Virtuoso Voices(tm)

Series produced by Listener Directed Productions, Inc.

Series image

Virtuoso Voices is a collection of timely and topical sound bites from classical music's leading performers. Each sound bite (or clip) will bring your listeners an insider's perspective to the classical music they enjoy on your station. Virtuoso Voices offers classical music announcers an additional way to enhance their breaks by using the voice of the artist whose recording they're about to play on their shift.

Virtuoso Voices is an interview clip service for classical music stations, presenting today's most influential classical music performers, conductors and composers talking in 20 to 35 second clips.

These topical and evergreen sound bites will enable announcers to bring an additional insider's perspective to the music they play on their shifts.

For example, an announcer playing Joshua Bell's recent recording of the Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto could introduce it by using a clip of Mr. Bell talking about how he tries to bring a fresh sound to this very familiar work. After the clip, the announcer returns and segues into playing the recording.

The Virtuoso Voices service provides you a Suggested Host Intro to effectively set up each clip, and includes a brief Outro to help you segue to the music. Your announcers can use this copy verbatim, or as inspiration to write their own version.

Virtuoso Voices clips are versatile. In addition to music intros, you can also use them to enhance forward promotion, create compelling billboards and create content for your website.

Virtuoso Voices provides stations with a new strategy for presenting classical music on the radio by directly involving the performer in the introduction of the music. These topical and evergreen clips enable announcers to bring an additional insider's perspective to the music they introduce and play on their shifts.

Program content is taken from interviews with internationally recognized classical music performers, such as Gil Shaham, Yo-Yo Ma, Marin Alsop, Lorin Maazel, Joshua Bell, Hilary Hahn and Michael Tilson Thomas.

As of January 2010, we are offering our Virtuoso Voices Performer Clips to all stations for free. We offer three types of distribution.

-- Downloaded off our ftp site: no charge

-- Downloaded from PRX: (triple PRX points) – requires PRX station membership

-- 10 months a year, receive a CD: $100 flat fee to cover postage and handling for the year.

For more information and to see additional ways to use these clips, please visit our website, www.virtuosovoices.org.

Signing up is easy and free. To receive a short subscription form, please send an email to info (at) listenerdirect.org or call (703) 751-0342.

Virtuoso Voices™ Fundraising Service

Virtuoso Voices(tm) is also Public Radio's primary source for classical music fundraising messages.

Twice a year, we provide your station with three types of fundraising messages, with options enabling you to customize each spot to the specific sound and fundraising terminology of your station. These messages, from performers like Anne-Sophie Mutter, Sarah Chang and Jean-Yves Thibaudet, follow Public Radio's Best Practices for fundraising.

These produced fundraising messages are distributed in February and September in advance of when most stations fundraise, including the nationally coordinated drives. Stations may request custom fundraising scripts read by the performers we interview. We fill these requests whenever possible and in the order in which they are received.

Our Virtuoso Voices fundraising material is offered as a separate subscription, with fees based on market size (as determined by Arbitron) – and cover a portion of the production expenses for Virtuoso Voices.

This service includes a (minimum) of 40 fundraising messages – a combination of Custom Station Spots, Straight Read Spots, Produced Funders and Unhosted Produced Funders

-- $500 for stations with a market ranking of 1 to 50;
-- $325 for stations ranked between 51-150;
-- $150 for stations with an Arbitron market ranking of 151 and above.

Please visit the fundraising page of our website for further examples and further information. www.virtuosovoices.org/fundraising.

VIRTUOSO VOICES

"Classical Music's Virtuosos Want a Word with Your Listeners."

Virtuoso Voices is a trademark of Listener Directed Productions, Inc. Hide full description

Virtuoso Voices is an interview clip service for classical music stations, presenting today's most influential classical music performers, conductors and composers talking in 20 to 35 second clips. These topical and evergreen sound bites will enable announcers to bring an additional insider's perspective to the music they play on their shifts. For example, an announcer playing Joshua Bell's recent recording of the Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto could introduce it by using a clip of Mr. Bell talking about how he tries to bring a fresh sound to this very familiar work. After the clip, the announcer returns and segues into playing the recording. The Virtuoso Voices service provides you a Suggested Host Intro to effectively set up each clip, and includes a brief Outro to help you segue... Show full description


Additional Files

642 Pieces

Order by: Newest First | Oldest First
Caption: Catrin Finch
One of the beauties of classical music is that some things never go out of style. Use this 24 second clip to introduce harpist Catrin Finch playin...

  • Added: Sep 27, 2009
  • Length: :24
Caption: Michael Tilson Thomas
The PBS Series, "Keeping Score" returned with a series of three programs, each devoted to a single composer and one of their pivotal pieces of musi...

  • Added: Sep 27, 2009
  • Length: :26
Caption: Michael Tilson Thomas
One of the highpoints of Gustav Mahler's epic symphony – his Symphony No. 8, is a scene in the second part* of the Symphony. Three sopranos each t...

