writer Robert Belenky shares his observations on how several cultures address the issue of how to raise troubled and orphaned children. Also, the newest student member of the state Board of Education prepares for his role, and the music of Gil Shohat.
We’ll celebrate conductor Riccardo Muti’s 68th birthday with two of his Philadelphia Orchestra recordings: Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony and Stravinsky’s Petrouchka.
"Sleepers, awake!" – an invocation from J.S. Bach this morning, along with the dreamy Barrios Un Sueno en la Floresta (A Dream in the Flowerbed), and a celebration of conductor Riccardo Muti’s 58th birthday.
The four hundredth anniversary of Samuel de Champlain’s arrival on the lake that now bears his name has reminded commentator and Vermont Humanities Council Executive Director Peter Gilbert of two movies – and of the miracle of written language and reading.
The
Claremont, New
Hampshire, area
lost its daily newspaper earlier this month when the Eagle Times abruptly
closed. That
loss has created a local ‘news vacuum’ in the region. And a former competitor
up the river from Claremont hopes to fill it.
Vermont Freedom
to Marry says it spent more than $290,000 lobbying lawmakers and
the public on the same-sex marriage bill that was approved by the Legislature,
far outspending its opponents.
Herbert Blomstedt, cond. Mozart: Divertimento in D Major, K. 251
Mozart: Piano Concerto #22 in Eb Major, K. 482; Jonathan Biss, piano
Mozart: Symphony #8 in D major, K. 504 "Prague"
9:43 pm:
Mozart: Symphony in G, K. deest; Academy
of St. Martin-in-the-Fields;
Neville Marriner; Philips 416619
The Canadian conductor Yannick Nezet-Seguin is
one of those musicians whom players perform with and immediately ask to
return. The Dutch even did better than that, as they recently asked him
to return and stay on as chief conductor of the Rotterdam Philharmonic.
In the first part of our series "History Under The Waves" we look at the Gunboat Spitfire, a part of Benedict Arnold’s fleet of ships assigned the task of repeling the British as they advanced down Lake Champlain in 1776.
Love him or loathe him, there’s no denying that Vladimir Horowitz was one of the most dynamic and turbulent musicians of the 20th century. We’ll hear a recording made late in his life of the great Bb major sonata by Franz Schubert,
Leif Richardson is an ecologist with the Department of Fish and Wildlife Nongame and Natural Heritage Program. He spoke with VPR’s Jane Lindholm about the state of the bumblebee population in Vermont.
Vermont’s 272 mile footpath through the Green Mountains is about to turn 100. We celebrate the trail, and learn about its creation. Also, a look at why some species of bumblebees are disappearing from Vermont.
At 11 a.m., Walter’s guest will be conductor and pianist Gil Shohat of the Vermont Mozart Festival. He’ll preview his upcoming all-Beethoven recital in Middlebury.
Vermont agriculture leaders say crops have been stunted this
year by cool temperatures and relentless rain. They
say that nearly all crops are maturing much more slowly this year. And as VPR’s
Ross Sneyd reports, that could make the dairy crisis even worse.
Unlike some
other states, New
Hampshire
hasn’t seen a spike in homeowners seeking property tax abatements, but some
officials think that could change later this year.
So
far, Vermont’s honeybees have escaped Colony Collapse Disorder,
which has led to the disappearance of hives in other parts of the country. But
the state’s bumblebee population hasn’t fared as well.
A show with lots of audio previews of artists performing at the 26th
annual Champlain Valley Folk Festival in Ferrisburgh, VT this upcoming weekend, as well as other great live
shows this week in the VPR listening area!
The rock&roll era’s first female vocalist to have a million-selling teen hit, the first to have two consecutive #1 Hot 100 hits, and, in 1960, the youngest singer to headline at a major Las Vegas venue is Newark, New Jersey’s Connie Francis. This week, Joel Najman’s My Place program presents a musical profile of the early career of the now 70-year old Miss Francis, celebrating her successful recovery from decades of deep personal and health difficulties and her triumphant return to the performance stage in an entertainment career that today extends more than 65 years.
State regulators have closed an investigation into allegations that phone
companies tracked calls made by Vermont customers as part of a huge domestic spying program.
This week, Vermont Edition is exploring some of the music included in the compilation called Thrufters & Throughstones, a special collection of music celebrating Lake Champlain’s Quadricentennial. Today we hear Weapon Factory, by The Wards
Vermont Edition has been exploring a new CD set that chronicles our region’s musical history. Today we look at punk music’s influence in Vermont and hear the song "Weapon Factory" by The Wards.
Reporter John Dillon speaks with VPR’s Steve Zind about where things stand for dairy farmers trying to stay in business in Vermont and what solutions are being offered.
This week during Vermont Edition, host Jane Lindholm talks with Andy Kolovos of the Vermont Folklife Center about Thufters and Throughstones, a new cd celebrating more than 400 years of Vermont music. Next up: Punk music with Vermont band, The Wards.
Vermont has more craft brewers per capita than anywhere else in the nation. We look into the industry’s recent growth. Also, an update on dairy prices and we continue our series of 400 years of Vermont music.
We’ll listen to Tchaikovsky’s infrequently-heard Orchestral Suite No. 2 and Massenet’s Orchestral Suite No. 7 "Scenes alsaciennes." Also today, Chopin’s Cello Sonata played by Allison Eldredge, Artistic Director of the Killington Music Festival.
Giselle is considered the high point in Romantic ballet. Its creator, Adolphe Adam, was born on this day (1803, in Paris). We’ll hear the entire first act of Adam’s masterpiece, Giselle, this morning.
State
officials are concerned that the financial pressures facing dairy farmers will lead
to psychological problems — and possibly suicide. So
the state has set up a help line to handle calls from farmers under financial,
and emotional stress.
This weekend, Fort
Ticonderoga will celebrate the 100th
anniversary of the re-opening of the restored fort. Re-construction of the 18th
century fort began in 1909 as the region marked the 300th
anniversary of the explorations the French explorer Samuel de Champlain.
Congressman
Peter Welch says the federal government can save seniors and taxpayers money by
negotiating with pharmaceutical companies on prescription drug prices for
seniors in Medicare Part D.
Vermont State
Police say a Stowe woman is recovering from a broken wrist and a laceration
after she was hit by a town police cruiser while walking near the middle of a
local road.
The Vermont
Attorney General’s office says a Shelburne police officer was justified when he
shot and wounded a suspect in a convenience store parking lot on February 13th.
George Thomas talks with Ellis Marsalis, patriarch of the New Orleans-based Marsalis clan (including sons Wynton, Branford, Jason, and Delfayo) and mentor to Harry Connick, Jr. and countless others.
Commentator Bill Schubart has struggled to control his weight for much of his life; and now, as he watches the country struggling with its own weight, both physically and metaphorically, he has some thoughts based on his own experience.
When Administration Secretary Neale Lunderville closed the 2009 budget, there was
still $14 million on hand. But
he says that’s not an indication that Vermont’s financial problems are over.
Lawmakers are urging the Vermont Milk Commission to help dairy farmers by
forcing processors to pay more for the product. The goal is to then get that
money back in farmers’ pockets.
This week, Vermont Edition is exploring some of the music included in the compilation called Thrufters & Throughstones, a special collection of music celebrating Lake Champlain’s Quadricentennial. Today we hear Hegonay/Gwanuday, by Hand in Hand
This week, Vermont Edition is exploring some of the music included in the compilation called Thrufters & Throughstones, a special collection of music celebrating Lake Champlain’s Quadricentennial. Today we hear La Bergére, by Michéle Choiniére.
Andy Kolovos, archivist with the Vermont Folklife Center talks with VPR’s Jane Lindholm about "La Bergére" from Michéle Choiniére, and "Hegonay/Gwanuday" by Hand in Hand, part of a new cd that chronicles Vermont’s history.
He made a living as an orthopaedic surgeon. At different points in his life he also managed a sawmill, and a glass factory. As for music? Stockholm native Franz Berwald wrote much in his lifetime, but was mostly overlooked although he came from a long line of more than four generations of musicians. Today’s Berwald’s birth date (July 23, 1796). We’ll hear his beguiling concert piece, Elfenspiel.
We’ll celebrate pianist Leon Fleisher’s 81st birthday with something from his latest album: Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 12. Also today, a Fantasia for Soprano Saxophone by Villa-Lobos which will be on the Vermont Mozart Festival’s program Saturday; and Schubert’s big String Quintet.
Several
Vermont businesses say they’ve been able to expand and add
jobs by relying on capital from foreign investors. But
they say ready access to that money could dry up unless Congress reauthorizes a
special immigration program that encourages such investment.
Commentator Tom Blinkhorn, who worked at The World Bank in Washington, DC when Robert McNamara was president, recalls a very different man from the one who is usually remembered for his role in the Vietnam war.
State
officials have asked Washington for emergency relief. They hope that the Obama
Administration will buy time for farmers before more structural changes are
made in the federal farm support system.
Charlie Nardozzi, horticulturalist with the National Gardening Association joins VPR’s Jane Lindholm to give some tips to keep the critters out of the garden.
Janine Jansen plays Autumn from Vivaldi’s Four Season, which will be on programs of the Manchester Music Festival and Killington Music Festival this week. Plus we have music written for the 50th and 100th anniversaries of the Boston Symphony by Paul Hindemith and Leonard Bernstein.
Officials
say one of the passenger trains serving Vermont should get to New York an hour faster, if New England wins federal grants. They
also want to re-establish passenger rail service between Burlington and New York and begin to restore the rail line that once
connected Montreal and Boston.
Senator
Bernie Sanders says federal policy should encourage the creation of "green
jobs" that can reduce the reliance on fossil fuels. Sanders
chaired a hearing in Washington Tuesday about what states and
cities across the country are doing in the field.
Democratic
gubernatorial candidate Doug Racine is criticizing Governor Jim Douglas over
the incumbent Republican’s opposition to a so-called public option as part of
federal health care reform.
Judge Sonia Sotomayor’s hearings before the Senate Judiciary Committee have concluded. We talk with the committee chair, Vermont Senator Patrick Leahy, about the Supreme Court nominee and take your questions.
Saxophonist Steve Wilson and pianist Danny Grissett join George Thomas in the Performance Studio for a live preview of their Vemont Mozart Festival concert July 22.
Governor Jim Douglas says he’s asked the corrections commissioner to report to
him on allegations that members of the Vermont National Guard were denied
permanent employment at the state prison in Springfield.
This week, Vermont Edition is exploring some of the music included in the compilation called Thrufters & Throughstones, a special collection of music celebrating Lake Champlain’s Quadricentennial. Today we hear "Growling Old Man and Grumbling Old Woman"
Andy Kolovos, archivist with the Vermont Folklife Center talks with VPR’s Jane Lindholm about "Growling Old Man and Grumbling Old Woman", a song performed by the youth ensemble, The Fiddleheads.
Robert Ide, Agency of Transportation’s Rail Program Manager speaks with VPR’s Jane Lindholm about what’s in the New England high-speed rail proposal for stimulus funds, and how likely Vermont is to see these improvements.
The federal stimulus program includes billions of dollars for high-speed rail, and Vermont is aiming to get a share of that grant money. We look at how the New England states have banded together in their request for federal money to provide high-seed rail. Also, we’ll see how honey bees are faring after three years of Colony Collapse Disorder.
The 5 Browns are piano-playing siblings (3 sisters, 2 brothers). We’ll
listen to their version of The Sorcerer’s Apprentice of Paul Dukas and
other works. They’ll be at the Southern Vermont Arts Center this evening.
Also today, the Piano Quartet No. 1 of Faure, which will
be on the programs of the Manchester Music Festival and the Green
Mountain Chamber Music Festival this week.
The dust has settled following the recent Burlington International Waterfront Festival – and the event’s producer, commentator Jay Craven, is taking a moment to look back.
Health
care will be the special focus of Governor Jim Douglas over the next year as he
heads up the National Governors Association. One
of his primary objectives will be protecting states from shouldering too much
cost from the initiatives being developed in Congress.
Christoph Eschenbach leads the Orchestra of Paris in Copenhagen’s new concert hall in music of Richard Strauss, featuring soprano Renee Fleming, and Bruckner.
Commentator Olin Robison was among those watching as American astronauts landed on the moon, and he joins the anniversary observation with a few reflections of his own.
The Douglas administration says Yankee has to show Vermont the money if it wants to keep operating for another
20 years.
The state also wants Yankee to show it can pay to decommission the plant in
2032, when the new license would run out.
Andy Kolovos, archivist with the Vermont Folklife Center talks with VPR’s Jane Lindholm about "Young Charlotte", a folk ballad that is part of a collection of songs celebrating Vermont music in a new two-disc collection.
This week, Vermont Edition is exploring some of the music included in the compilation called Thrufters & Throughstones, a special collection of music celebrating Lake Champlain’s Quadricentennial. Today we hear the folk ballad "Young Charlotte"
Vermont has the lowest incarceration rate for juveniles in the nation, because the state instead focuses on rehabilitating kids in the community. Also, we begin a series that looks at the first 400 years of music in our region.
Several members of the Vermont National Guard who
were working as temporary corrections officers at the state prison in Springfield, say they were systematically denied permanent jobs
because of their upcoming deployment. Some
say they were fired outright.
Three
Vermont community hospitals have formed a partnership that
they hope will save them money on contracts and purchases. As
VPR’s Ross Sneyd reports, they also hope it will prepare them for whatever
health care changes Washington eventually adopts.
A show dedicated to the memory of Jerry Holland, a fine Cape Breton fiddler who died of this week after a valiant fight with cancer, and some glimpses at the many concerts happening this week in the VPR listening area.
There are many who consider Burt Bacharach the greatest living composer of popular music of the 20th century. What is irrefutable is the fact that Burt’s compositions, many in collaboration with lyricist Hal David, are among the most cherished and enduring hits of the 1960’s and beyond. As Burt Bacharach continues composing in his 81st year, Joel Najman’s My Place program features a look a number of Burt’s biggest successes as well as a handful of fascinating obscurities from a songwriting career that today extends well over six decades.
On the fiftieth anniversary of an important archeological discovery, commentator and Vermont Humanities Council executive director Peter Gilbert considers that discovery – and recalls a few of his own memorable impressions of that part of the world.
Senator Patrick
Leahy helped secure the funding. He says the work will help businesses and
governments defend against the kind of cyber attacks that struck government agencies over the
Fourth of July holiday.
Benjamin Briten playing the sonata for cello and piano by Debussy with Mstislav Rostropovich, and upbeat selections from Richard Strauss, Copland, and Arthur Sullivan.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with the President of the Vermotn Association of Hospitals and the president of the Rutland Regional Medical Center about hospitals and their priorities for health care reform.
Vermont’s hospitals have a lot at stake in the debate over health care reform. We’ll hear their perspective on making health care more accessible and more affordable.
With the 59th season of Marlboro Music Festival concerts beginning this weekend, we’ll listen to a performance of Brahms’ Horn Trio from the 1960 Festival, with long-time Artistic Director Rudolf Serkin at the piano.
What happens when poetry meets music? The effect is sheer inspiration – we’ll hear Thomas Albert’s contemporary composition Thirteen Ways, after the Wallace Stevens poem Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird.
The confirmation hearings this week for Supreme Court nominee Judge Sonia Sotomayor went about as expected. But as commentator and veteran ABC News diplomatic correspondent Barrie Dunsmore tells us this morning, an important element was missing.
A week after the Claremont Eagle Times closed
suddenly and filed for bankruptcy, people are wondering who will fill the void,
and why the end came so suddenly.
Vermont Natural
Resources Secretary Jonathan Wood has promoted two agency managers to become
commissioner of the Department of Environmental Conservation and deputy
secretary of the Agency of Natural Resources.
Daniel Barenboim, conductor
Haydn: Symphony No. 95 in C minor
Schoenberg: Pelleas et Melisande
Schubert: Symphony No. 9 "Great C major"
9:57 pm:
Schubert: Rosamunde: Shepherd’s Melody; Leipzig Gewandhaus
Orchestra; Kurt Masur; Philips 412432
Each hour between 10 and 2 will begin with an overture, followed by a work of modest length for piano and orchestra. Overtures will be by Beethoven, Berlioz, Dvorak, and Brahms; piano-and-orchestra works by Tchaikovsky, Faure, Prokofiev, and Gershwin (yes, Rhapsody in Blue).
Edvard Grieg’s Wedding Day at Troldhaugen, an aria from Saint-Saens’ passionate opera Samson et Dalila, and Rimsky-Korsakov’s fantastic Scheherazade offer a romantic morning of music.
Two Vermont companies – Cabot Cheese and Concept2 – are sponsoring the Vermont to Vegas Challenge for proeple over fifty – and commentator Deborah Luskin is taking part.
The
Douglas Administration wants to change the rules for developers whose projects could
affect historic or archeological sites. Officials
say the rules are confusing and potentially costly to business. But critics say
the proposal will weaken protections for the state’s historic heritage.
FairPoint is reorganizing its executive ranks under
growing pressure from regulators. The company says it is appointing a "transition
chief" who will report to the CEO.
Colin Davis, ond. Berlioz: Beatrice et Benedict Overture
Mozart: Piano COncerto #25 in C Major, K 503; Mitsuko Uchida, piano
Sibelius: Symphony #2 in D Major, op. 43
9:55 pm:
Weber: Turandot: Overture; Philharmonia Orchestra; Neeme
Järvi; Chandos 9066
We’ll hear from two musical visitors to Vermont: cellist Allison Eldredge, who will be performing with the Killington Music Festival this weekend, and pianist Jean-Francois Latour, who is a frequent soloist with the Vermont Mozart Festival…and he’ll also be performing live on VPR Classical on August 3rd.
Parricia Moulton Powden, Warren Kitsmiller and Michael Marcotte talk with VPR’s Jane Lindholm about the status of the state’s unemployment insurance fund
The Burlington International
Waterfront Festival wrapped up last night. The 13-day event marked the 400th
anniversary of Samuel de Champlain’s exploration of the lake and region.
Vermont’s unemployment insurance fund is running out of money. We discuss options for restoring it to health. And Candace Page reports on the status of wind projects around the state.
From Leon Fleisher’s latest recording, we’ll hear Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 23, which he will play with the Boston Symphony at Tanglewood on Friday; plus Preludes for Guitar by Villa Lobos played by Julian Bream on his 76th birthday.
Many aspiring journalists get their start at newspapers like the Eagle Times of Claremont, New Hampshire. It folded last week and NPR All Things Considered producer Art Silverman has a personal remembrance..
The
Vermont Department of Fish and Wildlife will hold two public hearings next week
on a 10-year, big game management plan. The
plan will help the department manage Vermont’s deer, moose, bear and wild turkey populations –
which it says are thriving.
Vermont’s pension funds have
been battered by investment losses. So the state will need to increase funding for
its state employees’ and teachers’ retirement systems by more than $31 million next year to keep them in good shape.
Congressman
Peter Welch says Congress needs to do something to help dairy farmers. He
painted bleak picture of Vermont’s
dairy industry Tuesday when he testified before the
House Agriculture Committee.
New Hampshire has answered the state Supreme Court’s last mandate in an 18-year-old school
funding lawsuit with Governor John Lynch’s signature on a school accountability
bill.
Rossini: Overture to Semiramide; Riccardo Muti, cond. Berlioz: Les Nuits d’Ete; Ian Bostridge, tenor, Colin Davis, cond. Tchaikovsky: Symphony #6 "Pathetique"; Lorin Maazel, cond. 9:41 pm:
Haydn: Symphony No.59 in A “Fire”; Philharmonia Hungarica;
Antal Dorati; London 448531
Recent headlines have inspired commentator Paul Richardson to contemplate an unlikely diplomatic connection – from Mikhail Gorbachev to Michael Jackson.
VPR’s Steve Zind talks with reporter John Gregg of the Valley News about plans to relocate one of the helicopters Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center uses to transport critically ill and injured patients.
A draft of the state’s new big-game plan identifies a number of issues that need to be addressed to maintain the health of Vermont’s bear, deer, moose and wild turkey populations.
Beethoven’s Choral Fantasy is the traditional closer of the Marlboro Music Festival. With the Festival’s 59th season about to begin, we’ll listen to a performance from the 1981 Festival, with Rudolf Serkin at the piano and son Peter conducting.
Allons, citoyens! Bastille Day brings French music and music on French themes (like Mozart’s "Paris" Symphony #31 and Schumann’s Faschingsschwank aus Wien, which prominently features the "Marseillaise" French national anthem as one of its themes.)
Today, as France celebrates Bastille Day, teacher, historian, and commentator Vic Henningsen reminds us of a curious connection between the French and American revolutions.
Two
insect pests with a voracious appetite for hardwood trees have been found near Vermont’s borders. The
Asian Long Horned Beetle and the Emerald Ash Borer are invasive species. And both
bugs have the potential to devastate New England forests.
The New England
governors are asking for federal stimulus funding to improve and expand the
region’s light-rail service with a goal of doubling riders by 2030.
Two nonprofit groups that advocate to protect
the Adirondack
Mountains
have agreed to merge in an effort to create a single, more influential
organization.
Michael Tilson Thomas, cond. Ligeti: San Francisco Polyphony
Bartok: Piano Concerto #3; Helene Grimaud, piano
Shostakovich: Symphony #6
9:24 pm:
Schubert: Symphony No.4 in C minor, D.417 “Tragic”; Chamber
Orchestra of Europe; Claudio Abbado; DG 423653
At the risk of sounding at odds with popular sentiment, commentator Olin Robison admits that he has been somewhat taken aback by the media frenzy surrounding the death of Michael Jackson.
Northeast Sports Network voice Jack Healey and Burlington Rep. Kurt Wright joing VPR’s Bob Kinzel to discuss the first half of the baseball season and what to expect after the All-Star break
Sen. Patrick Leahy made the first opening statement today as he opened Senate Judiciary Committee hearings into the nomination of Judge Sonia Sotomayor for a seat on the U.S. Supreme Court.
We’ll hear Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto played by Sabine Meyer on the instrument Mozart had in mind: the basset clarinet; plus Debussy’s Sonata for Flute, Viola, and Harp; and a pair of Wagner opera choruses.
This week, with the confirmation hearings beginning for Sonia Sotomayor, Vermont Law School Professor Cheryl Hanna reflects on changes in the legal community – some right here at home.
Senator
Patrick Leahy says the federal government should recognize same-sex marriages
and repeal a law that prohibits such recognition. Leahy
voted for the law 16 years ago. But as VPR’s Ross Sneyd reports, he says he
wouldn’t do the same today.
Two and a half years after its opening, Springfield’s recreation and
fitness center is bursting at the seams and ready to expand. The facility has been renamed the Edgar May
Health and Recreation Center, in honor of its most
tireless supporter.
Senator
Patrick Leahy predicts Sonia Sotomayor will be quickly confirmed to the Supreme
Court. Senator
Leahy says he won’t permit any "name-calling or histrionics" when the Senate
Judiciary Committee takes up Sotomayor’s nomination later today.
Vermont
lawmakers are still looking for ways to cut costs. Two legislative committees
will meet this week to grapple with the state’s ongoing budget problems.
Kurt Masur, cond. Brahms: Piano Concerto #1; Nelson Freire, piano
Dvorak: Symphony #9 "From the New World"
Chopin: PIano Sonata #3, movt. 2; Nelson Freire, piano
Brahms: Symphony #2, movts. 3 and 4; Bernard Haitink, cond.
Baseball’s annual All-Star Game means it’s time for Vermont Edition’s annual baseball show! The Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees are
fighting for the top spot in the American League East. We’ll look at
baseball’s most storied rivalry, and the close pennant races across
Major League Baseball.
Joel Najman features a baker’s dozen of famous and not-so-famous teen dance crazes from the 1950s and 60s. Roll up the rug and twist, stroll, and do the monkey on a summer evening.
From medieval dances to ballet, listen for two hours of dance music, including a suite from Tchaikovsky’s Sleeping Beauty and Copland’s Appalachian Spring.
Hundreds
are expected to pick up trash around Chittenden Reservoir on Saturday during an
annual cleanup day sponsored by Central Vermont Public Service. As
VPR’s Nina Keck reports, the event will also celebrate the reservoir’s 100th
birthday.
Taking a look at new additions to the VPR Classical Library…all thanks to your support! Old recordings that we didn’t have, and new recordings hot off the press…you’ll hear it all this morning.
The death of former defense secretary Robert McNamara this past week set off a cascade of memories for millions of American’s of a certain age. Commentator and veteran ABC News diplomatic correspondent Barrie Dunsmore is of that age.
Vermont Yankee is one step closer to getting a new 20-year federal license. A
panel of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission has rejected a challenge brought by
a citizens group.
The French ambassador to the United States traveled to Vermont today to help mark the 400th anniversary
of Samuel de Champlain’s exploration of the region.
Host Bob Kinzel talks with business leaders about the role the private sector plays in the shaping
health care policy, and what outcomes they want to see from the bill
being debated in Congress.
For Carl Orff’s birthday we’ll listen to dances from Der Mond. Also today, music inspired by legendary characters: Telemann’s Burleske of Don Quixote; Richard Strauss’ Don Juan; and Johan Waganaar’s Cyrano de Bergerac Overture.
Governor Jim
Douglas will unveil a statue on the Lake Champlain
waterfront in Burlington today. The sculpture is a gift to the state from the province of Quebec.
All this week, as part of VPR’s special Champlain 400 programming, commentator Mike Martin has been looking at the New World through the "Eyes of Champlain." Today, he offers a brief glimpse of the man himself.
This week during Morning Edition, VPR Commentator Mike Martin introduces us to Samuel de Champlain in the series "Through the Eyes of Champlain". On Friday he offers a brief glimpse of the man himself and the image most people associate with him.
The
Eagle Times, a newspaper serving Claremont, New Hampshire and many Vermont towns will publish it’s final edition today. We
get some perspective this morning from Mike Donoghue, executive director of the
Vermont Press Association, who said the closing was unexpected.
Farmers
who sell raw milk in Vermont say new regulations that went into effect this month
will force them to make some changes and may add to the cost of their
product. But
overall, they welcome the new law, which will allow them to market and sell
more milk.
Congressman
Peter Welch is concerned that a bill making its way through Congress could hurt
small Vermont businesses. The
Small Business Innovation Research program provides money to small firms that
Welch create jobs for Vermonters.
Vermont officials are working with their state and federal counterparts
to plan for the return of the swine flu this summer. Vermont officials are involved in a meeting in Washington about preparing for the return of swine flu this
fall.
At least four fire departments are battling a
4-alarm fire in downtown St. Johnsbury this morning. The fire is believed to
have started late last night in a convenience store on Main Street, just yards
from the Fairbanks Museum.
The Vermont
Supreme Court says it has told all judiciary employees in the state to take 12
unpaid days off before June 2010, the end of the 2010 fiscal year.
Jazz: A Tribute to the late Canadian Jazz DJ Len Dobbin, celebrating Louis Armstrong & His Orchestra & Bossa Nova Classics with Stan Getz, Jobim and Astrud Gilberto
Vermont is welcoming dignitaries to the state this weekend to
commemorate the 400th anniversary of Samuel de Champlain’s
exploration of the region. One
of those who will be visiting is Pierre Arcand, Quebec’s International Relations Minister.
Former
Governor Howard Dean says he doesn’t think Congressional Democrats should
support a health care reform bill, unless the legislation includes the creation
of a new public program. Dean
says a health care bill without the public option is "a ridiculous waste of
money".
Harry McEnerny, of Castleton State College and Steve Small, of the A.R.T. Career Theater program at the Hannaford Career Center in Middlebury speak to VPR’s Jane Lindholm about the Town Hall Theater production of "Speed the Plow"
VPR’s Jane Linholm talks with Dann Van Der Vliet at Vermont Business, Carl Beauregard of Beauregard Equipment and Cabot ORton of the VT Country Store about running a family business.
We talk about the rewards and challenges of running a successful family business, and discuss how to transition from one generation to the next. Also, we talk with two veteran Vermont actors, about their craft and about mentoring younger actors
In 1944 conductor Dmitri Mitropoulos asked composer David Diamond for a piece that would make him happy. Diamond responded with his Rounds for String Orchestra, which we’ll listen to on the anniversary of his birth in 1915.
Conductor David Zinman and composer/musicologist Ottorino Respighi in the spotlight today: it’s their birthdays! Respighi was born in Bologna (7/9/1879), and he died in 1936. That’s the year Zinman was born, in NY City. We’ll hear from them both this morning.
This week, as part of VPR’s special Champlain 400 programming, commentator Mike Martin is looking through the "Eyes of Champlain." Today, he considers Champlain’s attitudes about torture and the humane treatment of prisoners.
A new report
shows that 24,000 Vermont kids who qualify for free and reduced-price
meals during the school year do not have access to the same meals during the
summer.
A
state court judge from Essex Junction has been recommended to fill a vacancy on
the U.S. District Court for Vermont. Judge
Christina Reiss would be the first woman to sit on a federal court in Vermont if she’s formally nominated by the president, and
confirmed by the Senate.
Jazz: 53 years ago at the Newport Jazz Festival of 1956 and the 27 blues choruses of Paul Gonsalves’ tenor sax, plus birthdays of Louis Jordan and Billy Eckstine
A judge says the state was wrong when it allowed the city of Montpelier to more than double the amount of phosphorus
pollution it could release from its sewage treatment plant.
Also Sprach Zarathustra by Richard Strauss is best known from its use in the film "2001: A Space Odyssey." We’ll hear it today, and it should be a great accompaniment for your online pledging on Web Wednesday!
Charlie Nardozzi, senior horticulturist and spokesperson for the National Gardening Association, talks with VPR’s Jane Lindholm about growing beautiful, fragrant roses and how to best ensure their survival and blooms.
Percy Grainger’s 1940’s reworking of pieces from the turn of the 20th century, the Youthful Suite; plus some of the Roman Sketches of Charles Tomlinson Griffes, played by Vermont pianist Sylvia Parker.
The exotic sounds of Bela Bartok’s Roumanian Folk Dances, Saint-Saens’ "Egyptian" Piano Concerto #5, and a coronation anthem fit for a king – one of five that Handel wrote for the coronation of England’s King George I.
The summer VPR Artist Mug depicts the Wabanaki Creation story as told
by Carolyn Black. Hunt and Black perform as The Laughing Couple
throughout the northeast. In their stage presentation Carolyn recites
the creation story and Rick illustrates it on a large mural.
This week, as part of VPR’s special Champlain 400 programming, commentator Mike Martin is looking through the "Eyes of Champlain." On Wednesday, he considers Champlain’s views about the various cultures he encountered in the New World.
While all eyes have been focused on the
quadricentennial celebration of Samuel de Champlain’s journey on the lake,
another quadricentennial event has been quietly gaining steam, marking Henry
Hudson’s exploration of present day New York.
More
people have health coverage in Vermont as the state has rolled out new programs aimed at
covering the uninsured. But
a new survey shows that cost remains a major barrier, despite state subsidies
of insurance premiums.
Vermont
Agriculture Secretary Roger Allbee says he’s hopeful the Obama administration
will adopt new policies that will help Northeast dairy farmers survive.
The Vermont
State Police, local police, social workers and prosecutors are continuing to
expand throughout the state special units that investigate sex crimes.
A Vermont
Business Roundtable survey shows chief executives at Vermont’s major
companies are cautious about capital spending and employment levels for the
summer and fall.
The summer VPR Artist Mug depicts the Wabanaki Creation story as told
by Carolyn Black. Hunt and Black perform as The Laughing Couple
throughout the northeast. In their stage presentation Carolyn recites
the creation story and Rick illustrates it on a large mural.
Vermont Humanities Council executive director and commentator Peter Gilbert has been thinking about the first Americans to die during the conflict we refer to as the Vietnam War. And it began a half-centry-ago tomorrow.
Persistent rain this summer has made farming difficult all across the region.
And weather forecasters say it doesn’t look like there’s much improvement on
the way.
Pianist Steven Osborne’s recent release of Rachmaninoff’s 24 Preludes has earned much critical acclaim, most notably on NPR’s All Things Considered. We’ll hear selections from the recording today.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Tom Lewis, professor of English at Skidmore College about the quadricentennial of Henry Hudson and his exploration of the Hudson River in 1609.
Lynn Granger of Vermont Kin as Parents and Brenda Hamilton who is raising grandshildren talk with VPR’s Jane Lindholm about grandparents raising grandkids.
We explore the growing trend of "kinship families" — grandparents and other relatives raising grandchildren, nephews, nieces when parents can’t meet the task. And we hear about the other quadricentennial: the 400th anniversary of Henry Hudson’s trip up the river to Albany.
We’ll celebrate Gustav Mahler’s birthday with the completed Adagio from his unfinished Symphony No. 10 in a classic interpretation by George Szell; plus Schumann’s Spring Symphony in Mahler’s revised orchestration.
In honor of his birthday (7/7/1860) this morning we’ll hear from Mahler’s sublime song cycle, the "Ruckert Lieder", and the haunting Adagietto from his Symphony #5.
This week, as part of VPR’s special Champlain 400 programming, commentator Mike Martin is looking through the "Eyes of Champlain." Today, he considers the importance of religion in Champlain’s life and work.
Vermont
Guard officials say preparations for the upcoming deployment to Afghanistan have gone more smoothly than in the past. They
say that’s largely because they’ve had plenty of time to get ready – and
training has been better than in previous deployments.
New Hampshire
Governor John Lynch and Vermont Governor Jim Douglas are visiting the Ethan
Allen plant where about 260 workers are expected to lose their jobs.
