Centennial Sounds

Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Caroline Shaw writes music for the voice that catches you off guard. The singers in Roomful of Teeth talk over each other, break into huge chords and use stunning vocal techniques from all over the world. Caroline has a new piece for Roomful of Teeth, called “This Might Also Be a Form of Dreaming.” Here’s a live recording of that composition, featuring Roomful of Teeth and Denver’s Playground Ensemble — plus a look at why Caroline is so excited about the new piece — in this episode of Centennial Sounds from CPR Classical and Colorado Public Radio.

She’s a composer in Los Angeles who blends her favorite sounds from Indian and Western classical music. He’s a musician in Boulder who plays the 14-string viola d’amore — a unique instrument that captivated composers more than 300 years ago. Their collaboration created an extraordinary piece of music called “Nishani.” Hear an exclusive recording of it captured in the CPR Performance Studio — and the story of how the music came together — in the debut episode of Centennial Sounds from CPR Classical and Colorado Public Radio.

Welcome to “Centennial Sounds” — a new podcast from CPR Classical and Colorado Public Radio that spotlights contemporary classical music performed in Colorado. The podcast, hosted by Brad Turner, features exclusive sessions from the CPR Performance Studio as well as live recordings taken from concert venues and summer festivals around the Centennial State. The episodes also feature interviews with 21st-century composers. Centennial Sounds launches in April.