Jess Gillam and tenor Alessandro Fisher share the music they love. Alessandro Fisher is a former member of the BBC New Generation Artist scheme, and a Kathleen Ferrier award winner: a versatile performer equally at home in baroque and romantic opera, or song. His choices today include barbershop quartet, brass band music, and the voice of Fritz Wunderlich. Jess has chosen music by Coleman Hawkins and multi-BRIT Award winner Raye. Playlist: Schubert: An die Musik, D 547 - Fritz Wunderlich (tenor), Hubert Gisen (piano) Coleman Hawkins Quartet: Love Song from ‘Apache’ Fucik: Florentiner March - G ..read more

Jess Gillam swaps music with pianist James Baillieu, including works by Mozart, Bach, and Ella Fitzgerald. Pianist James Baillieu has worked with musicians including Lise Davidsen, Timothy Ridout and Pretty Yende, and has performed everywhere from Carnegie Hall to Vienna Musikverein. He is also Senior Professor of Ensemble Piano and a Fellow at the Royal Academy of Music in London. He’s brought Martha Argerich playing Schumann and a classic Bob Dylan song, while Jess's choices include Mahler and Goldfrapp. PLAYLIST: WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART – “Signori, di fuori” (Le nozze de Figaro: Act 2, Scen ..read more

Jess Gillam and soprano Masabane Cecilia Rangwanasha share their favourite tracks. South African soprano Masabane Cecilia Rangwanasha was the winner of the Song Prize at the BBC Cardiff Singer of the World Competition in 2021 and is a current BBC New Generation Artist. She’s brought a track from iconic South African artist Miriam Makeba and Maria Callas singing a prayer from Verdi’s Otello, and Jess has picked a dance of death from Saint-Saens and jazz from Charlie ‘Bird’ Parker. PLAYLIST: MAHALIA JACKSON– If I Can Help Somebody CAMILLE SAINT-SAENS – Danse macabre, Op 40 [Luben Yordandoff (vio ..read more

Jess Gillam swaps favourite music with pianist Keelan Carew, and between them they put together a boundary-pushing playlist with songs by Kurt Weill and Nat King Cole - pianistic fireworks by Busoni and Chopin, orchestral fireworks by Shostakovich and some classic Japanese jazz fusion by Casiopea. Playlist: KURT WEILL: Der Abschiedsbrief [Teresa Stratus (sop), Kurt Weill (piano)] SHOSTAKOVICH: Festive Overture [Philharmonia Orchestra, Vladimir Ashkenazy (cond)] CASIOPEA: Swear [Album: Mint Jams] MAURIZIO CAZZATI: Ciaccona [L'Arpeggiata, Christina Pluhar] CHOPIN: Ballade no.1 in G minor, op 23 ..read more

Jess Gillam meets violist Jordan Bak to share some of their favourite music. Jamaican-American violist Jordan Bak is a proud new music advocate – he’s performed world premieres of works by composers including Kaija Saariaho and Augusta Read Thomas. His debut album IMPULSE was released in 2022 and he’s performed with orchestras including London Mozart Players. His musical picks include works by Florence Price, reggae singer Koffee, and Benjamin Britten, whilst Jess has chosen a classic Radiohead track and Stokowski’s take on Bach. PLAYLIST: FLORENCE PRICE – String Quartet No 2 in A minor (3rd m ..read more

Jess Gillam meets mezzo-soprano Fleur Barron to swap some of their favourite music. Singaporean-British mezzo-soprano Fleur Barron sings everything from opera to chamber music, from the baroque to the contemporary. She is mentored by Barbara Hannigan and has performed with LSO, Czech Philharmonic, and San Francisco Symphony. She joins Jess ahead of performing Freya Waley-Cohen's Spell Book with Manchester Collective in London. Her music choices include a contralto version of Schubert's Winterreise, a traditional Uyghur folk song, and a toe-tapping melody from the musical Kiss Me, Kate. Jess br ..read more

Jess Gillam shares music with composer Laura Cannell, including a sublime Biber Requiem, new music by Kenya Grace, traditional Norwegian fiddle music and a Memphis Soul Stew! Playlist: Tchaikovsky – Piano Concerto No. 1; first movement [Vladimir Ashkenazy, London Symphony Orchestra, Lorin Maazel] Kenya Grace - Strangers John Mackey – Concerto for Soprano Saxophone and Wind Ensemble [ Timothy McAllister, ASU Wind Ensemble] Sven Nyhus – Fanitullen (The Devil's Dance) Domenico Scarlatti – Sonata in F minor, K. 466 [Vladimir Horowitz] Tarquinio Merula - Ciaccona [His Majesty’s Sackbuts and Cornett ..read more

Jess Gillam and bassoonist Guylaine Eckersley share their favourite tracks, with music by Abel Selaocoe, Pergolesi, Vivaldi, Laura Misch and a guilty pleasure from Frozen 2. Playlist: Abel Selaocoe - Ka Bohaleng / On the Sharp Side Pergolesi - Stabat Mater [Philippe Jaroussky (counter-tenor), Julia Lezhneva (soprano), I Barocchisti, Diego Fasolis] Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez - Into the Unknown [from Frozen 2] Rachmaninov - Symphony no 3 [Philadelphia Orchestra, Yannick Nezet Seguin] Vivaldi - Bassoon Concerto in A minor, rv498 [Sergio Azzolini (bassoon), L’Onda Armonica] Laura Misc ..read more

Jess Gillam and flautist Daniel Shao play each other their current favourite music. Daniel is a versatile musician, at home in the classical repertory with a number of leading orchestras, or performing contemporary music and exploring his Chinese heritage with the group Tangram. Daniel's choices include Britten, Whitney Houston, and music for the flute by Ibert. Today's choices: Britten - Dawn from 4 Sea Interludes (BBC Philharmonic, Edward Gardner) Gluck - Dance of the Furies from Orfeo ed Euridice (Orpheus Chamber Orchestra) Joanna Newsom - The Book of Right-On Tim Buckley - Song to the Sire ..read more

Jess Gillam meets jazz singer Cécile McLorin Salvant to swap some of their favourite music. Cécile is a 3 time Grammy Award-winning jazz singer and her music shows off her passion for storytelling and finding the connections between vaudeville, blues, jazz, baroque and folkloric music. She spoke to Jess ahead of her show at London Jazz Festival 2023 and picked some of her favourite voices from Maria Callas singing Puccini to flamenco star Camarón de la Isla and an air de cour by Gabriel Bataille. Jess brought along a string quartet by Caroline Shaw, a Hollywood inflected Concerto by Korngold a ..read more