Vladimir Ashkenazy, cond. Rautavaara: Manhattan Trilogy
Bruch: Scottish Fantasy; James Ehnes, violin
Respighi: Fountains of Rome
Roussel: Bacchus et Ariane, Suite #2
9:41 pm:
Ellen Taaffe Zwilich: Oboe Concerto; John Mack, oboe; The
Louisville Orchestra; James Sedares; KOCH 7278
Something’s happening in Dallas! Critics and
audiences are raving about what they hear in the chemistry between the
Dallas Symphony Orchestra and its new Music Director, Jaap van Zweden.
A beautiful Brahms and Tchaikovsky program shows what all the fuss is
about!
According to a new study released by the Vermont
State Employees Association, the Douglas administration has laid off dozens of employees whose
salaries were financed primarily with federal money.
In recent weeks, commentator Bill Schubart’s book The Lamoille Stories has taken him around the state to visit numerous small libraries and independent bookstores. The experience has left him with the persistent question of just who is a Vermonter?
One of the most celebrated musicians of the 20th century, Vladimir Ashkenazy is one of few who can claim equal success as both virtuoso pianist and conductor. We’ll hear him playing a Schumann sonata today, and conducting the Boston Symphony Orchestra in the Symphony #2 by Jean Sibelius.
Details of the largest post WWII deployment in the Vermont National Guard’s history have been announced. We’ll talk about the mission they’ll undertake in Afghanistan and preparations on the home front.
Senator Bernie Sanders says it will be very
difficult to pass a meaningful health care reform bill this summer unless
President Obama becomes a "forceful advocate" for the legislation.
Music adapted, varied, or transcribed; including Respighi’s Ancient Airs and Dances, Brahms’ Variations and Fugue on a Theme of Handel, and Rachmaninoff’s Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini.
As part of VPR’s special Champlain 400 programming, commentator Mike Martin is looking through the "Eyes of Champlain" all this week. Today, he considers Champlain and The French Connection.
Public
access providers say they face increasing pressure from the Comcast cable
company. They complain that Comcast wants to micromanage their budgets and pay
less for the service.
Celebrate the 400-year wealth of music from the Lake Champlain region
with guests including Vermont songcatcher Deb Flanders, French-Canadian fiddler Lisa Ornstein and guitarist Andre
Marchand, and singer/songwriter/farmer Alan Greenleaf.
In the early days of our nation, July Fourth wasn’t an official holiday
at all. So
how did the Fourth become the holiest day on our secular calendar?
Listen to our special presentation of "Backstory with the American History Guys". Learn the story
of how Independence Day came to be what it is today.
Celebrations
for America’s Independence today are intermingled with international festivities under way
in Vermont’s largest city. Vermont filmmaker Jay Craven says the events commemorating
the arrival of Samuel de Champlain 400 years ago offer an opportunity to
creatively examine the history and culture that shaped the Champlain Valley we know it today.
Students at a piano camp in Bennington will celebrate the Fourth of July – and their camp’s 40th anniversary – with a unique musical feat. Forty-two children will perform the Pachelbel Canon in rounds on 31 pianos.
Morton Gould’s Star-Spangled Overture, Copland’s Rodeo, and,for a grand fireworks finale, The Harlem Symphony: symphonic music by the "father of the stride piano", Mr. James P. Johnson.
Twenty-five years
ago, the Statue of Liberty underwent a major facelift to protect her copper skin and
strengthen her underlying frame.
VPR’s
Nina Keck spoke to the Brandon man who led that project.
Vermonters enrolled in Catamount Health Care
have received some good news. The two
insurance companies that administer the program both say their premiums will
remain stable for the next few months.
Fifteen-hundred members of the Vermont Army
Guard will go to Afghanistan early next year.
It will be the largest deployment of Vermont Guard members since World
War II.
Two culturally rich cities, two very different opinions about classical music composition and performance. We’ll hear examples by Foote, Paine, and Ives, and hear "dueling" symphonies of Chadwick and Dvorak.
Mary Watsin of the Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources talks with VPR’s Jane Lindholm about changes in Lake Champlain over the last 400 years.
The song Kwawtam is performed here by
Abenaki singer Marge Bruchac, a historical consultant and a traditional Abenaki
singer with a PhD in Anthropology.
We broadcast live from ECHO Lake Aquarium and Science Center in Burlington. Guests include David Hackett Fischer, author of Champlain’s Dream, and Mary Watzin, a lake researcher at UVM. And, we learn more about the indigenous celebration underway.
Waltzes from Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin and Verdi’s La Traviata, along with the Foxtrot from John Adams’ Nixon in China, and a lively piano Danse by Debussy. US Poet Laureate Donald Hall also reads his poem "Digging" – he was the featured guest at the St. Johnsbury Athanaeum "Readings in the Gallery" series last night.
As we prepare to celebrate our independence, teacher, historian, and commentator Vic Henningsen reminds us that the system of government we have today isn’t exactly what the Founders intended.
Filmmaker Jay
Craven, producer of the Burlington International Waterfront Festival,
which begins today-says for this celebration, everyone connected in any way to
Champlain will be part of the festivities.
A hilltop reservoir in Brattleboro dating back to the late
1800s has been listed as a high hazard by state engineers. The reservoir has been unused for more
than thirty years – but not unloved, especially in the neighborhood that
surrounds it.
State Sen. Ed
Flanagan is running for lieutenant governor. The former
state auditor says he believes the lieutenant governor’s office could be better
used to help with the state’s economic recovery.
Senate
President Pro Tem Peter Shumlin says he’ll push another bill next year that
would force Vermont Yankee’s owners to put aside money to close the plant.
There’s a big shot of positive economic news for
southwestern Vermont. A Bennington manufacturer is
expected to bring up to 300 new jobs to the area as it fills a Pentagon
contract to make armor for vehicles going to Afghanistan.
The
successful launching of the world’s largest commercial satellite could bring vastly
improved wireless cell phone coverage to rural parts of Vermont.
Senate President Pro Tempore Peter Shumlin on on the layoffs of state workers, how the
new budget will be implemented and the
political balance of power in Montpelier. Also, new laws go into effect, and a visit to Vermont’s last working round barn.
The Green Mountain Chamber Music Festival visits the VPR Performance Studio to play American music by George Whitefield Chadwick, John Harbison, and William Bolcom.
Canada’s premiere sibling piano duo are Katia and Marielle Labeque: this morning we’ll hear them romping through George Bizet’s sunny Jeux d’enfants ("Children’s Games").
In
recent years more than 20 dams have been knocked down in the Northeast for environmental reasons. This month
marks the ten-year anniversary of one of the first: the Edwards
Dam in Augusta, Maine.
State
officials hope that regional hospitals and a new state institution will
ultimately replace the Vermont
state hospital in Waterbury. Vermont has been under pressure for years to close its
century-old mental health facility. But finding a solution has been difficult
and expensive.
Vermont
Agriculture Secretary Roger Allbee says dairy farmers are facing a crisis. Allbee
says there is an over-supply of milk across the country, and it’s driving
prices down.
A judge has blocked the city of Barre from enforcing an
ordinance that would have required a convicted sex offender to move. Twenty-nine-year-old Chris Hagan had been
ordered by city officials to move under an ordinance passed last year.
Vermont Gov.
Jim Douglas is praising a decision by the Environmental Protection Agency to
allow California to impose stringent regulations on greenhouse gas emissions
from motor vehicles.
Commentator Andrea Learned has been thinking about the case for a strong national green economy, and the opportunity she sees for Vermont to celebrate its green business credentials.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Rutland Herald business reporter Bruce Edwards about how consumers are weighing their options to pre-buy heating fuel for next winter.
Esa-Pekka Salonen’s outstanding recording of Stravinsky’s "Rite of Spring" with the Los Angeles Philharmonic featured today, as well the Symphony #2 by Borodin and Leonard Bernstein conducting the "Dance of the Seven Veils" from Richard Strauss’s Salome.
Agriculture Secretary Roger Allbee joins us to discuss why prices paid to adiry farmers are particularly low this season. Also, how consumers are deciding whether to pre-buy winter heating fuel. And, as summer theaters open, the etiquette of being an audience member.
Ballade by Arthur Foote, played by violinist Kevin Lawrence, Artistic Director of the Green Mountain Chamber Music Festival, whose first concert is Wednesday evening; plus more Songs of Farewell by Hubert Parry, sung by the Choir of Christ’s College, Cambridge, whose American tour stops in Burlington on Thursday.
Edward Elgar wrote his "In the South" Overture during a visit to sunny Italy – we’ll do some traveling in music with that piece, Fernando Sor’s "Variations on a Scottish Air", and Ravel’s "Rhapsody Espagnol".
Plant
experts are warning farmers and backyard gardeners to guard against a fungus
that has the potential to wipe out tomato and potato crops across the region. The
disease is known as "late blight," and it’s what led to the Irish potato famine
at the middle of the 19th century.
The 2nd U.S.
Circuit Court of Appeals is allowing the implementation of a Vermont law that would restrict the work of companies that
collect information about the drugs doctors prescribe.
The state of Vermont has hired a bankruptcy expert to prepare for the
possibility that the region’s dominant land-line phone company will default on
its debt.
After tourism and recreation became firmly established in the region, a new appreciation grew for Lake Champlain’s beauty and natural resources. Today, we explore how people are honoring the lake’s heritage and preserving it for future generations.
Today is the 46th birthday of German violinist Anne-Sophie Mutter, and the 60th birthday of American flutist Carol Wincenc. We’ll also hear another fine female musician (although not on her birthday), Lilya Zilberstein, playing the Piano Concerto by Edvard Grieg.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Vermont author, Helen Husher, author of Off the Leash: Subversive Journeys Around Vermont about great places to take a vacation in Vermont.
We want to hear your recommendations for Vermont’s best out of the way parks, hidden swimming holes, tucked away towns, and great creemee stands. Also, we hear from Burlington Free Press reporter Candy Page about how humans impact birds’ habitats.
We’ll celebrate the 46th birthday of violinist Anne-Sophie Mutter with the Sibelius Concerto. Also today, generous selections from the ballet Coppelia by Delibes.
As railroads and bridges take hold in the Champlain Valley, the region’s focus shifts to from shipping to tourism. Join VPR’s Mitch Wertlieb as "Stories from the Lake" continues.
Over
the weekend, a group of volunteers in central Vermont got caked with dust and sweat as they worked to make
an elementary school more energy efficient. The
project will cut fuel oil use by about 30 percent.
Fairpoint
Communications – the North Carolina company that bought Verizon’s landline
phone network in northern New England last year – says bankruptcy is a
possibility if it doesn’t get more time to pay the interest on $530 million in
loans.
Ludovic Morlot, cond. Glinka: Overture to Ruslan and Ludmilla
Rachmaninoff: Symphony #3 in A Minor
Tchaikovsky: Piano Concerto #1 in B-flat minor; Simon Trpceski, piano
Glishic: Prelude and Padjuska; Simon Trpceski, piano
Strauss: Waltzes from Der Rosenkavalier
pm:
Kabalevsky: The Comedians: Galop; Cincinnati
Pops Orchestra; Erich Kunzel; Telarc 80625
The Hancock Village School closed last week. It was two hundred and eight years old…and a good little school. Here’s Tom Slayton with his thoughts on the end of an institution.
It’s
not easy to get a wind turbine approved in the Northeast that’s proposed for a
ridgeline or another vista. But perhaps the biggest wind power battle in the
region has been over a stretch of open ocean, near Cape Cod in
Massachusetts.
Officials at Bennington’s Southwestern Vermont Medical Center
are projecting a 22 million dollar budget deficit by the end of its fiscal year
in September.
VPR’s Bob Kinzel talks with Dartmouth’s Doctor Elliott Fisher about important research studying the link between health care costs and the quality of the care patients receive.
Vermont’s unemployment rate steadied, a showdown loomed over state layoffs, lawmakers kept pushing for Yankee decommissioning legislation, Governor Douglas talked healthcare reform in Washington. These were some of the voices in the news this week.
We learn why many people debating health care reform in Washington are paying close attention to Dartmouth’s Director of Health Policy Reasearch Doctor Elliott Fisher’s findings.
In April of 1832 Liszt attended a charity concert, for the victims of a Parisian cholera epidemic. The featured soloist was Nicolo Paganini. Liszt was instantly inspired to become as great a virtuoso on the piano as Paganini was on the violin. He succeeded! We’ll hear them both this morning.
Rutland’s
Paramount Theatre will give audiences a sneak peak of a new musical that’s
currently in development – based on the events surrounding Watergate.
Alban Berg’s violin concerto "To the Memory of an Angel" is his best-known work, dedicated to the memory of Manon Gropius, the daughter of Gustav Mahler’s widow. We’ll also hear another well-known violin work this afternoon, the sonata in A major by Cesar Franck.
VPR’s jane Lindholm talks with reporter David Gram and former Commissioner of Public Service, Richard Sedano about the challenges of decommissioning the Vermont Yankee power plant.
When the 26 young people in this year’s Circus Smirkus troop hit the road this summer, they’ll be showcasing more than their juggling, tumbling and high wire skills.
We step away from partisan politics of decommissioning Vermont Yankee to consider the physical and financial challenges of retiring a nuclear power plant. Also, the Vermont College of Fine Arts celebrates its first anniversary.
"Welcome to the dawn of day, to the pilgrim on his way,…" – so sings the Queen, in Handel’s Solomon. Around three years ago, soprano Carolyn Sampson partnered with Robin Blaze on a recording featuring some of the great duets from Handel’s oratorios. We’ll hear from that this morning, along with Britten’s Five Flower Songs, and the Parry English Suite.
Seven years ago Zach Niles traveled to the west African nation of
Guinea to make a documentary about musicians who lived in
the country’s refugee camps. The
experience changed his life and the lives of a group of refugees from
neighboring Sierra Leone.
Senator
Patrick Leahy says he’ll postpone creating a "Truth Commission" to investigate
allegations of illegal detainee interrogation techniques by the Bush administration.
For
the past six months, police officers in four Chittenden county communities have
been recording the race of each person they stop for a traffic violation. Their
efforts are part of a community and law enforcement collaboration called
Uncommon Alliance.
New Hampshire
legislators have passed a bill that would make the state the 14th to legalize
marijuana for severely ill people – if the governor signs it.
Executive Director of the Vermont Humanities Council and commentator Peter Gilbert is thinking about English kings and queens today, nearly a thousand years of them – and specifically, one of them who fell right in the middle.
Governor Jim Douglas is urging President Obama
and congressional leaders to consider incorporating many of Vermont’s health care initiatives into a new national reform
plan.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with one of the founding members of Uncommon Alliance, the South Burlington Police Chief, and the Executive Director of the Vermont Human Rights Commission about racial profiling in Vermont.
We look into a community group that’s behind the push for four Chittenden county police departments to track the race of motorists they stop for traffic violations. Also, a live performance from Vermont singer songwriter Lisa Piccirillo.
The rousing overture from Glinka’s Ruslan and Ludmila gets the morning
started, then we’ll move on to Prokofiev’s Romeo & Juliet, 4 songs
and romances by Brahms, and 23 Short Pieces for Piano, by Grieg. But who’s counting?
Commentator Bill Seamans has been thinking about the recent incident between the president and the fly – and whether or not we should read anything into it beyond – well – the obvious.
Officials from Vermont Community Wind have organized a
bus trip to a wind farm in New Hampshire to try and build support for a large scale wind farm they’re proposing
in and around the Rutland County town of Ira.
Consumers
in Vermont’s largest city could soon see a double-digit increase
in their electric bills. Burlington Electric, the city-owned utility, wants to
raise rates by 11.3 percent.
Entergy Nuclear
officials say power has been reduced at Vermont Yankee while technicians try to
find and repair a leak of river water into the plant’s cooling system.
Governor John
Lynch is taking video slots off the table in hopes of wooing support from New Hampshire lawmakers disappointed gaming wasn’t in the budget
package they will vote on today.
Lorin Maazel, cond. Britten: War Requiem; Dessoff Symphonic Choir, Brooklyn Youth Chorus, various soloists
9:56 pm:
Britten: Five Flower Songs, Op.47: The evening primrose;
Cambridge Singers; John Rutter; Collegium 104
The bear may have destroyed one of her beehives, but it also taught Commentator Deborah Luskin something important about nature – including the nature of time.
Bedrich Smetana’s String Quartet "From My Life," Beethoven’s Piano Concerto #2, the Harmonica Concerto by Villa-Lobos, and Shostakovich’s Violin Concerto #1 played by Hilary Hahn.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Galaxy Bookshop’s Linda Ramsdell, Stan Hynds of the Northshire Bookstore and Beth Wright from the Fletcher Free Library about
great reads for the summer.
Hear Steve Zind from Vermont Edition last week
Follow Steve Zind on Twitter
NPR NPR Special Coverage: Iran’s Pivotal Presidential Election
Iran Journal
One of the brilliant creative spirits of the early music movement of the 1960s was David Munrow. A musician and historian, Munrow loved old instruments from various world cultures, and his passion was matched by harpsichordist Christopher Hogwood. Together they founded the Early Music Consort of London, and released a dozen or so recordings that showcased their revolutionary sound and approach. We just added one of these to the VPR library recently: from 1972, Music for Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain. We’ll hear it this morning.
Vermont’s largest hospital, Fletcher Allen Health Care, in Burlington, has successfully completed the first phase of its
electronic health record project.
President Obama has been pushing to computerize all health records
within five years. But so far, numbers
remain low.
Within
the next few weeks, the state will tell about 400 property owners in Chittenden County that they have to help control stormwater pollution. The
Agency of Natural Resources will impose the new regulation in response to a
court order. The court said five streams have been damaged by run-off from
parking lots and streets and they need to be cleaned up.
Hear Steve Zind from Vermont Edition last week
Follow Steve Zind on Twitter
NPR NPR Special Coverage: Iran’s Pivotal Presidential Election
Iran Journal
Michael Tilson Thomas, cond. Bach: Orchestral Suite #2 in B Minor
Xenakis: A l’ile de Goree
Schubert: Symphony #9 in C Major
9:36 pm:
Respighi: Belkis, Queen of Sheba;
Philharmonia Orchestra; Geoffrey Simon; Chandos 8405
Vermont’s Public Service Commissioner says that taking stronger action against Fairpoint Communications – like suspending its
license to operate – would hurt Vermont consumers.
Today, our series "Stories
From the Lake" looks at how the growth of transportation at the turn of the 20th
century connected the people of Vermont, New York
and Canada.
Helene Grimaud plays the turbulent Piano Sonata #2 by Rachmaninoff, Mozart’s Serenade #1 for horn and oboe, and Barber’s String Quartet played by the Emerson String Quartet.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Assistant Nurse Manager Ann Adsem and with Dr. John Brumsted, Chief Quality Officer about how the transition to electronic medical records at Fletcher Allen Health care is going.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with FairPoint Vice President Jeffrey Allen and with David O’Brien, commissioner of the Public Service Department about the company’s status.
FairPoint Communications says its straightened out problems that plagued it earlier this year, but state officials are still concerned about the company’s customer service – and its financial health.
Getting a cheerful start to the day with Hamilton Harty’s "Comedy" Overture, the "Humoreskes" by Edvard Grieg, and the wide-open landscape of Copland’s filmscore, "The Red Pony".
From
military to commerce the role of the region’s main transportation route, Lake Champlain, changes.
And there’s still more conflict with the British during the War of 1812.
The dream of owning and running a country inn
has turned sour for some British innkeepers in Vermont and New Hampshire. The source of their disillusionment is a special
visa program, designed to encourage foreign investment, but not permanent
residency.
The state of Vermont and some of its most well-known dairy brands are
embarking on a "dairy drive" aimed at helping needy families and
struggling dairy farmers.
Vermont’s unemployment rate held steady last month. And state
officials say that may be a sign the recession is hitting bottom. About
26,000 Vermonters are out of work, for an unemployment rate of 7.3
percent.
For centuries, Lake
Champlain has been a place
of discovery, and one that’s convinced many visitors to stay. We’ll look deeply
into the lake on Mondays this month in our series "Stories from the Lake," examining the lake and its role in shaping the
history and culture of the region.
This week’s program traces Gary S. Paxton’s country/rock adventures in Bakersfield, California, his move to Nashville, and his success and notoriety in the world of contemporary gospel music.
Vermont was the first state to abolish slavery way back in 1777 – but commentator Myra Flynn says that the observation of Juneteenth still offers food for thought – even here.
Congressman
Peter Welch says it’s critical to include a new "public plan" in a proposed
health care reform bill. Welch
says some opponents, including Governor Jim Douglas, may be deliberately
mischaracterizing the plan to discourage people from supporting it.
Today we’ll explore music inspired by visual art with well-known examples by Respighi and Mussorgsky, and lesser-known examples by Rachmaninoff and Reger.
NPR Senior news correspondent Juan Williams addressed the Vermont Business Rountable as part of their 2009 Summer Celebration Thursday evening. VPR Presents gives you a chance to hear it.
We’ll anticipate the summer solstice (1:45am Sunday morning) with Janine Jansen’s recording of Vivaldi’s Four Seasons; and we’ll listen to Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 2, "Resurrection," which the Green Mountain Mahler Festival will present at their inaugural concert Sunday, June 28.
Juneteenth (June 19th) commemorates the day in 1865 when federal troops arrived in Confederate-controlled Galveston, Texas to enforce the emancipation of its slaves. We’ll mark the occasion with music from many of America’s black classical composers.
The massive anti-government demonstrations in Iran began when millions of Iranians concluded that last week’s official presidential election results were fraudulent. This morning commentator and veteran ABC News diplomatic correspondent Barrie Dunsmore examines the significance of the protests.
A
second water leak at Vermont Yankee has renewed calls for additional oversight
of the plant. Senate
President Peter Shumlin wants the Legislature to hire its own expert to make
sure plant operators improve maintenance and inspection procedures.
Bernard haitink, cond. Haydn: Symphony #44 in E Minor
Lutoslawski: Symphony #4
Beethoven: Piano Concerto #4 in G Major; Murray Perahia, piano
Poulenc: Gloria; Jessica Rivera, soprano, CSO Chorus
9:53 pm:
Offenbach: Les
fées du Rhin: Overture; Les musiciens du Louvre; Marc Minkowski; DG 477 6403
The suite from Jean-Philippe Rameau’s "Les Boreades," Mendelsohn’s brilliantly youthful Octet for strings, and the symphonic fantasy "Aus Italien" (In Italy) by Richard Strauss.
Albany Times Union political editor Casey Seiler talks with VPR’s Jane Lindholm about how legislative chaos is affecting real issues in New York, and what the prognosis is for a resolution.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Paul Harrington of the Vermont Medical Society and Assistant Attorney General Wendy Morgan about new rules that strengthen Vermont’s already tough approach to pharmaceutical manufacturers.
Vermont’s rules are getting even tougher for pharmaceutical companies. We look at new restrictions on how drugmakers can interact with physicians, and what patients can learn about gifts their doctors have received. Also, an update on the political meltdown in Albany as the New York State Senate argues over who’s in charge.
Music of the 3 "B’s" plus 1: Bach’s Italian Concerto; Beethoven’s Violin Concerto; Brahms’ Trio for Clarinet, Cello, and Piano; and Bartok’s Divertimento for Strings.
Mid-June means Samuel Barber’s Summer Music Woodwind Quintet, the pastoral sounds of Schubert’s Rosamunde, and Renaissance dances from the Ensemble Galilei.
A national White House
correspondent for the Washington Post, political contributor to Fox News,
Emmy-award winning author and senior news analyst for NPR News, Juan Williams
has seen a lot, and covered a lot, in a journalism career spanning 3 decades. Williams is in Vermont today delivering a keynote speech to the Vermont
Business Roundtable
A White
House report on climate change says two of Vermont’s iconic industries are in trouble: winter sports and
maple sugaring. As
winters get warmer, the New
England forest will change.
And if greenhouse gas emissions stay high, the study warns that the prime area
for maple production will shift north into Canada.
People
in Rutland were saddened to learn about the death of well known
Castleton sculptor Patrick Farrow, who police say took his own life Monday
night.
Governor Douglas, who is taking a lead role on health care reform for the National Governor’s
Association, says he opposes the creation of a new public health insurance
program, as part of proposed legislation in Congress.
The complete "Firebird" ballet by Stravinsky on his birthday, Haydn’s mournful 44th Symphony, Beethoven’s sunny 8th, and the nine Etudes-Tablueax of Op. 39 by Sergei Rachmaninoff.
Vermont has more patents issued per capita than anywhere else in the nation. We look into the long history of innovation in Vermont, and what it takes to become an inventor today. Also, Charlie Nardozzi answers your questions on perennials.
We’ll listen to the Petite symphonie for winds by Charles Gounod and the Octet for winds by Igor Stravinsky; plus sample a delightful new recording of piano music by Jean Francaix.
Charles Gounod was a Paris native, born on this day in 181. His mother was his first music teacher, from there he went on to the Paris Conservatory and a brief stay in Italy as he studied for priesthood. When he returned to civilian life he began creating some of his finest works. This morning we’ll hear his Symphony #1, and highlights from his controversial opera Faust.
The
usual tenure for a school superintendent is between three and five years. At
the end of this month, William Mathis – superintendent of the Rutland Northeast
Supervisory Union – will retire after 27 years on the job.
The recent discovery of hemlock woolly adelgid in
a sixth Windham County town is bad news for
the region’s forests. The insects have devastated hemlocks in areas
south of New
England,
especially Appalachia. But scientists have reasons to hope the damage
could be less severe here.
Lorin Maazel, cond. Bach: Bandenburg Concerto #4
Kernis: New Work for Tumpet and Orchestra; Philip Smith, trumpet
Copland: Clarinet Concerto; Stanley Drucker, clarinet
Ravel: Bolero
With summer recreation upon us once again, commentator Bruce Farr has been musing about the seasonal life on a lake near his home, and comparing it with a lake made famous by another writer, in another time.
Mendelssohn’s "Reformation" Symphony #5, Schumann’s entertaining cast of piano characters called "Carnaval," and the suite from Tchaikovsky’s "Sleeping Beauty."
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Danny Hale, Anthony Iarrapino and Warren Coleman of the Agency of Natural Resources about allowing ATV’s limited access to state land.
We’ll celebrate the birthday of conductor Willi Boskovsky with the Artist’s Life Waltz of Johann Strauss, Jr.; plus Stephen Hough plays Saint-Saens’ Piano Concerto No. 4; Joshua Bell plays Lalo’s Symphonie espagnole; Carlo Maria Giulini conducts Schumann’s Rhenish Symphony; and we hear Gershwin’s An American in Paris, which will be on the Vermont Symphony’s Summer Festival Tour and which the Vermont Youth Orchestra will take to France.
"It is a glorious thing, to be a pirate king!" – this morning we’ll celebrate the U.S. premiere of Gilbert & Sullivan’s operetta HMS Pinafore, and hear the nefarious pirate king song from their The Pirates of Penzance.
The
mystique of the spawning salmon running upstream has intrigued many. But
there’s another migrating fish, outside of the limelight, that also has
a passionate following. It’s the "American Shad."
The "Brattleboro
Food Co-op" and the "Windham Housing Trust" hope to construct a new downtown
building that will house the co-op
and affordable apartments. This
month, the project was given $875,000 in state and federal money.
An
overflow crowd of nearly three hundred filled a Montpelier auditorium last night to weigh in on a proposal to
allow all terrain vehicles limited access to state lands. The
Agency of Natural Resources has proposed allowing ATV access in designated
areas to connect existing trails on private land.
A Vermont man
who accidentally shot his son to death as they were turkey hunting last month
has more than his grief to contend with these days. He also has to worry about
going to jail for it.
Elliott Carter is still
creating exciting music after his 100th birthday last year — though
lots of people have never heard his work at all. To get us all started,
the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra at Carnegie Hall plays his touching,
jazzy Symphony #1.
FairPoint Communications says it’s making progress in addressing customer service complaints. But the state consumer affairs office says it’s not seeing much improvement.
Economists are studying a variety of factors to help them predict when the state economy will begin to show signs of recovery. State economist Jeff Carr thinks there’s
evidence to suggest that the Vermont economy may be close to hitting bottom.
It’s Edvard Grieg’s birthday, and we’ll hear his complete Peer Gynt incidental music. Also, Paganini’s Violin Concerto #2 and the Liszt etude based on its final movement, and pianist Vassily Primakov plays the Grande Sonata in G Major by Tchiakovsky.
Tell us what you’ve bartered recently, by sending an email to vermontedition@vpr.net. Plus, Middlebury College students write about what brought them to Vermont.
Music for the birthdays of Franz Danzi, Edvard Grieg, and Guy Ropartz; plus Mozart’s Posthorn Serenade; Tintagel by Arnold Bax; and the Second Symphony of Rachmaninoff.
E. J. Moeran’s "Serenade" gets the morning underway, and then we’ll move on to Augustin Barrios’ touching guitar song A Mi Madre ("To my mother"), and Mazart’s rarely recorded Sinfonia Concertante for Winds.
Our series "Stories from the Lake" continues. Lake Champlain has been called one of America’s most historic lakes. We look at the key role it played in the birth of a new nation.
Should
all terrain vehicles be allowed to use state land? That’s
the subject of a public hearing in Montpelier. The Agency of Natural Resources stirred up
considerable controversy when it proposed a rule that would allow ATV connector
trails across state property.
Two artists
have been chosen for a public art project being planned at the Brattleboro courthouse. And they’ll exhibit their preliminary
ideas for it later this week.
Graduates of Dartmouth
College’s class of 2009 got to see Boston Celtics great Bill Russell get an
honorary degree. And they heard from writer Louise Erdrich that humans are in a
nose dive unless we can change as a species.
Learn about the man behind the Monster Mash in part II of Joel Najman’s profile of songwriter, musician, arranger, publisher, producer, singer and recording artist Gary S. Paxton.
Sometime things that seem to make perfect sense, really make no sense at all. Commentator Rich Nadworny was reminded of this in last month’s Vermont Marathon
Olympic gold medalist Joan Benoit Samuelson
and Boston Marathon champion Bill Rogers will be among hundreds of runners in Rutland on Sunday for the 33rd annual Crowley Brothers’ Road Race.
Former Governor Howard Dean thinks it could be another ten
years before the nation will have another opportunity to deal with the health care issue in
a meaningful way.
The dream of restoring
modern freight and passenger service along Vermont’s Western
rail corridor could get a jump start, if transportation officials succeed in their bid for $100 million in Federal stimulus money for rail projects.
Murray Perahia playing Beethoven’s Fourth Piano Concerto, Joaquin Rodrigo’s "Fantasia para una Gentilhombre," and Issac Stern playing the Violin Concerto #1 by Sergei Prokofiev.
Gas prices rose, Vermont Yankee leaked, the Democrats offered an olive branch and Vermont was found to be safe and green. These were some of the voices in the news this week.
There’s
recognition for the Vermont Symphony Orchestra’s commitment to works by
contemporary composers. The
VSO received a second-place "Award for Adventurous Programming" today from
the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers.
When long-time Dartmouth administrator and distinguished editor Edward Connery Lathem died last month at the age of 82, America lost one of the last of a bygone era. Vermont Humanities Council Executive Director and commentator Peter Gilbert has this remembrance.
President
Obama has pledged $8 billion of stimulus money to upgrade high speed
inter-city rail service. States
will compete with each other for the money. But because rail service ties
communities together, some rail advocates in this region
are calling for a multi-state approach.
Vermont
Senators Patrick Leahy and Bernie Sanders were on the winning side Thursday as
the Senate struck the government’s strongest anti-smoking blow in decades. New Hampshire’s Judd Gregg and Jeanne Shaheen also voted in favor
of the legislation.
Senator Patrick Leahy says some critics of Supreme Court
nominee Sonia Sotomayor are trying to smear her character before the Senate’s
confirmation hearings. Leahy says he’s scheduled those hearings for mid-
July so the full Senate can vote on the nomination before the August congressional
recess.
Even
though swine flu has officially been proclaimed a pandemic, Vermont health officials say their approach to the disease
won’t change. The state recommends that people get sick stay home
from school or work to recover.
There’s
confirmation that Vermont remains a pretty safe place, even though there was a
spike last year in burglaries. The
Vermont Criminal Information Center released its annual report on crime trends, which it
prepares for the FBI.
Former Governor Howard Dean outlines his solution for the health care crisis. He also reveals why he has recently spoken out against some of the policies of the Douglas Administration.
Daniel Barenboim, cond. Mahler: Symphony #5
Mozart: Symphony #25; Alfred Brendel, piano
9:55 pm:
Mozart: Il re pastore, K.208: Overture; Staatskapelle
Dresden; Sir Colin Davis; RCA 56698
Vermont Woman Newspaper brought feminist and author Gloria Steinem to
Burlington June 11th in celebration of the Magazine’s sixth year and Steinem’s 75th birthday.
Senator
Patrick Leahy says he’s disappointed that some of the critics of the U.S.
Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor are trying to smear her character before
the start of the Senate’s confirmation hearings.
Schubert often incorporated melodies from his songs into his instrumental works; we’ll hear a fine example today. Also, Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony conducted by Herbert von Karajan, and a gem of a recording of the Piano Concerto #3 by Johann Nepomuk Hummel with pianist Stephen Hough.
Compass School in Westminster was founded by a group of parents and community members who believed that some kids learn better outside of a traditional classroom setting. The school’s equivalent of a final exam is a very personal occasion – as VPR’s Susan Keese reports.
Tony Cicoria who developed an insatiable urge to hear and play the piano after being struck by lightning talks with VPR’s Jane Lindholm about his story.
We look into how more than 1.5 million trout, salmon, and walleye make their way into Vermont waters from state-run fish hatcheries. Also, we talk with a pianist who began playing after being struck by lightning, and we visit a high school where students prove they’re ready to graduate.
With attention on the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition in Texas, we’ll listen to Van, himself, playing the Piano Concerto No. 2 of Edward MacDowell in 1960.
Commentator and amateur birder Tom Slayton often travels long distances to see birds – but often he finds the most interesting ones in his own back yard.
