Second Inversion

by Maggie Molloy New Year, new site! Second Inversion is merging our website with our parent station, Classical KING. Starting in 2024, you’ll find all future episodes of Second Inversion through www.ClassicalKING.org. Our show webpage will be your access point for all things new music, including upcoming episodes and in-studio performance videos, as well as our full archive of Second Inversion articles and interviews.

by Maggie Molloy After years of the same old Christmas carols, the holiday hymns do start to run together. But whether you’re the world’s biggest Santa-fan or a grouchy Ebenezer Scrooge, there’s still a little magic to be found in every classical Christmas tune. On this Saturday’s episode of Second Inversion: Not Your Cookie-Cutter Christmas Carols. We’ll hear music from composers who like to bend the rules, break the mold, and spike the eggnog.

by Maggie Molloy There are a few key ingredients you need for any great New Year’s Eve. Some shimmer, some sparkle, a little champagne for your midnight toast—and of course, FIREWORKS. We’ve got all those things and more on a New Year’s Eve EVE edition of Second Inversion. Whether you’re staying in or going out, join us as we raise our glass to another year of new musical discoveries. To listen, tune in to KING FM on Saturday, Dec. 30 at 9pm PT.

by Maggie Molloy Day and night, darkness and light. This Saturday on Second Inversion: music inspired by the solstice. We’ll hear melodies of shimmering sun and glowing moon. One composer traces the mythic struggle between the sun lion and the moon bull—the long, warm days of summer and the cold darkness of winter. Plus, music inspired by the warmth and nostalgia of summer nights in Middle America…and a bass solo born out of the growling rhythms of a winter solstice in the Far North.

by Maggie Molloy Do you believe in aliens? Life forms from another planet? What do you think they look like? What do you think they sound like? We’ve got some ideas… This Saturday on Second Inversion: Alien Encounters. Hop aboard the spaceship and buckle up for the sounds of space, the music of the spheres, and even a tune or two from the Starman in the sky. Plus, one physicist’s recordings from the furthest reaches of our solar system. To listen, tune in to KING FM on Saturday, Dec. 9 at 9pm PT.

by Maggie Molloy Picture yourself walking along a snowy trail through the Alaskan forest. You’re surrounded by aspen, spruce, and paper birch trees. Snowy owls and other critters are camouflaged in the landscape. Mountains in the distance, sun beaming overhead. Your boots leaving footprints in the powdery snow. Your destination is a small, one-room cabin in the middle of this boreal forest—the Alaskan taiga. It’s a walk John Luther Adams made almost every day.

The ensemble yMusic is featured in this week’s episode. Photo by Graham Tolbert. Classical music doesn’t always have to be so complicated. There is beauty in simplicity—and there is music, too, if you slow down to listen! This Saturday on Second Inversion: Simple Gifts. From dainty macaroons to afternoons spent at the piano, we’ll hear music inspired by life’s simple pleasures. Join us as we take a moment to appreciate the little things. To listen, tune in to KING FM on Saturday, Nov. 25 at 9pm PT.

by Maggie Molloy Some music is meant to be the main event—it demands your full focus and attention. And some music…is just for ambiance. The composer Erik Satie coined the term “furniture music” in the early 20th century to describe music that blends into the atmosphere of a room. It might add a bit of color, texture, or even comfort to a space—but it’s never the main focus.

by Maggie Molloy Love, betrayal, corruption, murder—all crucial ingredients in any great film noir. And so is a swingin’ soundtrack. On this Saturday’s episode of Second Inversion: New Music Noir! We’ll hear cinematic sounds that beckon us to a world of black and white. From the dizzying twists and turns of Alfred Hitchcock’s Vertigo to the smoky streets of Aaron Copland’s Quiet City, we’ll hear music that embodies the ominous world of film noir.

by Maggie Molloy Do you believe in ghosts? Not the Halloween kind of ghosts—but spirits of the past…and maybe, spirits of the future, too. This Saturday on Second Inversion: Ghost Opera. The Chinese composer Tan Dun takes us back in time, to the shamanistic ceremonies of his native Hunan, where musical rituals launched the spirit into new life. In ghost opera, the performer is in dialogue with past and future, spirit and nature.