Compact Discoveries

Series produced by Fred Flaxman

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One-hour unusual, audience-appealing, theme-driven classical music programs.

Compact Discoveries (R) is a series of one-hour, classical music radio programs, which, true to its title, introduces listeners to some of the most exciting and unusual compositions to be found on compact discs.

The approach is relaxed, informal and light. The presenter -- award-winning writer/producer Fred Flaxman -- shares his love of music and sense of discovery like one friend talking to another.

Fred sometimes uses humor, sound effects, personal essays, clips from old-time radio programs, and non-classical music to make his theme-based hours interesting and fun. The music is always carefully selected to appeal to the widest possible audience for classical music and to attract new listeners to the genre.

Fred's amusing themes range from "Brazilian Beats" and "Discs for Dishwashing" to "Musical Gardens" and "Best Music for Back Rubs." The programs often feature little-known composers who have written pieces that people will like on first hearing, such as Ernesto Nazareth, Kurt Atterberg, Rene Touzet, Clara Schumann, Cecile Chaminade, Tyzen Hsiao and Joaquin Nin.

Maximum scheduling flexibility is achieved by considering these programs as one-hour building blocks. They can be scheduled one or more times a week; they can be scheduled back to back to create two or three-hour blocks. Fred doesn't say "this program" when he's talking; he says "this hour," making stacking easy. Also, the program/hours are evergreens, except for those created for specific holidays and seasons of the year.

The series began as a local program on WXEL-FM, West Palm Beach, Florida. It was quickly picked up for national distribution via satellite by one of the nation's most prestigious radio syndicators. The series switched to less expensive, more convenient PRX distribution via the internet on Jan. 1, 2006.

Broadcast by stations from Manila in the Philippines to Eugene, Oregon, to West Palm Beach, Florida, the response of listeners has been 100 percent positive. For more information, including short descriptions and complete scripts for each program, go to www.compactdiscoveries.com.

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Compact Discoveries (R) is a series of one-hour, classical music radio programs, which, true to its title, introduces listeners to some of the most exciting and unusual compositions to be found on compact discs.The approach is relaxed, informal and light. The presenter -- award-winning writer/producer Fred Flaxman -- shares his love of music and sense of discovery like one friend talking to another.Fred sometimes uses humor, sound effects, personal essays, clips from old-time radio programs, and non-classical music to make his theme-based hours interesting and fun. The music is always carefully selected to appeal to the widest possible audience for classical music and to attract new listeners to the genre.Fred's amusing themes range from "Brazilian Beats" and "Discs for Dishwashing"... Show full description


253 Pieces

Order by: Newest First | Oldest First
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This Gregorian chant as incorporated in music by Liszt, Elgar, Rachmaninoff, Berlioz, Tchaikovsky, Respighi, Shostakovich, Khachaturian, and others.

Bought by 'The Sea'


  • Added: Aug 07, 2014
  • Length: 58:00
  • Purchases: 1
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This hour of music inspired by the Cinderella story includes Rossini's overture to "La Cenerentola," D'Albert's "Aschenputtel Suite," Prokofiev's "...

Bought by WMNR


  • Added: Jul 07, 2014
  • Length: 58:00
  • Purchases: 1
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An hour of Romantic period music by Samuel Coleridge-Taylor, Frederick Delius and Edward MacDowell inspired by Native Americans.

  • Added: Jun 20, 2014
  • Length: 59:00
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Composers who wrote music inspired by Shakespeare's comedy include Johan Wagenaar, Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco, Hermann Goetz, Vittorio Giannini, and...

  • Added: May 15, 2014
  • Length: 58:00
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Symphonic Variations by the Belgian/French composer César Franck, the Czech composer Antonin Dvorák, and the British composer Sir Hubert Parry.

Bought by WMNR


  • Added: Apr 23, 2014
  • Length: 58:50
  • Purchases: 1
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Fred Flaxman presents Saint-Saëns' Concerto for Cello and Orchestra No. 1 in its entirety, then his Suite, his Romance, and his Allegro Appassionat...

Bought by WMNR


  • Added: Mar 29, 2014
  • Length: 59:00
  • Purchases: 1
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Fred Flaxman presents the first recordings of Nina Rota's delightful concertos for Harp and Orchestra, Bassoon and Orchestra, and Castel del Monte:...

  • Added: Mar 16, 2014
  • Length: 57:00
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Great tunes from The Godfather, Amarcord, The Leopard, La Strada, Romeo and Juliette, Rocco and His Brothers, and 8-½. Performed by the Filarmonica...

  • Added: Mar 08, 2014
  • Length: 59:00
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Fred Flaxman presents two of Rota's four piano concertos in this hour. They are both performed by Finnish pianist Janne Mertanen with the Tampere P...

  • Added: Feb 20, 2014
  • Length: 58:00
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The hour starts with "A Time for Us" from "Romeo & Juliet," and includes "Nonetto," "Cantilena" from "Seven Piano Pieces for Children," "Intermezz...

  • Added: Feb 07, 2014
  • Length: 57:00
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The hour includes "Concerto Soirée," "Dances from Il Gattopardo" ("The Leopard" film), and "A Fantasia on Nino Rota's Themes from Fellini's Movies....

  • Added: Jan 25, 2014
  • Length: 58:00
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Famous as a film composer, Rota was equally prolific as a composer of concert music. Fred Flaxman presents examples of both genres in this hour: th...

  • Added: Jan 13, 2014
  • Length: 57:00
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The multi-talented Anton Rubinstein was the Leonard Bernstein of his day. In this hour Fred Flaxman presents his Sonata for Cello and Piano No. 1 i...

Bought by WMNR


  • Added: Dec 26, 2013
  • Length: 59:00
  • Purchases: 1
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Known mainly for his operas, Italian-American composer Gian Carlo Menotti also wrote orchestral music. This hour features his violin concerto and e...

  • Added: Dec 11, 2013
  • Length: 58:00
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This was the first opera written for TV. Gian Carlo Menotti's work enjoys more than 500 performances annually around the world. Fred Flaxman introd...

Bought by WNMU-FM


  • Added: Nov 27, 2013
  • Length: 58:00
  • Purchases: 1
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This hour was inspired by the almost simultaneous release of three compact discs from three different companies each featuring wonderful, tuneful, ...

  • Added: Oct 25, 2013
  • Length: 57:00
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"Spanish" music by French, Russian, and German composers: Chabrier, Ravel, Debussy, Rimsky-Korsakov, and Moszkowski.

Bought by WMNR


  • Added: Aug 10, 2013
  • Length: 58:00
  • Purchases: 1
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Visits to Italy inspired music by Tchaikovsky, Mendelssohn, and Wolf.

Bought by WMNR


  • Added: Jul 25, 2013
  • Length: 58:00
  • Purchases: 1
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Fred Flaxman presents Lalo's tuneful Symphony in G Minor, two Rapsodies, and three movements from his Namouna Suite No. 1.

Bought by WMNR


  • Added: Jul 14, 2013
  • Length: 57:00
  • Purchases: 1
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Fred Flaxman presents two of Lalo's most popular, tuneful works -- his Symphonie Espagnole and his Cello Concerto -- plus his little-known but deli...

  • Added: Jun 29, 2013
  • Length: 58:00