A group of students from Vermont
Technical College
recently returned from Costa
Rica, visiting as part of a citizen science
team who worked with six coffee farmers there, trying to form a cooperative to
sell organic coffee.
A new study says
jobs in Vermont’s green economy are growing faster than other areas
of employment in the state. The report by the
Pew Charitable Trusts says Vermont
has emerged as a national leader, with green job growth here outpacing the
national average.
The Vermont
Public Service Board is weighing views both pro and con on a wind-power project
proposed for a ridge line straddling the line between Milton and Georgia.
A new book details the lives
of Vermont National Guard soldiers who served in Iraq as part of Task Force Saber in 2005 and 2006. The author spoke on VPR’s
Vermont Edition, and Jane Lindholm has the details.
A food
warehousing and trucking firm has agreed to pay a $215,000 fine to the state of
Vermont for violating its hazardous waste management and
underground storage tank laws.
Commentator Bill Mares is a writer, former teacher and legislator. He has co-authored two books on desert travel in Saudi Arabia, and he’s been reflecting on President Obama’s speech to the Muslim world last week.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Sgt. Thomas Middleton about life as a combat medic. He has written about his experiences in "Saber’s Edge: A Combat Medic in Ramadi Iraq."
Vermont National Guard Sgt. Thomas A. Middleton talks about his book detailing his deployment to Iraq with Task Force Saber. Middlebury’s Sue Halpern reads from some eye-opening student interviews. And music from vocalist/trumpeter Jennifer Hartswick.
Now
that the pomp and circumstance is over at most Vermont colleges, some new graduates are facing a tough job
market. A New England economist says the situation is likely to get better by the middle of
next year. But
that’s little consolation for students right now.
Governor
Jim Douglas is likely to run for re-election. The
governor says he’s not ready to make a formal announcement. But in an
appearance on VPR’s Vermont Edition, he indicated he would be campaigning for a
fifth term.
Gov. Jim Douglas has signed into law a budget
"companion bill" passed during last week’s special session, despite
his concerns that parts of it are unconstitutional.
The Vermont
Attorney General’s office says a state police trooper was justified when he
shot and wounded a Proctor man during what was described as a violent gun
battle last November.
Democratic leaders have pledged to work with Governor Douglas, but they say the Governor also needs to accept that the Legislature now has
more power – as shown by last week’s override of the budget veto.
Economic Recovery director Tom Evslin says he’s disappointed
that the Obama Administration has been slow to establish rules for key
broadband and energy grant projects.
Grieg’s late "Four Psalms" Op. 74, Nielsen’s First Symphony on his birthday, a night serenade by Mozart, and Verklarte Nacht (Transfigured Night) by Schoenberg.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Governor Jim Douglas about the outcomes of the legislative session and how he and the Democratic leadership at the Statehouse will work together going forward.
The town of Ira is holding a public meeting Wednesday so townspeople can talk over a proposal that has upset many in the small
community. A large scale commercial wind
farm is being proposed for Ira and five other towns west of Rutland. If
completed, it would be the second largest energy producer in the state after
Vermont Yankee.
A
national same-sex marriage advocate says the passage of laws in northern New England this year will pave the way for other states to adopt similar
measures.
Vermont health officials have significantly changed the way
they respond to the swine flu outbreak. The
Health Department says in most cases, it’s no longer necessary to go to the
doctor if you have the flu.
The Supreme
Court has turned down a challenge to the Pentagon policy forbidding gays and
lesbians from serving openly in the military, granting a request by the Obama
administration.
Gov. Douglas is our guest to examine the outcomes of the legislative
session and how he and the Democratic leadership at the Statehouse will
work together going forward.
Also in the program, bat expert Scott Darling explains why he’s lobbying for federal funds to research white nose syndrome.
The Vermont Fuel Dealers Association says it believes that the unregulated
trading of future gas commodities is a big reason for a spike in fuel prices.
Robert Schumann’s 199th birthday celebrated with his piano concerto, played by Krystian Zimerman, Mozart’s "Kegelstatt" trio for cello, piano, and clarinet, and the little-heard Burlseke for piano and orchestra by Richard Strauss.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Grand Isle Supervisory Union superintendent Richard Taylor about difficulties in getting school budgets passed in the district.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Brian Brown of the National Organization for Marriage and Jennifer Pizer of Lamda Legal about same-sex marriage debate strategies being pursued in states across the country.
In the wake of the passage of laws allowing same-sex marriage in three New England states, we’ll examine what both sides in the debate are doing to rally support in other parts of the nation.
We’ll celebrate the 68th birthday of flutist Paula Robison with a recent recording of Chaminade’s Concertino and an early Marlboro recording of Schubert with Rudolf Serkin. We’ll also hear Schumann’s Symphonic Etudes and music of Faure and Chopin featuring pianist Emanuel Ax, who is 60 today; plus Copland’s Clarinet Concerto played by Stanley Drucker, who will soon step down after 60 years with the New York Philharmonic.
Naturalist and commentator Ted Levin observes that while some jobs are virtually invisible to the public, they require great effort and produce highly visible results.
Our series "Stories from the Lake" continues. As that the French and
British begin to establish a presence near Lake Champlain, and form alliances with Native Americans, we examine
the period of conflict that follows.
A
baby’s laughter may seem like it just comes naturally – but it’s not quite as
simple as that. The
infectious laugh of an infant tells us something about how babies develop
psychologically and how they perceive the outside world. One
Johnson State College professor who’s been researching why babies laugh says
the results are surprising.
Most
school budgets in the state were passed back in March at Town Meeting. But
five school districts have been unable to get voter approval of budgets — and
three of them are in the Grand Isle Supervisory Union.
The state of
Vermont is opening eight sites on state land to maple sugar making, giving
interested syrup makers until July 10 to get their applications in.
Conductor Ivan Fischer was
born and raised in Hungary, but after making his name with the Budapest
Festival Orchestra he started branching out. The Dutch welcomed him and
he’s found a cozy second home along the canals and cafes of Amsterdam
— and conducting Europe’s greatest orchestra.
Garden songs, memories of the great Koko Taylor (who passed on this week), previews of the Roots on the River Festival in Bellows Falls and a whole feast of live local music that will be performed in our area this week!
Joel Najman profiles the life of this distinguished songwriter, musician, arranger, publisher, producer, singer and recording artist Saturday at 8 on My Place.
A conversation with Taras Kulish, Artistic Director of the Green Mountain Opera Festival — and a recording of Flotow’s little-known opera Alessandro Stradella.
Tomorrow marks an anniversary that brings back memories for commentator Mary McCallum – of the the magic of going to the drive-in on a hot summer night.
A Superior Court judge has denied an effort by the Vermont
State Employees Union to stop the Douglas Administration from laying off almost
100 state workers.
The Bennington Battle Monument will open its 438 iron
steps for a charity stair climbing race this Saturday.
The stairway has been closed since the 1970s.
Argentinian pianist Martha Argerich is one of the greatest living virtuosos, and she has wowed audiences and critics around the world since winning the 1965 Chopin Competition. We’ll sample some of her recordings, spanning the repertory from Bach to Bartok.
Vermont businesses voiced concern over new border ID requirements, the state employees union moved to delay job cuts. These were some of the voices in the news this week.
House Speaker Shap Smith discusses the dynamics of the historic budget veto override and its impact on the key issues in next year’s legislative session.
Martha Argerich plays Haydn; Asteria sings 15th-century Burgundian chansons; the Emerson Quartet plays Schubert’s last quartet; and Pierre Boulez conducs Mahler’s Symphony No. 1.
President Barack Obama’s speech in Cairo yesterday contained many important messages to various constituencies. This morning, commentator and veteran ABC News diplomatic correspondent Barrie Dunsmore examines what the President told Israelis and Palestinians.
Vermont
lawmakers have reinstated a chunk of funding for the state’s tobacco control
efforts, which had been scheduled for a nearly $2 million hit in the new
state budget.
Farmers
and state official hope to bring more large animal veterinarians to Vermont to offset a shortage in some parts of the state. The
shortage is a result of retirements and the fact that most people entering the
field are choosing to treat household pets rather than farm animals.
Experts are
warning Congress that a mysterious fungus attacking America’s bats could spread nationwide in years and
represents the most serious threat to wildlife in a century.
When it comes
to marijuana use, Vermont has claimed top honors. That’s
according to a survey released this week by the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental
Health Services Administration.
A
new batch of swine flu cases was confirmed on Thursday by the Vermont
Health Department. An
additional six people tested positive for the new strain of the flu, bringing
the total in the state so far to 14.
It was tough
enough to get New
Hampshire’s
lawmakers and governor to approve same-sex marriage, but Episcopal Bishop V. Gene
Robinson says there’s an even tougher job ahead: getting churches to fully
embrace same-sex marriage and gay and lesbian people.
Fritz Reiner, cond. Weinberger: Polka and Fugue from Schwanda the Bagpiper
R. Strauss: Sinfonia Domestica
Mahler: Symphony #4 in G Major; Lisa Della Casa, soprano
9:57 pm:
R. Strauss: Muttertändelei, Op.43, No.2; Kiri Te Kanawa,
soprano; Sir Georg Solti, piano; London
430511
Commentator Jay Craven is producing this summer’s Samuel de Champlain Quadricentennial celebration and festival in Burlington. And he’s been thinking about the reasons behind the whole enterprise.
Bohuslav Martinu’s 3rd Symphony, Saint-Saens’ "Africa" Fantasy based on Tunisian folk tunes, Mozart’s Sinfonia Concertante for violin, viola, and orchestra, and Martha Argerich and friends playing the Schumann E-flat major Piano Quintet in a live recording from the Concertgebouw.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with state veterinarian Kristin Haas, vet Joe Klopfenstein and recent veterinary school graduate Carie Telgen about the life of a large animal vet and what’s being done to interest more people in pursuing it.
There’s nothing like a beautiful summer morning for a walk…we’ll hear the "Wedding March" by Alexander Glazunov, and Elgar’s lively "Six Promenades" for Wind Quintet.
William
Greider has a message for America, and it’s not sugar-coated. The National Affairs
correspondent for The Nation magazine says the good economic times-as we’ve
come to know them in the boom days-are not coming back. Greider speaks with VPR’s Mitch Wertlieb.
At
a time when state welcome centers are closing, the town of Brandon will soon open a new one – the Stephen A. Douglas Birthplace Community
Center. Townspeople
have spent over two years restoring the historic home of Abraham Lincoln’s
famous political rival.
Gasoline prices
historically rise during the summer months, but Vermont just added an extra 3.3 cents per gallon with a new
tax assessed to distributors.
Franz Welser-Most, cond. Debussy: Sirenes, from Nocturnes; Women of the Cleveland Symphony Chorus
Rachmaninoff: Piano Concerto #3 in D Minor; Leif Ove Andsnes, piano
Janacek: Glagolitic Mass; Cleveland Orchestra Chorus
9:57 pm:
Rachmaninoff (arr. Respighi): Étude-tableau No.2, Op.33,
No.7 “La foire”; Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra; Jesús López-Cobos; Telarc 80396
George Thomas welcomes UVM Jazz Studies teacher and trumpeter Ray Vega to the studio. Vega was introduced to Burlington on the
opening night of the 2009 Burlington Discover Jazz Festival.
Londonderry’s Magic Mountain resort will soon be selling shares. If the sale is successful
Magic would become Vermont’s second cooperatively owned ski mountain, after Mad River
Glen.
Commentator Anne Galloway has a personal story about how challenging it is for one individual to do her part in helping to reform the health care system.
Lawmakers are close to wrapping up their special session, after
passing legislation that helps reduce a projected deficit in the state’s
unemployment insurance trust fund.
Political analyst Eric Davis, Secretary Neale Lunderville and Senator Susan Bartlett join VPR’s Jane Lindholm to discuss the ramifications of yesterday’s override of Governor Jim Douglas’s budget veto.
The legislature’s vote to override the
governor’s veto ends the tumultuous debate over the state budget. We talk with Eric Davis, Neale Lunderville and Susan Bartlett about what the vote means for the state’s political climate. Also, we visit mystery writer Archer Mayor.
"Must never be performed" is what Edvard Grieg wrote on the score of his youthful Symphony in C minor. We’ll hear what a shame that would have been. Also today, Mozart’s large-scale Divertimento for String Trio; Carl Nielsen’s "Inextinguishable" Symphony; and Debussy’s Children’s Corner Suite, played by Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli.
"It Fell On a Summers Day", the madrigal by Thomas Campion – we’ll also visit "Grandmother’s Garden" in a piano suite by Amy Beach, and hear "The Frog" Quartet by Haydn.
Despite all the advances in technology that Americans can claim, VPR commentator Rich Nadworny wonders what’s wrong with driving in circles once in a while.
Needing 100 votes to pass an
override of the Governor’s budget veto, that’s exactly what Democrats got
yesterday. This morning, we’re speaking with
one of those two Independents who sided with Governor Douglas, Rep. Will Stevens.
Senator Patrick
Leahy spent one-on-one time with Judge Sonia Sotomayor Tuesday on Capitol
Hill. He delivered a
strong defense of the Supreme Court nominee’s record and qualifications.
After a
crushing two-vote defeat, gay marriage supporters hope to succeed Wednesday
when a second vote is taken on expanded religious protections needed to win the
New Hampshire governor’s signature.
Supreme
Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor has a deep Vermont connection. Sotomayor
traveled to Vermont in 2007 to attend a memorial at Vermont Law School in South
Royalton for her friend, the
late Judge James Oakes.
Another
case of the H1N1, or swine flu, has been identified in a Vermont school. A student at Allen Brook School in Williston was confirmed to have to flu on Monday.
Gambling
supporters and opponents are counting votes and lobbying hard to get their way
Wednesday when the state Senate votes on an $11.6 billion budget play anchored
by legalizing video slots.
David Zinman, cond. Mussorgsky: A Night on Bald Mountain
Shostakovich: Violin Concerto #1 in A Minor; Christian Tetzlaff, violin
Sibelius: Symphony #5 in Eb Major
9:37 pm:
Haydn: Symphony No.96 in D “Miracle”; Royal Philharmonic
Orchestra; Sir Thomas Beecham; EMI 64389
Commentator Bill Schubart considers it a public service to warn about the deceptive practices used to entice you into inviting deadly roosters into your home in the springtime.
Celebrating the birthday of Edward Elgar with his cello concerto and some piano miniatures, Schumann’s "Spring" Symphony #1, and Tchaikovsky’s "Polish" Symphony #3.
A Vermont friend of Judge Sonia Sotomayor describes how she got to know the Supreme Court nominee over the past decade as the judge heard cases from Vermont on the Second Circuit Court of Appeals.
Barbara Rachelson of the Lund Family Center and Kayanna Pierson, a former teen mom, discuss the reasons why teen pregnancy has risen slightly in recent years, and what prevention strategies work with teens.
Why the teen pregancy rate is inching upwards after many years of promising trends. Judge Sonia Sotomayor’s connection to Vermont. An audio postcard from the town of Sudbury.
Schubert’s Fantasie for piano 4-hands; Purcell’s Fantasias for viols; Elgar’s Symphony No. 2; Stravinsky’s Jeu de carte (the Card Game); and Dvorak’s Piano Quintet.
This week mezzo-soprano Cecilia Bartoli has a birthday, we’ll hear her in the title role from Rossini’s La Cenerentola (Cinderella). Also featuring a couple of different versions of the Overture from Rossini’s Barber of Seville, in advance of the Opera Company of Middlebury’s performances of that opera starting on Friday night.
The Governor’s formal veto
yesterday sets up a showdown at the statehouse later this morning. We got in touch with Middlebury College
Political Scientist Eric Davis, and asked him if he was surprised that Douglas
put himself in the spotlight of history by vetoing the budget
New
rules went into effect this week on the Canadian border that strictly limit what
kinds of ID will be accepted to get
into the United States. Federal
Homeland Security officials say the changes have gone smoothly. But,
as VPR’s Ross Sneyd reports, some Vermont officials still aren’t pleased with the new rules.
Senator
Patrick Leahy says he got a better sense of the equipment that U.S. soldiers
need to fight terrorists during a visit to Afghanistan last week. Leahy
also visited Pakistan and Iraq during the trip.
Michael Tilson Thomas, cond. Shostakovich: Music from the Golden Age
Shostakovich: From Jewish Folk Poetry
Shostakovich: Symphony #5
9:31 pm:
Shostakovich: Symphony No.9 in E flat, Op.70; New York
Philharmonic; Leonard Bernstein; Sony 47615
Have you ever heard of soprano Carolyn Sampson?
If not, be prepared to be bowled over. For tonight’s concert, this
spritely singer from the UK delivers an arresting performance about a
warm and dreamy southern evening under the stars.
Lawmakers return to Montpelier
tomorrow for a special session to work on the budget again. Governor Jim Douglas formally vetoed the budget even
though he and Democratic leaders searched for a compromise earlier in the day.
As
the region gets ready to observe the 400th anniversary of Samuel de Champlain’s arrival here, VPR is reflecting on how the French
explorer has shaped our shared history and culture.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Vermont humorist and writer, Tom Bodett about being a panelist on Wait, Wait…Don’t Tell Me and the upcoming Queen City Radio Hour.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with reporter, Bob Kinzel about the special legislative session where the governor is likey to veto the stat’s budget for the first time in history.
Vermont writer and humorist Tom Bodett shares his experiences on NPR’s "Wait, Wait…Don’t Tell Me" and an upcoming project, "The Queen City Radio Hour." VPR’s Bob Kinzel previews the Legislature’s budget vote on Tuesday. And singer Linda Radtke shares historic Vermont songs.
June, July, August, and September from The Seasons of Tchaikovsky; the Karelia Suite of Sibelius; Tannhauser Overture and Venusberg Bacchanale by Wagner; and Dances from Terpsichore by Praetorius.
The first day of June brings summery sounds to the music, including the "Summer Day" suite by Prokofiev and a couple of grasshopper dances by Peteris Plakidis.
We can’t begin to understand Samuel de Champlain’s historic exploration of the lake that bears his name without a realization that thousands of years before his arrival the lake was a very different place…an ocean.
Four-hundred years after Henry Hudson sailed up the river that bears his name,
one of the biggest toxic waste cleanups has just begun in an attempt to restore
the Hudson to health.
Previews of some exciting concerts this week, including a series of shows with labor organizer and songwriter Si Kahn and Vermont bluesman extraordinaire Scott Ainslie, and uilleann pipe master Paddy Keenan.
Troy Peters interviews Doug Anderson of the Opera Company of Middlebury, which is producing Rossini’s The Barber of Seville in June. He then shares with us a complete performance of that opera.
According to commentator Tom Blinkhorn, the music most frequently heard at graduations today was originally written for a rather different sort of ceremony.
Former Governor Howard Dean
says budget cuts pushed by the Douglas administration would cripple a program that Dean says
protects Vermont’s way of life.
Even as Congress and the White House draft a
national health reform plan, Vermont and six other states will try to fix a key area of
the system on their own.
VPR’s Bob Kinzel talks with State Auditor Tom Salmon about controversial ideas he has for solving the financial challenges, including raising taxes, restructuring state government and expanding gambling in the state.
Bennington’s Southwestern Vermont Medical Center grappled with a shortfall, Vermonters weighed in on President Obama’s Supreme Court nomination. These were some of the voices in the news this week:
State Auditor Tom Salmon discusses some of his ideas for solving the state’s financial challenges, including raising taxes, restructuring state government and expanding gambling in the state.
At 11 pianist Sally Pinkas of Dartmouth College joins us for a live performance preview of her Hopkins Center recital on June 1, which includes music of Beethoven, Faure, and Prokofiev.
Dvorak’s short time in America had a profound effect on his music, thanks in part to his copyist at the New York Conservatory: African-American singer, composer and arranger Harry T. Burleigh. We’ll hear a couple of Burleigh’s arrangements of spirituals this morning, and the Dvorak Symphony #3.
Earlier this spring, VPR commentators gathered at Sugarbush Resort to address a common theme, and this week we’re hearing some of their thoughts on "The Long Haul." Commentator Rich Nadworny found himself pondering the secrets of long life.
Rutland’s Paramount Theatre will host a memorial Sunday honoring Olympic skiing legend, environmental activist and Rutland native Andrea Mead Lawrence.
Bernard Haitink, cond. Mozart: Symphony #41 in C, K. 551 "Jupiter"
Bruckner: Symphony #7 in E
9:57 pm:
Mozart: Contredanse in B flat, K.603, No.2; Salzburg
Mozarteum Orchestra; Hans Graf; LaserLight 15887
Everyone knows that the way we eat has consequences for our physical well-being. But commentator Bill Mares was surprised recently to read that it also has consequences for the economy.
Democratic Legislative leaders have unveiled a new
financial package that they hope will encourage Governor Jim Douglas not to
veto the state budget for next year.
Songwriter Pete Sutherland joins Jane Lindholm during Vermont Edition to perform two ballads written by students for the Young Writers Project to mark the Champlain Quadricentennial.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with lawyers David Sleigh and Robert Gensburg about the impact of court rulings on the Guantanamo Bay detainees they represent.
Schumann’s Piano Sonata No. 1, played by Sally Pinkas, who performs live on VPR Classical Friday morning; Brahms’ Symphony No. 1, which will be on the Vermont Philharmonic’s concerts this weekend; and Henry Purcell’s Ode for St. Cecilia’s Day, which the Dartmouth Chamber Singers will perform on Sunday.
Claude Debussy’s String Quartet is a colorful, rhythmic work – inspired by Franck, Bruckner, and even Javanese gamelan music. Maurice Ravel loved it so much he wrote a Quartet of his own. This morning we’ll hear from both Debussy and Ravel, along with the Orlando Consort in a selection of springtime songs.
VPR commentators gathered this spring to address a common theme, The Long Haul. For commentator Mary McCallum, it reminded her of her father and what you can accomplish if you set your mind to it.
Fran Stoddard is taking part in the "Quadricentennial Voyage: In Search of Samuel de Champlain’s France," a ten-day journey for friends of Burlington City Arts to learn more about the routes of the French explorer in France.
As
the popularity of riding all-terrain vehicles has grown, networks of trails
have developed around Vermont. Enthusiasts
say they’re prevented from expanding their network because of a ban on using
ATVs on state land.
The state of Vermont plans to spend $6 million on improvements at
its state parks this year, bucking a national trend of cutbacks and service
closures by cost-conscious states.
Jayce Ogren, cond. Liszt: The Black Gondola
Mitsuko Uchida, piano and conductor:
Mozart: Piano Concerti #23 and #24
9:54 pm:
Vaughan
Williams: Fantasia on Greensleeves; English String Orchestra; William Boughton;
Nimbus 5019
VPR’s Jason Bushey reports on a Vermont organization that has used large, colorful puppets to teach young students across the state a wide variety of values for nearly three decades.
Robert Ide of the Agency of Transportation explains how federal stimulus money may re-energize efforts to provide train service from Burlington through to Albany, NY.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with John Sayles and Marissa Parisi about programs around the state that take advantage of the growing season to help families avoid hunger.
Summer can be a time of abundance, with gardens and farm fields brimming with fresh vegetables. But experts say that, for children, hunger knows no season. Also, an update on efforts to revamp rail service in parts of Vermont, and puppetry program helps children deal with difficult issues.
Nocturnes by Faure, played by Sally Pinkas, who will play music of Faure live on VPR Classical this Friday and at the Hopkins Center June 1; plus Summer Day in the Mountains by Vincent d’Indy; and the Symphony No. 7 of Anton Bruckner.
Finland’s Kalevi Aho named the movements of his Seventh Symphony after various insects – we’ll hear the Grasshoppers this morning, along with a little bouquet of springtime dances for solo piano by Edvard Grieg.
VPR commentators gathered this spring at Sugarbush Resort to address a common theme, the Long Haul, and we’re sharing a few of their thoughts this week. For commentator Peter Gilbert, the theme brought to mind a little known – but highly entertaining – aspect of Vermont’s agricultural history.
Vermont
lawmakers convene hearings today and Thursday on the latest budget proposal by
Governor Jim Douglas. And a Douglas aide calls the hearings a "stunt."
More
than six decades ago, Vermonters of all ages joined the rest of the nation to
mobilize for World War II. Part of that
effort involved collecting scrap metal to build ships and machinery. As
VPR’s Steve Zind reports, the memories of that drive and Vermont’s role in it have been preserved by one woman who
took part.
New Hampshire
Sen. Jeanne Shaheen says she looks forward to a fair and swift confirmation for
Judge Sonia Sotomayor, President Obama’s nominee for the U.S. Supreme Court.
People for the
Ethical Treatment of Animals is taking its campaign against Canadian seal
harvesting to America, urging consumers to boycott Canadian-made maple
syrup.
Alan Gilbert, cond. Mahler: Blumine
Liberson: The World in Flower
Mahler: Symphony #1 "The Titan"
9:58 pm: Thomas Moore (arr. Charles Stanford): Quick! we have but a second; The King’s Singers; EMI 49765
It’s graduation time, and commentator Leora Dowling has been thinking more of the students she’s taught over the years than of her own years as a student.
Dvorak’s final piano trio is a fine example of a piece with no set form; its six movements ebb, flow, and wander beautifully. We’ll also hear music for a sunny day by Nielsen and Tchaikovsky’s "Souvenir de Florence."
Imagine the overwhelming scent
of walking through a grove of close to 100 lilac bushes. That’s what
you’ll find at UVM’s Horticulture Research Center in Shelburne.
Can humans and bears co-exist? How humans can help bears stay out of trouble. Also, a Montpelier Chrysler dealer fights back. And a whif of the lilac explosion at UVM’s Horticulture Research Center.
Echo music by Orlando di Lasso, Vivaldi, and Mozart; a Spring Concertino for Oboe by William Bolcom, who is 71 today; and the Symphonie fantastique of Berlioz on period instruments.
Claudio Monteverdi’s lovely madrigal Zefiro Torna – "the return of summer breezes" wafts through the morning’s music, along with Schubert’s Overture In the Italian Style, and guitar music by Boccherini.
Earlier this spring, VPR commentators gathered at Sugarbush Resort to address a common theme, and this week we’re hearing some of their thoughts on "The Long Haul." It reminded commentator Cheryl Hanna of a family trip that didn’t go… quite as planned.
Bennington’s Southwestern Vermont Medical Center is grappling with an unexpected, $1.3 million shortfall. The announcement of the budget deficit in March
was followed by the resignation of former CEO Harvey Yorke and the dismissal of the hospital’s chief
financial officer.
New Hampshire has been spending federal stimulus money on transportation faster than
most states. And part of the reason is that it’s using green paper to cut red
tape.
Leonard Slatkin, conductor
Haydn: Symphony No. 67 in F
Barber: Piano Concerto (Garrick Ohlsson, piano)
Elgar: Enigma Variations, Op. 36
9:35
Elgar: Pomp and Circumstance Marches 1-5, Op. 39
London Philharmonic Orchestra
Sir Adrian Boult
A
young man from Lamoille County suffered severe injuries while serving in
Afghanistan late last year. But even as paralyzed veteran Andrew Parker
struggles to regain mobility, his community is rallying to build him a place to
come home to.
At the Sugarbush Resort this spring, VPR commentators gathered to address a common theme, and this week we’re hearing some of their thoughts. "The Long Haul" inspired commentator Larry Doane to reflect on what it sometimes takes to simply keep going.
Los Angeles
Philharmonic
Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos, conductor
Program:
Mozart:
Serenade #6
Beethoven:
Symphony #8
Respighi:
The Pines of Rome
Respighi:
The Fountains of
Rome
Manuel de Falla:
Pantomime fr. El Amor Brujo (‘Love, the
Magician’)
Bartok: Piano Concerto No. 1 (Yefim Bronfman, piano)
We delve into some wonderful box sets from VPR’s folk music collection, including boxes of medicine show music, roots
southern gospel, a selection of artists who recorded on Philo Records in North Ferrisburg in the 1970s, a taste of Scandinavia, and much more!
Hit rock & roll singles from the U.S. and U.K. often became popular in non-English-speaking parts of the world, so much so that artists would sometimes re-record their hits in foreign languages. Listen for these rare recordings this week on My Place, including Connie Francis singing in Japanese, the Belmonts in Dutch, and the Beatles in German.
A vintage recording of Beethoven’s Fidelio with Christa Ludwig, Jon Vickers, Gottlob Frick, Walter Berry, and the Philharmonia Orchestra conducted by Otto Klemperer.
Sunday’s running of the Keybank
Vermont City Marathon in Burlington will mark an important transition for Run Vermont, the
non-profit that organizes the race.
VPR’s Bob Kinzel talks with House Ways and Means vice chairwoman Janet Ancel and tax commissioner Tom Pelham about income tax cuts, capital gains taxes and caps on deductions.
Rain wreaks havoc at the Rutland Free Library, and Vermont’s senators support a credit card bill and closing Guantanamo Bay. These were some of the voices in the news this week.
Choruses by Richard Wagner on his birthday; Brahms Symphony No. 2, conducted by Marin Alsop; and Theme and Variations for Flute and String Quartet by Amy Beach.
With summer festival season nearly on our doorstep, we’ll get ready with a live outdoor performance by the Berlin Phil. (Enesco’s Roumanian Rhapsody #1). And, our survey of Antonin Dvorak’s major works continues with the lightning-speed version of his Serenade for Strings, with the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra.
With Democrats in control of the Congress and the White House, there has been much media handwringing about the fate of the Republican Party. This morning, commentator and veteran ABC News diplomatic correspondent Barrie Dunsmore tells us that the demise of the Republicans has been greatly exaggerated.
Same-sex
marriage supporters who hoped to be celebrating a new law instead are
regrouping from the shock of seeing a legalization bill sidetracked for more
debate.
The Senate has
passed a $91 billion war spending bill that would fund stepped-up military
operations in Afghanistan but deny President Barack Obama money to close the Guantanamo Bay prison.
More than 60
environmental and other organizations from across the country are urging
Congress to increase funding for research into a disease that is killing bats
in the eastern United States.
After getting a
request from New
Hampshire’s
congressional delegation, the government is temporarily suspending a
requirement that some veterans repay retirement benefits if they re-enlist.
Valery Gergiev, conductor
Debussy: Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun
Prokofiev: Violin Concerto No. 1 in D, Op. 19 (Vadim Repin, violin)
Stravinsky: Firebird Suite
Shostakovich: Symphony No. 6 in B Minor, Op. 54
Senators Patrick Leahy and Bernie Sanders also say
they could support relocating some of the suspected terrorists to maximum
security prisons in the U.S.
VPR’s Susan Keese talks with a Brattleboro teeneager who has created a web site that brings together pairs of random strangers for a one-on-one chat room conversation.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Sam Davis, Kathy Provencher and Mike Silverman about why they are attracted to marathoning, and what goes into training for a long-distance race.
They have trained through the long winter months to prepare physically
and mentally, and this Sunday the runners will test themselves against
the 26.2 mile distance. We talk with runners about why they are
attracted to marathoning.
We’ll celebrate the 70th birthday of oboist Heinz Holliger and the 80th birthday of pianist Charles Wadsworth; plus the new album from Asteria and Mahler’s Tenth.
As Memorial Day approaches, teacher and commentator Joe Deffner has been thinking about a trip he made last year with a group of his 7th graders to Arlington National Cemetery.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with NPR’s All Things Considered Host Robert Siegel and National Security Correspondent Dina Temple-Raston at a recent event celebrating VPR’s Creating a Sound Future endowment campaign.
Same-sex marriage
is on hold in New
Hampshire. Governor John
Lynch has demanded changes before he’ll sign legislation that would make the
state the sixth to allow gay marriage, but those changes failed by two
votes in the state House on Wednesday.
The Vermont Medical Society says cuts to the Medicaid program proposed by Governor Douglas will decimate Vermont’s network of primary care
physicians and increase the cost of private health insurance premiums.
One of the four remaining ‘small ball’ bowling centers in Vermont is Candlepin Lanes of Derby. VPR’s Ric Cengeri stopped in to talk with the proprietors, Tracy and Michelle Tarryk about the sport.
A new law could give credit card users some relief from predatory practices. Vermont plays a role in several national environmental stories. And candlepin bowling hasn’t disappeared from Vermont — we visit the lanes in Derby.
Bach’s Cantata No. 78,"Jesu, der du meine Seele;" a recent recording of Prokofiev’s Symphony No. 5 from the Cincinnati Symphony, led by Paavo Jarvi; and Berlioz’ Harold in Italy.
Antonio Salieri takes us along on a visit to the "Fair in Venice", and Robert Schumann continues the journey in his "Carnaval", partly inspired by the colorful characters of Italy’s Commedia dell’arte.
The administration says the new
budget plan is a responsible way to balance next year’s budget – it includes more cuts
than the Legislature proposed and it raises fewer taxes.
The Sibelius Violin Concerto played by Anne-Sophie Mutter, Hindemith’s Symphonic Metamorphosis on themes by Weber, and Chopin’s early variations on Mozart’s "La ci darem la mano" from Don Giovanni.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Lisa Ventriss, David Coates and Jeb Spaulding about a funding shortages and possible early retirement incentive in the state employee package that could help avoid layoffs.
Martha Reid, State Librarian, Jerry Carbone, Director at Brattleboro’s Brooks Memorial Library and Cindy Karasinski, Director at Lyndonville’s Cobleigh Library speak with VPR’s Jane Lindholm about the status of libraries in Vermont.
A bad economy means more and more people are turning to resources at their local libraries. We talk with State Librarian Martha Reid, and library directors Jerry Carbone and Cindy Karasinski. Also, a look at how well funded the state’s pension and benefits funds are.
Hearings resumed this week on Vermont Yankee’s
request to operate the nuclear plant for another 20 years. And the big unanswered
question is how much the electricity produced at the plant will cost.