  • Added: Sep 27, 2009
  • Length: :28
Caption: Michael Tilson Thomas
More than 350 musicians are heard on the recording of the Mahler Symphony No. 8 with the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra conducted by Michael Tils...

  • Added: Sep 27, 2009
  • Length: :30
Caption: Michael Tilson Thomas
Mahler's Symphony No. 8, known as the "Symphony of a Thousand," calls for about 350 musicians on stage – a massive orchestra, three choirs and eigh...

  • Added: Sep 27, 2009
  • Length: :27
Caption: Michael Tilson Thomas
Mahler's Symphony No. 8, known as the "Symphony of a Thousand," calls for three choruses, eight vocal soloists and a massive orchestra. Despite th...

Bought by KTXK


  • Added: Sep 27, 2009
  • Length: :26
  • Purchases: 1
Caption: Catrin Finch
Bach's Goldberg Variations – now there's a piece of music where we could have a practically endless conversation, starting with the first few notes...

  • Added: Sep 26, 2009
  • Length: :24
Caption: Catrin Finch
Harpist Catrin recorded the Bach Goldberg Variations. Musical purists will likely raise some type of fuss over the "Goldbergs" being played on the...

  • Added: Sep 26, 2009
  • Length: :25
Caption: Catrin Finch
Up-and-coming performers dream of getting their big break. For harpist Catrin Finch, her big break came with the help of a royal music lover - His...

  • Added: Sep 26, 2009
  • Length: :20
Caption: Catrin Finch
What do harp players talk about when they get together to gossip and talk shop? If harpist Catrin Finch is any indication, they talk about living ...

  • Added: Sep 26, 2009
  • Length: :27
Caption: Charles Dutoit
Composer Igor Stravinsky did not necessarily want us to hear or feel emotion in his music. According to conductor Charles Dutoit, Stravinsky was a...

Bought by BYUradio/KUMT/KBYU-FM


  • Added: Jul 27, 2009
  • Length: :20
  • Purchases: 1
Caption: Charles Dutoit
When Gustav Holst wrote what would become his most famous work, "The Planets," he did not include Pluto in the seven movement suite. Coincidently,...

Bought by BYUradio/KUMT/KBYU-FM


  • Added: Jul 27, 2009
  • Length: :23
  • Purchases: 1
Caption: Charles Dutoit
Everyone has a view on the "youth of today," including conductor Charles Dutoit. When it comes to today's youth, he's not a grouch, but he would l...

Bought by BYUradio/KUMT/KBYU-FM


  • Added: Jul 27, 2009
  • Length: :28
  • Purchases: 1
Caption: Charles Dutoit
Everyone, from the TV networks to Madison Avenue, wants the attention and especially the dollars from the 20 and 30-somethings. Even our orchestra...

Bought by BYUradio/KUMT/KBYU-FM


  • Added: Jul 27, 2009
  • Length: :26
  • Purchases: 1
Caption: Thomas Stacy, Credit: Chris Lee
The English horn is a specialty instrument -- a longer, deeper version of the oboe. One of the English horn's best known moments comes with the lo...

Bought by BYUradio/KUMT/KBYU-FM


  • Added: Jul 27, 2009
  • Length: :23
  • Purchases: 1
Caption: Vladimir Spivakov, Credit: Valery Plotnikov
Mission Statements were once the rage, but you don't hear them talked about much these days. Here's a good one from conductor and violinist Vladim...

Bought by BYUradio/KUMT/KBYU-FM


  • Added: Jul 27, 2009
  • Length: :23
  • Purchases: 1
Caption: Thomas Stacy, Credit: Chris Lee
Thomas Stacy was the long time English horn and Oboe D'amore player with the New York Philharmonic. The Oboe D'amore is a longer, deeper sounding ...

Bought by BYUradio/KUMT/KBYU-FM


  • Added: Jul 27, 2009
  • Length: :20
  • Purchases: 1
Caption: Thomas Stacy, Credit: Chris Lee
As the English horn player for the New York Philharmonic, Thomas Stacy says he's been privileged to work with some of the finest conductors from se...

Bought by BYUradio/KUMT/KBYU-FM


  • Added: Jul 27, 2009
  • Length: :26
  • Purchases: 1
Caption: Vladimir Spivakov, Credit: Valery Plotnikov
It's hard to get through the day without hearing at least one or two ads for car insurance - from the "good hands" people to that little green geck...

Bought by BYUradio/KUMT/KBYU-FM


  • Added: Jul 27, 2009
  • Length: :23
  • Purchases: 1
Caption: Thomas Stacy, Credit: Chris Lee
Thomas Stacy was the long time English horn and Oboe D'amore player with the New York Philharmonic. He usually sat in one of the back rows of the ...

Bought by BYUradio/KUMT/KBYU-FM


  • Added: Jul 27, 2009
  • Length: :26
  • Purchases: 1