Poster Man with a beard in front of a brick background
Composer Jeffrey Mumford
Molly Sheridan
Extra Eclectic

A spring meditation

Extra Eclectic - May 18, 2026

With spring in full bloom, Steve Seel brings us a bounty of “green sounds” in the first hour of this episode of Extra Eclectic, from Jeffrey Mumford’s verdant cycles of deepening spring to Clint Needham’s String Quartet No. 1, (Shades of Green). In the second hour, it’s music for meditation and the deep breathing that can accompany it, including Daniel Bjarnason’s Air to Breath and Erland Cooper’s Carve the Runes Then Be Content With Silence.

Playlist

Spring
Composer: Huw Watkins
Soloists: Krysia Osostowicz, violin
Somm 181

Varsog (Breath of Spring)
Composer: Henning Sommerro
Conductor: Christian Kluxen
Orchestra/Ensemble: Arctic Philharmonic
Soloists: Eldbjorg Hemsing, violin
Sony 93608

String Quartet No. 11 “Reykjavik”: Spring Song and Dance
Composer: Elena Ruehr
Orchestra/Ensemble: Quartet ES
Avie 2798

verdant cycles of deepening spring
Composer: Jeffrey Mumford
Conductor: Allen Tinkham
Orchestra/Ensemble: Chicago Composers’ Orchestra
Soloists: Christine Wu, violin
Albany 1948

String Quartet No. 1 “Shades of Green”
Composer: Clint Needham
Orchestra/Ensemble: Poiesis Quartet
Bright Shiny Things 213

Breathturn: Part 1
Composer: John Zorn
Soloists: Mika Stoltzman, marimba
Avie 2807

Tsuki no Waka
Composer: Akemi Naito
Orchestra/Ensemble: New York Polyphony
Bis 2719

Abstractions
Composer: Anna Clyne
Conductor: Marin Alsop
Orchestra/Ensemble: Baltimore Symphony Orchestra
Naxos 574620

Air to Breath
Composer: Daniel Bjarnason
Soloists: Gyda Valtysdottir, cello
Dorian 70012

Carve the Runes Then Be Content With Silence: walking through heather and peat
Composer: Erland Cooper
Orchestra/Ensemble: Studio Collective
Soloists: Daniel Pioro, violin
Mercury KX 6576069

A child said, what is the grass
Composer: Toivo Tulev
Conductor: Donald Nally
Orchestra/Ensemble: The Crossing
Navona 6303

Love the music?

Donate by phone
1-800-562-8440

Show your support by making a gift to YourClassical.

Each day, we’re here for you with thoughtful streams that set the tone for your day – not to mention the stories and programs that inspire you to new discovery and help you explore the music you love.

YourClassical is available for free, because we are listener-supported public media. Take a moment to make your gift today.

More Ways to Give

Your Donation

$5/month
$10/month
$15/month
$20/month
$

Latest Extra Eclectic Episodes

VIEW ALL EPISODES

Latest Extra Eclectic Episodes

A playlist for the road

A playlist for the road

As Steve Seel bids farewell to evenings on YourClassical for a new shift in the daylight hours, ‘Extra Eclectic’ completes its decade-long run with a playlist of some of his favorite 21st-century classical music discoveries of over the years. Listen now!

1:58:59
Extra Eclectic to air final episode, but modern classical continues on YourClassical
The Proms, and other things British

The Proms, and other things British

‘Extra Eclectic’ continues our time at the 2026 BBC Proms Festival this week with Welsh composer Gwilym Simcock’s Triple Concerto for Saxophone, Horn and Cello performed by the soloists who premiered it: Jess Gillam, Ben Goldscheider and Sheku Kanneh-Mason. Listen now with host Steve Seel!

1:58:59
Jazz influences

Jazz influences

A performance of Wynton Marsalis’ Concerto for Orchestra recorded at the 2026 BBC Proms offers a look at modern classical works inspired by jazz on this episode of ‘Extra Eclectic,’ which also showcases works by Jon Batiste, Earl Louis Stewart and Jeff Scott. Listen now with host Steve Seel!

1:59:00
A brass celebration

A brass celebration

Brass instruments are the focus on episode of ‘Extra Eclectic,’ in solo, duo and ensemble settings. Selections include Valerie Coleman’s ‘Fanfare for Uncommon Times,’ Olivier Messiaen’s ‘Apparition du Christ Glorieux’ and more. Listen now with host Steve Seel!

1:58:58
Earth sounds

Earth sounds

The Earth is our one home, and on this episode of ‘Extra Eclectic,’ contemporary composers pay tribute in their music, including Erland Cooper, whose ‘Carve the Runes Then Be Content With Silence’ incorporates the Earth as a collaborator. Listen now with host Steve Seel!

1:58:59
Moments and eternities

Moments and eternities

On this episode of ‘Extra Eclectic,’ we hear considering both fleeting moments and the vastness of eternity, including Chris Rogerson’s ‘Thirty Thousand Days’ and Steve Reich’s ‘Proverb.’ Listen now with host Steve Seel!

1:58:59
Questions and answers

Questions and answers

Host Steve Seel poses a lot of musical questions on this episode of ‘Extra Eclectic,’ and you’ll have to decide if you hear any answers. Charles Ives’ ‘The Unanswered Question’ is “answered” by Laurie Spiegel’s work ‘The Unquestioned Answer.’

1:58:58
Eternity and beyond

Eternity and beyond

While classical music can sometimes be about frivolous things, this episode of ‘Extra Eclectic’ is concerned strictly with ideas on a higher plane. Host Steve Seel brings us Olivia Belli’s ‘Limina Luminis,’ Arvo Pärt’s ‘Tabula Rasa’ and more. Listen now!

1:58:59
The American Vanguard

The American Vanguard

On the latest episode of Extra Eclectic, host Steve Seel showcases the music of giants such as Philip Glass, Meredith Monk and Steve Reich: composers who introduced fresh thinking into the genre and opened the concert hall to new audiences. Listen now!

1:58:59
VIEW ALL EPISODES
YourClassical Radio
00:00
Infinity:NaN