Sinfonia Espansiva (No. 3) of Carl Nielsen; selections from Iberia by Isaac Albeniz, played by Alicia de Larrocha; and the Requiem of Gabriel Faure, which the Bel Canto Chamber Singers will perform this week.
Commentator Annie Guyon* has a deep sense of state pride, especially when it comes to the arts. And there’s one annual exhibit, now up and celebrating its 80th anniversary until June 9th, that she finds particularly inspiring.
Michael Tilson Thomas, cond. Ives: Psalm 90
Mendelssohn: Violin Concerto in E Minor, Op. 64; Sergey Khachatryan, violin
Ives: New England Holidays Symphony
9:41 pm:
Copland: North Star Suite; Eos Orchestra; Jonathan Sheffer;
Telarc 80583
Every spring, the city of Prague throws a party
that turns the town into Europe’s classical music hub. The Prague
Spring International Music Festival is going on now through early June,
and we’ll take you there to hear a wonderful English orchestra — as
they celebrate spring.
Commentator Bill Schubart explores what it means to be "on time" in Vermont and in New York City, where only a woodchuck would arrive for dinner at the appointed hour.
A plan to offer several hundred state employees a retirement incentive is part of the budget debate between
Governor Jim Douglas and Democratic leaders at the Statehouse.
New Hampshire Governor John Lynch says he’ll approve
same-sex marriage if
certain conditions are met. John Gregg of the Valley News provides analysis of the political pressure Lynch faces.
As the military and political situation in Afghanistan intensifies, Vermont troops prepare for deployment to the region. Another Vermonter is also headed for that
region: Peter Galbraith has been named deputy UN envoy in Afghanistan. Jane Lindholm talks with Galbraith about
the coming surge in both military and civilian efforts and the way forward in
the region.
Vermonter Peter Galbraith is headed to Afghanistan as the U.N.’s second in command. We talk with him about the region and the way forward. Also, an update on the politics of same-sex marriage in New Hampshire.
Most
people who collect and compost food scraps have a backyard or a garden to dump
them in. But in New York City residents without a pinch of earth are taking extreme
measures to compost.
Karl Goldmark’s Rustic Wedding Symphony; The Elements by Andre Cardinal Destouches (depicting earth, air, water, and fire); the Russian Easter Festival Overture of Rimsky-Korsakov; Symphony No. 5 of Vaughan Williams; and music of Scott Joplin.
This week marks an historic anniversary, that reminds commentator and Vermont Humanities Council executive director Peter Gilbert of a film, in which myth, reality, early feminism and irony collide – big time.
From "Stairway to Heaven" played by an Irish traditional band to an upcoming folk and blues festival in Saratoga Springs, we try once again to dance around the musical bases with Cape Verdean divas and the Incredible String Band!
Joel Najman unearths another hour’s worth of vintage pop songs named after men, including a number of interesting recordings requested by My Place listeners following our first program of this theme in March.
Considering how
quickly objects accumulate in the spare rooms of ordinary homes, it’s not
surprising that Manchester’s Equinox Hotel has enough extra stuff to hold
an auction. The hotel has 200 rooms and has been doing business for about 249
years.
Schubert’s 14th string quartet "Death and the Maiden," Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto #1 with Krystian Zimerman, and Alica de Larrocha plays Manuel de Falla’s "Nights in the Gardens of Spain."
Bob Kinzel discusses the fate of the budget, the Yankee decommissioning bill and the renewable energy bill with Kristin Carlson and VPR reporters Ross Sneyd and John Dillon.
One man is making the celebration of the 400th anniversary of Samuel de Champlain’s exploration of the region, literally, a
moving one. Kevin Dann is a professor of History at Plattsburgh State
University.
Away from the State House this week, Senator Bernie Sanders called on credit card companies to lower their rates, Fairpoint’s struggles continued and the country’s education secretary visited Vermont. These were some of the voices in the news this week.
Bob Kinzel discusses the fate of the budget, the Yankee decommissioning bill and the renewable energy bill with WCAX’s Statehouse Bureau Chief Kristin Carlson and VPR reporters Ross Sneyd and John Dillon.
The Douglas administration is seeking almost 22 million dollars
in federal stimulus money to help develop small scale renewable energy projects
around the state.
Miguel Harth-Bedoya, conductor, Jessica Warren-Acosta, Andean flute
Alomia Robles: El Condor pasa
Martinze y Companon: Coleccion de musica virreinal
Luzuriaga: Responsorio
Frank: Illapa
Golijov: Mariel for cello and Orchestra; Kenneth Olson, cello
Soro: Tres Aires Chilenos
Lopez: Fiesta! ielsen: Symphony #5; Paavo Jarvi, cond. 9:57 pm:
Poulenc: Valse, FP 17; Orchestre national de France; Charles
Dutoit; London 452937
Amidst all the bad economic news, commentator Timothy McQuiston observes that not only will things get better eventually, but there are some positive things going on right now.
Charlie Nardozzi of the National Gardening Association talks with VPR’s Jane Lindholm about how to create an edible landscape with herbs, berries and flowers.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with stand-up comics Martha Tormey and Kathleen Kanz about Vermont’s growing stand-up comedy scene, and how comedians develop their acts for a live audience.
Stand-up comedy is
not for the faint of heart. We talk with a few brave people who take the stage as part of Vermont’s growing stand-up comedy
scene. Also, how to cultivate an edible landscape with berries, herbs and flowers.
Who is at fault in a speedy trial case now
before the state Supreme Court. Did the defendant cause the delay? Or was there
a systemic breakdown in the public defender system?
Mozart’s Trio for Clarinet, Viola, and Piano, which he supposedly composed while playing skittles or kegelstatt; Miaskovsky’s Cello Concerto; Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto; and Lou Harrison’s Solstice.
Herbert Blomstedt, cond. Bruckner: Symphony #8 in C Minor
9:54 pm:
Schubert: Du bist die Ruh’, D.776; Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau,
baritone; Gerald Moore, piano; EMI 69503
The
team learned earlier this year that the baseball program was being
eliminated–along with women’s softball-to help UVM deal with a multi-million
dollar budget deficit.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with UVM graduate Erica Bove about how she helped change the way students are taught about diagnosing and treating eating disorders.
VPR’s Jane Linholm talks with Tom Candon, Mike Tuttle, Richard White and Matt Levandowski about how Vermont’s banks are faring in the economic downturn.
We continue our series of audio postcards from Vermont towns with a visit to Wardsboro, home of Gladys Bruce. She raises goats and chickens and though she’s almost 90, she still finds a lot to keep her busy.
We check in with Vermont’s Deputy Banking Commissioner Tom Candon, and representatives from banks around the state. Plus, one UVM Med student helped change how students are taught about eating disorders, and an audio town postcard from Wardsboro.
One
of Vermont’s best known news broadcasters plans to retire at the
end of the summer. WCAX’s
Marselis Parsons will step down as news director at Channel Three in June. And
he’ll sign off as anchor of the evening news a few months later.
Riccardo Muti, cond.
Verdi: Overture to giovanna d’Arco
Verdi: "The Four Seasons" from I Vespri Siciliani
Puccini: Preludio Sinfonico
Respighi: Pines of Rome
9:23 pm:
Stravinsky: Symphony in E flat, Op.1; Russian National
Orchestra; Mikhail Pletnev; DG 453434
Fertilizing the old-fashioned way is pretty straightforward, but commentator Charlie Nardozzi says that there are still a few basic facts to keep in mind.
For the second time in a year, the Vermont State Hospital was denied federal certification. We talk about what’s next for the facility with the state’s Mental Health Commissioner Michael Hartman and Rep. Anne Donahue. Also, catalytic converters create a rise in a rare element, and we stop by Beansie’s snack bus.
Scenes pittoresques by Massenet; Masques et Bergamasques by Faure; Ruralia Hungarica by Dohnanyi; the Cello Sonata of Rachmaninoff; and Leonard Bernstein’s ballet, Facsimile.
As
lobstermen prepare to set their traps this spring, they’re facing a new way of
working on the water. Federal regulations that took effect in April require
them to use rope that sinks rather than rope that floats. The
idea is to protect endangered right whales whose numbers are estimated at fewer
than 400. The whales can become entangled and die in floating fishing gear.
More
than 500 Vermont leaders met at the University of Vermont on Monday to develop priorities for the future of the
state. The
conference was the final part of a two-year study looking at whether Vermonters’
values are reflected in state policies.
The long debate over Bennington’s so-called "sick"
state office building reached an official resolution with the passage of the
Capital Bill on Friday. The decision calls for state employees to return
to the complex that was closed, due to worker respiratory ailments and a
debilitating disease called sarcoidosis.
Roberto Minczuk, cond. Almeida prado: Symphonic Variations
Martinu: Concerto for Two Pianos; Katia and Marielle Labeque, duo pianists
Dvorak: Symphony #9 in E Minor "From the New World"
9:29 pm:
Castelnuovo-Tedesco: Violin Concerto No.2 “The Prophets”;
Jascha Heifetz, violin; Los Angeles Philharmonic; Alfred Wallenstein; RCA 7872
Governor Jim Douglas says he won’t have to call lawmakers back to the Statehouse for a special session if
Democratic leaders agree to some additional budget cuts in the coming weeks.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with reporter Candace Page about why the Burlington superfund site known as Pine Street Canal continues to require attention decades after its initial cleanup.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with new Reps. Kesha Ram and Brian Savage, and Sen. Tim Ashe about how their expectations matched up with the work of this session, and what they feel they accomplished for their constituents.
About three dozen first-time lawmakers served in the Legislature this winter. On the next Vermont Edition, we invite them to reflect their satisfactions, disappointments and how they felt they served their constituents. Also, an update on a decades-old superfund site in Burlington.
We’ll listen to a recent recording of a marvelous work that may be new to you, the Suite for Orchestra by Ernst von Dohnanyi; plus the Divine Poem Symphony of Alexander Scriabin.
Black fly season supposedly lasts from Mother’s Day to Father’s Day. As the season begins, VPR commentator and former park ranger Vic Henningsen reflects that bug repellants… ain’t what they used to be.
It’s likely that lawmakers will be back in
Montpelier for a special session in several weeks. That’s
because Governor Douglas is expected to veto the state budget for next
year. If he takes that action, it will
mark the first time in Vermont
history that a governor has vetoed the state’s annual spending plan.
Work is nearly
complete on a more than $2 million project to refurbish the New York-owned
Champlain Memorial Lighthouse in time to commemorate the 400th anniversary of
Samuel de Champlain’s exploration of the region.
Brother and sister duo, Nino Tempo and April Stevens are best known for 1963 pop hit Deep Purple. Hear their fascinating story Saturday on Joel Najman’s My Place.
Lawmakers have taken action on a number of critical bills
today. The state budget for next year has been approved by
the Senate and now it faces some tough scrutiny from the Democratic caucus in
the House.
Celebrating the birthday today of Louis Moreau Gottschalk. We’ll also hear Georg Solti conducting Beethoven’s 7th Symphony, harp music from the Italian Renaissance, and the Harp Concerto by Alberto Ginastera.
Louis Porter is the bureau chief at the Vermont Press Bureau. He discussed some of the week’s top news stories with VPR’s Bob Kinzel live from the Statehouse where legislative leaders are aiming for an adjournment.
VPR’s Bob Kinzel talks with Senator Bernie Sanders on a number of issues including health care reform, Pakistan & Afghanistan, use of torture and stimulus funds for small business.
The State House saw a flurry of activity, with discussions on the budget, Yankee decommissioning, expanded sex offender legislation and streamlining environmental regulations. These were some of the voices in the news this week:
With summer just around the
corner state officials are reminding travelers that starting June 1st
people will need to have a passport or enhanced license to travel to Canada.
Southwestern Vermont Medical Center in Bennington has laid off 60 employees and slashed hours for 30
others to cope with a projected $1.3 million deficit.
The new release from the Baltimore Consort highlights music from 15th and 16th c. Spain, they’re joined by counter tenor Jose Lemos for a whole program of villancicos, cancioneros, and romances.
This week on President Barack Obama’s agenda – Afghanistan and Pakistan. Next week – Israel and Palestine. As commentator and long time ABC News diplomatic correspondent Barrie Dunsmore sees it, Mr. Obama is now facing a series of international crises with the potential to derail the best laid plans for his presidency.
In
the span of just a month, legislatures in all three states in northern New England have endorsed same-sex marriage. But
legal experts say those votes never would have happened without court cases in Vermont, Massachusetts and Connecticut in which gay and lesbian couples demanded the right
to marry.
That sound in
Governor John Lynch’s reception room is the phone ringing, constantly, as
people continue calling to plead with him to either sign or reject a bill
legalizing same-sex marriage in New Hampshire.
With federal
stimulus money filling what otherwise would be huge budget holes, Vermont
lawmakers are moving to wrap up work on the general fund, transportation and
capital construction budgets for the fiscal year beginning July 1.
House and Senate leaders reached agreement on a transportation
bill for next year that dramatically increases spending on paving and road and
bridge repair projects.
A brand new, original musical has opened at the Briggs Opera House in White River Junction. The four cast members have all worked on Broadway, and they tell a love story with a very modern twist.
VPR’s Betty Smith takes us Backstage at the Northern Stage premier of Take Two.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talked with Freeman about his new book, All That I Have. He says he hopes his protagonist comes across as a flawed but sympathetic character.
Chris Graff is a news analyst who covered Vermont politics for many years as Vermont bureau chief for the Associated Press. VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Graff about the history of the Political Left in Vermont.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Peter Clavelle and Judy Bevans about how the left side of politics has changed and grown more diverse over the past decades.
Author Castle Freeman Jr. lives in Newfane and has written several novels set in Southern Vermont. His 2008 Novel, Go With Me, got rave reviews for depicting small town life without resorting to sentimentality or stereotypes. His newest book, All That I Have, was just published in March and follows in the same vein, telling the story of Sheriff Lucien Wing. Castle Freeman says he hopes his protagonist comes across as a flawed but sympathetic character. Listen to Castle Freeman read an excerpt from his book, All That I Have.
We’ll explore the depth and breadth of the left side of the state’s political spectrum with former politician Peter Clavelle and Chair of the Democratic Party, Judy Bevans. Also, a conversation with Vermont novelist Castle Freeman, Jr.
Two of the most beloved composers share a birthday. We’ll feature music of Brahms, including his Piano Concerto No. 2; and Tchaikovsky, including the infrequently-heard original version of the Rococo Variations, and Act 3 of The Sleeping Beauty ballet.
Two giants of Romantic music were born on May 7th: Tchaikovsky (1840), and Brahms (1833). We’ll fill up the morning with two contrasting cornerstones: Brahms’ delicate Horn Trio, and the mighty Tchaikovsky Symphony #5.
Business
groups want the state to raise their taxes in order to shore up the state’s
unemployment insurance trust fund. But
in exchange for paying more, the businesses also want benefits reduced for unemployed
workers.
The federal
government is denying certification for the Vermont State Hospital, citing physical problems and patient care lapses at
the aging Waterbury psychiatric hospital.
Herbert Blomstedt, cond. Brahms: Double Concerto for Violin and Cello in A Minor, Op. 102; William Preucil, violin, Desmond Hobig, cello
Beethoven: Symphony #3 in Eb Major "Eroica" Op. 55
9:55 pm:
Holst: The Planets: Mercury; Chicago
Symphony Orchestra; James Levine; DG 429730
As the governor and legislature square off on budget and policy issues, commentator Bill Schubart imagines how their struggle might be judged in a corporate boardroom 10 years from now.
Democratic leaders plan to have both the
House and the Senate vote on their budget package tomorrow. If no changes are made to the plan, the governor has
made it clear that he will veto the bill.
A two-time Tony Award winner is lending his talents to community theater in the Champlain Valley. VPR’s Neal Charnoff went backstage at the Willsboro Drama Club’s production of "Mame".
Bruch’s "Scottish Fantasy," a little "Scottish Round" by John Field, Tchaikovsky’s "Swan Lake," and there’s that man again…Vassily Primakov, playing Chopin’s F Minor Concerto.
FairPoint
Communications saw its number of phone access lines fall a relatively
modest 1.8 percent in northern New England in the first three months of
the year even as subscribers experienced customer service, billing and
e-mail problems.
Bella Voce sings Gwyneth Walker’s beautiful setting of Anne Morrow Lindbergh’s "Gifts from the Sea" – and, Claude Debussy gives us his own vision of the ocean in his picturesque "La Mer".
This year’s cherry blossoms are already going by in Washington, but here in Vermont they’re just beginning to bloom. Here’s VPR commentator and Vermont Humanities Council Executive Director Peter Gilbert to encourage us to enjoy them – not only now, but all year long.
Galen Carr of Burlington is living a dream job every day as a professional
scout for the Boston Red Sox. Carr grew up in Walpole New Hampshire living, and–usually dying–with the dashed fortunes
of his beloved Red Sox.
With bankruptcies, evictions and unemployment
on the rise, stress levels in many families have mushroomed. That’s led to an increase in domestic
violence. But as VPR’s Nina Keck reports, even
as demand for services is growing, funding for women’s shelters is down.
Vermont has
joined a federal lawsuit to get the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to take a deeper
look at concerns surrounding nuclear plants’ spent fuel pools.
Riccardo Muti, cond. Ravel: Piano Concerto in G Major; Mitsuko Uchida, piano
Schubert: Symphony #9 in C major "The Great"
9:36 pm:
Dohnanyi: Variations on a Nursery Song, Op.25; Zoltán
Kocsis, piano; Budapest Festival Orchestra; Iván Fischer; Philips 422380
Legislative leaders say they can’t make a deal with the Douglas administration on tax and spending plans. So
they’re crafting their own proposal that makes additional budget cuts and
raises new revenues.
The Vermont House has given preliminary approval to
legislation that calls for greater disclosure of the financial relationship
between pharmaceutical companies and physicians.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with users of the online service Twitter about how people have embraced it and what the attcation is for personal use and for business.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Patrick Leahy about the kind of nominee he hopes the president will choose for Supreme Court justice, and what this decision means for the future of the court.
Sen. Patrick Leahy on the kind of nominee he hopes the president will choose for the Supreme Court. Also, Twitter! The social media platform has taken off, and we talk with users in our region about why and how they use Twitter to get their message out.
For Cinco de Mayo a 17th-century Mexican Mass by Juan Gutierrez de Padilla; a Beethoven Piano Sonata played by Paul Lewis, who returns to Middlebury College this Friday; and Brahms’ Serenade No. 1.
With Mother’s Day fast approaching Vermont Law School professor Cheryl Hanna reflects upon one of her worst moments as a new mother and what she learned from that experience.
Jimmy Johnson
is a researcher for The Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions, a
non-profit organization that fights to keep Palestinians in the occupied
territories from losing their homes.
The
Vermont House has rejected legislation aimed at getting young men to sign up
for a potential military draft when they get a driver’s license. Opponents
argued it wasn’t the state’s job to help enforce federal law.
A former shop
owner in Middlebury is suing the town for blocking him from selling salvia
divinorum, an herb said to trigger hallucinations when consumed.
The
Vermont Senate has streamlined environmental regulation as part of a broad
economic development bill. But
as the bill was debated, members of the Senate Natural Resources Committee
warned that the bill went too far.
Congressman
Peter Welch was at Wilderness Battlefield Monday expressing opposition to a
plan by Wal-Mart to build a super store on the historic Virginia site. The battlefield is where Confederate General
Robert E. Lee first met the Union’s Ulysses S. Grant.
Employees of
Vermont Yankee nuclear plant want state lawmakers to defeat a bill that would
require the plant’s owners to beef up its decommissioning fund.
James Gaffigan, cond. Mussorgsky: Selections from "Khovanshchina"
Rachmaninoff: PIano Concerto #2 in C Minor, Op. 18; Lise de la Salle, piano
Chen Yi: Si Ji (Four Seasons)
Tchaikovsky: Romeo and Juliet Fantasy Overture
9:35 pm:
Shostakovich: Piano Concerto No.1 in C minor, Op.35; Dmitri
Shostakovich, piano; Orchestre national de la Radio diffusion française; André
Cluytens; EMI 62648
How this painfully self-effacing man created
music that soars to the heavens is one of the mysteries of human
creativity. Anton Bruckner and his Eighth Symphony can astound, and the
proof is this great performance of the New York Philharmonic in concert
on tour in Germany.
Sen.
Patrick Leahy and Lt. Gov. Brian Dubie were among the dignitaries
who announced a $1 million grant that will be used to train future aviation mechanics and engineers.
Three Supreme Court Justices from different New England states each address their participation in landmark rulings from their respective courts on same-sex marriage.
New CDs arrive at VPR faster tha you can imagine, so I decided to scan the shelves and pick out some of our recent additions to the library to share this afternoon. Some are new releases, others are older recordings that, for one reason or another, we didn’t get until recently. Hope you enjoy!
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with self-proclaimed "bird diva" Bridget Butler about what birds we can soon expect to see in Vermont. And we talk about how social networking is helping both veteran and newbie birders share their sightings.
The only thing as popular as Mozart’s operas in the years after his death were instrumental transcriptions of his opera music. Spanish-born Fernando Sor borrowed a selection of tunes from Mozart’s "Magic Flute" for his guitar variations, and Julian performs them this morning. We’ll also sing a new song to the morning in music by Bach, and Giordani in his lovesong, "Caro mio ben".
Some residents of Bennington have launched a petition calling for the resignation
of a disgraced former school superintendent elected in March to the local
school board. In 1989, George Sleeman was
convicted of eight counts of embezzlement from the Southwest Vermont
Supervisory Union. Now that he’s back in the public eye, the community is
divided over how to respond.
Sirens in the
Vermont Yankee’s emergency planning zone will sound this Tuesday – Wednesday is
the rain date – as part of a regular test of the emergency notification system
surrounding the Vernon reactor.
The number of probable cases of swine flu in New Hampshire has risen to four, and a high school will be closed
Monday so health officials can investigate further.
Pete Seeger celebrates his 90th birthday Sunday. The final segment of this series looks at how the music of the Civil Rights, anti-war, and environmental
movements galvanized Seeger’s life.
After two weeks featuring popular songs that mention or deal with birds, the volume of listener requests and suggestions was such, that this week’s "My Place" program is a third and final hour titled "Popular Songs About Birds", programmed almost entirely from the correspondence we received.
House Speaker Shap Smith says lawmakers will have to
accept some difficult program cuts in order to reach a compromise budget
agreement with the Douglas Administration.
The budget, raw milk legislation and a possible loss of Federal stimulus dollars made headlines in the last few days. Here are some of the voices from this week’s news.
Music for May Day by Thomas Morley and Edward Elgar; Beethoven’s Symphony No. 4; and pianist Simone Dinnerstein plays Philip Lasser’s Variations on a Chorale by J.S. Bach.
May songs, may poles, …the first of May is a special day. We’ll hear "May" from Tchaikovsky’s "Seasons", Dvorak’s mighty "New World" symphony, and a little song by Jean Planson, all about the dew on the grass in the month of May.
As he listens to the debate about torture and its place in America’s intelligence policy, commentator Ken Davis is reminded of the words of Abraham Lincoln.
With
concern over a potential swine flu pandemic growing, hospitals across the
country are gearing up, by fine tuning their emergency response plans. While no cases have been reported in Vermont, swine flu has been identified in nearby Maine, Massachusetts and New
York. VPR’s
Nina Keck spoke with hospital officials in Rutland and filed this report.
Vermont’s first magnet schools will open this fall. Two Burlington elementary schools will re-open as district-wide
magnet schools — one with an emphasis on arts, and the other focusing on
sustainability.
The Vermont
Legislature is considering a bill that would help alleviate a shortage of large
animal veterinarians by helping them repay their college loans.
A former
Vermont National Guard soldier has been sentenced for stealing weapons while in
Iraq, mailing them to his home in New Hampshire and trying to sell them.
Franz Welser-Most, cond. Messiaen: seven Haiku
Mozart: Mass in C Minor "Great" K 427
9:54 pm:
Mozart: Idomeneo: Overture; Tafelmusik; Bruno Weil; Sony
46695
Senate President Peter Shumlin says if the outline for a
compromise isn’t reached by the weekend, lawmakers will forge ahead with a budget plan that Governor Jim Douglas will likely veto.
Opponents
of the legislation charge that the un-pasteurized product can cause disease. But supporters say
it adds new safety regulations and gives a needed boost to local
agriculture.
We’ll celebrate the birthdays of Franz Lehar and Robert Shaw, and hear Mendelssohn’s "Die Erst Walpurgisnacht" after texts of Goethe. "Die Erste Walpurgisnacht" is German for the Eve of May Day, or April 30th…sort of a "half-birthday" for Halloween.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Principal Paula Bowen and Vermont’s Education Commissioner Armando Vilaseca about how magnet schools fit into our education system.
Albany, Vermont
residents Les Hook and Nova Kim are experts in collecting wild edibles. The two have been together for
nearly 30 years, and they run wild edible workshops throughout the state. VPR’s Sarah Ashworth joined them recently as they went hunting for
fiddleheads near Waterbury.
The first two magnet schools in Vermont will open next fall in Burlington. We talk with one of the school’s principals, Paula Bowen, and with Education Commissioner Armando Vilaseca. Also, one UVM student is studying what students should eat before they take an exam, and we go hunting for fiddleheads.
In 2009 Troy Peters stepped down after 14 years directing the Vermont Youth
Orchestra. He stopped by the VPR studios in Colchester and spoke with Walter Parker about his future plans.
As President Obama completes his first hundred days in office, commentator Vic Henningsen looks back at the moment when George Washington began his, on this day in 1789.
Homeless but determined, Meghann Cline spent this winter searching for a permanent home for herself and her three children. VPR’s Lynne McCrea has chronicled Cline’s odyssey and has an update on how she’s doing, Thursday on Morning Edition.
VPR News has been following the story of Meghann
Cline and her 3 children, who’ve been homeless since last summer. When we last checked in, they had used up their time at a family shelter. Meghann Cline and her family moved into the hotel in January, and
that’s where VPR’s Lynne McCrea picks up the story.
A bill before the senate
Natural Resources Committee would make it easier to add – and subtract –
wetlands from state wetlands maps. It’s estimated that a third of Vermont’s wetlands are unmapped, and therefore unprotected.
Health
officials say they’re testing a few Vermonters to determine whether they’ve
come down with swine flu. Tests
through Tuesday have been negative for the strain of the disease that has been
spreading around the world.
The Springfield Post Office will celebrate the city’s designation as
"The Simpsons" hometown with the release of a postage stamp depicting
the popular animated series.
The Burlseke by Richard Strauss features a dazzling piano part as well as some really awesome timpani riffs…we’ll hear it this afternoon. And the piano concerto by Edvard Grieg starts with a nic, long timpani roll…we’ll hear that, too.
We examine a bill that could increase the state’s protected wetlands. We continue our coverage of health care reform with a look at the Vermont Workers Center’s "Health Care is a Human Right" Campaign. And we listen in as students create a ballad about Lake Champlain.
We’ll listen to the Requiem of Maurice Durufle, which the North Country Chorus will perform this weekend; and Bach’s Goldberg Variations played by Simone Dinnerstein, who will play them Friday in Burlington.
Listening to President Obama promote volunteerism, has reminded commentator Bill Seamans that northern New England has a long tradition of pitching in for a good cause – and he has an example that dates back to the turn of the last century.
There are big changes
happening at the New England Culinary Institute. In a money-saving move, NECI’s
Board of Directors yesterday approved a consolidation of operations from its Essex
Junction Campus to Montpelier.
Dartmouth College is evacuating students participating in its Language
Study Abroad program in Cholulua, Mexico, amid concern over the swine flu outbreak.
If you’re fascinated by words and like to stare at maps, VPR commentator and Vermont Humanities Council executive director Peter Gilbert has a book for you.
Congressman Peter Welch is leading an effort that could
affect the pocketbooks of thousands of Vermonters. Welch wants to place a cap on credit card interest
rates.
John Eliot Gardiner conducts Beethoven’s powerful Missa Solemnis, and we’ll hear two modern takes on traditional Renaissance dances from Arthur Foote and Peter Warlock.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Vermont Selective Service head David Pinkham and Joseph Gainza of the American Friends Service Committee about a proposal to require eligible men to register before they can get a driver’s license.
A proposal to compel young men to register for the selective service in Vermont is raising civil liberties concerns.And we ride along with Burlington Free Press reporter Candy Page as she test drives alternative fuel vehicles.
Richard Strauss’ Don Quixote; Fanfare for the Uncommon Woman by Joan Tower, whose Purple Rhapsody will be played by the Vermont Symphony Orchestra Saturday; and Stravinsky’s ballet based on Tchaikovsky, The Fairy’s Kiss.
The bard’s birthday was last week but his legacy lives on in music by Shostakovich (the "Hamlet" suite) and Verdi (from the opera, "Macbeth"). We’ll also make a stop in Scotland in Mendelssohn’s stirring 3rd symphony.
The
Corrections commissioner supports closing the prison in St. Johnsbury, even
though there’s been a public outcry against the plan. Commissioner
Andy Pallito says the department has already cut 100 or more staff positions,
and is closing two Probation and Parole offices.
An effort to redevelop a Burlington armory into a community
recreation center is getting a boost from a $166,000 federal grant. Vermont Congressman Peter Welch announced the
grant at the Robert Miller Community and Recreation Center.
The
University of Vermont hopes to avoid a new round of lay-offs and possibly reinstate some
part-time faculty. The school had warned in February that up to 26 people
would have to be let go because of the budget deficit.
Supporters of
Vermont’s new same sex marriage law spent more than $228,000 lobbying for it in
the three months before the historic April 7 votes to pass it over Governor Jim
Douglas’ veto.
Philippe Jordan, cond. Beethoven: Egmont Overture
Beethoven: Piano Concerto #3 in C Minor; Pierre Laurent-Aimard, piano
R. Strauss: An Alpine Symphony
9:53:
Grofé: Grand Canyon Suite: Sunset; Seattle
Symphony; Gerard Schwarz; Delos 3104
Federal
stimulus money is flowing into Vermont to help low-income families keep their jobs. Almost $3 million will go toward subsidizing child care over the next two
years. The money is targeted to low-income families.
Commentator Ted Levin recently read a book that surprised him by revealing a connection between the decline of the American Buffalo and post-Civil War Vermont.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Department of Corrections Commissioner Andy Pallito about the possibility of the Northeast Regional Correctional Facility in St. Johnsbury closing.
Simone Dinnerstein plays a French Suite by Bach, in advance of her Burlington performance of the Goldberg Variations on Friday; and Federico Mompou plays his own Variations on a Theme of Chopin.
Waltzing into the day with Johann Strauss, Jr’s "Wine, Women and Song" – and the love verses from Percy Grainger’s lush setting from the "Song of Solomon".
Even though the job market is tight these days, commentator Mary McCallum thinks there’s still room to dream about the importance of finding work that you love.
As part of VPR’s on-going series
tracking federal stimulus money, we spoke with Steve Dale. He’s the
commissioner of the state’s Department of Children and Families, and we asked
him exactly where nearly $3 million in federal money for child care subsidies will end up,
A popular Southern Vermont whitewater event won’t take place this spring. Paddlers are upset that the
dam release on the West River in Jamaica – usually the last weekend in April — was scrapped
due to a policy change.
At a time when resources for local coverage are shrinking at newspapers around the country, a tiny new paper in Brattleboro is training citizens to report the news.
A Hartland,
Vt., couple is asking the town to drill them a new well using some of the money
it got in a legal settlement after a fuel spill more than a decade ago.
Spring’s here,
and Green Mountain National
Forest is
set to open its road and campgrounds, though caution is being recommended since
it’s still mud season.
Christoph Eschenbach made his first
appearance with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra as a pianist, but now
when he performs with them it is on the conductor’s podium. This
fabulous Dutch orchestra is thrilled, either way.
A look back at Pete Seeger’s pivotal role in the folk music revival of the 60s, listen to "How Can I Keep From Singing’ Sunday Afternoon. The Splendid Table features edible landscapes and Arlo Guthrie visits A Prairie Home Companion.
On the previous week’s program, Joel Najman’s "My Place" celebrated the arrival of springtime and the return of migrating birds to the north country with a full hour of popular songs that mention or deal with birds. Not only did one hour prove to be inadequate to present all the songs found in our music library, but numerous excellent and thoughtful requests and suggestions from listeners compel at least another entire "My Place" program dedicated to this musical theme. This week Joel Najman’s "My Place" program presents "Pop Songs About Birds – Part Two", with popular hit recordings ranging timewise from the late 1930’s well into the first golden decades of the rock&roll era. Joel Najman’s "My Place" program is heard Saturday evenings from 8-9PM following "A Prairie Home Companion" on Vermont Public Radio.
Topping the news this week in Montpelier were the budget and new taxes. Also, Vermont may require young drivers to register for selective service while Dartmouth’s Tuck School is requiring ethics courses. These were some of the voices in the news this week.
Free and back home after his time as a hostage, Captain Richard Phillips will be the guest of honor at a picnic this weekend in Underhill. But Commentator Philip Baruth is convinced that unfortunately the story of the Somali pirates is far from complete.
VPR’s Neal Charnoff talks with Vermont co-author Eric Segalstad about his new book that examines the phenomenon of musicians who have died at the age of 27
Charlie Nardozzi of the National Gardening Association answers your questions about growing vegetables and flowers, fighting off pests and managing your garden. Submit questions before the program and listen live at noon on Friday.
Walter Parker welcomes clarinetist Romie de Guise-Langlois and pianist Jeewon Park to the VPR Performance Studio. They play Brahms’ Clarinet Sonata in E-flat and other works.
The 2009 Pulitzers were announced this past Monday, and Steve Reich won the prize in the music category for his Double Sextet. This morning we’ll feature his 1989 Grammy-winning composition, "Different Trains" in a whole hour of other music devoted to trains: Honegger’s "Pacific 231", Eduard Strauss’ "At full steam" polka, and Copland’s "John Henry, a railroad ballad".
