Poster Composer Jennifer Higdon
Composer Jennifer Higdon during rehearsal at the OK Mozart Festival in Oklahoma. Her music receives over 250 performances each year.
OK Mozart Festival/OK Mozart Festival
Extra Eclectic

Feathered friends

Extra Eclectic - May 25, 2026

Get your binoculars out for this episode of Extra Eclectic! Host Steve Seel brings us two hours of new classical works about birds, including Jennifer Higdon’s An Exaltation of Larks, John Luther Adams’ Strange Birds Passing, and Jocelyn Morlock’s Oiseaux Bleus et Sauvages, as well as a performance by the group Eighth Blackbird. Listen now!

Playlist

Birdflight
Composer: Christopher Gunning
Conductor: Christopher Gunning
Orchestra/Ensemble: Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
Signum 621

Strange Birds Passing
Composer: John Luther Adams
Conductor: John Heiss
Orchestra/Ensemble: New England Conservatory Contemporary Ensemble
Mode 240

Y Deryn Pur (The Gentle Dove)
Composer: Cecilia McDowall
Conductor: Peter Fisher
Orchestra/Ensemble: Chamber Ensemble of London
Soloists: Peter Cigleris, clarinet
Somm 653

composition as explanation: intertext
Composer: David Lang
Orchestra/Ensemble: eighth blackbird
Cedille 250

Birds of Eden
Composer: Algirdas Martinaitis
Conductor: Modestas Barkauskas
Orchestra/Ensemble: St. Christopher Chamber Orchestra
Ondine 1398

Gossamer Albatross
Composer: Cameron Britt
Orchestra/Ensemble: Janus
New Amsterdam 24

The Shadow of the Blackbird
Composer: David Bruce
Soloists: Bruce Levingston, piano
Dorian 92218

Oiseaux Bleus et Sauvages
Composer: Jocelyn Morlock
Conductor: Bramwell Tovey
Orchestra/Ensemble: Vancouver Symphony Orchestra
Centrediscs 20014

Skylark Lullaby
Composer: Jennifer Bellor
Conductor: Chien-Kwan Lin
Orchestra/Ensemble: Eastman Saxophone Project
Innova 45

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Latest Extra Eclectic Episodes

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Latest Extra Eclectic Episodes

Feathered friends

Feathered friends

Get your binoculars out for this episode of ‘Extra Eclectic’! Host Steve Seel brings us two hours of new classical works about birds, including Jennifer Higdon’s ‘An Exaltation of Larks,’ John Luther Adams’ ‘Strange Birds Passing’ and Jocelyn Morlock’s ‘Oiseaux Bleus et Sauvages.’ Listen now!

1:58:59
A spring meditation

A spring meditation

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’). Listen now!

1:58:59
Beats, Bach and Beethoven

Beats, Bach and Beethoven

Composers have quoted, borrowed from, and paid tribute to earlier composers for centuries, and Steve Seel brings us some contemporary examples on this episode of ‘Extra Eclectic.’ Featured composers include Caroline Shaw, Greg Saunier and Curt Sydnor. Listen now!

1:58:59
May the fourth

May the fourth

This annual “Star Wars Day” provides the inspiration for the latest episode of ‘Extra Eclectic,’ with works about space and stars. Steve Seel also pays tribute to composer Michael Harrison, who died on April 17, with a performance of his ‘Just Constellations.’ Listen now!

1:58:58
Earth, teach me quiet

Earth, teach me quiet

On the latest episode of ‘Extra Eclectic,’ we consider the planet we call home from several different vantage points with music by Eriks Esenvalds, Martin Bresnick, Reena Esmail and more. Listen now with host Steve Seel!

1:58:59
The natural world

The natural world

Host Steve Seel continues our celebration of Earth Month on Extra Eclectic with a nod to composers who are passionate about the protection of nature’s fragile ecosystems: Steven Stucky, Scott Lee, Gabriela Montero and more. Listen now!

1:58:59
Celebrating Earth Month

Celebrating Earth Month

To celebrate Earth Month, host Steve Seel brings us modern works on themes of water on the latest episode of ‘Extra Eclectic,’ including Anna Clyne’s ‘Restless Oceans,’ Jake Runestad’s ‘Waves,’ and Maya Beiser’s setting of Olivier Messiaen’s ‘Water’ from his ‘Fete des Belles Eaux.’ Listen now!

1:58:59
The passage of time

The passage of time

It’s a rhapsodic reflection on the idea of time in the first hour of the latest episode of ‘Extra Eclectic.’ Host Steve Seel shares Chris Rogerson’s ‘Thirty Thousand Days,’ Paul Fowler’s ‘Breath’ and other selections. Listen now!

1:58:59
Women lead the way

Women lead the way

On the latest episode of ‘Extra Eclectic,’ we wrap Women’s History Month with another program showcasing how women composers are leading classical music into the future. Selections include music by Gabriela Ortiz, Allision Loggins-Hull and more. Listen now with host Steve Seel!

1:58:55
Lullabies for everyone

Lullabies for everyone

On the latest episode of ‘Extra Eclectic,’ enjoy music of nocturnal calm and comfort — often in the form of lullabies, but sometimes, dreams and night-time journeys. Listen now with host Steve Seel!

1:58:59
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