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: Jean-Yves Thibaudet
Pianist Jean-Yves Thibaudet has an all-Gershwin CD includes the well known Piano Concerto and Rhapsody in Blue. It also contains Gershwin’s “Varia...

  • Added: Jun 28, 2010
  • Length: :26
Caption: Mark O'Connor, Credit: Jim McGuire
Mark O’Connor’s “Americana Symphony” is largely based on the melody from his best known composition, “Appalachia Waltz.” He believes America’s ear...

  • Added: Jun 28, 2010
  • Length: :23
Caption: Jean-Yves Thibaudet
There’s an undeniably American element running through much of George Gershwin’s music. There’s also something almost street-smart about his music...

  • Added: Jun 28, 2010
  • Length: :22
Caption: Yuja Wang
Some say Ravel’s “La Valse” is a tribute to the famous Viennese dance form – while others say Ravel creates something quite dark, especially when t...

  • Added: Jun 28, 2010
  • Length: :18
Caption: Yuja Wang
Pianist Yuja Wang has a CD that includes a Theme and Variations and two orchestral works that have been transcribed for piano. But that’s not the ...

  • Added: Jun 28, 2010
  • Length: :21
Caption: Bryn Terfel, Credit: Catherine Ashmore
Three of the main figures are brought together in the final scene of Mozart’s Don Giovanni – they are the notorious, lustful and unsympathetic Don,...

  • Added: Jun 28, 2010
  • Length: :24
Caption: Mark O'Connor, Credit: Jim McGuire
Composer Mark O’Connor says there’s a “stir fry” element that defines American music. People from different lands stirred their own musical experi...

  • Added: Jun 28, 2010
  • Length: :28
Caption: Bryn Terfel, Credit: Catherine Ashmore
Bass-Baritone Bryn Terfel has been a very bad boy. Actually “Bad Boys” is the title of his CD, where he performs arias by opera’s most despicable v...

  • Added: Jun 28, 2010
  • Length: :25
Caption: Bryn Terfel, Credit: Catherine Ashmore
The new production of Tosca at the Met caused an enormous uproar of epic proportions. While the new production pleased some, it inspired near riot...

  • Added: Jun 28, 2010
  • Length: :22
Caption: Anna Netrebko, Credit: Annie Leibovitz
In the Puccini opera, La Boheme, Mimi is usually portrayed as the shy and innocent seamstress. Soprano Anna Netrebko views Mimi’s character very d...

  • Added: May 30, 2010
  • Length: :17
Caption: Anna Netrebko, Credit: Annie Leibovitz
Got a cold – feel one coming on? Russian soprano Anna Netrebko has an over-the-counter remedy she guarantees every time. Use this 20 second clip t...

  • Added: May 30, 2010
  • Length: :20
Caption: Anna Netrebko, Credit: Annie Leibovitz
In soprano Anna Netrebko’s recording of Russian Romances, she introduces us to the not-as-well-known sides of two well-known composers – Rimsky-Kor...

  • Added: May 30, 2010
  • Length: :26
Caption: Anna Netrebko, Credit: Annie Leibovitz
The world’s best musicians are also lifelong students. They’re always looking for new insights into the music they perform. Russian soprano Anna ...

  • Added: May 30, 2010
  • Length: :20
Caption: Piotr Anderszewski
Polish pianist Piotr Anderszewski champions two composers from his country – Frederic Chopin and Karol Szymanowski. Like Chopin, Szymanowski’s mus...

  • Added: May 30, 2010
  • Length: :22
Caption: Piotr Anderszewski
Pianist Piotr Anderszewski is a champion for the Polish composer Karol Szymanowski. He says it’s not music that reveals itself on first hearing. ...

  • Added: May 30, 2010
  • Length: :22
Caption: Piotr Anderszewski
Chopin is considered Poland’s greatest composer, and he’s also a national hero. Polish pianist Piotr Anderszewski feels that Polish connection and...

  • Added: May 30, 2010
  • Length: :33
Caption: Piotr Anderszewski
Mozart Piano Concertos are a regular part of Piotr Anderszewski’s repertoire. He loves the music but questions the notion that concertos feature a...

  • Added: May 30, 2010
  • Length: :25
Caption: Piotr Anderszewski
Think Chopin, and maybe you think of something virtuosic and heroic. When pianist Piotr Anderszewski thinks Chopin, virtuosic and heroic are the l...

  • Added: May 30, 2010
  • Length: :20
Caption: Carol Wincenc, Credit: Cori Wells Braun
The “Poem” by Charles Tomlinson Griffes is, in a way, one of the quintessential American works for flute and orchestra. But flutist Carol Wincenc ...

  • Added: May 30, 2010
  • Length: :14
Caption: Carol Wincenc, Credit: Cori Wells Braun
Flutist Carol Wincenc has been around – standing in front of the orchestra, playing a wide range of chamber music with the who’s who of classical m...

  • Added: May 30, 2010
  • Length: :15