The conventional wisdom when assessing relations between nations is that actions speak louder than words. However, this morning commentator Barrie Dunsmore, veteran ABC News foreign and diplomatic correspondent suggests that this may not always be the case.
Debate is intensifying at the Vermont
Statehouse over legislation that would ban a certain chemical flame retardant
from furniture, cases around computers and televisions and other household goods.
(Host) Governor Jim Douglas says lawmakers need to cut deeper into the state budget to avoid new taxes. The House and Senate are looking at about $24 million in new revenues to balance the state budget. The proposals include an income tax surcharge, closing a tax exemption on capital gains income, and so-called "sin" taxes on tobacco and alcohol. But the governor said on Thursday that he’s opposed to any new taxes. (Douglas) "The Senate proposed to tax what they deem to be sin.
The American Recovery and ReinvestmentAct
of 2009 includes billions of dollars for what’s known as
"smart grid" technology. Vermont’s utility industry hopes
to take advantage of some of that money to revolutionize the way electricity is
delivered and consumed.
Sick bats may soon be returning
to their summer homes, and state wildlife officials are asking people to use
caution if they encounter one of the animals.
Attorney General William Sorrell
enforces a state law that requires the pharmaceutical industry to report how
much they spend to market their products. But
the law also allows the companies to keep secret the names of the providers who
got paid.
A Quebec company that makes electrical transformers will open
a factory in St. Albans and hire at least 45 people within three years. As
VPR’s Ross Sneyd reports, Franklin County has fared pretty well in the current recession.
It’s Shakespeare’s birthday today, and we’ll hear music by Prokofiev, Tchaikovsky, and Finzi to mark the occasion. We’ll also hear from a new recording of Chopin Mazurkas from pianist Vassily Primakov.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Walter Parker about the music of Counterpoint and their upcoming concert that is meant to connect the 21st century and the nineteeth century through different themes.
Kerrick Johnson of VELCO and David Hallquist of Vermont Electric Co-op speak with VPR’s Jane Lindholm about the plan to use economic stumulus funds to kick-start a Vermont smart grid infrastructure.
We discuss the coming transformation in how electricty is distributed and consumed. Plus, a preview of weekend concerts by the vocal group Counterpoint. And we visit a vernal pool.
Music of Berlioz inspired by Shakespeare, including selections from his Romeo et Juliette; one of the Coronation Anthems of Handel, which the Oriana Singers will perform Saturday; and the little-known, but moving Symphony No. 4 of Viennese composer Franz Schmidt, written in memory of his daughter.
Hamlet, Henry the Fifth, Romeo & Juliet, Puck…classical music is well populated by characters from Shakespeare’s plays. We’ll visit with some of them and hear highlights from other productions like "Much Ado About Nothing", and "King Lear".
Daffodils are blooming, trees are budding, and most of the maple syrup harvest is in. But for commentator Sam Samuels, April in Vermont brings a very different – and distinctly slimy – rite of spring.
U.S. Rep. Paul
Hodes of New
Hampshire and
two House colleagues want to make sure lawmakers don’t get contributions in
return for federal earmarks, the footnotes members of Congress often use to
quietly send millions each year to special projects.
The Vermont
House has passed legislation to boost Vermont’s renewable energy industry – over the objections of
Gov. Jim Douglas and some business leaders.
April 22, 2009 marks the 50th anniversary of the "Kind of Blue"
recording sessions – Miles Davis’ legendary ‘cool jazz’ album that
became the best-selling jazz recording in history. Join George Thomas at 8 for the radio documentary
"Kind of Blue", followed by an hour of classics from the
recording and other landmark jazz releases from 1959.
Vermont’s congressional delegation has spearheaded efforts in
Washington to honor the Underhill man who was held by Somali
pirates earlier this month. Congressman
Peter Welch introduced a resolution in the House this morning to honor Richard
Phillips. He’s the merchant ship captain who gave himself up to the pirates to
protect his crew.
Recent headlines about The World Bank and the International Monetary Fund have reminded commentator Tom Blinkhorn of their New Hampshire roots. They were founded sixty-five years ago this July at a conference of 700 delegates from 44 countries at the Mount Washington Hotel in Bretton Woods.
The Senate has advanced a tax bill that
raises about $26 million in new revenue. Business executives said they can’t afford to pay more taxes and urged
the Legislature to make more cuts to the state budget instead.
The Vermont
Department of Health is warning consumers to get rid of green plastic pouches
they may have been given, because lead levels in the pouches could be a hazard
to children.
For Earth Day, we’ll hear (among other things) selections from Mahler’s "Das Lied von der Erde," Darius Milhaud’s "La Creation du Monde," and Schubert’s "trout" Quintet.
As lawmakers debate how to balance this year’s budget, we take a closer look at the final budget and tax bills approved by the House. Our guests are Representatives Janet Ancel and Pat McDonald. Also, editorial editor Mark Mahoney won a Pulitzer for his columns in the Glens Falls Post-Star. And, a high school taxidermy class.
Music for Earth Day, including From Grandmother’s Garden by Amy Beach, Beethoven’s Pastoral Symphony (new recording from the Minnesota Orchestra and conductor Osmo Vanska), Adirondack Children’s Songs by Gregg Smith, and much more.
Antonin Dvorak takes us on a walk "In Nature’s Realm" for this Earth Day…the morning continues to unfold in a bouquet of springtime waltzes and songs, Saint-Saens’ "Carnival of the Animals", Francaix’s "Flower-clock Suite", and a serenade to a tree from Handel’s opera "Xerxes".
The Army has recently announced that suicides within its ranks have reached the highest level in 28 years. It’s a statistic that neither shocks nor surprises commentator Larry Doane.
Syndicated columnist and
co-founder of American Prospect Magazine Robert Kuttner says the first red
herring about single-payer health care is that it limits choice for the
patient, and if you want proof look at Medicare.
The
U.S. Forest Service has improvement plans for some of its land in five towns in
the White River Valley. The
goal is to improve wildlife habitat, and networks of hiking trails and roads in
the area of the Green Mountain National
Forest
known as the Upper White River Area.
The
House has advanced a bill designed to encourage renewable power projects. The
legislation sets wholesale prices for certain kinds of generation, including
wind projects and solar installations.
In honor of Earth Day, a group
of students from Rutland High
School will
be handing out homemade shopping bags today. Their goal? To make people more aware of the
environmental costs of using disposable plastic ones.
Vermont state government says it will do its part to help
resolve the national credit crisis. The
state will make short-term investments totaling $13 million in local
banks. The money will be used to make sure the banks have adequate working
capital.
Career
counselors are encouraging college seniors not to get discouraged about
the prospects for a job after graduation. Experts
say some students have given up on a job search before they’ve really gotten
started, and it’s due to pessimism about the economy.
There’s
plenty of talk about layoffs, but state Labor Commissioner Patricia Moulton
Powden says there are some signs that the economy may have begun to stabilize.
With debates
over sex crimes and gay marriage behind them, lawmakers are turning their
attention during the final scheduled weeks of their 2009 session to money.
Still looking
for ways to fill a multimillion-dollar budget gap, state Senate President Pro
Tem Peter Shumlin says lawmakers should consider boosting "sin" taxes
on tobacco and liquor sales.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with the Director of Career Services at Middlebury College and the University of Vermont about the career decisions facing college seniors.
Career and job search advice for college seniors facing a tough economy. Public Service Department comments on how FairPoint Communications can demonstrate that it’s corrected this winter’s service problems. A non-profit newspaper teaches citizen journalism in Brattleboro.
At 11 Vermont’s professional vocal ensemble, Counterpoint, led by Robert DeCormier, visits the VPR Performance Studio to sing music from Abraham Lincoln’s time.
April 21, 1910 – Ravel’s ‘Mother Goose’ is taken in hand by two young girls and given a premiere in Paris. We’ll hear it in that original piano version, along with a waltz from Tchaikovsky’s "Swan Lake", and a collection of lively Renaissance songs performed by the Baltimore Consort.
Despite his best efforts at persuasion, President Obama could muster only lukewarm European support for the current conflict in Afghanistan. Commentator Vic Henningsen thinks he knows the reason why.
Two nationally known health care
policy thinkers will be in Vermont
this week. And they’ll be engaging in a debate on whether or not single payer health care is the
best way to fix what ails the American health care system. Economist Arnold Kling agrees the current system
is unsustainable, but says single payer is not the answer.
If you’re a homeowner, it’s just about time
to wake the lawn mower from its winter slumbers and put it to work. But
there’s an effort afoot to get you to forsake your gas mower for a less
polluting machine made by a Vermont company.
A
group of municipal electric utilities wants to revive a wind project on an
abandoned military post in the Northeast Kingdom. The
Vermont Public Power Supply Authority says its 13 municipal utilities need to
replace some long-term contracts set to expire.
The
economic crisis has forced leaders at business schools around the country to
re-examine whether students are learning enough about ethics. Starting
this fall, the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College will require every student to take ethics and
leadership courses as part of the standard curriculum.
An activist
group wants Vermont’s attorney general to examine the relationship
between a lobbyist for a nuclear power plant and the commissioner for public service.
Vermont’s federal district court judge has been nominated by
President Obama to be chairman of the U-S Sentencing Commission. Judge
William Sessions has served on the panel since 1999 and currently serves as a vice
chairman.
Jazz: 1959 Recordings – Miles Davis & Gil Evans "Sketches Of Spain" & George Russlell New York, NY -New Releases from vocalist Hilary Kole & Grant Geissman.
Artistic success is hard to define – much less achieve – especially for women with children. Commentator Anne Galloway says that’s the topic of one of the films showing this coming weekend at the White River Indie Film Festival.
The
House proposed getting new revenue by raising the personal income tax. But Senate
leaders want to lower the tax on income and raise
a variety of other taxes.
Northeast Kingdom poet Galway Kinnell joins us to celebrate National Poetry Month and talk about his life in verse. Also, the Tuck School of Business is putting stronger emphasis on ethic courses.
We’ll spend an hour with conductor John Eliot Gardiner, who is 66 today. He’ll lead 3 groups that he founded: the Monteverdi Choir, the English Baroque Soloists, and the Revolutionary and Romantic Orchestra. Also today, Leon Fleisher’s new recording of the Piano Concerto No. 23 of Mozart.
Members of the
Judiciary Committee in the Vermont House say they want education to be part of
the effort to crack down on the sending of sexually explicit cell phone
messages between teenagers.
Four
of Vermont’s 19 interstate rest areas have been closed as a
result of budget cuts, but there’s some interest in reopening them if they can
pay for themselves. One idea is to allow
private businesses to operate the rest areas.
FairPoint
Communications has set weekly targets it hopes to meet in response to customer
complaints in New
Hampshire, but
it won’t reveal what those targets are.
On May 3rd Pete Seeger celebrates his 90th birthday, and VPR pays tribute with a special 3-part audio documentary. Join us for part one Sunday at 2pm as we look at how Seeger got his start.
The arrival of springtime brings with it the return of migrating birds to the north country. American popular music over the years has dealt with many topics, including our feathered friends. This week, Joel Najman’s "My Place" program features hit pop songs written about or dealing with birds, ranging from the WWII years through the first golden decades of the rock&roll era. Joel Najman’s "My Place" program is heard Saturday evenings from 8-9PM following "A Prairie Home Companion" on Vermont Public Radio.
There was plenty of news from Vermont this week. The actions of Somali pirates were felt in Underhill. Tinmouth residents had their say about a proposed wind farm. And a highway safety bill was debated at the State House.
Jazz: Bird sings Now’s The Time and off we fly into Blues tunes by Leroy Carr and several long jazz performances including Chick Corea & John McLaughlin & The Five Peace Band
For most of us, Patriot’s Day weekend means the Boston Marathon, but commentator Ken Davis reminds us of it’s origins – and he says it’s a good time to remember one of our unsung Revolutionary heroes.
Anton Bruckner’s Ninth Symphony, Villa-Lobos’ Second Piano Concerto played by Brazilian pianist (and the first woman to win the Van Cliburn competition) Cristina Ortiz.
Wildlife CSI — the emerging science of wildlife forensics and what you can do to help stop illegal wildlife trafficking. Also news analysis with VPR’s John Dillon. And we read from your letters.
A U.S. Nuclear
Regulatory Commission hearing on the performance of Vermont Yankee nuclear
plant took an unexpected turn when an anti-nuclear activist threw some compost
at a plant official and then dropped a couple of handfuls on a table where
regulators sat.
As fishing season gets underway again this spring, commentator Bill Mares thinks it’s a good time to remember that President Calvin Coolidge had some memorable fishing adventures during his five years in the White House.
John Kassel is perhaps an
obvious choice to be the new head of the Conservation Law Foundation. After all, he knows about
conservation as a former secretary for the Agency of Natural resources, and has
a background in law as a former litigator.
Leaders
in the Vermont Senate hope to save 320 state jobs that the Douglas administration wants to cut from the budget. But their proposal is not
getting a warm reception.
Two
and a half months after taking over landline telephone and Internet service
from Verizon, Fairpoint Communications says customer service is improving. A
deluge of complaints from unhappy customers has prompted state regulators to
put the company on notice.
The
Chittenden County State’s Attorney says he doesn’t want lawmakers to tie the
hands of prosecutors in cases where minors use cell phones to send sexually
explicit images – often of themselves.
Vermont Gov.
Jim Douglas says he doesn’t want to change Vermont’s laws to lessen the potential penalties for
teenagers who use their cell phones to send sexually explicit pictures and
messages.
Five days after
being rescued from the clutches of Somali pirates, cargo ship captain Richard
Phillips is headed home to Vermont.
And the "Welcome Home" balloons and signs are already up.
This is National Library Week, and since executive director of the Vermont Humanities Council, VPR commentator Peter Gilbert promotes reading, lifelong learning and civic engagement, the advice he provides today may surprise you.
Officials are planning a new low interest loan program. They say it’s not a long-term fix, but the money should
help farmers facing record low milk prices.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks Chittenden County State’s Attorney TJ Donovan about how legislators are addressing the problem of "sexting" among young adults.
Jeff Allen is FairPoint’s executive vice president. He spoke with VPR’s Jane Lindholm about service backlog issues and the company’s operations in northern New England.
Problems with the transition from Verizon to FairPoint have raised questions about FairPoint’s ability to deliver services. We talk with FairPoint’s executive vice president, Jeff Allen, about the company’s operations in northern New England. Also, the legal implications of "sexting" and how lawmakers are trying to address the issue.
We’ll listen to some of Carl Orff’s Carmina Burana, which the Vermont Symphony Chorus will perform Saturday at the Elley-Long Music Center at St. Michael’s College.
Marguerite sings her fanciful ‘jewel song’, in Gounod’s "Faust" – we’ll dance to the sound of Claude Debussy’s joyous piano in ‘Danse’, and Carl Goldmark takes us on a sun-washed musical tour of Italy.
Now that Vermonters, through their legislative representatives, have extended equal rights to all couples to marry, commentator Bill Schubart is asking, "Why again do we do this?"
The banking crisis that many
believe is responsible for the economic recession is not complicated, if
you ask William Black. The professor of Economics and Law at the University
of Missouri-Kansas City is author of the book "The Best Way to Rob a Bank is To
Own One".
Security
at the U.S.-Canadian border is about to get a lot tighter. But
customs officials say advances in technology should make it easier and quicker
for motorists to get across the border.
In Vermont, the Attorney General’s
Consumer Protection Unit has dealt with a number of complaints involving so-called
Grandma Scams. The losses from these types of fraud can be
significant.
At least 500
people crowded into New
Hampshire’s
Statehouse in an emotional and sometimes boisterous hearing over whether
allowing same sex marriage would weaken or strengthen the family
institution.
A new report by
Vermont’s attorney general says the nation’s pharmaceutical makers spent more
than $2.9 million on Vermont doctors, hospitals and universities to market
their products in 2007 and 2008.
This isn’t your
average tax protest: A group of Vermonters is urging the state to raise taxes
as a way to save state programs now on the chopping block.
Jazz: Pianist Hank Jones duets with Charlie Haden on bass and vocalist Roberta Gambarini , a couple of tax & money songs and Amina Claudine Myers takes us out.
Commentator Jay Craven recently saw the Paul Taylor dance company’s world premiere of a new work made possible by Dartmouth’s Hopkins Center – and that got him thinking about the importance – and challenges – of artist commissions.
This second day of debate has focused on changes to Vermont’s estate tax, and on a plan
to impose the state sales tax on digital downloads – the so called ‘i-tunes tax’.
VPR’s Steve Zind speaks with Vermont Assistant Attorney General Elliot Burg about how Internet and telemarketing scams work, and what people can do about them
Guest host Steve Zind explores the vast and increasingly global menace of Internet and telemarketing fraud. We also learn why some lawmakers want to move Vermont’s Primary from September to August.
We’ll celebrate the 85th birthday of conductor Neville Marriner with a variety of works, many featuring the Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields, which he founded in 1959.
Tax Day brings out the thieving magpies, the ‘gold and silver’ waltz by Lehar, the woes of cash flow (too much AND not enough!) in Michael Head’s song, "Money, O!" and the dancing bears in Haydn’s Symphony #82.
Never mind rescue on the high seas and the economy. Commentator Bill Seamans says that some of the biggest headlines over the weekend were all about a puppy.
Colonel
James Baker said much of the evidence collected in the investigation of the
murder of Braintree teenager Brooke Bennett was found on computers and in
cyberspace.
The daughter of
Vermont sea Capt. Richard Phillips tells her college newspaper she was in a
"state of shock" after he father was taken hostage by Somali pirates.
The family of
freed cargo ship Capt. Richard Phillips isn’t commenting on reports the crew of
the Maersk-Alabama will be reuniting with their families on Wednesday in Maryland.
Commentator Cheryl Hanna is a professor at Vermont Law School and a member of the Council for the Future of Vermont. She’s been thinking about Vermont’s potential to be a leader in these turbulent times.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Baker about state police efforts to combat drug trafficking and sex crimes, policy changes regarding illegal farm workers in Vermont, and other issues.
We’ll talk with the outgoing head of the Vermont State Police about efforts
to combat drug trafficking and sex crimes, policy changes regarding illegal
farm workers in Vermont, and other issues.
A Suite of Vaughan Williams’ incidental music for Aristophanes’ The Wasps; and Variations on an Elizabethan Theme, jointly composed by Michael Tippett, Benjamin Britten, William Walton, and three others.
Morten Lauridsen is one of the top contemporary choral composers. In 1997 he wrote a stunning setting of the "Agnus Dei/Lux Aeterna" ("Lamb of God/Light Aeterna") and we’ll hear the world premiere recording of it this morning.
The
Vermont Arts Council will get $290,000 through the federal stimulus
package. The
Arts Council says the money is supposed to help preserve jobs in the arts.
Vermont has
one of the shortest periods of time between its primary election and the
general election of any state in the country. That
would change under legislation scheduled to be considered in the Vermont Senate this afternoon.
The Burlington City Council has a new president. Democratic
Councilman Bill Keogh was elected Monday night by acclamation, ending a 14-vote
deadlock between Davis and Progressive Clarence Davis.
Health advocates say the New England states have failed to deliver on a pledge to use money from the
tobacco settlement for prevention programs, with most states funding programs
at only 20 percent of recommended levels.
A day after her husband was rescued from Somali pirates,
Andrea Phillips said she wanted to thank friends, officials and especially
President Obama for their support during the crisis.
The day after Easter should be one of rejoicing in the beauty that is life: we’ll hear Beethoven’s "Pastoral" Symphony, a motet "Hope in All Things" by Thomas Tallis, waltzes of Prokofiev, and hear a new Mozart concerto recording from pianist Leon Fleischer, who has overcome his share of adversity.
State workers in Bennington may end up returning to
the old state office building, after extensive renovations. The House version of this year’s capital bill
includes eight million dollars to demolish and rebuild parts of the abandoned Bennington State Office Building. The project would cost
$16 million over two years.
Ecologist Amy Seidl’s new book, Early Spring: An Ecologist and Her Children Wake to a Warming World tackles climate change on a local level. Also, Burlington Free Press reporter Candy Page talks about efforts to convert food waste into energy.
Supporting renewable energy
projects in Vermont will be a
little bit cheaper. Green Mountain Power won
permission from stte regulators to lower the premium for its "GreenerGMP
program by one cent per kilowatt hour.
Michael Willard is an Underhill neighbor of Richard Phillips, the merchant shipping captain who was captured and held by Somali pirates in the Indian Ocean. Phillips was freed by the U.S. Navy on Sunday. We spoke with Willard this morning about his neighbor.
We’ll listen to Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 4, with its finale describing a child’s vision of the pleasures awaiting us in heaven. Claudio Abbado leads the Berlin Philharmonic, with soprano Renee Fleming in the finale.
Songs for Easter, tunes from Scandinavia, early Bob Marley, the transcendent Oaxacan vocalist Lila Downs, the 97th anniversary of the Titanic disaster, and much, much more!
Joel Najman’s "My Place" program this week is another collection of pop
songs from the rock era’s first golden decades in which female names
are mentioned in the song’s title or lyrics. Featured are a variety of
memorable songs by Sam Cooke, Bobby Darin, Debbie Reynolds, Ray Charles
and others. Joel Najman’s "My Place" program is heard Saturday evenings
from 8-9PM following "A Prairie Home Companion" on Vermont Public
Radio.
There’s been no shortage of comment on President Barack Obama’s first overseas trip. This morning, commentator Barrie Dunsmore, veteran ABC News foreign and diplomatic correspondent, offers his critique of the critics.
VPR’s Bob Kinzel discusses the same-sex marriage bill with VPRs John Dillon and Ross Sneyd and whether its success will influence the remainder of this year’s legislative session.
Bob Kinzel and his guests discuss the Highway Safety Bill that’s being debated in the State House. Plus, analysis of the historic week in the legislature with VPR’s John Dillon and Ross Sneyd.
Stabat Mater is a 13th-century poem describing Mary’s suffering as she attended her son’s crucifixion. On this Good Friday, we’ll hear baroque settings by Domenico Scarlatti and Pergolesi; and Dvorak’s extended version, from Robert Shaw’s last recording.
The Easter season has always served as an inspiration for powerful music. Featuring Haydn’s Symphony #49 ("La passione") this morning, along with Allegri’s soaring "Miserere", Palestrina’s motet for Good Friday: "Crux fidelis", and the Good Friday Spell from Wagner’s story of redemption, "Parsifal".
A new documentary called "The War at Home," is
being produced by students at Norwich University, a military college in Northfield. It’s a follow-up to "Vermont Fallen", a 2007 film
that featured interviews with family members of 29 soldiers who died in Iraq
and Afghanistan.
The
state plans to lay off more workers next week unless there’s progress on
cutting employee pay. That
was the word Thursday from officials in the Douglas Administration.
Governor
Jim Douglas appears ready to reject a state budget if it includes new taxes. Douglas says the budget that passed the House last week is unacceptable because
it contains $24 million in new taxes.
The social networking software Facebook hit its peak of popularity about two years ago. Which means that Commentator Philip Baruth just found out about it a few weeks ago.
Brattleboro’s New England Youth
Theatre’s current show is "Truth." The original
musical is a collaboration between company founder Stephen Stearns and Brattleboro music educator Peter
Amidon.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Deputy Secretary of Agriculture David Lane, and Carl Russell, a small-scale farmer about the role that part-time farms have in Vermont’s agriculture economy.
The role that small and part-time farms have in
Vermont’s agriculture economy, and how backyard farming helps maintainthe state’s agricultural identity.
VPR has won nine Regional Edward R. Murrow awards for excellence in journalism. These awards are also a credit to you – our listeners – for your support. Thank you!
The Lamentations of Jeremiah by Thomas Tallis; Four Motets on Gregorian Themes by Maurice Durufle; 2 Responsories for Maundy Thursday by Carlo Gesualdo; and Psalms from the Vespers of the Blessed Virgin by Claudio Monteverdi.
A
group of University of Vermont students are calling on their classmates to walk out today to protest
proposed job and budget cuts at the school. Administrators are working to trim
$15 million from the budget.
The springtime zephyrs are breezing through Chopin’s Nocturne Op.15; we’ll visit the flowering fields and forest of Smetana’s Bohemia, and experience the trepidation of Holy Thursday in Gabrieli’s beautiful motet, "Timor et Tremor".
Three years ago, Art Burleigh reluctantly
decided that the only option to keep his family farm going was to develop the
forestland on his 200-acre Charlotte
property. But then a neighbor stepped in
with a different idea. Marty Illick is director of the Lewis Creek Association,
and she helped Burleigh get in touch with conservation organizations.
The New
Hampshire House has passed an $11.5 billion, two-year budget balanced with
spending cuts and federal stimulus money – plus money from new taxes on capital
gains and estates.
Three months
after a devastating ice storm, the state Senate has voted to make it easier for
utilities to cut trees on private property to protect their power lines.
New Hampshire lawmakers are considering changing how the state handles
sexually-violent-predator cases after two offenders were freed because of
missed deadlines for hearings and trials.
VPR has won nine Regional Edward R. Murrow awards for excellence in journalism. These awards are also a credit to you – our listeners – for your support. Thank you!
Franz Welser-Most, cond. Ibert: Escales
Chopin: Piano Concerto in E Minor, Op. 11; Lang Lang, piano
Beethoven: Symphony #5 in C minor, Op. 67
9:54 pm:
Bruckner: Virga Jesse floruit; Corydon Singers; Matthew
Best; Hyperion 66062
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Bill Shuttleworth,and Al Duey about the effort to connect every Vermont household to broadband and how our state’s deep digital divide impacts the economy.
Poulenc’s gorgeous setting of the sacred Stabat Mater, telling the tale of Mary’s grief over the crucifixion of her son. Also, two well-known piano works of Beethoven.
We check in on the progress Vermont is making toward its goal of total broadband coverage by the end of 2010. Also, we continue our backyard farming series with a visit to a woman raising chickens.
Part 1 of Handel’s Oratorio, Israel in Egypt: Exodus, vividly depicting events commemorated by Passover, which begins at sundown today. Also, Mozart’s joyous Solemn Vespers of the Confessor.
Lars-Erik Larsson’s "Pastoral Suite", this morning – along with Beethoven’s "Pastoral" piano sonata. We’ll hear the four Pentitential motets by Francis Poulenc, and the beautiful Easter Hymn from the opera ‘Cavalleria Rusticana’.
As the Vermont House and Senate voted to override Governor Douglas’ veto of the same-sex marriage bill, commentator Alexis Jetter found herself reflecting on the last ten years and the meaning of family.
Vermont is the first state to pass a same sex marriage bill without a court order. But will that action have
ripple effects beyond Vermont’s borders? Gregory Johnson believes it will. Johnson
is an expert in sexual orientation and the law, and Director of the Legal
Writing Program at Vermont Law School in South
Royalton.
For
only the seventh time in Vermont
history, the Legislature has overruled a gubernatorial veto. That
override now means Vermont is the fourth state to allow gays and lesbians
couples to marry. And
it’s the first state to do so without being prompted by a court order.
Supporters of the same sex marriage bill targeted two
different groups of lawmakers in their effort to override Governor Douglas’s
veto of their legislation.
Celebrating the 39th birthday of Norwegian pianist Leif Ove Andsnes with some of the Lyric Pieces by fellow countryman Edvard Grieg. Also, the Fourth Symphony of Ralph Vaughan Williams, and Max Reger’s hauntingly beautiful Tone Poems based on the work of artist Arnold Bocklin.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm gets reaction to the House & Senate override of Governor Jim Douglas’s veto of the same-sex marriage bill from Douglas, Shap Smith, reporters and listeners.
Vermont becomes the fourth state in the nation to legalize same sex marriage; a crowd packed Tinmouth’s Community Hall last night to hear about a proposed wind farm in the area; federal officials say highway deaths last year were the lowest in almost 50 years, and tougher seat-belt laws were one factor.
Both chambers of the Vermont Legislature voted Tuesday morning to override the governor’s veto. Vermont Edition brings you analysis and reaction, live in the noon hour.
April 5, 1792: Rouger de Lisle wrote the verse, "La Marseillaise". Berlioz later set the verse to music even as the July Revolution broke out all around him. April 5, 1805 – Beethoven’s "Eroica" Symphony #3 premiered. We’ll hear both revolutionary works this morning.
Over 150 people packed Tinmouth’s Community Hall
last night to hear about an industrial sized wind farm that’s being proposed in
their community. The size and scope of the
$160 million project have many worried.
Governor
Jim Douglas has delivered on his promise to veto legislation legalizing same
sex marriage in Vermont. The
governor said the bill wrongly redefines marriage, which he says should only be
between a man and a woman. The
legislature is set to vote today (on Tuesday) on whether to override the
governor’s veto.
Governor Douglas vetoed the same sex marriage bill last
night, setting the stage for override votes in the Senate and the House this
morning. A Senate override is expected, but the House outcome is less certain. You can listen to the debate and the vote live online.
Vermont is a national leader in
generating heat and electricity from wood chips. And the state’s natural
resources secretary says Vermont forests have enough capacity to at least double
the current output of biomass power.
The Green
Monster is getting scaly. Phish announced
a May 31 concert at Fenway Park on Monday, one of a handful of shows the
Vermont-based jamband added to its summer tour.
For Holy Week, SymphonyCast pairs the dramatic
unfinished liturgical masterpiece of Mozart, his Mass in C, with the
stormy, gorgeous Symphony #7 of Dvorak.
Sonatas for violin and piano by Brahms and Debussy, and celebrating pianist Pascal Roge’s birthday with his recording of Ravel’s G Major Piano Concerto.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Vermont Natural Resources Secretary Jonathan Wood and Chris Recchia of the Biomass Energy Resource Center about the future of wood chip energy in Vermont.
Vermont author and farmer Chuck Wooster’s new book is Living With
Pigs.
It’s a guide to choosing, training, caring for and slaughtering your
pig. VPR’s Jane Lindholm pays a visit to Wooster’s farm to see how it’s
done.
Vermont is a national leader in using wood chips for electricty and heat. But how much wood chip power can our forests support? Also, the joy of raising pigs. And an MBA program that’s not about business as usual.
Hundreds of
Vermont salamanders, frogs and newts have a better shot at reproducing thanks
to volunteers who recently spent the night helping the critters cross the road.
Flood watches cover the region, the rivers are brimming…and the music follows course! Telemann’s"Water Music" suite and Duke Ellington’s "The River" flow through this morning’s music, along with the Dale Warland Singers in "The Water is Wide".
At a time when MBA candidates
all over the country are downsizing their expectations, some students at Marlboro College are excited about theirs. They’re enrolled in the
college’s MBA in Managing for Sustainability. The program is another sign that more
businesses are incorporating social and environmental concerns in their
decision-making.
University of Vermont faculty members who say a starvation diet is being imposed on the
school’s academic programs are planning a "Let Them Eat Gruel?"
budget-cut protest.
Vermont
lawmakers are expected to vote this week – likely as early as Tuesday – whether
to override Gov. Jim Douglas’ promised veto of a bill that would allow same-sex
couples to marry.
Government
regulators are proposing a new set of fishing rules designed to protect and
rebuild declining fish stocks in the North Atlantic. If
approved they’ll go into effect May first.
A mysterious
honeybee disease known as Colony Collapse Disorder has yet to affect Vermont,
where officials say concern over the affliction has spurred a resurgence in
beekeeping in the state.
A community
group in the Burlington area is urging people to forego bottled water in
favor of something they say is more environmentally sound, tap water.
Vermont
court officials say new rules on transporting jailed suspects to their initial
hearings are working well, but some prosecutors see the potential for problems.
The second time in 12 years that my birthday lands on a Sunday, and a very special dedication to the memory of Lou D’Antonio, free form DJ, programming pioneer, and one of my radio heroes who passed on this week far too soon.
Entertainer Jackie DeShannon has been a player on the contemporary popular music scene for over five decades in a career that continues to this day. In addition to her many hit singles as a recording artist herself, Jackie DeShannon has written many hit songs recorded by other artists during the rock era’s first golden decades and beyond. In the 1950’s and 1960’s her pioneering efforts as a singer and songwriter opened many doors for women in what was an extremely male-dominated music industry. This week Joel Najman’s "My Place" program examines the early years of the remarkable career of Jackie DeShannon. Joel Najman’s "My Place" program is heard Saturday evenings from 8-9PM on Vermont Public Radio.
Alto sax player Bud Shank has died at age 82, Cecil Taylor is coming to town and Jack Kerouac’s poetry gives "A History Of Bop" and Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie & Max Roach illustrate.
Democratic leaders at the Statehouse say several key
conditions must be met if lawmakers are to seriously consider re-licensing the
Vermont Yankee Nuclear plant for another 20 years.
The Vermont House voted 94-52 Friday afternoon in favor of legalizing same-sex marriage. Click here for the story and to find out what’s likely to happen Monday and Tuesday.
VPR’s Bob Kinzel speaks with Entergy Senior Vice President Jay Thayer and House Natural Resources chairman Tony Klein about the decommissioning issue and the efforts to have the plant re-licensed for another 20 years.
Entergy Senior Vice President Jay Thayer and House Natural Resources chairman Tony Klein discuss the decommissioning of Vermont Yankee and the efforts to have the plant re-licensed for another 20 years.
Friday brings a Spring Waltz by Shostakovich, ‘By the River in Spring’ (a lovely flute/piano piece by Michael Head), and Bach’s comforting motet "Furchte dich nicht" (‘fear not, for I am with thee’).
Commentator Willem Lange has been thinking about satire as a means of political expression, and how we love it – until it’s our ox that’s getting gored.
The
House last night gave its strong preliminary approval to the same sex marriage
bill, but it’s not clear from the House vote, if backers of the legislation
have enough support to override Governor Jim Douglas’s promised veto of the
bill.
Spring in northern New England is famous for being wet and muddy, but commentator Henry Homeyer reminds us that it’s also full of buds and early blossoms.
Even before the debate in the House, advocates
on both sides of the issue were waging media campaigns to influence legislators
– and to sway public opinion.
The murder of two Dartmouth professors nine years ago shocked our region. Now, a local playwright uses those events as a starting point to explore and come to grips with the tragedy.
Schoenberg’s early works lack the atonal and serial style that he is most known for, and his tone poem "Pelleas und Melisande" is a fine example of his softer and gentler side. We’ll also hear Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony conducted by Wolfgang Sawallisch.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Sarwar Kashmeri about small businesses and whether they are getting the attention of policy makers during the economic downturn.
The Barre author has written more than 35 children’s books, including Bridge to Terabithia and Jacob Have I Loved. Also, an Upper Valley resident who interviews small business CEOs, and a new MBA program at Marlboro College focuses on sustainability.
Brahms’ String Quartet No. 3, played by the Emerson Quartet, which will be at the Hopkins Center on Saturday; and Verdi’s String Quartet in E minor, played by I Musici de Montreal, who will be at the Lebanon Opera House on Friday.
Chopin’s ‘Butterfly’ Etude gets the morning underway, along with Britten’s "flower songs" (settings of Robert Herrick poems, for National Poetry Month) and Beethoven’s joyous Symphony #8.
The House opens
debate today over the same-sex marriage bill. And it’s expected to be a
passionate discussion. While the vote is expected to pass, it’s unclear what
the margin will be.
A
company based in France and Wisconsin is opening a manufacturing plant on IBM’s campus in
Essex Junction that will employ 90 people within three years. The
company makes specialized security technology that’s used in passports and
enhanced drivers’ licenses.
Vermont’s chief recovery officer hopes to turn the $720
million economic stimulus dollars the state is slated to receive into a billion
or more — through successful bids for grants
that will be awarded competitively.
During the four-hour debate on the bill, House
members reaffirmed their support for increasing the gas tax by
five-cents-per-gallon to finance the bond.
The Vermont Health
Department says five people who died of a lung ailment linked to exposure to
asbestos received that exposure at their jobs, not because of where they lived.
The U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service says its request that people stay out of caves in 17 states
doesn’t apply to tourist attractions, but some commercial caves might start
requiring visitors to wipe their feet to prevent the spread of a deadly bat
disorder.
You’d be a fool not to tune in for The Capitol Steps’ "Politics Takes a
Holiday." Celebrate April Fool’s with this troupe of current and former
Congressional staffers, irreverently singing their way through the
financial crisis and other current events.
Commentator Bill Mares likes to take his beekeeping expertise on the road. He’s visited hives in Mexico – and most recently he engaged in a little bee-diplomacy in Macedonia.
VPR’s Neal Charnoff speaks with Lauren Weedman at a Northeast Kingdom bed and breakfast, where she was preparing for tonight’s performance of one-woman show, "Bust" in Lyndonville.
Chief Recovery Officer Tom Evslin spells out what Vermonters can expect from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. We hear from peace worker Paula Green, who’s being honored by the Dalai Lama.
Music for the first day of April, including Saint-Saens’ Carnival of the Animals, narrated by Jonathan Winters, and P.D.Q. Bach’s Short-Tempered Clavier.
Olympic
skiing legend and Vermont native Andrea Mead Lawrence has died at the age of 76. A three time Olympian, she’s the only woman skier to win two Olympic Golds in one winter games.
Music for a Farce, Till Eulenspiegel’s Merry Pranks, TV themes in the
styles of famous composers, and all kinds of fun "Humoresques"…it’s
April fool’s day. What can we do but play along?
With President Obama embarking on a major European tour, commentator Bill Seamans has been thinking about the fine diplomatic art of meeting and greeting.
Critics of same-sex marriage cite protection of
traditional marriage as one reason they want it rejected. But what exactly is
traditional marriage? E.J. Graff has been exploring that question
for years. Graff is author of
the book "What is Marriage For? The Strange Social History of Our Most Intimate
Institution."
Despite public awareness of the benefits of composting, the industry is facing
some serious challenges. That’s
the message that was delivered Tuesday at the Third Annual Vermont Organics
Recycling Summit in Randolph Center.
Vermonters
who qualify for food stamps will be getting a raise today . The
federal stimulus bill includes $34 million to increase benefits to
people in the "3Squares-Vermont” program, which was formerly called Food
Stamps.
A well-known figure in Vermont’s music scene is headed for a new position. Troy Peters is music director
of the Vermont Youth Orchestra and conductor of the Middlebury College
Orchestra. He’s just been appointed music
director of the Youth Orchestras of San Antonio, Texas.
Rallying
at the Statehouse, state workers say Gov. Jim Douglas’ plan to cut hundreds of
jobs is bad news for them and for people who rely on state government services.
Some controversy still lingers as to whether Robert Peary was, in fact, the first person to reach the North Pole. But even if he was, he didn’t get there alone. Here’s commentator and Vermont Humanities Council Executive Director Peter Gilbert to tell you about his companion.
The House has given preliminary approval to a $120
million bond package that will help pay for road and bridge repair. It would be paid with a five-cent-per-gallon
gas tax increase.
Papa Haydn was born on this date in 1732. We’ll hear one of his best-known masses and a hauntingly beautiful and intimate interpretation of one of his keyboard sonatas peformed by Vladimir Horowitz.
A national health care expert gives an update health care reform at the national level, and how Vermont’s health care program fit into that picture. Also, New Hampshire’s debate over same-sex marriage.
We’ll spend an hour with Haydn on his birthday, including choral music, a string quartet, and–perhaps–the finest of his 100-plus symphonies. Also today, The Carmen Ballet: music from Bizet’s opera arranged for strings and percussion by Rodion Shchedrin, played by I Musici de Montreal, who will perform in Keene and Lebanon, NH, this week.
On March 31, 1887 the world saw the inauguration of one of its most iconic and enduring monuments: the Eiffel Tower was finally complete after years of construction. This morning we’ll hear Francis Poulenc’s "Eiffel Tower Polka" along with a few other masterpieces from the year 1889, and we’ll celebrate birthdays of Sergei Diaghilev and Joseph Haydn.
It seems that every day there is fresh outrage about the AIG bonuses. And with good reason. But commentator Geoff Shields hopes that we aren’t losing sight of the forest for the trees.
Amy Goodfellow says the cost of a tan for the prom can lead to
many more days of misery in the form of dangerous skin diseases, including
melanoma, which can be fatal.
She
decided to do something about it, challenging teens at Arlington Memorial High
School, where Goodfellow works as a nurse, to sign a pledge saying they would
not attend tanning salons prior to the prom.
According to a new
study from the University of New Hampshire, an increase in the arrests of online predators
in recent years is the result of more enforcement, not a rise in the number of
offenders.
By
agreeing to a number of provisions in the stimulus law, the state will be able
to get almost $14 million in extra money for people who have lost their
jobs.
Four people who
protested Gov. Jim Douglas over the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant and other
issues Monday were arrested at an event the governor attended and charged with
disorderly conduct, police said.
Many
more Vermonters have computers now than in the past, but many of them don’t
have high-speed access to the Internet. The
Center for Rural Studies at the University of Vermont has completed its annual Vermonter Poll and begun to release the
results.
Actor Matt Dillon,
who faced a criminal charge for driving 106 mph on a Vermont interstate, had
the charge dismissed after pleading guilty to speeding and paying an $828 fine.
Grassroots participation in politics has increased dramatically in recent years, but commentator Madeleine Kunin thinks that too many women are still reluctant to run for office.
The Piano Concerto #1 of Johannes Brahms played by Cuban-American pianist Horacio Gutierrez, Mozart’s late Clarinet Concerto played by Sabine Meyer, who turns 50 today.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm looks at the popularity of Community Supported Agriculture programs with Pete Johnson of Pete’s Greens in Craftsbury and Scout Proft of Someday Farm in East Dorset.
Rutland Herald reporter, Bruce Edwards, talks with VPR’s Jane Lindholm about recent changes in restrictions for Cuban-Americans to visit relatives in Cuba.
At a time when billions of federal stimulus
dollars are being spent on transportation, a small southern Vermont village is sticking
with its covered bridge. But residents of Williamsville got a surprise
recently. They discovered their covered bridge listed as free for the taking in
the classified section of The Burlington Free Press.
The number of CSAs in Vermont has more than doubled in the past decade. We talkwith farmers Pete Johnson and Scout Proft about why they’re so popular, and how they fit into a model of sustainable agriculture. Also, a covered bridge in Newfane is up for sale, and we check in on loosening travel restrictions to Cuba.
Guitarist Sharon Isbin plays Renaissance lute music; pianist Leon Fleisher and the Emerson Quartet play Brahms’ Piano Quintet; and violinist Nikolaj Znaider plays Prokofiev’s Violin Concerto No. 2.
Public outrage over corporate use of taxpayer money to compensate rogue traders with millions in bonuses, has reminded commentator Vic Henningsen that sometimes you have to take the long view.
The U.S. Small Business
Administration is changing the way it does business, reducing fees,
guaranteeing a greater share of some loans, and expanding capacity of the
micro-loan program.
Dozens of residents from Windham County turned out on Saturday for a workshop with forest experts on what to do about damage by an early winter ice storm that ravaged acres of woods and cherished yard trees.
Residents in White
River Junction, Vt., are upset that the state knew about contamination from a
former dry-cleaning business but didn’t tell them until years later.
Same Sex marriage
supporters have been shadowing Gov. Jim Douglas since his announcement last
week that he intends to veto same-sex marriage legislation if it reaches his
desk.
The U.S. Forest
Service is asking Northeast maple syrup producers to report signs of the Asian
Longhorned Beetle. The insects bore dime-sized holes in hardwood trees,
eventually killing them.
A man who made his
mark in the technology industry hopes his expertise will help Vermont make the
best use of up to $1 billion in federal stimulus money.
Esa-Pekka Salonen is coming to the end of a
remarkable 17-year run as music director of the Los Angeles
Philharmonic — a band that’s evolved into a virtuoso ensemble under
his baton. We celebrate Salonen with Strauss, Beethoven, and Bach!
From R. Crumb and his Cheap Suit Serenaders to a mini-festival of West African divas, with local appearances upcoming by Gordon Bok, a world-class Indian flute player, scores of local players, and some famous old-timey musicians!
Over the past several months Joel Najman’s "My Place" program has presented a series of programs with the theme "The Ladies By Name", in which a woman’s name is contained in the title or featured prominently in the lyrics of a popular song. On this week’s "My Place" program this theme takes a 180-degree turn with the first program titled "The Fellows By Name". Songs from early Rhythm & Blues, Golden Age Rock & Roll and Brill Building 1960’s Pop make up the selections presented this week. Joel Najman’s "My Place" program is heard Saturday evenings from 8-9PM following "A Prairie Home Companion" on Vermont Public Radio.
What’s in a name? Today commentator Barrie Dunsmore, veteran diplomatic and foreign correspondent for ABC News, tells us about a name change he thinks is significant and long overdue.
Supporters of the same sex marriage bill are planning a
highly visible public campaign over the next two weeks to try to persuade
Governor Jim Douglas not to veto their legislation.
Bill McGlaughlin has been featuring Wagner’s Ring on Exploring Music. The MET has "Das Rheignold" tomorrow afternoon. So I’ll exacerbate our Wagner problem this afternoon with a very little-known early piano work written when he was a teenager. We’ll also hear three rarely-heard piano pieces by Schubert, and symphonies of Haydn and Brahms.
Berwald’s Sinfonie Serieuse; Schubert’s String Quintet in C, played by the Emerson Quartet with cellist Mstislav Rostropovich; and Ferde Grofe’s Grand Canyon Suite.
Three months after
a devastating ice storm, New Hampshire lawmakers are considering a bill that would make it easier for
utilities to trim or remove trees on private property to protect their power
lines.
Michael Torke’s brilliant "Bright Blue Music" highlights the morning along with Vivaldi’s "La Pastorella" – "The Shepherdess" concerto, and Josquin Desprez’s "Agnus Dei" – the "lamb of God", for this Easter season.
All this week, VPR has been observing Women’s History Month
– and the Champlain quadricentennial – by honoring Vermont
women who contributed to the history and culture of the Champlain
Valley. Louise Lampman-Larivee is the greatgranddaughter of the Abenaki woman from
Swanton known as Grandma Lampman, who was known for her knowledge of tribal customs and medicinal herbs.
All this week we’ve been hearing
about Vermont women and the
contributions they’ve made to the history and the culture of our region. Today, we meet a young woman
who’s working to keep that culture alive and thriving. Melody Walker
is an artisan, historian, and member of the El-nu Abenaki tribe.
Some
of the federal stimulus money headed to Vermont is designed to help businesses pull the economy out
of recession. As
part of an occasional series on "Tracking the Stimulus,” VPR’s Ross Sneyd
reports how Vermont is trying to decide how to spend 17 million dollars.
A cooperative
crafter store could soon occupy a vacant storefront as the result of a Rutland
partnership’s offer a year’s free rent to a business willing to move downtown.
The House has
voted to make New
Hampshire the
third state allowing gays to marry two years after they granted them the right
to enter into civil unions.
The Vermont House has given preliminary approval to
a bill that would modify how Vermont Yankee pays for decommissioning the plant.
The vote was 95 to 47. Opponents of the bill say it’s unethical and will result
in higher electric rates.
The House Transportation Committee wants to borrow
money through bonds to pay for the work. The bonds would be paid off with a gas
tax increase of five cents per gallon.
Montrealer Liselotte Ivry survived the brutality of World War II’s concentration camps. But rather than using the term "holocaust survivor", Ivry prefers to be called a "Witness To History".
"David Zinman’s Mahler cycle has now reached the
halfway point and I’m delighted to say that this Fifth lives up to the
high standards – and expectations – of his earlier recordings. It’s
been a rewarding journey, not least because Zinman brings a welcome
clarity and freshness to these familiar scores. He is aided in this
enterprise by an orchestra and recording team who respond
wholeheartedly to his approach. The result is a remarkably intense,
consistently inspired set of readings that continue to delight and
surprise." – Dan Morgan, MusicWeb International.
We’ll listen to this recording of Mahler’s fascinating Fifth Symphony today at 3.
VPR’s Steve Zind talks with author Granville Austin on his reminiscences about growing up in the Connecticut River VValley and how the people he knew shaped the character of that era.
Bob Kinzel talks with the chairs of the House and Senate Transportation Committees about what impact the tax revenue would have on fixing the state’s transportation infrastructure.
The chairs of the House and Senate Transportation Committees discuss a proposed increase in the gas tax. Also, a Norwich writer reminisces about the Upper Valley in the 1930 and 1940s.
Mozart’s Requiem, which the Bennington County Choral Society will perform this weekend; plus Copland’s From Sorcery to Science and Dukas’ ballet La Peri.
Long before the title ‘ethnomusicologist’ existed, Bela Bartok roamed the towns and villages of his region meticulously recording the native music and folk traditions. He was born on March 25th. Several countries and a few decades apart, adventurous composer and conductor Pierre Boulez was born (March 26th). Both creative spirits come together in a birthday celebration this morning, as Boulex conducts Bartok’s first Rhapsody for Violin and Orchestra.
VPR is observing Women’s History Month – and the Champlain quadricentennial – by honoring five women who contributed to the history and culture of the Champlain Valley. Today, Julia Lewandoski* has the story of Sadie White – Winooski mill worker, long-time state legislator, and preservationist.
The
leader of state’s key institution for student loans says the organization is
going through changes in the current financial climate but that it has a solid
financial base.
With the
cost of a college education rising – many schools are looking at innovative
ways to lure students. Green Mountain College is joining a number of small private schools
that are offering four year "graduation guarantees."
The union
representing state workers is resisting calls by the Douglas administration for more pay cuts and is expected to face up to 320
layoffs instead.
The Diocese of
Burlington is asking Vermont’s highest court to throw out an $8.7 million verdict
awarded to a former altar boy who says his molestation at the hands of a parish
priest was partly the church’s fault.
Three months after
a man was sentenced to die for killing a police officer – New Hampshire’s first
death sentence in 50 years – the House has voted to repeal capital punishment.
Congressman Peter Welch says he’s seen
some signs that the economy might be reviving in Vermont. But
he says businesses and consumers won’t be able to fuel a recovery until credit markets
return to normal.
Bela Bartok was born on this date in 1881, and we’ll hear his marvelous Concerto for Orchestra, one of his last works (and it even has a local connection). Plus, tenor Ian Bostridge singing Schumann in anticipation of his Hopkins Center appearance on April 7th.
As financial aid decisions are on the horizon for many families, we talk with the head of VSAC about paying for college, and how Vermont’s key student assistance organization is fairing in the financial markets. Also, how Calvin Coolidge capaigned (or didn’t) for the presidency, and a food hub may help keep growing food manufacturers local.
Choruses inspired by Hungarian folk music by Bela Bartok; and Ravel’s Violin Sonata, played by two-thirds of Trio Solisti, which performs in St. Johnsbury on Saturday.
Mozart’s "easy" sonata (Sonata facile) for little hands…Massenet’s gorgeous aria, "long live love which dreams"…and, just in time for tax season vexation: Beethoven’s bagatelle "Rage Over a Lost Penny".
VPR is celebrating Women’s History Month – and the Champlain quadricentennial – with stories of five women who contributed to the history and culture of the Champlain Valley. Among them is the story of Florence Weld, longest-serving director of Camp Hochelaga on Lake Champlain, told by Mrs. Weld’s granddaughter, Joan Curtis.
Later this year, Tim Donovan will
become the new chancellor of the Vermont State Colleges. Donovan says these rough economic
times will prompt parents and students to consider, in his words, "shopping
locally" for higher education.
Senator Kevin Mullin surprised many of his Rutland County constituents when he voted in favor of the same-sex
marriage bill now moving through the legislature.
When the Food Crisis began in 2008, families began to spend more of their income on groceries. Many people wondered how it would impact the people of Vermont. Commentator Ron Krupp tells us of the hardships and the positive efforts being made in the Green Mountains to combat the Food Crisis.
Lawmakers
defend the health consulting contract. But the Douglas administration says the Legislature does not always follow the same
competitive bid rules required of the rest of state government.
Today is the birthday of Count Ferdinand von Waldstein, a huge patron of Beethoven’s. This afternoon we’ll hear the sonata Beethoven dedicated to him…and we’ll also hear the complete Requiem of Gabriel Faure.
Sixty years ago, Senator George Aiken popularized the name of the "Northeast Kingdom." And now, we celebrate the region best known for its unspoiled beauty and calmer way of life. Our guests include Rep. Scott Wheeler, and longtime Kingdom resident Norm Lewis (a.k.a. Danny Gore). Also, a look at the logging industry with author Jack McEnany.
Brahms’ Songs for Women’s Chorus, Harp, and 2 Horns, which Sounding Joy will perform in Randolph this weekend; plus Byron Janis plays Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2 on his 81st birthday.
Just as train
service between Rutland and Albany,
New York was spared from state budget cuts, a plan to expand
service to Burlington is gaining support.
The rivers are cracking up, the roads are heaving, and "mud" is the "new black" for this season’s fashions. Music of awakening and renewal this morning on VPR Classical.
This week – for women’s history month and the Lake Champlain quadricentennial – VPR salutes five women who contributed to the history and culture of the Champlain Valley. Today, freelance writer and researcher, Julia Lewandoski, has the story of Philomene** Daniels – first woman Steamboat Captain on Lake Champlain – and in the nation.
On this day – March 24th – sixty years ago, Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom got the name that’s stood the
test of time. These days, "Northeast Kingdom" crops up frequently in daily
conversation, business directories, and bumper stickers. So VPR’s Charlotte Albright has been asking "What’s in a
Name?"
St. Albans officials say a $380,000 federal grant will give their downtown a
much-needed face lift. And
that, they hope, will spark an economic revitalization for the northern Vermont city. VPR’s
Ross Sneyd visited St. Albans and has this report.
The Nuclear
Regulatory Commission is agreeing to extend the relicensing period for two
nuclear power plants in part to allow time to study the storage of spent fuel
rods.
The Minnesota Orchestra has made legions of new
fans around the world with its recently completed cycle of Beethoven
Symphonies. So they’re heading out to meet them. Don’t miss the
musicians from the Midwest at London’s sold-out Barbican Centre.
Does anyone really care when David Gregory of Meet the Press eats a bagel? Apparently a lot of people on Twitter do. Commentator and Twitterer Rich Nadworny has some thoughts on the latest and hottest social network.
Old stone walls have been around the Northeast
for four centuries; marking the boundaries of old farmsteads and keeping sheep
and cows from wandering too far. A number of states are considering legislation
to preserve this slice of history.
Social commentator Tim Johnson considers surveillance cameras, credit card purchases and Google Earth, and wonders about all the ways he’s being monitored.
VPR’s Steve Zind explores how Google has changed our expectations for quick access to information and methods of sharing data with Matt Dunne, the company’s U.S. community affairs manager.
How Google has changed our expectations for quick access to information
and methods of sharing data, and how it’s stretched our thinking around
digital privacy. Also, the why the state extends "moral obligation debt" to some important institutions; and an essayist is suspicious of all the ways he’s being watched.
Schubert’s Piano Sonata in C minor played by Murray Perahia; Rachmaninoff’s Symphony No. 2; and the Naiades Fantasy Sonata for Flute and Harp by William Alwyn.
The recession is a boon for Vermont libraries. Librarians say Internet use and circulation
of books and periodicals is up and more people are attending library programs.
March is women’s history month and in anticipation of the Lake Champlain quadricentennial, VPR is honoring the memory of five women who figured prominently in the history and culture of the Champlain Valley. Writer and historian Cyndy Bittinger has the story of Fanny Allen, privileged daughter of Ethan Allen who chose a life of service.
The
University of Vermont women’s basketball team finished its season yesterday, losing to
number one in the nation Connecticut in the first round of the NCAA tournament. The
score was 104 to 65. As
VPR’s Steve Zind reports, despite the loss, a good time was had by all: UVM players and fans alike.
The New Hampshire House will vote this week
whether to repeal the death penalty – just three months after the first death
sentence in the state was handed down in 50 years.
State police say the tractor-trailer was
carrying about 8,000 gallons of milk when it went off a road Sunday morning and
crashed into a drainage ditch in Swanton, close to the Canadian border. The
tank ruptured, sending most of the milk into the ditch.
Over a 40 year career, Hoyt Axton distinguished himself as an athlete, movie and television actor, artist, musician, performer, recording artist and songwriter. It was as a songwriter that Hoyt says he received the greatest satisfaction, and in addition to his own repertoire of original songs he both recorded himself, several Hoyt Axton-written songs went on to become some of the biggest, enduring pop hit singles of the early 1970’s when recorded by other artists. This week Joel Najman’s "My Place" program presents a musical profile of Hoyt Axton, showcasing many of his most famous and significant musical achievements.
Joel Najman’s "My Place" program is heard Saturday evenings from 8-9PM following "A Prairie Home Companion" on Vermont Public Radio.
Vermont Democrats are scheduled to meet later this morning to elect a party chair. And their only candidate is Judy Bevans, the Orleans County chairwoman and the state vice chair.
As basketball and hockey seasons wind down and baseball season approaches, commentator Brian Porto reminds us of an unlikely – but inspiring – sports hero.
Vermont has earned another $756,000 in a regional
effort to reduce greenhouse gases. Ten
states from Maryland to New
England have organized into
the "Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative."
We’ll celebrate the Vernal Equinox, signifying the arrival of spring, with music of Verdi, Vivaldi, Schumann, Beethoven, Copland, and Stravinsky; plus Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture.
With the Vernal Equinox comes the official arrival of spring at 7:44 this morning. First order of business? – Leroy Anderson’s "First Day of Spring"! And the next two hours will be filled with musical images of the birds, flowers, and butterflies of the season. (No classical composer ever wrote a piece about mud and frost heaves. Sorry…)
Commentator Olin Robison says that European perceptions of the U.S. can be surprising, instructive and occasionally entertaining; recent case in point: Mr. Brown at the White House.
Vermont’s
former nuclear engineer says that lawmakers should vote this year on whether
the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant should get a 20-year license extension beyond
its current 2012 expiration date.
A New Hampshire lawmaker hopes more colleagues will join his fight
against the death penalty now that New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson repealed
capital punishment in that state.
Despite warnings from the Douglas administration, lawmakers are moving ahead with a
bill that forces Vermont Yankee to set aside more money to dismantle the plant.
In her new book, Old Friend from Far Away, author Natalie Goldberg deals specifically with writing memoirs. She speaks with VPR’s Jane Lindholm about her book.
We examine how this week’s same sex marriage debate has been different from the debate over civil unions nine years ago. Also, a talk with writing author Natalie Goldberg.
Public radio is about partnerships: VPR, with local businesses and other non-profit organization; VPR, and you – as a contributing listener. In the spirit of collaboration this morning we’ll hear the famous Trio from Richard Strauss’ "Der Rosenkavalier", and Rodrigo’s interactive guitar and orchestra work – the "Concierto de Aranjuez".
Commentator Tim McQuiston observes that for those of us who have lived through many recessions, this downturn feels quite a bit different – perhaps more like the end of an era – or maybe several eras.
The
House has advanced a bill that exempts small composting operations from state
land use regulation. But
some Republican members say lawmakers should instead address the bigger issue of
environmental permit reform.
Approximately
a thousand people came to the Statehouse last night to attend a special public
hearing on the same sex marriage bill. During the three
hour hearing, dozens of Vermonters testified both in favor and against the
legislation.
Vermont is facing the largest
National Guard deployment since World War II. Some 1,600 part-time
soldiers could leave for Afghanistan by the end of this year.
The number of
people seeking help from the state-federal insurance program for the poor has
hit an all-time high in New Hampshire and is projected to rise even higher.
Dairy farmers from around the country plan a
“summit” meeting this week in South
Burlington to discuss what
they describe as a crisis. Prices paid to farmers have fallen well below what it
costs to produce milk and many farms are struggling to stay in business.
The chairman of
the University of Vermont trustees says it’s too early to say what the board will do about the
school administration’s plan to eliminate varsity baseball and softball next
year.
Commentator Bill Mares is a former legislator, teacher and reporter, who has been thinking about the changing economics of journalism and why "free" news on the Internet comes with a price.
Noelle MacKay, the Executive Director of Smart Growth Vermont follows up with Jane Lindholm on a report from last week on how citizens use land planning.
The biggest deployment of the Vermont National Guard since World War II will mean challenges for employers and the workplaces the soldiers leave behind. We discuss the rights, responsibilities and concerns on both sides. Plus, Candy Page on the coming of Spring and a post script to our program on community planning.
Spring’s official arrival is still two days away but we’ll get a preview with "The First Cuckoo of Spring" this morning, along with a seasonal song by Mozart’s musical son, Franz Xavier.
During the presidential campaign, Barak Obama assembled an impressive grassroots organization, and commentator Bill Seamans says it’s about to be employed again – this time to push for the passage of Obama’s budget.
The
Obama Administration is going around the country to gather ideas about how to
reform the health care system. A meeting in Burlington on Tuesday gave a chance for the governors of Massachusetts and Vermont to offer their states as potential models for
national reform.
Senator Patrick
Leahy and Governor Jim Douglas are planning to host a second conference on the
opportunities presented by the federal economic stimulus package.
The rising demand
for social services will consume all of New Hampshire’s stimulus funds earmarked for the poor – dashing
some lawmakers’ hopes of using the money to restore budget cuts.
New Hampshire
Senator Jeanne Shaheen is leading a bipartisan effort of Northeastern senators
calling on the Commerce Department to directly fund a new commission to boost
the region’s economy.
The
conclusion of a new report commissioned by the state Legislature is that Vermont Yankee can operate reliably after 2012 but must improve in several
respects.
Hundreds
of millions of dollars are flowing into Vermont through the federal stimulus package. What’s
all that money being spent on? Today, we begin to answer that question with an
occasional series … "Tracking the Stimulus." As
VPR’s Ross Sneyd reports, $18 million is going to various Head Start
programs for pre-school children around the state.
An Irish smapler today of music by Irish composers, music performed by Irish musicians, an Irish melody arranged by an Englishman, and Irish plainchant in honor of St. Patrick.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Mike Mulcahy of the state’s Education for Homeless Children and Youth program and Sue Cano liaison for homeless education about efforts to keep homeless kids in school.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Anna Post, an expert in etiquette at the Emily Post Institute in Burlington about whom to tip, how much, and whether it’s ok to cut back on tipping as we try to trim expenses.
Experts from the Emily Post Institute stop by Vermont Edition on Tuesday to answer your questions on who to tip, how much, and whether it’s ok to cut back on tipping as we try to trim expenses. Ask your questions about tipping before the broadcast.
One office in the Department of Education is focused on a singular challenge for homeless families: keeping the kids in school. We learn about the effort to create a steady educational environment, and the increase in "situational poverty" that has more families relying on these services.
Irish composers Turlough O’Carolan, John Field, Charles Villiers Stanford, and Victor Herbert; and Irish musicians flutist James Galway–with and without the Chieftains–and pianist Barry Douglas with his Camerata Ireland.
On St. Patrick’s Day, everyone’s a little Irish…this morning we’ll hear from Samuel Barber’s "Hermit songs", take a walk through Arnold Bax’s picturesque "Irish Landscape", and sing along with Leroy Anderson’s "Wearin’ o’the Green". Erin go bragh!
In the first of Two Views on the marriage rights debate we heard commentator David Moats on the life and legacy of Harvey Milk. In this second view, commentator John McClaughry considers the laws and conventions governing the established definition of marriage.
New Hampshire Sen.
Jeanne Shaheen says the latest White House plan to make it easier for small
businesses to borrow money is critical to her home state.
Vermont legislators return from their two week recess today
with a full agenda. Among
the most critical decisions will be adjusting this year’s budget in light of
revenue shortfalls – and writing a budget for the next fiscal year.
Green Mountain College will soon become a little greener. The southern Vermont school is installing a woodchip-burning boiler to
heat its buildings and generate 20 percent of its electricity.
This St. Patrick’s Day VPR Classical ‘goes green’ with the jigs, reels and stepdances that define the music – and spirit! – of the Emerald Isle. Join us for a day-long tour including stops in County Derry, the Antrim Hills, and Kildare!
Commentator Geoff Shields, President and Dean of Vermont Law School, has been thinking about human rights, civil liberties and the American public’s "need to know."
Hundreds of gay marriage opponents gathered at the Statehouse on Monday to
argue against a bill that they say is bad for children and weakens the
traditional institution of marriage.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with House Minority Leader Patti Komline and House Majority Leader Floyd Nease about what legislative priorities they’ve set for the second half of the session, and what they hope to realistically accomplish.
We talk with House Majority Leader Floyd Nease and House Minority Leader Patti Komline about what priorities they’ve set for the second half of the session, and what they hope to realistically accomplish.
Migrating birds are just beginning to appear across the region, in a sure harbinger of the season. Spring officially arrives with the Vernal Equinox this Friday – and we’ll get ready for it with birdsongs in music this morning. Rautavaara’s "Cantus Articus", the ‘birdcatcher’ aria from Mozart’s Magic Flute, and Beethoven’s variations on the melody from that aria.
Vermont
lawmakers say the most important Vermont Yankee nuclear plant issue on their
agenda is planning for the plant’s shut-down, not its re-licensing. A
small group of property owners in Mount Holly is protesting rising property taxes by opting out of
a local reappraisal.
A
small group of property owners in Mount Holly is protesting rising property taxes by opting out of
a local reappraisal. Town
officials say the protest is based on misinformation and is spreading unnecessary
fear and anger.
Vermont
lawmakers say the most important Vermont Yankee nuclear plant issue on their
agenda is planning for the plant’s shut-down, not its re-licensing.
The future of the
antiquated Vermont State Hospital is among the decisions facing lawmakers this year as
they address a capital projects bill that will have ramifications for the
handling of the mentally ill.
Some documents
that date to the creation of the state of Vermont are getting a new, bigger home at the state Records Center in Middlesex. But their move from a tiny basement
where they’ve been for decades is about more than storage space.
The Vermont
Supreme Court says the state’s prison inmates who use utensils to throw bodily
waste can’t be placed on a special diet without first going through a
disciplinary process.
The Middlebury
Police Department has closed its investigation into the death of 19-year-old
Nicholas Garza. A report says he was severely intoxicated when he disappeared,
and there’s no evidence of foul play or third-party involvement.
School officials
say a $1.2 million addition will hold the college’s new television
studio. The 4,000-square-foot addition to Leavenworth Hall will also hold
offices for the department.
From traditional Irish dance music by the Chieftans to the growl of Shane McGowan and the Pogues, All the Traditions celebrates the breadth and depth of Irish music through the centuries. Plus news of performances around the region.
This week it’s "Ladies By Name – Part 5", another installment in a series of "My Place" programs which feature popular songs in which a woman’s name is in the title or prominently mentioned in the song’s lyrics. . Recordings by Chuck Berry, Ritchie Valens, Neil Sedaka, and Al Martino are among the artists whose recordings are included in this week’s show. Joel Najman’s "My Place" program is heard from 8-9PM Saturday evenings following "A Prairie Home Companion" on Vermont Public Radio.
A festival of operatic favorites precedes and follows the live Metropolitan Opera broadcast of
DvoÅ™ák’s Rusalka (with Renée Fleming) — to encourage you to contribute to VPR’s spring fund-raiser.
Join VPR Classical’s Joe Goetz for "The Morning News", checking out new additions to the VPR Classical library including a new
recording of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, the first-ever recording of
select works by Mozart’s father, and one of Leopold Gowodsky’s virtuoso piano
transcriptions performed by Montreal native Marc-Andre Hamelin.
Bennington state office replacement could take two years; administration says it may turn down federal unemployment stimulus money; the Vermont Supreme Court clears political activists; commentator Philip Barruth says it takes a community.
According to the old African proverb, it takes a village to raise a child. But that’s nothing: it takes an entire city to keep Commentator Philip Baruth’s aging family car on the highway. Here’s Philip
It will be a year, and most likely two, before workers dislocated from the so-called "sick" Bennington state office building move into a permanent home.
The Vermont Supreme Court has cleared two political activists who were charged after interrupting a speech by a Bush administration intelligence official.
The federal stimulus package could help address a growing deficit in Vermont’s unemployment insurance fund, but the federal help comes with strings attached.
Vermont Fish and Wildlife officials say this is a great time to catch fish that are on the move for spawning season; melting ice and snow are revealing something else: more damage left over from December’s ice storm;
Schumann’s Concert Piece for 4 Horns and Orchestra; Ingrid Fliter plays Chopin at the Concertgebouw; and Christopher Parkening plays Rodrigo’s Fantasia para un Gentilhombre.
President Barack Obama has been in office for fifty-two days. But, as commentator Barrie Dunsmore, veteran ABC News diplomatic and foreign correspondent observes this morning, the news media, especially the cable news networks, are already losing patience.
The state of Vermont is going to get nearly $39 million in federal
stimulus money to pay for home weatherization projects and energy efficiency
programs.
At a time when billions of federal stimulus
dollars are being spent on transportation, a small southern Vermont village is sticking
with its covered bridge.
Gay marriage
advocates are waging a more visible campaign than their opponents as the
Vermont Legislature prepares to hear testimony on same-sex marriage.
Advocates
say they plan to turn out next week for a health care reform forum that
Governor Jim Douglas is co-hosting. Douglas
and Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick agreed to hold the forum on behalf of
the White House.
Critics are
panning Governor John Lynch’s proposals to tax gambling winnings and raise New Hampshire’s tax on restaurant meals, hotel rooms and rental
cars.
The state of Vermont is going to get nearly $39 million in federal
stimulus money to pay for home weatherization projects and energy efficiency
programs.
Bob Kinzel talks with some of the top political reporters about the key issues facing lawmakers in the remaining months of the legislative session. Join the conversation with VPR’s Ross Sneyd and John
Dillon, and Kristin Carlson, Montpelier bureau chief of WCAX-TV.
Debate breaks out about legislative priorities; the value of the Vermont Teachers’ Retirement Fund has fallen 40 percent; federal stimulus money will pay for energy projects; the Fort at No. 4 in New Hampshire won’t open; commentator Willem Lange says good times will return.
One casualty of the financial crisis has been the dramatic drop in the value of private and public pension funds, including the Vermont Teachers Retirement Fund.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with author and commentator Tom Slayton and poet and playwright David Budbill about why Vermont is so homogeneous and how we feel about it.
President Obama has signed into law a restriction on exporting cluster bombs that Senator Patrick Leahy wrote; advocates say the plan to turn our next week for a health care reform forum that Governor Jim Douglas is co-hosting;
Its no secret Vermont is one of the whitest states in the country, but
what does our lack of diversity mean? We’ll talk about why Vermont lacks cultural diversity and how it affects the way we see ourselves.
Elgar’s Cockaigne Overture "In London Town;" Prokofiev’s "Classical" Symphony; Beethoven’s "Serioso" Quartet; and Gershwin’s Second Rhapsody for Piano and Orchestra.
Thomas Arne’s birthday is today, born in London 1710 – but even if you
don’t know his considerable collection of symphonies, songs and operas – you
undoubtedly still know his musical setting of "Rule, Brittania!".
Beethoven knew it too and wrote a set of variations around the melody.
We’ll hear the original and Beethoven’s variations this morning.
Recently, the United States Supreme Court has ruled on two cases from Vermont. Vermont Law School professor Cheryl Hanna suggests that both of these cases show the triumph of moderation over ideology.
The Douglas administration says it can avoid cutting 320 state jobs if the state
workers’ union agrees to additional pay and benefit cuts.
State Attorney
General William Sorrell says Vermont Yankee’s zero carbon emissions claim is
inaccurate.
Low-income adults
between the ages of 19 and 25 would be allowed to buy insurance coverage from
the New Hampshire Healthy Kids program under legislation approved by the
Senate.
Vermont’s unemployment rate jumps to 6.8%; State asks for 5% pay cut to avoid layoffs; Governor of Massachusetts is coming to Vermont for regional White House Forum on health reform; Commentator Chris Wren says the financial crisis has reminded him of events he witnessed years ago – in communist China.
Commentator Chris Wren says that the latest news about the financial crisis has quite unexpectedly reminded him of events he witnessed years ago – in communist China.
The increase in Vermont’s unemployment rate is the
largest in two decades, but officials say part of the increase is attributable to
new ways of compiling the statistics.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Noelle Mackay of Smart Growth Vermont and Mark Blucher of the Rutland Regional Planning Commission about development in Vermont.
Vermont’s unemployment rate rose almost a full point from December to January; advocates of full marriage rights for gay and lesbian couples have geared up a lobbying campaign;
Growth and preservation are two goals of community planning – and sometimes they’re at odds. As part of our Vermont in Transition series we’ll explore how Vermont towns are trying to guide development and maintain quality of life.
Rousing music to get the morning started: the rowdy overture from Mozart’s "Abduction from the Seraglio", ballet music by Verdi, and Balakirev’s stirring orchestral poem, "In Bohemia".
As President Obama marshals support for his economic programs, commentator Vic Henningsen wonders if he can learn anything from the way Franklin Roosevelt approached a similar problem.
Experts
say the Vermont Supreme
Court got a reprimand from the U.S. Supreme Court this week. The
federal justices say the Vermont
court was wrong when it allowed a man to go free from prison because he didn’t
get a speedy trial.
New Hampshire’s new poet laureate, Walter Butts, plans to work with independent
bookstores and arts groups around the state to offer the public chances to
connect with poets and poetry.
Governor Douglas promotes his budget plans around the state; Report ranks Vt. 10th in addressing the problem of homeless children; Vermont Senate to consider a bill banning all workplace smoking; Recession inspires travel deals; and commentator Madeline Kunin is impressed with President Obama’s early accomplishments.
Around
this time of year many Vermonters are itching to escape the cold and snow and
head south. But
with the current economic downturn, tropical vacations are out of reach for a
lot of us. Or are they? As
VPR’s Nina Keck reports, vacation destinations are slashing prices to get you
to visit.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Jackie Folsom of the Vermont Farm Bureau and Enid Wonnacott of the Northeast Organic Farming Association about agriculture trends and the future of farming in Vermont.
Governor Jim Douglas has taken his message of fiscal austerity in state government to a wider audience; to avoid layoffs, GE Aviation in Rutland is offering more voluntary furloughs to employees; more…
Vermont agriculture is still largely dairy-based, but there’s a trend toward smaller farms and more diversity. As part of our series Vermont in Transition, we look at how farming is changing and what these changes say about the future of agriculture in Vermont.
Mary Westbrook-Geha directs the Blanche Moyse Chorale in 2 complete performances of Handel’s Messiah in Saxton’s River on Friday, March 13, and Brattleboro on Sunday, March 15. She joins Walter Parker at 11 to talk about the Chorale and Messiah.
A group of social
and mental-health professionals is backing same sex marriage in Vermont. With the current economic downturn, tropical vacations are out of reach for a
lot of us. Or are they? The Bennington
County prosecutor is praising a U.S. Supreme Court decision that could result
in a man who was released from prison last year being sent back to jail.
The
president of the Vermont Business Roundtable says many of her organization’s
members are nervous about the economy, and they’re trying to find ways to
survive.
The Bennington
County prosecutor is praising a U.S. Supreme Court decision that could result
in a man who was released from prison last year being sent back to jail.
One of New
Hampshire Sen. Jeanne Shaheen’s granddaughters was at the White House when
President Barack Obama formally signed an executive order opening the door for
more stem cell research.
Two Brazilian
citizens are in U.S. custody after being extradited from Canada and charged
with human smuggling in a case that prompted a Border Patrol agent to fire his
weapon at one of the fleeing men.
Congressional delegates support earmark reform; U.S. Supreme Court overrules Vermont Supreme Court in Bennington case; Growth in Vermont now compared to growth in the 1970’s; UVM criticized for number and salaries of administrators; Patrick Leahy introduces legislation tying same-sex legislation with immigration law.
Same-sex
couples in Vermont enjoy the legal benefits not shared by most couples
across the country. But couples with one foreign partner still face obstacles. Senator
Patrick Leahy wants to change that with new legislation.
Stephen Scott, a former professor of mine, began experimenting with bowed piano in the 1970s, and I am honored to to have been able to be a part of his ensemble during my college years. Here’s a link to a Morning Edition story about the ensemble. Today we’ll celebrate the bithday of Samuel Barber and hear some other envelope-pushing piano pieces by Scriabin and Prokofiev.
More information about Scriabin’s "Mystic" chord can be found here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mystic_chord
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with policy analyst Doug Hoffer and Lisa Ventriss of the Vermont Business Roundtable about strategies for future job growth in Vermont.
A noted lecturer on alcohol prevention says Vermont should not lower the legal age for drinking; Sen. Patrick Leahy has introduced a bill that would ease immigration restrictions for one partner in a same-sex couple; more…
Vermont Edition begins a series of programs looking at the some of the key findings of the Vermont in Transition Study. We’ll analyze trends in job growth and consider the job opportunities of the future.
The Republican
candidate who lost the race to become mayor of Burlington in the third round of
the city’s instant runoff voting system is asking for a recount.
Commentator Bill Schubart and friends have been thinking about the economic freefall of newspapers, radio and television and has been wondering what the future will bring.
Drug and alcohol prevention expert Michael Nerney will visit
Central Vermont this week to talk about what parents can do to have
better dialog with
their kids about the dangers of drugs and alcohol.
The recession is
claiming seven jobs at Omya Inc.’s Vermont calcium carbonate operation.
Same-sex couples in Vermont enjoy the legal benefits not shared by most couples
across the country. But couples with one foreign partner still face obstacles.
A recount has
confirmed the write-in election to the Bennington School Board of a former
superintendent who went to jail for embezzling school funds and perjury.
Lots of upcoming live performances, a first taste o’ the Irish music for St. Patrick’s month, and a special dedication in memory of Richard Morse, a New England maker of fine concertinas who passed away this week, far too soon.
On February 11, 2009 Estelle Bennett, one of the three original founding members of the Ronettes singing group, passed away at her New Jersey home at age 68. The Ronettes recorded some of the most enduring teen-oriented hit singles of the Rock&Roll 1960’s, their distinctive voices enveloped by Phil Spector’s thunderous and breathtaking "Wall-Of-Sound" music productions. The Ronettes’ story is a true cinderella tale that took two sisters and a cousin from New York City’s Spanish Harlem to international stardom on the world stage. However, following the breakup of the original Ronettes group in 1968, Estelle Bennet’s life was plagued by many personal difficulties and bouts with mental illness, and she lived her final years reclusively. Estelle did, however, share a great moment of triumph in 2005 when she and the other two Ronettes stood on stage together for the first time in over forty years when the Ronettes were inducted into the Rock&Roll Hall Of Fame. This week’s "My Place" program with Joel Najman is a celebration of the life in music of Estelle Bennett of the Ronettes. Joel Najman’s "My Place" program is heard Saturday evenings from 8-9PM following "A Prairie Home Companion" on Vermont Public Radio.
The live Metropolitan Opera performance of Puccini’s Madama Butterfly is preceded by 2 sets of songs by Maurice Ravel and is followed by 2 works by Ravel’s friend Germaine Tailleferre.
UVM president Daniel Fogel says he’s optimistic that
the University may be able to avoid the second phase of cuts that are being
considered to next year’s budget.
White Nose Syndrome, a mysterious illness
affecting bats in the Northeast, has been spreading this winter. Now scientists are racing to protect
populations all along the east coast before it’s too late.
VPR’s Bob Kinzel talks with UVM President Daniel Fogel about the causes of the school’s deficit, his plans to balance the budget and his vision for the school’s future.
A big crowd is expected in Burlington this afternoon for a forum about how federal economic stimulus money will be handed out; the University of Vermont has agreed to pay $325,000 to settle a lawsuit filed after a fatal car crash;
The University of Vermont is facing a budget shortfall of $28 million. UVM President Daniel Fogel discusses the causes of this deficit, his plans to balance the budget and his vision for the school’s future.
We’ll conclude our week of Magnificats with one from the 15th century by Antoine Busnois; plus Simone Dinnerstein plays Bach; Hilary Hahn plays Vaughan Williams’ The Lark Ascending; and Lorin Maazel conducts Ravel’s Bolero.
Commentator Geoff Shields is President and Dean of Vermont Law School. And he thinks that the best way to address the crisis in the auto industry would be to use a legal process that is already tested and ready.
Two state legislators have
introduced a bill to expand the pool of people who can object to the relocation
of a grave.
Representatives Dick Marek of
Newfane and Alison Clarkson of Woodstock say the bill should make it out of
committee when the lawmakers get back to work.
Vermont could become the third state in the nation to
legalize gay marriage.
White Nose Syndrome, a mysterious illness
affecting bats in the Northeast, has been spreading this winter. More federal
stimulus money is rolling into Vermont.
Former tenants of
a Castleton apartment complex who sued over contamination in their water supply
are finally getting their day in court – more than 10 years late.
Members of the
U.S. House from Northern New England and New York State are asking the government to send money to a new
commission to boost the region’s economy.
Legislature to debate same-sex marriage; More federal stimulus money rolling into Vermont; Instant Runoff Voting considered for gubernatorial election; and commentator Peter Gilbert tells an Iditarod story.
What do Shelburne, Vermont and Wasilla, Alaska have in common? Here’s commentator and executive director of the Vermont Humanities
Council Peter Gilbert with the answer.
Supporters of Instant Run Off voting say the result of
this week’s mayor’s race in Burlington
demonstrates why the system should be used in Vermont’s
gubernatorial election in 2010.
Members of a cooperative art gallery in Brattleboro have found a way to use their talents to help an unusual population of art lovers: residents of the dementia and memory loss unit at the Vermont Veterans home.
I’m totally shameless, forcing some of my favorite music on you poor listeners. But hopefully you enjoy Brahms’ Second Piano Concerto and the Sibelius Violin Concerto as much as I do…
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Jeff Wolfe of groSolar, a Vermont solar installation company which is one of the largest in the nation, Donald Kreis of the Institute for Energy and the Environment at the Vermont Law School and Dottie Schnure from Green Mountain Power about whether the landscape is changing for renewable energy.
Two of Vermont’s top elected leaders will help President Obama as he puts together a national health reform plan; a Vermont forum about the economic stimulus package has been so popular that a second meeting has been scheduled;
The news has been full of announcements about new solar, wind and
biomass energy projects in Vermont. We’ll
find out what’s behind the flurry of projects and whether they represent
a new era of increasing reliance on renewable energy.
Diana Levine, who won a Supreme Court case against a major drug company, says she
hopes the ruling will help others injured by potentially dangerous
products. The first installment of that federal transportation money has arrived
in Vermont. And state officials say they’re ready to spend it.
For
weeks, we’ve heard talk about “shovel-ready” projects and the federal
stimulus package that will pay for them. Well,
the first installment of that federal transportation money has arrived in Vermont. And state officials say they’re ready to spend it.
The New Hampshire
House has killed a bill to decriminalize possession of up to an ounce of
marijuana, one year after a similar measure died in the state Senate.
Eight months after
the death of 12-year-old Brooke Bennett, Vermont’s governor signed into law a bill aimed at improving
the state’s prosecution of sex crimes.
The Vermont musician who won a Supreme Court case against a drug
company hopes the ruling will help others injured by potentially
dangerous products; Offials weigh the impact of Act 82 on school
budgets this year;Guildhall debates the future of its town library; the
rock band Phish asks a judge to block the sale of bootlegged
merchandise at its upcoming concerts; Commentator David Moats ponders
whether real change is possible in Washington.
Diana Levine, who won a Supreme Court case against a major drug company, says she
hopes the ruling will help others injured by potentially dangerous
products.
The Douglas Administration says the new two vote budget law is a
major reason why overall school spending was more restrained this year. But a number of school officials say the Vermont economy was a much bigger factor, and they want lawmakers to repeal the law.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Agency of Transportation Secretary David Dill about how stimulus fund projects were chosen, and what guidelines and eligibility rules exist for future projects.
The U.S. Supreme Court says a Vermont woman deserves a $6.7 million jury award after losing her arm in a botched drug injection; Burlington Mayor Bob Kiss says he’ll focus on the basics as he begins his second term;
How should Vermont spend its $131 million in federal transportation stimulus money. We go over the initial list of 30 "shovel ready" projects with VTRANS Secretary David Dill. Plus, we bring you the latest results from Town Meeting Day, and we read from some of your emails.
We celebrate Vivaldi’s 331st birthday with his Magnificat; and conductor Bernard Haitink’s 80th with music of Bizet, Vaughan Williams, Ravel, and Brahms.
Guildhall’s welcome sign proclaims it
"the only town in the world so-named."
Visitors passing through this hamlet slow down to admire the marigold
yellow library, a fine example of neo-Georgian architecture. But the library is rarely open, and won’t open its financial books, and
that made it a hot button issue at last night’s town meeting.
"A Winter Landscape / Frozen Waters / Snow Shower"…the three
pieces that comprise William Alwyn’s Three Winter Poems for String
Quartet also describe the glow of this morning’s view along the Huntington River.
Voters
in several Vermont cities elected mayors yesterday, including Burlington. The city is unique because it uses
Instant Run Off voting to elect their top office. Burlington’s Progressive Mayor Bob Kiss is headed for a second term
after narrowly edging out Republican City Council President Kurt Wright.
Voters around the state headed to town halls and polling places for Town Meeting Day. Burlington voters used an instant runoff system to re-elect Mayor Bob Kiss to a second term.
Craftsbury was one of a handful of communities where an increase in the
school budget triggered a provision in the law that requires two votes.
The town of Plainfield has voted to remove fluoride from its drinking water. In a voice vote
after a lengthy floor discussion on Tuesday residents voted in favor of the
ban.
VPR’s Town Meeting page contains our complete coverage of Town Meeting Day including, news stories, interviews, photos from across trhe state, the complete audio from our special call-in program and listener posts about the day.
Voters in about 45 towns debated a resolution that calls on the Legislature to reject
Vermont Yankee’s request to operate the nuclear power plant for another
20 years after its license expires in 2012.
Federal
Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke got a grilling on Tuesday from
Senator Bernie Sanders during an appearance before the Senate Banking
Committee. Sanders
was angry that Bernanke hasn’t disclosed what banks have borrowed from the
Federal Reserve.
Middlesex Town Meeting moderator Susan Clark talks with VPR’s Jane Lindholm about Switzerland’s town meeting tradition, which predates Vermont’s by about 600 years.
It’s that time again, when Vermonters gather with their neighbors to vote on the issues that affect their communities. VPR’s Jane Lindholm checks in with town meeting officers around the state to see how this venerable tradition is faring.
Town meetings are getting underway around the state; voters in Essex rejected a local option tax and cut $400,000 from the town’s budget last night; Senator Bill Doyle will be conducting his annual Town Meeting Day survey this year;
We learn about Switzerland’s 800-year-old Town Meeting tradition and check in with town meeting officers and participants for a look at how the institution is faring in Vermont. Also, a mathematical formula for legislative redistricting.
Beethoven’s last piano sonata played by Simone Dinnerstein, who performs at Chandler Music Hall in Randolph on Sunday; and Mahler’s Symphony No. 6 from the Boston Symphony’s first recordings led by James Levine as Music Director.
Election
officials in Rutland say it’s been a fairly quiet day at the polls. Hurley Cavacas has been monitoring voting at Rutland’s Legion Post – one of four polling places in the
city.
The results of this year’s Town Meeting survey could provide information about trends on issues
such as same sex marriage, the gas tax and Governor Douglas’s approval
ratings.
Essex voters said "no" to a local option
sales tax.
The Board of
Directors of one of Vermont’s oldest senior care facilities is closing its doors
in May because of budget problems.
Voters in Essex rejected a town-wide, 1-percent local sales tax. The Essex Selectboard and the Essex Junction Board of Trustees had both endorsed the proposal. Officials say the tax would have raised about $850,000 annually for the town and village. Funds would have been used to lower property taxes and to up date infrastructure and increase economic development funding to attract more businesses to the town. Selectboard member Linda Myers said the tax was rejected in a voice vote by a strong majority of the standing-room only crowd.
Town Meeting days
are here, with Vermont voters heading out to gymnasiums, town halls and school
cafeterias to help decide how their local governments are run.
The Vermont National Guard is going solar. U.S. Sen. Bernie
Sanders says a $5 million grant he helped procure could result in one of the
region’s biggest solar energy projects.
VPR’s Town Meeting page contains our complete coverage of Town Meeting Day including, news stories, interviews, photos from across trhe state, the complete audio from our special call-in program and listener posts about the day.
Federal stimulus money to help fix Richmond bridge; Gearing up for Town Meeting Day; Previewing Senator Bill Doyle’s Town Meeting Survey; Dartmouth College announces new president; and commentator Tom Slayton on Town Meeting.
The results of this year’s Town Meeting survey could provide information about trends on issues
such as same sex marriage, the gas tax and Governor Douglas’s approval
ratings.
On
Tuesday, at least 45 towns will consider the future of the Vermont Yankee
nuclear power plant. The
Town Meeting resolution urges the legislature to vote against Yankee’s request
to operate after its license expires in 2012.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Public Safety Commissioner Tom Tremblay and Kym Craven of the Public Safety Strategies Group about consolidating law enforcement in Vermont.
State Treasurer Jeb Spaulding says he’s confident that that lawmakers will approve bonding to pay for road and bridge repairs; some of that federal stimulus money has begun to flow into Vermont; more…
An independent study finds ways to reorganize law enforcement in the Vermont, but change won’t come easily. And check in on two mayoral races as Town Meeting Day nears.
Pianist Simone Dinnerstein plays Bach’s French Suite No. 5, which she will play at Chandler Music Hall in Randolph this Sunday; Hilary Hahn plays Brahms’ Violin Concerto; plus the Symphony No. 2 of Elgar.
The rivers and streams are running, the idyllic strains of Schumann’s "Spring" symphony are in the air…well, if not in reality then they sure are on the radio at least. March is roaring in like a lion with today’s winter storm, but we’re thinking spring.
Starting tomorrow Vermont
will sell $50 million worth of bonds aimed at capital projects like
government buildings and water improvement. Vermont Treasurer Jeb Spaulding says
there are a lot of good reasons for buying state bonds, and he says there’s a new
incentive this year.
New figures show
Vermont’s and the nation’s economies were damaged more during 2008 – especially
late in the year – than initial reports indicated.
On Tuesday, at least 45 towns will consider the future of the Vermont Yankee
nuclear power plant.
New Hampshire
lawmakers are considering a new twist in the debate over gay marriage – whether
to allow heterosexual partners to enter into civil unions.
Vermont Senate
President Pro Tem Peter Shumlin has conceded one point in a barrage of
allegations by the Douglas administration that he’s been making inaccurate
statements.
Halfway through
their scheduled session, Vermont lawmakers have passed one bill designed to
strengthen Vermont’s sex-crime laws and have left tough financial issues to be
resolved after a two-week break.
Even though March usually comes in like an iceball and goes out like a mudball, we are doing our musical best to lure springtime into the north country with sensuous fado from international fadista star Mariza, who will be doing rare local performances in Hanover, NH and in Burlington, VT this week.
Between 1962 and well into the 1970’s, Brian Wilson. the founder and principal creative force behind The Beach Boys, created some 50 nationally charted hit singles and many top-selling albums with the all-male family group of Beach Boys. But Brian Wilson’s wife, sister-in-law, and two daughters also made memorable popular music as well, and it’s the music of these women that’s spotlighted this week on Joel Najman’s "My Place" program in an episode titled "The Distaff Side Of The Beach Boys". Joel Najman’s "My Place" program is heard Saturday evenings from 8-9PM following "A Prairie Home Companion" on Vermont Public Radio.
The Queen City Radio Hour, a production of VPR and film producer Jay Craven, is part of a year long celebration of the 400th anniversary of Samuel deChamplain’s exploration of Lake Champlain.
Verdi’s Il trovatore is heard live from the Metropolitan Opera House in New York City. That performance is followed by a recital by tenor Placido Domingo. Troy Peters is this afternoon’s guest host.
The Nielsen Symphony No. 3 and Ravel’s Le tombeau de Couperin both had their premieres on February 28; and we hear an excerpt John Alden Carpenter’s Adventures in a Perambulator. Carpenter was born on February 28. Troy Peters is guest host.
First installment of federal stimulus money arrives in Vermont; Peter Welch is concerned about remaining troop levels in Iraq; Plainfield to consider a hydroelectric dam; Disagreement over Vermont Yankee relicensing; Officials worried about used nuclear fuel stored at Vt. Yankee; and commentator Willem Lange catches Gold Fever.
Commentator Willem Lange is tired of hearing all the gloom and doom reports on the economy so he’s been practicing a little escapism – and thinking about the time when the U.S. got carried away with Gold Fever – and why.
Senator Bernie Sanders has proposed expanding community health centers as a step toward national health care reform; during town meeting next week, one central Vermont town will vote whether to reopen a small hydroelectric dam;
VPR’s Bob Kinzel talks with Congressman Peter Welch about the nation’s economic situation and how the new Federal stimulus law might benefit Vermont’s renewable energy industry.
The Piano Concerto in B minor of Hummel, played by Stephen Hough; the Symphony No. 2 of Bruckner; 3 Gymnopedies of Erik Satie, orchestrated; and Variations on Happy Birthday by Peter Heidrich.
Back this week by popular request, our occasional feature "Filmscore Friday" continues with the stunningly powerful music from Patrick Doyle’s 1989 filmscore, "Henry V"…including the poignant ‘Non nobis, Domine’, sung as the soldiers carry their dead countrymen from the field after the Battle of Agincourt. An outstanding film/music scene.
The current economic crisis is now regularly described as the worst since the Great Depression of the 1930’s. This morning, commentator Barrie Dunsmore, long-time diplomatic and foreign correspondent for ABC News, explains why we want to hope today’s economy can be turned around before it actually becomes that bad.
With Town Meeting Day coming up
next week, we’re examining an interesting question folks in Plainfield
will face. Do voters in Plainfield,
population about 1,300, want to borrow $200,000 for the development
of a micro-hydro dam?
The possibility of raising taxes to help balance the state budget is now firmly on the table at the Statehouse.
Senator
Bernie Sanders has proposed quadrupling the money spent on community health
centers across the country.
Senator
Bernie Sanders has proposed quadrupling the money spent on community health
centers across the country. Sanders
says his bill can be the foundation to national health care reform because the
centers would guarantee universal access to primary care.
Gov. Jim Douglas
says he thinks lawmakers can have their say on the future of the Vermont Yankee
nuclear plant this year, but issues relating to the plant’s decommissioning
fund should be left to regulators.
Bob Kinzel talks with Congressman Peter Welch about the nation’s economic situation and how the new Federal stimulus law might benefit Vermont’s renewable energy industry.
Dems suggest raising taxes to balance the budget; Panel to consider who should be the state’s next federal judge; Affordable housing gets a boost; and commentator Bill Mares shares beekeeping techniques with Central American coffee farmers.
Some people collect stamps or coins, but commentator Bill Mares has been collecting beekeeping techniques in Central America to share with coffee farmers in that same region.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with author Beth Kanell of Waterford. about her book Darkness Under the Water that deals with Vermont’s misguided foray into eugenics in the first half of the 20th Century.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Dartmouth College ethicist Ronald M. Green, author of the book Babies by Design: The Ethics of Genetic Choice about the future of reproductive choices
Officials with Amtrak warn that Vermont could find it difficult to re-start rail service if budget cuts force the state to discontinue a route between Albany and Rutland; AT&T says it will upgrade its wireless broadband network in Vermont this spring to make it faster and more reliable;
Dartmouth College bioethicist Ronald Green says human genetic engineering is edging closer to reality, and there are critical questions we need to face about its application. And Waterford author Beth Kanell discusses her young-adult novel about the eugenics movement in Vermont, The Darkness Under the Water.
Pianist Lazar Berman plays selections from Liszt’s Years of Pilgrimage; plus Mozart’s Serenade for Winds, K. 361, and Honegger’s ‘Delights of Basel’ Symphony.
IBM is warning
officials in Essex that more jobs could be lost if the town approves a
local option sales tax at its town meeting. The company recently laid off
workers at its Vermont plant
When a reference to Mozart’s ‘Sinfonia Concertante’ is made, it usually speaks to the well-known work for violin and viola. This morning we’ll hear the "other" concertante, featuring a quartet of wind soloists!
On Town Meeting Day, Burlington will use instant run-off voting for only the second time in its history. It’s not a system that everyone is comfortable with, but Commentator Philip Baruth is a convert.
Officials
with Amtrak warn that Vermont could find it difficult to re-start rail service if
budget cuts force the state to discontinue a route between Albany and Rutland. The idea that schools need to
do a better job of preparing students for jobs in a globalized world is getting traction in Vermont.
During
President Barack Obama’s presidential address to Congress Tuesday night, he
brought up the need for school reform, and pushed the idea that schools need to
do a better job of preparing students for jobs in a globalized world. Here in Vermont, that’s an idea that’s already getting traction.
Officials
with Amtrak warn that Vermont could find it difficult to re-start rail service if
budget cuts force the state to discontinue a route between Albany and Rutland. Amtrak
says the nation faces a shortage of passenger rail cars, so getting the train
back on track could take a long time.
Vermont’s
Democratic congressman and a Republican from Texas are joining forces in a battle against plans for a
Wal-Mart store near a Civil War battlefield in Virginia.
Blood donations across northern New England have dropped off this month, especially in Vermont. Officials with the American Red Cross have put out a
plea to potential donors to help out.
Some Vermont
experts on treating people with addictions say cuts in what the state pays
addiction centers for patient detoxification could end up costing more by
landing those people in general hospitals.
Senator Patrick
Leahy and Governor Jim Douglas will host a conference next week to help
Vermonters learn how the federal stimulus package will help strengthen the
state’s economy.
The Vermont
Transportation Agency says a bridge in Richmond will be the state’s first
project to get under way that is being paid for with federal stimulus money.
Douglas administration drops plans to cut some Medicaid programs; Vermont Senate passes a new version of a sex offender bill; Efforts to save the Chaffee Art Center; and commentator Deborah Luskin on being a Vermonter by choice.
The panel would be made up of one person each from the Vermont House,
the state Senate and the governor’s administration, and would provide
quarterly reports available to the public on how the stimulus money is being
used.
Two
years ago City officials in Rutland
were trying to sort out embarrassing accounting problems and the mayor’s race
was wide open with six candidates. This
year’s race is noticeably quieter with just two men vying for the city’s top
job. But
as VPR’s Nina Keck reports, the stakes remain high.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Vermont Education Commissioner Armando Vilaseca about how he thinks the state’s traditional education system needs to transform to better prepare students for college and jobs in the 21st century.
A Vermont Yankee executive says the company will soon reopen negotiations with the state’s major utilities for a power contract after 2012; more than 150 people attended an emotional meeting in Rutland last night to decide the future of the Chaffee Art Center;
We talk with Vermont’s Commissioner of Education, Armando Vilaseca, about his ideas on how to transform our education system to prepare students for college and jobs in the 21st century. Also, we talk with the Rutland Herald’s Bruce Edwards about housing affordability studies, and we bring you a game of ice golf.
Danzas Fantasticas by Joaquin Turina; Symphonic Metamorphosis on Themes of Weber by Hindemith, which the Dartmouth Symphony will play Saturday; and the Rococo Variations for Cello and Orchestra by Tchaikovsky.
As Lent begins today, we enter a season of some of the most beautiful music ever written.We’ll hear two of those pieces this morning; motets for Ash Wednesday and Holy Thursday, by Byrd and Durufle.
Commentator Bill Schubart has been watching the legislative and executive branches tweaking the engine of State and believes it is time to consider an overhaul.
Voters
choosing the mayor of Vermont’s largest city next week can be forgiven if they take
a little extra time at the polling booth. Burlington’s mayor will be chosen by Instant Run-off voting, or
IRV for short. But
this time around some critics of IRV fear that no matter who the eventual
winner is…the process that got him there will leave a bitter aftertaste.
The Douglas Administration is moving very quickly to authorize $85
million in new federal stimulus money; Rutland’s mayorla race is noticeably quieter with just two men vying for the city’s top
job.
Most of the
workers laid off this week at the Ethan Allen furniture plant in Beecher Falls,
Vt., are from New Hampshire, so the layoffs are causing concern on both sides
of the border.
More than 150 people attended an emotional meeting in Rutland last night to decide the future of the Chaffee Art Center. Financial difficulties this past year forced the Chaffee
to cut programming and staff and close for the winter.
The head of
FairPoint Communications has gone on the air to apologize for problems
affecting customer e-mail accounts in Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont.
Governor basks in national spotlight; Douglas Administration moving to authorize new federal stimulus money; Legislature can force Vt. Yankee to set aside decommissioning money; Fairpoint apologizes for transition problems; and commentator Ruth Page on beavers and clean water.
The Douglas Administration is moving very quickly to authorize $85
million in new federal stimulus money for several dozen road
and bridge projects across Vermont.
Just
about everybody is feeling the pinch in this recession. But imagine if your
paycheck was cut in half while your expenses stayed the same or even went up. That’s
what’s happened to many dairy farmers. Milk prices have dropped 50 percent in the
last few months.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Middlebury College political science professor Matthew Dickinson about how a commissions like the one Leahy proposes to examine some policies of the Bush presidency reflects the balance of power between two branches of government.
Chopin’s "Funeral March" Sonata and a listener request for the Piano Sonata #1 by Robert Schumann performed by Sally Pinkas. We’ll also hear works from string orchestra by Grieg and Tchaikovsky.
Governor Jim Douglas will be at the Capitol tonight as a guest of President Obama; an 18-year-old man charged with setting a fire that destroyed a historic block in downtown Springfield has been sentenced to two to ten years in prison; more…
Discussion of Senator Patrick Leahy’s proposal to form a
"Truth Commission" to examine some policies of the Bush
presidency. Political reporter John Gregg of the Valley News digs
into New Hampshire’s share of the state aid package.
State officials
say the Ethan Allen furniture plants in Orleans and Beecher Falls have laid off 110 people;
The list of
Democrats considering a run for governor in 2010 is growing. Ski
resorts say the weather has been a gift from the sky that has helped them get
through the recession.
This
week’s storm left up to a couple of feet of snow in the mountains, adding to an
already-substantial snowpack. Ski
resorts say the weather has been a gift from the sky that has helped them get
through the recession.
Seizing on a
well-publicized case in Hartland, two Vermont lawmakers have introduced a bill
that would expand the number of people who could legally object when someone
seeks to move a grave site.
Governor Jim Douglas’s profile with President Obama
continues to grow. The president has invited Douglas
to be a special guest for tonight’s speech to a joint session of Congress.
The U.S. Justice
Department says it has resolved a lawsuit against the state of Vermont for
failing to report ballots sent to Vermonters serving in the military and
overseas.
Outside Houston are bayous that fill up with
spring rains every year and then, in the summer sun, disappear. There’s
a wistful road sign east of town where two large bayous converge: "Old
and Lost Rivers." That place and that sign were all it took for Tobias
Picker to create one of the most serene and hauntingly beautifully
pieces of orchestral music in recent memory.
State Employees Union backing a plan to reduce personnel costs; A look at the Burlington mayoral race; Treasurer says Vermonters will get first dibs on bonds; and commentator Rich Nadworny on the iPhone’s arrival in Vermont.
For most people, the big day in January was the Obama inauguration. For others, like commentator Rich Nadworny there was another big day in January: the day the iPhone finally came to Vermont.
Town
Meeting Day is a little more than a week away, when Vermonters will vote on a
variety of municipal issues. The
highest profile contest is the race for mayor of Burlington. And,
as VPR’s Ross Sneyd report, the race could well be decided by an instant
runoff.
The state treasurer’s office says Vermonters are going to get the first
chance to buy up to $50 million in bonds that will be used to pay for a
variety of state building projects.
Mahler’s 5th, 6th, and 7th symphonies all have one thing in common…no voices. But he 7th as other goodies: guitar, mandolin, and the prescription for Mahler’s fever, the cowbell. We’ll hear this gigantic work this afternoon.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Ann DeMarle, the founder and director of Champlain’s Emergent Media Center, and students Lauren Nishikawa and Wesley Knee, about the role they see for e-games in 21st Century culture.
Telephone calls have been flooding into Vermont ski resorts this morning from people excited by the latest snowstorm; the northbound lanes of Interstate 89 closes because of accidents; more…
The founder of Champlain College’s electronic game design program and two of her students talk about the future and present roles of gaming in our culture. And we check in with birding expert Bridget Butler about shifting migration patterns and global climate change.
We’ll celebrate the 324th anniversary of Handel’s birth with his 3 Concertos for 2 Choirs of Instruments; 2 Coronation Anthems; and the first Water Music Suite.
It’s Handel’s birthday, we’ll hear one of his stately coronation anthems – and, a listener request for Aaron Copland conducting his own music at Boston’s Symphony Hall.
During the recent Congressional debate over President Obama’s economic stimulus plan, teacher, filmmaker and commentator Jay Craven found himself baffled by the controversy that erupted over the planned allocation of $50 million to the National Endowment for the Arts.
This spring, Vermont will have a new federal court judge, as the Honorable J. Garvan Murtha transitions to senior status. Judge Murtha has been involved with Vermont’s legal system since
1970’s. He says the move to senior status allows him to stay involved in legal issues in Vermont, but also to take a step back. He speaks with VPR’s Mitch Wertlieb about the status change.
Here are the top stories at 7:30 a.m. The administration of Gov. Jim Douglas is reviewing a proposal made by the Vermont State Employees Association that the union says could prevent more job cuts. Town Meeting Day is a little more than a week away; more…
The administration of Gov. Jim Douglas is
reviewing a proposal made by the Vermont State Employees Association that the
union says could prevent more job cuts.
The nation’s governors say they welcome the
money flowing to states from President Obama’s landmark stimulus plan and are
playing down disagreements among some Republicans in their ranks about how the
dollars should be spent.
The economy may be melting down, but the snow
keeps piling up at New England’s big ski mountains, enabling them to dodge the
avalanche of bad news about job losses and business failures.
When a beat was applied to the blues at the dance halls and juke joints in the late 1940’s, the music became the highly danceable "Rhythm & Blues", a phrase coined by Jerry Wexler, then an editor of Billboard Magazine. By the late 1950’s, R&B as it was called, was absorbed and at the core of the music enthusiastically embraced by America’s teenagers, now labeled Rock & Roll thanks to pioneer DJ Alan Freed. This week, Joel Najman’s "My Place" program presents a selection of recordings that charted high not only on the national "R&B" popularity charts, but also on the mainstream Pop charts as genuine Rock&Roll hits as well. This music sounds as fresh and vibrant today as when it was first recorded a half-century ago. Joel Najman’s "My Place" program is heard Saturday evenings from 8-9PM following "A Prairie Home Companion" on Vermont Public Radio.
UVM lays off 16; Vermont House rejects legislative pay cut; New report recommends combining law enforcement agencies; Judge orders state to control stormwater pollution; Governor urges lawmakers to make changes in environmental review process; and commentator Paul Richardson reviews Afghan history.
As the U.S. expands its military involvement in Afghanistan – including 1800 troops from the Vermont National Guard – commentator Paul Richardson says it’s well worth reviewing some history.
Sixteen administrative staff were laid off at the University of Vermont on Friday and two varsity sports were eliminated to help balance the budget. No faculty were laid off, but the administration says contracts will not be renewed for a number of lecturers next year.
We
return now to our occasional series on how the recession is affecting
Vermonters, with an update on Meghann Cline. She’s the mother of 3 young
children who’s been homeless since last fall. The
economy has made her situation even worse.
Pianist and conductor Christoph Eschenbach turned 59 today, and we’ll hear him in both musical capacities…and Mitsuko Uchida plays Schumann’s set of piano fantasies, "Kreisleriana."
ESPN Senior Baseball Analyst Buster Olney, Burlington Representative Kurt Wright & VPR’s Mitch Wertlieb and host Bob Kinzel talk baseball, steroid use and the prospects of the Red Sox and Yankees in the season ahead.
The University of Vermont is expected to announce layoffs to help balance its budget; the budget is also one of the items on the House agenda in Montpelier today; Vermont Democratic Party Chairman Ian Carleton says he’s stepping down; more…
ESPN Senior Baseball Analyst Buster Olney examines the impact the current steroids scandal will have on major league baseball. And Mitch Wertlieb and Burlington Representative Kurt Wright discuss the prospects of the Red Sox and Yankees.
A suite from Virgil Thomson’s music for the film The Plow That Broke the Plains; Beethoven’s Pastoral Symphony; George Butterworth’s The Banks of Green Willow; echo pieces by Vivaldi and Mozart; and Job: a Masque for Dancing by Vaughan Williams.
Middlebury College
is touting its new wood-chip fired biomass steam heating plant that is helping
the college meet its goal of becoming carbon neutral.
Recent headlines – especially those coming out of California – have reminded commentator Willem Lange of the music that he has come to think of as the soundtrack of his life.
Here are the top stories at 7:30 a.m.:
Legislation that’s designed to reduce the incidence
of child sexual abuse in Vermont was given preliminary
approval in the House last night. The House has advanced a bill that fills a $51 million gap in this
year’s budget…
Legislation that’s designed to reduce the incidence
of child sexual abuse in Vermont was given preliminary
approval in the House last night. The
vote on the bill was 131 to 2.
Governor
Jim Douglas assembled a group of developers to make the case for streamlining
environmental review. At
his weekly news conference, Douglas urged lawmakers to approve changes to Act 250 as a
way to boost the economy.
For a second time,
voters in Burlington will choose their mayor next month through instant run-off
voting – ranking their choices, rather than choosing just one preference.
New Hampshire’s community college students could pay 4-to-5 percent more in tuition
each of the next two years if Gov. John Lynch’s budget is adopted as is.
House advances a bill that fills major budget gap; Chief Justice says budget cuts compromising justice system; UVM to announce layoffs tomorrow; and commentator Annie Guyon wears many entrepreneurial hats.
This winter, the entrepreneurial spirit of Vermont has been very much on the mind of writer Annie Guyon, who offers her account of what it has taken to acquire yet another hat.
The House has advanced a bill that fills a $51 million gap in this year’s budget.The bill uses federal money to restore cuts to human service programs proposed by Governor Jim Douglas.
The chief justice of the Vermont Supreme Court says the delivery of
justice in the state is being compromised by budget cuts and an
outdated court system.
Each week we get a sneak peek into the latest releases from NPR’s Bob Mondello. VPr’s Jane Lindholm tracked him down in Washington to get his take on Oscar weekend and the life of a movie critic.
This Sunday night it’s time to grab a bowl of
popcorn and settle in to watch the 81st Annual Academy Awards.
But first, tune in to the next Vermont Edition when we’ll talk movies,
movies and more movies! Also, we visit a Grammy nomiated singer in Montreal.
Harold in Italy by Berlioz; the Mysterious Mountain Symphony of Hovhaness; the Polish Symphony of Tchaikovsky; and infectious dances played by the Los Angeles Guitar Quartet.
Poultney High
School will require all athletic coaches to get first aid and coaching training
after one of its coaches tripped an opposing player during a basketball game.
What happens when you take a beloved orchestral piece, and transcribe it for a choir? —you get TWO great pieces of music, each beautiful and unique in its own way. We’ll hear the choral ("Lux Aeterna") version of Elgar’s "Nimrod" variation.
Recently commentator and Vermont Humanities Council executive director Peter Gilbert was surprised to read about the death of a 69-year-old man, whose name reminded him of a song and something Martin Luther King said at Dartmouth in the early ‘sixties.
Here are the top stories at 7:30 a.m.:
The University of
Vermont will announce its first round of layoffs Friday, with one to two dozen
positions expected to be cut;
About
300 farmers and their supporters packed the House chamber this week to testify about the future of farming in Vermont; The federal government is working with Vermont and four other states to create innovation marketplaces…
Even
in the middle of a recession, entrepreneurs are coming up with ideas that might
help a struggling business. Getting
them implemented, though, can be a challenge. As
VPR’s Ross Sneyd reports, the federal government is working with Vermont and four other states to make the concepts reality.
About
300 farmers and their supporters packed the House chamber this week to testify about the future of farming in Vermont. Many
had a simple message. They said small, diversified farms are the future. And
they argued that the state needs to help farmers sell directly to consumers.
A
Democratic-proposed "truth commission" being sought by Senator Patrick
Leahy and other Democrats to investigate the Bush administration is generating
more partisanship.
Legislative
leaders want to know what Vermont Yankee will charge utilities for electricity
before they vote on whether to extend its operating license another 20 years.
Vermont will soon see impact from stimulus package; Peter Welch eager to take on global warming; Newport furniture factory to become wood-pellet manufacturer; Barre man pleads not guilty in 27-year-old murder; and commentator Kristen Laine on the cycle of freezing and thawing.
The chill in the air and the economy has commentator Kristen Laine thinking about how things freeze – from water to credit – and eventually how they always thaw.
State officials say dozens of bridge and road projects could be started
in the coming weeks, and they expect these projects will boost
employment in the construction industry.
Congressman
Peter Welch is front-and-center among conservation-minded Democrats eager to
take on global warming. Those
standing in the way of aggressive legislation aren’t just Republicans. As Elizabeth Wynne Johnson reports, Welch has made it
his mission to win over reluctant members of his own party.
Theodore Caron Jr. entered the plea in Vermont District Court in Barre
to the charge that he killed 18-year-old Pamela Brown, whose body was
found behind St. Monica’s School in Barre on July 17, 1982.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Dennis Bathory-Kitsz and Paul Bruhn of Preservation Trust of Vermont about the importance of the country store in Vermont.
As some general stores struggle to stay open, communities are finding creative ways to keep them operating. Bob Kinzel provides an update on what the federal stimulus package could mean for Vermont. And Middlebury College student Alexander Manshel reports on Al Sharpton’s recent visit to campus.
Two extraordinary soloists: pianist Zoltan Kocsis, in Debussy’s "Suite Bergamasque", and guitarist Paul Galbraith with his own transcription of the Bach Lute Suite #2.
Veteran ABC News correspondent and commentator Bill Seamans is intrigued by an ecomoic stimulus idea that would reduce one tax by increasing another – and reduce our dependency on foreign oil in the bargain.
The switch from analog to digital went ahead yesterday even though
Vermont, like every other state, had the option of waiting until June
to switch from analog to digital signals. So, how did it go? We put the question to Jim Condon, executive director of the Vermont Association of Broadcasters.
Here are the top stories at 7:30 a.m.:
Even before it
became law, the federal stimulus package was putting people to work in Vermont.
Legislative committees would be given power to subpoena
witnesses under a bill approved by the state Senate…
Legislative committees would be given power to subpoena
witnesses under a bill approved by the state Senate. Under current law, the only way committees can force a
witness to testify is if the full Legislature approves a subpoena.
Vermont has one of the nation’s
highest rates of youth drinking and marijuana use. That’s according to data from the National Survey
on Drug Use and Health.
Entergy
Vermont Yankee has so far declined to offer utilities a power contract for
electricity sold after 2012. That’s when the plant’s license expires. Yankee needs
approval from the Legislature to operate for another 20 years.
Vermont
may become the eighth state to require a bittering agent be added to antifreeze
to prevent the sweet but deadly product from being lapped up by dogs and other
animals.
CONDUCTOR: Riccardo Muti
SOLOIST: Thomas
Quasthoff, bass-baritone
Haydn: Symphony
No. 89
Haydn: Se dal suo braccio oppresso from Armida
Teco la guida from Armida
Il pensir sta negli oggotti from L’anima
del filosofo ossia Orfeo ed Euridice (The Soul
of the Philosopher or Orfeo ed
Eurydice)
Chi
spira e non spera from L’anima del filosofo ossia Orfeo ed Euridice
Brahms: Serenade No. 1
9:44 pm:
Finzi: 5 Bagatelles (arr. Lawrence Ashmore); Richard
Stolzman, clarinet; Guildhall String Ensemble; Robert Salter; RCA 60437
Jamie Masefield of The Jazz Mandolin Project has a new group that debuts this month at Club Metronome. Listen tonight at 8 when Masefield joins George Thomas for a conversation about this exciting new sound.
Legislature moving quickly to strengthen sex offender laws; Wind energy advocates pressure Douglas administration; Arrest warrant issued in 1982 killing; and commentator Madeline Kunin on women and Iraqi elections.
Wind energy advocates want the Douglas administration to lift its ban on large-scale wind projects on state-owned land. They say Vermont needs to explore all options as it looks for new energy resources.
The Vermont Attorney general’s office says an arrest warrant has been
issued for a suspect in the 1982 killing of a woman in Barre. Theodore Caron Jr., who is 47, is due to appear in court on Wednesday on charges of killing Pamela Brown.
Jane Lindholm talks with Marcia LaPlante, Prevention Chief for the state’s Division of Alcohol and Drug Abuse Programs, and Lori Augustyniak, Director of the Cabot Coalition, about what communities are doing to combat uderage marijuana, alcohol and drug abuse and provide healthier alternatives.
Designer Fernando Pages speak speaks with VPR’s Jane Lindholm about how green building is not only possible, but economical for builders on a tight budget.
Slightly radioactive water is still leaking from a pipe at the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant; there’s a debate at the Statehouse about whether cars and trucks can go two years between state inspections;
Vermont ranks highest among the states for teenage alcohol and marijuana use. We look at what’s behind the numbers and what’s being done to change them. Plus, building green homes on a tight budget.
The senior vice president of Unitil says the utility’s total outages following New Hampshire’s December ice storm were almost five times higher than the largest it had ever confronted.
A Connecticut man being investigated in a series of shootings that targeted churches, homes and a Vermont State Police barracks has pleaded not guilty to possession of an illegal weapon.
Maple syrup prices are up $7 a gallon in Vermont – the country’s largest producer of maple syrup – but the price spike doesn’t necessarily mean higher profits for producers.
The governor’s administration has proposed changing Vermont’s annual car inspection requirement to every other year, prompting a debate about the issue.
Family of a Vermonter missing since World War II says U.S. Defense Department investigators are searching a location in northeast India for the remains of the crew of a plane that crashed in 1944.
All Vermont’s television stations are turning off their analog broadcasts this week, even though the date for the changeover to all-digital signals has been pushed back to June.
The Serenade for Strings of Elgar; the Comedy Overture of Finnish composer Leevi Madetoja; the Fantastic Scherzo of Josef Suk; and works of Irving Fine, Frederick Delius, and Ralph Vaughan Williams.
Wind energy advocates want the Douglas Administration to lift its wind ban on large scale wind projects on state land; energy consultant tells lawmakers that Vermont has electricity choices other than the Vermont Yankee power plant; more…
Change of format this morning…it’s the heavy metal sounds of John Henry (the steel drivin’ man) and his Railroad Ballad…Verdi’s clanging "Anvil chorus"…and, we’ll empty out the whole percussion closet onto the stage for Haydn’s raucous "Military" Symphony #100.
Watching the development of the stimulus plan, teacher, historian, and commentator Vic Henningsen, was reminded that Vermont did very well as a result of an earlier plan – because of the vision of one man.
Burlington has one of the biggest compost operations in the Northeast.
But it may be closed soon. The problems it faces offer lessons in large scale
composting.
Some businesses are bucking the economic downturn, choosing to expand despite the uncertainties. VPR’s Ross Sneyd caught up with a couple of business owners that are banking on an economic rebound.
Reporter Candace Page of the Burlington Free Press speaks with VPR’s Jane Lindholm about the latest difficulties at the big composting operation at Burlington’s Intervale.
Health care companies are among the handful of businesses that have been able to expand, despite the recession; Chittenden Sen. Doug Racine says Governor Jim Douglas’ criticism of early campaigning is misplaced;
A Vermont psychologist says
lavish praise and high expectations aren’t necessarily good for our
children and can lead to an unhappy adult life. Her new book offers
advice on how to raise well-adjusted children in what she calls "the age
of self-importance".
Teacher, filmmaker and commentator Jay Craven has been working on next summer’s commemoration of the 400th anniversary of Samuel de Champlain’s arrival in Vermont – but he finds himself surrounded by a bigger story than he expected.
Today is President’s Day, and the
holiday has taken on a little extra meaning this year as the nation celebrates
the 200th birthday of Abraham Lincoln. One well-known Vermont
author is getting into the act, examining Lincoln’s
life in a very unusual way. Harry Mazer lives in Montpelier and is an award-winning author of numerous books
for young readers.
Here are the top stories at 7:30 a.m.:
Vermont’s
top federal prosecutor will leave his job at the end of the month and take a
position with the Justice Department in Washington.
Burlington has one of the biggest compost operations in the Northeast.
But it may be closed soon. The problems it faces offer lessons in large scale
composting…
Health
care companies are among the handful of businesses that have been able to
expand, despite the recession. Choice
Care Card is one of them. Choice Care helps employers lower their health
insurance rates.
FairPoint
Communications Spokesman Jeff Nevins says e-mails problems for some northern New England customers may not be resolved until the end of next week.
The Vermont Health
Department has agreed to further investigate the possible health risks of a
closed asbestos mine, following criticism over an earlier report that
erroneously found a higher-than-expected incidence of lung cancer among nearby
residents.
New Hampshire
Democratic Congresswoman Carol Shea-Porter says she’s not ruling out a bid for
the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Republican Judd Gregg in 2010.
Governor
Jim Douglas has criticized Democrats for starting early on the 2010 campaign. But
one of his potential opponents – Chittenden Senator Doug Racine – says Douglas is in constant campaign mode.
Vermont Health and
agriculture officials are urging anyone who consumed unpasteurized milk from a
cow on a Charlotte farm that died of rabies earlier this week to consult
with a health care professional.
Jaap van Zweden is still a new name for lots of
American classical music lovers, but they’re getting to know him in
Texas in his first stellar season as the Dallas Symphony’s music
director. This concert features him on his home turf, with the
Orchestra he joined at 19 as one of the youngest concertmasters ever in
Europe. His trademark violin is still in its case, though, as he picks
up the baton and leads the fabulous Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra.
Music for President’s Day, the end of Valentine’s Day weekend, a nod to some of the Grammy winners, and a special dedication to the memory of John Martyn and Kirk MacGeachy, two musical first cousins from Scotland who left us far too early.
On this Valentines Day February 14th edition of Joel Najman’s "My Place" program, featured are group-vocal doo-wop flavored love songs from the rock&roll era’s first golden years. It was a time in our cultural history during which much of the music heard on pop radio was specifically targeted at the younger generation and which was also frequently performed by young people themselves. Curiously, a half-century later, the so-called "doo-wop sound" remains not only appealing to those old enough to have grown up with it, but also has gained legions of new, younger fans as well.
It’s an evening of sweet harmony and nostalgia with "A Doo-Wop Valentines Special" Saturday February 14 from 8-9PM on Joel Najman’s "My Place" program on Vermont Public Radio.
Governor’s plan to cut health care programs faces opposition; Vermont House approves bill encouraging colonoscopies; Health Department to conduct more asbestos research; Fairpoint customers still experience e-mail problems; State may eliminate Agency of Commerce; One family celebrates two sporting achievements; and commentator Tom Slayton on hardships facing dairy farmers.
Federal milk support prices are falling. Vermont dairy farmers are now receiving about the same price for their milk that they got 30 years ago – even though their expenses have risen dramatically. Commentator Tom Slayton looks at what that may mean for Vermont’s countryside and culture.
The House has given its final approval to
legislation that backers hope will encourage more, older Vermonters to be
screened for colon cancer. The vote on
the bill was 105 to 35.
Andrea Mead Lawrence did what no other U.S. Alpine skier and no woman in the world had ever done. She won two Olympic gold medals in one Winter Games. It’s a record that lives on. Tomorrow, members of Pico Ski Club are honoring the Rutland native VPR’s Nina Keck has more.
VPr’s bob Kinzel talks with Senator Patrick Leahy bout the creatino of a "Truth Commission"to look into allegations of political abuse on the part of the Bush Administration.
Senate Health and Welfare chairman Doug Racine and House Health Care chairman Steve Maier discuss their priorities and what they think can be passed this year with VPR’s Bob Kinzel.
Carl Orff’s rousing setting of decidedly secular poems discovered in a Bavarian Monastery, with its invocation to Fortune, Empress of the World (for Friday the 13th) and its Court of Love (for Valentine’s Day).
From Franz Schubert’s "Secret Love" to intimate songs by Cecile Chaminade, and Robert Schumann – to the all-out, overblown, wonderful cymbal-crashing passion of Tchaikovsky’s "Romeo & Juliet"…romance is in the air this morning!
As we continue to view the local fall-out of the economic crisis, commentator Barrie Dunsmore, a veteran correspondent for ABC News, looks at how the new hard times are affecting an old institution.
Tough
times for Detroit’s automakers
mean tough times for Vermont’s auto dealers. While
they pace their showrooms waiting for customers, dealers are also casting an
anxious eye toward Washington, hoping for additional relief for the auto industry. Some
Vermont dealerships say they may not make it.
A group of farmers
in northwestern Vermont are hoping the federal economic stimulus package will
help them reduce the amount of pollutants that reach Lake Champlain.
Governor
Jim Douglas says it’s too early to start the 2010 campaign. Chittenden
Senator Doug Racine and Secretary of State Deb Markowitz are both exploring a
run for governor.
The administration
of Gov. Jim Douglas is hoping to save $5 million by reducing a fee paid to Vermont pharmacists for every Medicaid prescription they
fill.
Federal officials
say a flight instructor who falsely reported that his plane crashed at a
northern New York airport last month had a rough landing, all right – a
year ago, in Burlington, Vt.
Senate Health and Welfare chairman Doug Racine and House Health Care chairman Steve Maier discuss their health care priorities and what they think can be passed by the Legislature this year.
Environmentalists say a new book that warns tourists to stay away from
Lake Champlain serves as a wake-up call that the lake is heavily
damaged by pollution.
Today as part of our Hitting Home series, with charitable and corporate giving down, VPR’s Nina Keck reports on the fight to save a landmark arts center in Rutland.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Bennington College President Elizabeth Coleman about the college’s new $20 million building project and what it has to do with the role she believes higher education must assume in solving contemporary problems and keeping our Democracy vital.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Presidential Scholar and biographer Willard Sterne Randall and with Seth Bongartz of Manchester’s Hildene, the former home of Robert Todd Lincoln about some of the key decisions Abraham Lincoln made during his presidency and consider how they resonate with our own times.
We examine some of the key decisions of Abraham Lincoln’s presidency, and how they resonate today. Steve Zind on the ringing of bells to commemorate the 200th anniversary of Lincoln’s birth. And Bennington College President Liz Coleman and the role higher education ought to play in keeping Democracy vital.
Aaron Copland commemorates our 16th President in his "Lincoln Portrait" – and Robert DeCormier leads Counterpoint, from their recording of spirituals called "Let Me Fly".
As retirement funds shrink around
the country, many retired workers are trying to get back into the workforce.
And some senior workers who were just a few short years from retirement are
forced to find new work after layoffs.
Here are the top stories at 7:30 a.m.:
Senator Patrick Leahy says a new agreement between the U.S. House and
the Senate over a federal stimulus package is good news for the
economy. At 2:12 this afternoon, bells around Vermont will ring to mark the 200th anniversary of the birth of Abraham Lincoln…
At 2:12 this afternoon, bells around Vermont will ring to mark the 200th anniversary of the birth of Abraham Lincoln. As VPR’s Steve Zind explains, some of the bells that will ring today have an historic connection to Lincoln’s life and times.
Business
at Burlington International Airport continues to grow so much that there are many days
when there’s no place to park. So,
Burlington voters will be asked next month to approve a 45
million dollar bond to expand the parking garage. As
VPR’s Ross Sneyd reports, this would be a garage with an environmental ethic.
Prominent civil rights
activist the Rev. Al Sharpton spoke at Middlebury College last night, telling a
packed house of 675 people to get involved and be agents of change.
Patrick Leahy says the federal stimulus package is good news for the economy; Lawmakers want to set milk prices; Douglas Administration says Vt. Yankee hasn’t made the case for license renewal; and commentator Mary McCallum says the economic downturn is affecting the state’s prison population.
Senator Patrick Leahy says a new agreement between the U.S. House and
the Senate over a federal stimulus package is good news for the economy. Vermont is expected to receive roughly $600 million in special funds over the next two years under the legislation.
Today, we look at a company
that’s feeling the economic squeeze but has decided not to lay off
workers. VPR’s Susan Keese takes us to
the Porta-Brace headquarters in North
Bennington, where the
company’s teamwork ethic extends to sharing the pain of an ailing economy.
VPR’s Neal Charnoff speaks with Benjamin Santer about a lecture he is giving at UVM titled "How do we know human activities have influenced global climate change"?
Czech pianist Rudolf Firkusny would have been 97 today, and we’ll hear his interpretation of the Dvorak piano concerto. Also music for spring-like weather and clouds by Debussy and Vivaldi.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Glenn Rogers of the St. Albans UVM Extension Office about a new toll-free hotline for Vermont dairy farmers concerned about falling milk prices.
VPR’s Jane Lindholm talks with Renee Richardson, from the Vermont Agency of Human Services, Angela Dieng-Smith of the Vermont Campaign to End Childhood Hunger and Jim Harrison, Executive Director of the Vermont Grocers Association about the 3SquaresVT program.
As of the first of this year, thousands more Vermonters could qualify for the program formerly known as Food Stamps. The program has a new name, too: 3SquaresVT. Also, a new, toll-free hotline helps dairy farmers cope with mounting economic stress. And ski jumping returns to Brattleboro.
"I
never knew the old Vienna, before the war – with its Strauss
music, its glamour and easy charm…" – the opening lines from Carol Reed’s noir classic, "The Third Man". (My #1 favorite movie of all time!) This morning we’ll enjoy the sound of Austria’s national instrument, the zither – in the Johann Strauss Jr. waltz, "Tales from the Vienna Woods" – and hear the sublime voice of Regine Crespin, in the Berlioz "Spectre of the Rose".
Commentator Bill Schubart has co-founded, grown and down-sized two companies in his life as an entrepreneur. He has learned much about people from the difficult experience.
Here are the top stories at 7:30 a.m.:
Senior officials
with the Vermont National Guard say they have extensive programs in place to
support military families during a major deployment set to begin late this
year.
The fund set aside
for the eventual dismantling of the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant is continuing
to shrink…
Another
area institution has been forced to cut back because of the recession. Dartmouth College announced almost 150 job cuts this week – about a
third of them through layoffs – as it struggles to reduce spending by ten
percent over two years.
U.S. Sens.
Patrick Leahy and Bernie Sanders of Vermont have voted for President Barack
Obama’s economic recovery plan, which would provide approximately $374.9
million in federal stimulus money to Vermont to help revive the sagging
economy.
A proposal by U.S.
Sen. Patrick Leahy of Vermont to create a "truth commission" to
investigate abuses by the Bush administration is getting a lukewarm reaction
from President Barack Obama.
Senior officials
with the Vermont National Guard say they have extensive programs in place to
support military families during a major deployment set to begin late this
year.
Lawmakers reveal a plan to tax soda; Douglas Administration wants to close the state’s environmental lab; Vt. Yankee dismantling fund continues to shrink; Utilities hope to adopt renewable power; N.Y. pharmacy college branching out to Vermont; State police crack down on aggressive driving; Voices from today’s Statehouse rally protesting budget cuts; and commentator Art Woolf says we aren’t in a depression.
All this week, VPR news is looking at the effect of the economic downturn on Vermonters. Economist and commentator Art Woolf agrees that the economy is in bad shape – no doubt about it – but he insists that we’re not in a depression.
A group of lawmakers want to help close the state’s budget gap by imposing a sales tax on soda and other beverages that contain a lot of sugar. But the Vermont Grocers’ Association is strongly opposed to the bill.
The Douglas administration says it can save money by closing the state’s environmental laboratory. But lab officials say it could eventually cost the state more to use private contractors to do the work.
A few displaced workers in the Northeaast Kingdom are doing what may seem like the impossible in these dark days. They’re starting their own businesses. VPR’s Charlotte Albright recently met one of them in St. Johnsbury.
Several groups are rallying at the Statehouse at this hour
to protest state budget cuts; a Vermont State Police crackdown on aggressive
driving on Interstate 89 already has resulted in a slew of tickets; more…
VPR’s "Hitting Home" series
looks at how the recession is affecting Vermonters. Now we’d like to hear from you. Tell
us what changes you’ve had to make to adjust to these hard economic times.
The Symphony of 20 year-old Edvard Grieg; the Sinfonietta of Leos Janacek; plus the Temple of Glory Suite by Rameau and the Scottish Fantasy of Max Bruch.
The Department of Labor has
resource centers around the state staffed with computers, resources and people
who can help you look and apply for a job. We visited the Burlington
Resource Center
and met with the manager, John Vowles.
State
workers are among those who have been hit by the recession. Faced with a
potential $200 million dollar state budget deficit, Governor Jim Douglas wants
to lay off 660 people. But
some were let go even before the governor announced the latest round of state job
cuts. VPR’s
John Dillon has this report on a state worker who was told right before
Christmas that she’d lose her job.
Here are the top stories at 7:30 a.m.:
Sen. Patrick
Leahy of Vermont is proposing a
"truth commission" to investigate abuses of detainees and politically
inspired firings at the Justice Department during the Bush administration.
Central
Vermont Public Service plans to build the first major solar project in Vermont to feed energy exclusively onto the power grid…
New England
Newspapers Inc., which runs newspapers in Bennington and Brattleboro, says it
will require about 300 hourly and salaries employees to take unpaid one-week
furloughs in a cost-cutting measure.
Lawmakers in Montpelier will get firsthand testimony today about how the
pending deployment of Vermont National Guard members will affect their families
and the state.
U.S. Sen. Patrick
Leahy of Vermont, who chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee, is proposing a
"truth commission" to investigate abuses of detainees and politically
inspired firings at the Justice Department during the Bush administration.
Public Service
Company of New
Hampshire says
the December ice storm caused more damage than any storm in the state’s
history. And PSNH says it cost the utility $75 million – $60 million
of which will be made up in customers’ bills.
A bill that would
extend workers’ compensation to cover mental and emotional problems suffered on
the job has been introduced in Montpelier, but it’s getting a cool reception from the insurance
industry.
State police are
being asked to investigate possible drug sales at an off-campus party that
officials say sent two Castleton State College students to the hospital.
Two couples from
Irasburg who say their children’s teacher preached in the classroom and
retaliated against students who complained are suing the school district.
When you have a birthday, you throw a party, and
when you have a milestone birthday you throw a big party. The Saint
Paul Chamber Orchestra, America’s only fulltime professional chamber
orchestra, turns 50 this year, and to celebrate they’ve invited the
world’s great chamber orchestras to share the stage with them —
starting with the Chamber Orchestra of Europe.